Arsenik/ Zorn
Cousin Danny's
5001 Market St.
Philadelphia
March 11, 2026
Perspective is everything. From mine, a two band show is a blessing. It’s uncommon and almost always gives you exactly what you need. If you are at all unclear why, please refer to my previous piece here. For Eric from Zorn, it was a result of just every single promoter and local being unable to get involved with the gig set up for the Philly date of Texas band Arsenik’s tour. He’d even invited me to play when I messaged him asking if the show was really only two bands, although I was only clarifying because I couldn’t believe my good fortune. Most everyone I talked to at the gig was appreciative of the show’s brevity; it’d give us all some extra time to drink and socialize after.
Eric was stressed, having just returned from a trip to Colombia and given no time to promote, that not enough people would come. At one point he hilariously asked me, “Do you think Black Flag ever had these problems?” The median age at Danny’s a lot of the time I would say is about 31, and a lot of us who regularly hang out there are too old to really want to have shows in our houses anymore, but there are tons of young punks in Philly who will. With that will come younger bands, more available bands, I think. We just gotta link with them.
Promoting their 2025 demo, Arsenik plays raw, bass-heavy, d-beat punk with guttural crust vocals. Their dedication to the form is exemplified by a cover of Anti-Cimex’s “Only In Dreams,” that somehow makes the song even more raw than the original. A couple of their songs had drum breaks, a tradition I love seeing manifested in all forms of music, but especially punk. They’re the kind of band that doesn't have any pretense or pomp surrounding their performance; they were clearly just here to kick some ass and I bless them for it. Before they played, I got to have a bit of a chat with their bassist Nes, a very friendly and mild-mannered guy. I wish them the best on their tour.
ARSENIK - Demo (2025) | ARSENIK - Bandcamp
Without much time passing at all, Zorn was ready to rock. A two act bill with a band like Zorn closing the night, who after a decade of existence have a dedicated following, means that fans are going to get a full serving from their faves. A kind of opposite of Arsenik, Zorn fully embraces pageantry and showmanship, often utilizing fog, makeup, horror effects, and everyone’s favorite, a homemade coffin that singer Eric often emerges from at the start of their performances. Basically, imagine if Alice Cooper was into metal-infused raw punk. Honestly, he probably is and he should take them on tour.
Alongside the evil aesthetic and riffs, Zorn also love drum breaks and aren’t afraid to put the pedal to the metal in a time where a lot of bands are still beholden to peaking at mid-tempo mosh riffs while chalking it up to “taste.” While I do believe that we are returning to a time that prioritizes speed, knowing how to groove will always be key. But why can’t we do both, damn it? Over their 10 years of life, Zorn never stopped doing either one, often pairing black-metal style vocals and fast tremolo-picked riffs over four-on-the-floor mosh parts. They played for about 30-35 minutes if I had to guess, but the nature of the two band bill had only fired the audience up, leaving many (myself included) yelling for more.
