Photos: Monotonix's Sleaze-Rock Acrobatics Last Night at Europa

Rebecca Smeyne

Of all the things we here at Sound of the City emphatically endorse--Janelle Monae, the Mountain Goats, Matt & Kim, Ohio sports teams, responsible reporting of M.I.A.'s Tamil Tigers Tweets--the frantic live antics of Israeli stunt-garage trio Monotonix are high up there, and not just because the band's scheduled to terrorize this year's Siren Festival. Moreso, it's because every Monotonix performance is an endless routine of sleaze-rock acrobatics, including, but not limited to: rafter swinging, two-man somersaults, raucous crowd-surfing, bass-drum balancing, unsightly onstage mooning, crotch candle-waxing, garbage-can lobbing, fire. Last night, lager-bathed well-wishers were once again treated to an up-close-and-personal proximity to frontman Ami Shalev's pubic-hairy chest at Greenpoint's Europa, where Rebecca Smeyne photographed the band. Sure, "Longview" must've been fun when Green Day played small shows earlier this week, but did any of you get to caress Billie Joe's nips?

Rebecca Smeyne