The first time I saw Iron Lung was in storage unit somewhere in Phoenix called the Wall Street. I mainly went to the show to see Iron Lung and Magnum Force, but my friends kept mentioning this band called Gay Kiss who was also playing the show. I always make an effort to watch every band playing, so I figured I would just decide on my own what I thought about Gay Kiss when they played. As they set up, I noticed that one of the guys in the band was a former member of the AZ power violence band Get Destroyed. I was lucky enough to see Get Destroyed when they did a show in San Bernardino a few years ago, and they absolutely demolished the venue they played at. Needless to say, I had high expectations for Gay Kiss, and they delivered. Glass bottles thrown in every direction, a solid pit, and very high energy performance from the band’s front man.
Photo by Chris Wilcox
I was sold on Gay Kiss that night, and ever since that show I have kept up with band’s activities. Recently, they released a new full length titled Preservation Measures on Sorry State Records, and it is by far, one of the best displays of punk/noise punk you will probably ever hear. This full length is the kind of shit they should be treating recovering meth addicts with. It’s in your fucking face and drilling through your brain for every second that you have album on. Preservation Measures was meant to be played at a high volume and perfectly accompanies everything from drug binges to a nice walk in the park. Let’s face it, Phoenix AZ isn’t good for much other than racist policing, painting all infrastructure beige, budget cuts for education and private prisons. So with this in mind, gems like this cannot go ignored – Gay Kiss is one of the best (if not the best) AZ bands right now and you would have to be a fucking idiot or a cop (which are one and the same) to not listen to this album in its entirety every day when you wake up and every night when you go to bed. So don’t be a fucking cop and listen Gay Kiss on every occasion!!!
