Thank You Turnstile (For Letting Me Be Myself)

Four years ago I learned about a band called Turnstile after seeing a music video for “Bomb” & “I Don’t Wanna Be Blind” directed by legendary skateboard photographer, Atiba Jefferson.

It took a few years, but I finally saw them play earlier this year and I walked away thinking, I need to see them again as soon as possible. Safe to say I made sure I did see them again as soon as possible, and no rain was going to stop me.

As Hurricane Ian devastatingly terrorizes Florida and the southeastern United States, the northeast has received a fair share of rain. What a great time for an outdoor show at the Brooklyn Mirage, where Turnstile kicked off the latest leg of their TLC tour, with JPEGMAFIA and Snail Mail. A loaded bill which is one of many examples of how Turnstile is transcending hardcore as they play with and are influenced by a variety of genres. 

I’m not really one for mega arena shows, I much prefer smaller, indoor venues. However, Turnstile has long since outgrown the small, DIY venues of their past (while maintaining respect within the hardcore community). This mega venue came fully equipped with massive screens curving behind the stage, which were used brilliantly by cameras filming the crowd and band to create an immersive audio-visual experience.

The rain poured as the band opened up with “HOLIDAY” off of their latest record. Frontman Brendan Yates erupted into his high energy twirl and the show was on. Brendan is a true performer who has grown into the band’s rising fame with ease. His electric dancing and commanding voice will leave jaws dropped, while the performances of the rest of the band, including the wizard drumming of Daniel Fang and heavy bass of Franz Lyons, keep the heads banging. The rain wasn’t stopping anyone, neither us nor them. All were soaked but stoked.

Surprises were in store throughout the set. During “ALIEN LOVE CALL” a saxophone was brought out, and the player of said saxophone knew how to work it. At one point, Daniel took a drum solo for 5 minutes or so, which I would describe as a “face-melter” in the words of Dewey Finn. Shirt off, and dripping in a combo of sweat and rain, he brought us into his double bass drummed world. I also must mention Brenden’s occasional hand in the percussion section, and Franz’s singing contributions on several songs including “Moon”.

The band closed the show with an extended version of “T.L.C.”. As the standard play time of the song ended, the backing synthesizers continued for a time before Brendan came back in with the vocals “I want to thank you for letting me see myself. I want to thank you for letting me be myself”, after the rest of the band had exited the stage. He hovered into the crowd and was carried through as he shared the microphone with devoted fans, who thanked him for letting them see themselves. Thank you Turnstile, for letting me be myself.