The CD release for Akimbo’s Navigating the Bronze packed the Comet to the brim last night, giving all three acts the pleasure of playing to a huge crowd. The openers, Android Hero, played hard, fast punk with lyrics about not enjoying fucking your girlfriend, and also about fucking other people’s girlfriends. People seemed to enjoy their dirty, punk mouths.

There’s nothing quite like a band who’s playing like there’s no tomorrow. For the Assailant, there are only two more “tomorrows” before they call it quits as a band, so they played like they wanted to be remembered. To put it simply, they killed it. I don’t think I’d ever seen them perform with as much energy. With this show they succeeded in solidifying themselves in my memory as one of the top Seattle metal bands of the last five years. If there’s any consolation in it, at least it’s always more satisfying to see a band extinguish themselves than fade away into lameness. Go check them out at the S.S. Marie Antoinette on Sunday as part of the Carousel Festival while you still have the chance. The are also playing a final show on September 21st at a yet unconfirmed location.

I’ve said enough about Akimbo recently, but I guess I can say a bit more for good measure. They punish faces like it’s nobody’s business, and this show was no exception. They blasted through almost all of Navigating the Bronze in album order, transforming the packed crowd into a chorus of bobbing heads and fist pumps. The real treat tonight was their closing cover of “Breed” by Nirvana, which made the entire bar go ape shit, throwing beer all over the place. The best part was that the song fit into their set without seeming at all out of place. Akimbo. The new grunge. Who’d have thought?

photos by Kellen Anderson