Social Distortion’s Punk Rock Ethos Buoyed St. Louis Fans

Social Distortion swept through St. Louis toward the end of their month-long tour, and avid fans of all ages descended upon The Pageant to revel in nearly 50 years of cowpunk rock ’n’ roll at its finest. The band revolutionized much of what we know of punk rock today and has shaped countless bands throughout the years. To see this band, in whatever iteration its current lineup, perform in person is a special treat.

Punk rock bands are known to either burn out fast or stay and endure. Fortunately, Social Distortion has stayed and endured, of course, with bumps along the way. All the better. And they’re still making music. The band sprinkled in a few newer tracks, such as “Tonight,” “No Way Out,” and “The Way Things Were,” on this Wednesday night. They opened the night with “Born to Kill” that they’ve been performing live since 2018, yet it still hasn’t made it to any album. Seems pretty punk rock.

The once rich, brown flat top of lead vocalist, sole original member, Mike Ness’ earlier days is now grayer, with Ness wearing it slicked down. But the vocals? Those have not lost Ness’ fierce grittiness he’s had from the get-go.

They ended their 90-minute concert with two classics, “Story of My Life” and “Don’t Drag Me Down,” which Ness prefaced the last song by saying it might just be more relevant today than ever and that Social Distortion does not discriminate and believes in all immigrants.

The relatively young in comparison band, Plague Vendor, formed in 2008, opened the night with a powerful punk, 45-minute set. Self-described as graveyard groove, frontman Brandon Blaine kept the energy on blast throughout while the band ripped through several of their catalogue, including “Anchor to Ankles,” the fun, throwback “Black Sap Scriptures,” and “I Only Speak in Friction.”

See many more photos from the night here: https://bit.ly/SocialD25cz