Live Shots

The So So Glos

Bands worth your time meet three criteria. First, they look like they're enjoying what they are doing. Second, they're good at it. Finally, they're not embarrassed by what they do. This is all a long way of saying that New York's So So Glos not only meet the first three criteria, but also have that fourth ineffable quality that makes for the difference between "meh" and "fuck yeah." To look at the fourpiece, you'd never think they'd pull it off. Really, two of them could pass for either extras in an MTV reality show or for relatives of Andrew Dice Clay. But when they play, it's like the Buzzcocks on meth, or early Doughboys – also on meth, although the So So Glos are certainly more American sounding, like maybe a bit of Material Issue or Map of the World or some other band that disbanded before the guys in the band were born. Seems pretty easy when you break it down like that, but if it were that easy everyone could do it. And they can't or don't. Credit where it's due.