Nova Twins at Baby’s All Right
April 19, 2022
To get to the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn from the Jersey Shore, you really have to want to. Any combination of car, trains, or boats will cost you about 2-hours plus, if you’re lucky. I rode the ferry to Manhattan, switched to another ferry to South Williamsburg, and walked the rest. I really wanted to.
My first exposure to Nova Twins was SXSW 2022. I had heard their killer song, “Antagonist” on a pre-SXSW playlist and immediately put them on my must-see list at the festival. Their style is a mix of in-your-face street punk and rap, loaded with guitar and drum blasts and a beat that can’t help get your attention.
Hailing from London, they played the midnight show at the British Embassy venue at the Cedar Street Courtyard in Austin. They were awesome, and I think one of the best performances at SXSW 2022. I promised myself that if they came to the New York area, I’d make best effort to see them.
After SXSW, they went home to play a few shows in London and in Ireland. They returned to the US for a tour that included a couple handfuls of shows in the Midwest and in LA, and one show in New York, which I attended last night.
Baby’s All Right is a relatively small venue in Brooklyn. A sign says “Occupancy by more than 280 Persons is Dangerous and Unlawful”. The venue at SXSW was much larger, and I was curious if the smaller venue would cramp their style any.
Nope. They were outstanding. The crowd, which was heavily skewed toward the LGBTQ demo (we’re talking Brooklyn), might as well have been a million people at Wembley Stadium. Loud, raucous, energized. It was a love fest. The Nova Twins couldn’t have been happier to end their US tour here, and the crowd just ate them up all show long. It was great, especially if you’re into the pogo-ing and occasional mosh pit.
To paraphrase that famous Leon Trotsky quote, “You may not be interested in the Mosh Pit, but the Mosh Pit is interested in you”. So, where do you put a mosh pit in the midst of 280 people? Uh, pretty much everywhere. It was a mess. Lead guitarist and singer Amy Love was the chief instigator, using hand gestures to get things moving on the floor. Occasionally, she’d look over the crowd to conduct a body count, but it was (mostly) injury-free. I think. Mostly I had my eyes closed.
The Nova Twins banged out one great song after another. Amy Love and bassist Georgia South make a terrific duo, blasting out guitar licks that rip you up. Drummer Tim Nugent pounds away on the percussion, keeping up with the raw, punchy style that the Twins crank out. This band puts out a TON of sound. And the duo’s lyrics are anything but subtle. Their last number, “Taxi” features the endearing chorus,
I’m gonna take your crown,
I’m gonna, I’m gonna bleed you out…..
I’m gonna burn it down….
For tiny little people, the Nova Twins are in-your-face raunchy, nasty, and rough. They sound like you shouldn’t fucking mess with them. At all.
They remind me a lot of those throwbacks, Insane Clown Posse. Only cuter. And Black. With lots of hair. And Cockney accents. OK, maybe it’s a stretch, but they definitely have that same swagger and nasty attitude.
And they put on a hell of a show.
And they sold me this cool t-shirt.
