Staring Problem

A Thursday night at Latebar I saw Staring Problem. It was for a CD release and tour. I could not get anything for it yet....I barely had enough to get past the door. They got shirts now too. There will be another time, they are local. I like bands that work their town a lot and they are now fully local having to be originally from Carbondale, Il. So I see Staring Problem with Lauren's full blonde hair. On this one gig at Ultra Lounge when she had the Depeche Mode shirt I think the black was still hanging on....what was the relevance of that anyway? Hmmm....a random memory sparked from the present moment of seeing them live. And they pile on from there....the Township gig, the Township gig you missed, the Whistler show....you missed. And now Latebar with like minded friends like Philly Peroxide and Scary Lady Sarah. I'm not sure I saw William there. Any way, each show is different and this one has me sharing this moment with all these friends. And the venue is just the right place to welcome them. I know they are playing their new songs. They played the one they ended their Township night. In the coolest of bass solos a string breaks on the bass and thats how I remember the song but I don't know the name of it....and it's awesome...longer than two minutes. I would love for longer Staring Problem songs. I'm happy to see them play and tour around. Their dark aesthetic emits casually, without effort. Music that does not wear the corset so much as they make you wear it for them. Staring Problem is not "beach goth" but Lake Michigan goths go see them. They have an effortless subcultural appeal. Perhaps it's just me, but I think they can see fans across many subcultures. It's like they can walk into Costco without showing the card. So back to this dark aesthetic lean they got. They don't make it scary sounding. They are cool and comfortable and you do the moving. They make you at ease in expressing what you are. And so here they were in front of a heavily goth crowd at Latebar. They fit right in.