by OP Callaghan.
Goon: A violent criminal, gangster, or enforcer paid to threaten, intimidate, or hurt people.
GOONS! A local rock-n-roll surf nightmare of mischief and mayhem. One of the most fun shows that I’ve seen!
Sunday night at No Fun in Troy, featured locals GOONS! with the incredible Jon Spencer. Celebrating the release of their new album “Never Go Back,” the band ripped through a 12-song set of three-chord slapstick rock-n-roll. Proudly embracing their influences, GOONS! powerful performance, with plenty of hijinks, fake bombs, “F***-you’s,” and boos, was a hot, sweaty, non-stop party.
Kicking off with “Crime Spree” and inviting the packed No Fun crowd to “Go f*** yourselves”, the band unleashed a fury of surf rock controlled chaos that never slowed down. Band members, known as GOON 1, GOON 2, GOON 3, GOON 4, and GOON 5, launched into “Parchment Farm,” “Junkie For Your Love,” and “Stick Em Up,” and whipped the crowd into a carnival-like frenzy. The band’s chemistry is palpable as they danced, pranced, and pranked the overjoyed crowd on an otherwise quiet Sunday in downtown Troy. GOONS! closed their set with a cover of “Money” and made it rain with counterfeit $100 bills.
Headliner Jon Spencer, backed by the rhythm section from Woodstock NY’s “The Bobby Lees,” turned up the heat even more, pulling heavy from their most recent release, “Songs Of Personal Loss and Protest.” This 3-piece powerhouse churned out a gritty, distorted, swampy set of over-the-top blues rock. The take-no-prisoners approach whipped up the already rabid crowd, with songs like “Fanfare,” “Vermin Attack,” and “Knock Em Out,” this ultra-tight combo was a rollercoaster of sonic bliss.
