Going outdoors with Screaming Females, Shellshag at Don Giovanni Records showcase

To spend the last Saturday of summer outside in beautiful weather is a must. But to get live music with the sun and warmth is even better. Throw in some punk and indie rock sensibilities and you get last weekend’s Don Giovanni Records showcase at Boyd Park in New Brunswick, New Jersey. With the Raritan River as a stunning backdrop, the awesome forces of Screaming Females, Shellshag and six other bands were quite a treat.

Brooklyn’s Shellshag are a brilliant duo of drummer Jennifer Shagawat and guitarist John Driver. Shagawat plays drums with a feverish abandon. Often looking possessed by percussive gods, she is a blast to watch. Driver holds his own on guitar and their primal sounds are quite catchy.

New Brunswick-based Screaming Females were the headliners with good reason. Leader and guitar God Marissa Paternoster was as explosive as ever. Asking the crowd to come in close as did Shellshag, Paternoster, drummer Jarrett Dougherty and bassist King Mike shredded and sliced through the beaming sunlight for a raucous end to the day.

Among the other bands in attendance, I also photographed the striking indie sounds of Mal Blum and the rockin’ Nude Beach.