1354 West Wabansia Ave, Chicago, IL 60642 | 773.227.4433

Fun Burger Time: A Preview of Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol at the Hideout

If music assumed a human form who specialized in breaking skateboards and eating Marlboro sandwiches for breakfast, he would look like Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol.

To classify this band any way other than “really f***ing cool” might be overkill but we’ll give it a shot.

Leo Lydon (lead vocals and guitar—no relation to John Lydon but they’d likely be friends if they knew each other) and company are bringing their metal to the Hideout on May 2, fresh off of the March release of “Big Dumb Riffs.” Lydon has mastered fuzzy basement metal riffs that inspire fun-but-dumb dance moves, while Sean St. Germain (drums) absolutely shreds his drumset into ruinous delight with the help of Aaron Metzdorf (bass/vocals) on the rhythm section.

 

It’s well known in the metal community in Austin (where the group is from) that RBBP specializes in making metal as much fun as humanly possible. It’s good-time metal, almost just very hard rock ‘n’ roll, but with a tongue-in-cheek lack of seriousness in the best possible way. A lack of seriousness in the subject matter—but definitely not in the composition. Metal musicians tend to be some of the most talented available, and RBBP is no different. They are genuinely virtuosic, but they take their expertise and smash it together with downright hilarious lyricism and this is why they put on such a fun show.

That’s not to say they never get serious. “In a Jar,” the concluding track from “Big Dumb Riffs,” is a great example. It’s a melodic ballad that strays about as close to indie as it does metal and feels like a song that should be listened to in the rain at Pitchfork.

But on the same album, we also have “1-800-EAT-SHIT” and “Peanut Butter Snack Sticks.” The titles of these tracks comprise most of the lyrics respectively, and they’re both awesome.

 

Read more here!

Skip to content