Cox Arena is about to be assaulted. The Distillers, a band that makes you want to pull out the bondage pants and Mohawk-inducing hair spray from your punk yesteryears, hits town Nov. 26.
The smeared lipstick and obvious bra strap is in the not-so-distant future. Brody Armstrong, the 22-year-old singer and Australian-native wife of Rancid’s Tim Armstrong, is a force to be reckoned with. She sneers the lyrics of their newest album, “”Sing Sing Death House,”” and although she sounds eerily like Courtney Love circa Hole’s 1994 release, “”Live Through This,”” The Distillers’ sound still remains fresh.
Armstrong, who was once a member of punkers Sourpuss, isn’t just a chick with a mic. She is all over her guitar, and drives songs like “”City of Angels”” and “”Sick of it All.””
Ryan, who likes to keep his surname a mystery, is on the bass. The man who actually worked at a record store a month before meeting The Distillers is like the princess in a punk fairytale. Guy works at store, plays a mean bass guitar in spare time, hooks up with The Distillers … and all’s well that ends well with “”Sing Sing Death House.””
Andy, who only uses his first name and whose resume lists such experience as drummer for the Nerve Agents, is more than qualified for this gig. His sound, coupled with Armstrong and Ryan’s, is distilled bliss.
“”Sing Sing Death House”” is the second full release from The Distillers. Longtime fans will notice that Rose, additional vocalist and guitarist off the first album, is MIA. It’s just the three Distillers now, and Brody, Ryan and Andy give no reasons to complain.
In true on-the-road shenanigans fashion, the band has had some good times on their national tour. The Distillers have gone high-tech, and addicts (or fans) can get their fix any time — the band maintains an online diary on their Web site, in which they log the craziness about being on the road.
The diary is complete with behind-the-scenes info on the parties, on-stage horror stories (Armstrong unintentionally indecently exposed herself at a recent show) and random musings.
The Distillers bring along some luggage with them: Garbage, promoting their newest release in four years, “”beautifulgarbage,”” and No Doubt, who have shamelessly promoted their album, “”Rock Steady.”” (Did anyone catch No Doubt on “”Dawson’s Creek””?)
Garbage puts on a rather compelling live show due to vocalist Shirley Manson, who possesses the stage with a powerful presence. She has yelled at screaming fans, thrown things at them and basically captivated thousands of people. Manson also details life on the road in a live journal on the Garbage Web site.
No Doubt (who, according to Manson’s diary, dressed as pirates in New Orleans and got a little liquored up) may seem like excess baggage to many — the No Doubt-Garbage-Distillers triad is quite a combo. But “”Rock Steady”” features some of the band’s better songs and makes for a good show nonetheless.
The Distillers
Performing with Garbage and No Doubt
At Cox Arena on Nov. 26
7:30 p.m
