The Exbats at 191 Toole, 1/24/2020

The Exbats are a perfect example of the incredible passion, and energy of the burgeoning Tucson music scene. I saw them for the first time at 191 Toole, opening for AJJ and Tacocat. I have certainly encountered many openers who simply are not able to hold the crowd’s attention, especially when opening for beloved bands like AJJ, but this certainly wasn’t the case with the Exbats. Their rowdy punk tracks and energetic performance had the audience moshing with reckless abandon in not time. The trio are all certainly very talented musicians; I was especially impressed by the fact that the lead singer was also the drummer, as those two roles seem like a very challenging combination. The songs “2027” and “I’m a Witch” stood out to me, and I was pleased to find that they hit equally hard recorded as they did live when I added them to my Spotify playlist after the show. The Exbats were an excellent choice to kick off AJJ’s 2020 tour, and its band like them that make me feel extremely lucky to live in a city with such a fun music scene. I recommend their music and their shows to anyone who wants to see what our local scene has to offer. I hope to see the Exbats again soon and am excited to see what they accomplish in the future!