I’ll say off the bat that I’ve been listening to this band since high school, so you know already that I’ve got a personal connection to them. Of course back then their best song was called “spliff song” so it’s not hard to see why I liked them; the reasons I like this band now are very different from back then. Show Me The Body is a New York based three piece whose sound has been consistently developing into a progressive avant-punk aesthetic, equipped with dark imagery and basement scenes galore. Frontman Jay Cashwan wields a 4-string banjo and an intense (almost threatening) stage presence, as if to say “come on, I dare you to fuck with my band,” dredging up images of a dark and sinister underground New York untouched by anything remotely clean or bourgeois. But don’t let the muddy vibes fool you: although an undoubtedly lo-fi element is present, SMTB has been harnessing an increasingly specific and progressive sound, and they execute it perfectly on the stage. You can catch them this year on their tour, with hip-hop up & comers Ratking, this Summer (Asbury Lanes on June 11th is their closest date to home). Hear their track “One Train” below. – Jake Saunders
