Photo: John McKeg

Victor! Fix the Sun wsg Native
Oct. 15
The Intersection (Front Lounge), Grand Rapids
9 p.m.
$5

Album: “Person, Place or Thing” (Friction Records)
Genre: Post-Punk
RIYL: At the Drive-In, Hot Snakes, Refused


“We’ve all been friends for pretty much our whole lives,” said Ryan Martin, guitarist/vocalist for post-punk band Victor! Fix the Sun.

Martin and bassist Patrick Boylan were childhood friends, while Martin and drummer Jeff Kraus had played together in previous bands.  Victor! Formed in 2004 in Traverse City, but it was two years ago that Victor! moved, as a band, to Grand Rapids.

In these five years, Victor! has had a variety of accomplishments: it has toured all over the Midwest and East coast, it has opened up for Planes Mistaken for Stars (a favorite band of theirs growing up) three times, and put out two albums – “Retractable Claws” in 2006, and “We,” a split EP in 2004.  Its latest release, Person, Place or Thing will be released on vinyl via Friction Records this October.  Like fellow Friction band Paucity, whose album Deer Bird Bear Ship came out in September, Person, Place or Thing was recorded by Christian Kremo and Matt Younker at The White Lodge.  The result is a crisp recording, suited for loud volumes. 

“There are a lot of heavy grooves,” Martin said.  “A lot of the album was focused around grooves, a drum and bass connection, with guitar layered overtop it and sporadic vocals where they could be placed.”

Lyrically, Martin uses the band as inspiration.

“Sometimes, we’ll write a song and the emotion the song brings out is what I write about,” Martin said.  “I also write about friends and family, things that have happened to us as a band, tour stories…”

“We Come the North Woods,” for instance, is a track about friendship, and fans of the band that have supported it and its career  from Traverse City to Grand Rapids.

Victor! live is loud and impactful, and the set moves through without banter or downtime.  It works best with crowds comprised of music-lovers who are there to see a raucous show, not a delicate recital.

“I feel like a high-energy band is a band that can’t do anything between songs but take a drink of water and keep going,” Martin said.  “Once we start, we don’t stop.”

Catch Victor! Fix the Sun at The Intersection (Front Lounge) on Oct. 15.  They’ll be joined by Native, and Person, Place or Thing can be purchased on amber or maroon vinyl (with mp3 download code) at the show.