Here is a date to circle: Sunday, August 2, doors at 5:30 PM, Empire Underground in Albany. An early start on a Sunday is worth noting — it means you can make this one and still get home at a reasonable hour.
Gang Green is hitting Albany on the final night of a four-date East Coast run celebrating the 40th anniversary of Another Wasted Night, their 1986 debut that helped define crossover thrash and hardcore punk. The tour also features Boston punk legends The Fus, Tree, and Worm.
The Braintree, Massachusetts band has been at this since 1980. Their track “Alcohol” has been covered by Metallica, the Dropkick Murphys, and The Meatmen. They shared stages with the Misfits, Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, and Bad Brains. Miami New Times once called them “the kings” of reckless Boston hardcore. The records hold up.
What makes this run worth your attention: frontman Chris Doherty suffered a stroke in October 2018, and his return to the stage in 2022 after partial paralysis is the kind of story that changes how you hear these songs. He put it plainly when announcing the tour: “Since the stroke, getting back on stage is really all I have thought about…It definitely feels like Gang Green, and these songs are being played like they never have before.” That is not marketing language. That is somebody who means it.
Empire Underground is the club-sized room at 93 N Pearl St in downtown Albany — 500 capacity, which puts you close to the stage no matter where you plant yourself. For a band whose whole catalog fits the feel of a room that size, that is a feature, not a compromise.
Tickets
Doors at 5:30 PM. Support from The Fus, Tree, and Worm. Grab your tickets below.