LIVE: The Julie Ruin - Kathleen Hanna and co take the audience alive and kicking.

Lost in a quiet speakeasy theater glamour, of chandeliers and a warren of tiers set out like a deep red wedding cake, a brightly colored crowd of eager energy and mixed age denominations has gathered. Here below these nooks and shadows of what used to be known as the Camden Palace, a band named 'The Julie Ruin' are about to take to the stage of the current KOKO club.

The Julie Ruin are no ordinary band, and there is a reason that the crowd still grows and swells on the floors below. They may not be a household name across the board, but these guys can pack a venue with the best of them. Fronted by an un-dwindling legacy, whose reputation precedes her in the world of punk and beyond, taking the center mic on stage in a sparkling leotard, is none other than Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna. Yet by no means is this band diminished by the fact or teeth of her icon, what Hanna does here is lead with equal grace to those who share the stage; and it's a ship of strength that she leads under those spotlights tonight. Alongside her, baring arms of a perfectly imperfect reality of musical beauty and sweet quarrelsome insurgence, is bassist (also of Bikini Kill fame) Kathi Wilcox, the high energy outlet that is Kenny Mellman playing the keyboard, Sara Landeau lending a fulfilling expertise on the guitar, and finally with Carmine Covelli on the drums.

The New York quintet formed in 2010, and toured sporadically for 3 years before releasing debut album 'Run fast', and then followed the latter with their latest, 'Hit Reset', released in July of this year. The stage is cracked wide open with Hanna's blistering vocals and the demanding beat of musical urgency that impels a satisfyingly unapologetic power anthem of autonomy 'I Decide'. It is followed closely and relevantly with the jaunty synth-infused grind 'I'm Done', that hurls a big and very needed 'Shut the hell up' out into the world for the trolls that might yet think their opinions are revered somehow.

Kathleen and co pepper their set with amusing stories, anecdotes and healthy portions of personality that can draw you into believing you're somehow witnessing a world class punk performance in your friends living room. Though Hanna is known for a somewhat brusque admittance of honesty, listening to it is probably only hard depending on your level of either empathy or neanderthal. She covers a little balladry toward the end of the set with a breathtaking rendition of Apt #5 and the gently rousing 'Rather not', separated only by a showcase of shared talent between her and Mellman, in a cover of Courtney Barnett's 'Pedestrian at Best'. 'Mr So and So' is also a highlight, not only for it's deliverance, but for lyrics that address and feed mockery back onto the magnified self-aggrandizing of men who claim feminism only to further marginalize and devalue its true patrons and cause.

Hanna makes the stage both her podium and playground, dancing at free will all night, the queen of sit-up-and listen while commanding a show packed full of levity and defiant energy that any more light-footed punk artist could learn from, and their fans thoroughly enjoy. The Julie Ruin have this cogent dynamic and wield a weighty prerogative in shades of a lush contrast, between being the flint of a blade edge of societal veracity and a flurry of candy colored sneering punk-rock fun. There is no sedation to be found in their sedition and that's for sure. With that being said, it might well be time to mention, they did finish up the night's encore with the ever anticipated riot grrl chorale, Bikini Kill's banner waving 'Rebel Girl'!

The Julie Ruin is a enlightening delight to watch from start to finish, and they're full of fire and joy. Here's to hoping we will all hear more from them in the coming years.

To find out more about The Julie Ruin, please visit their website: www.thejulieruin.com

Kathleen Hanna is an amazing artist and human being, who defies a chronic illness to deliver performances like the one above. Kathleen has battled Lyme disease and secondary Babesia infection, (similar to malaria) and we are lucky to have seen her on stage tonight, it could have very easily been impossible. You can also follow Hanna's blog at www.kathleenhanna.com or find a source to watch the documentary 'The Punk Singer', directed by Sini Anderson, detailing her life, career and battle with Lyme.

#THEJULIERUIN #BIKINIKILL #KATHLEENHANNA #PUNKROCK #HITRESET