“Open your legs!” a tall, strikingly angular young man shrieks into my face, globules of spit hitting my skin like hot kerosine more so than rain, before careening into the dense crowd; everyone is dripping with sweat, absorbed, and somewhat aroused, baking alive in the tin-foil lined basement and prepared to be the first fatalities at the world premiere of Model/Actriz. Violent and decidedly enigmatic, their debut two-track EP, 100€, is an visceral exhibition of dominance and cognizance that refuses to be ignored.
Like the heartbeat of a feral animal, 100€ looms in with pulsing muted guitar on “Heavy Breather,” an impassioned display inspired by Freud’s psychosexual development theory. Guitarist and drummer, Jack Wetmore and Ruben Radlauer (from Los Angeles garage staple BOYO) respectively, remarkably capture a wide scope of dissonance and noise with live belligerence, with control and spontaneity. Frontman Cole Haden’s voice snaps from seductive croons to frantic rage, spewing venom like “My romance with your mother country says I’m your father now” on “Pimp,” which compares American treatment of Syrian refugees to prostitution. Haden, who has also quickly garnered a reputation for his entrancingly personal, avant-garde electronic solo project, says that the group expects listeners to explore and level with their own primality in response to what they hear.
A better understanding is reachable through watching session footage of the three darkened figures, fittingly cryptic and granular, at their debut infestation of Steady Grounds (at the Fridge). Should you happen to find yourself on the West Coast this July, you may be lucky enough to catch Model/Actriz creeping their way up and down California; as of right now, Instagram is the best way to keep track of whether or not they’ll be pillaging a town near you. However, for the locals, it’s unlikely that you’ll see these Berklee boys (they capped the semester with a live performance on the Berklee Internet Radio Network) until they hit the books again this fall. For now:
You can experience 100€ for yourself right here. How do you feel?
