Peerless pop: Social Studies at Hemlock Tavern. All photos by Jen Snyder.
By Jen Snyder
I used to have this ridiculous tendency to annually denounce everything I was into and hurl myself into a new persona. This resulted in a confusing metamorphosis from punk to hippie to goth to indie rocker to grunge fan to glam kid. It was entirely exhausting – what with all the costume changes and makeovers to my album collection. It takes a bit of growing up – and a touch of laziness – to realize that it’s really those standby good friends and classic tunes that really get your heart pumping. Like Social Studies.
On Saturday, Jan. 31, I found myself praising Social Studies once again for its commitment to just plain excellent pop music. During its set at the Hemlock Tavern, the outfit revitalized my love for its 2006 release, This Is the World’s Biggest Hammer, drumming out the songs perfectly. The show included all your old favorites, including the epic “Sparrow,” which twists and turns for minutes without losing any of its innovation and heat.