Thirty years in, The Erotics show no signs of making it easier on themselves. The Albany outfit returns to Empire Underground on Saturday, October 24, for a hometown show built around Just What the Devil Ordered, their 14th studio album, released in February on Cacophone Records. The Rockpit rated it 9 out of 10. Maximum Volume Music gave it 8.5. It is the kind of album that makes the case for showing up.
About the Show
Mike Trash (vocals/guitar), Johnny Riott (drums), Doug Reynolds (guitar), and Gary Borgues (bass) have been fixtures in the Capital Region rock scene since the late 1990s — the kind of band that has outlasted a hundred trends by refusing to follow any of them. Just What the Devil Ordered (Cacophone Records, February 2026) was produced by Don Fury, a producer with roots in punk and hardcore, and works squarely in the vein of sleaze rock and glam-punk with noir and horror-inflected edges. Reviewers situated it alongside Vain, Faster Pussycat, The Dogs D’Amour, and L.A. Guns.
The Rockpit called the album “The Erotics fully realised, full of fire, and absolutely certain of their own vaulted mythology.” Maximum Volume Music described it as “lived-in, like it’s been dragged through back alleys and spat back out,” and praised its theatrical yet gritty approach and its commitment to authentic attitude over irony. The eight tracks run from the opener “Necro City” through the closing “11 Dead Roses”; Trash also adds harmonica to one track, less of a surprise given the album’s gutter-glam ethos than it might first appear.
Trash was direct about the record’s approach in a Metroland interview earlier this year: “We didn’t want any filler. Just straight to the point.” Drummer Johnny Riott: “We’re not writing garbage songs or just playing the same songs from 30 years ago.” The band also appeared at the Thomas Edison Awards at Proctors in 2026; Trash told Metroland he had long wanted to play that stage. The October 24 date comes ahead of a 2027 UK run already booked in Newcastle, Edinburgh, Ilkeston, and Sheffield. No support acts have been announced for October 24.
Venue & Logistics
Empire Underground is at 93 N Pearl St in Albany, a 500-capacity club. The Rockpit noted the record “sounds like a band in a room, right next to you,” a description that applies equally well to the venue itself. The show begins at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets
No ticket price was available from sources at the time of publication. Buy tickets