Hardcore Punk from Baltimore With Sick Move
If you’re unfamiliar with Sick Move, they’re a hardcore punk band from Baltimore, Maryland, who (among other accomplishments) were picked by our beloved record reviewer Paul Holstein as putting out his favorite release of 2024. Paul listens to thousands of releases, so to be picked as number one is quite the feat. With that in mind, I gave their album Intrusive Thoughts a listen and I have to say I really enjoyed it. No song is too long; all are under three minutes, all are hard and fast, and all are best played loud.
I was able to meet up with In Spite Magazine’s Band of the Year on a gloomy Sunday for a very Baltimore afternoon. We met at Chapterhouse Tattoo and walked to Zeke’s Coffee for the interview. If you know anything about Baltimore outside of TV’s The Wire, you know Charm City is fueled by Zeke’s. We don’t think much of Starbucks in the greatest city in America.
Dick: So In Spite Magazine Band of the Year—congratulations! Any idea how Paul found you?
Matt—Sick Move: Yeah, we feel so honored to be picked. No, we have no idea how he found us. I think he might have come across our Bandcamp.
Dick: Do you have any upcoming shows?
Matt SM: Yes, we are playing a Mosh for Meals benefit show on August 30th at the Depot in Baltimore with MARROWED, Supreme Commander, Sonic Creeps, and Fear of God.
Dick: It seems like Baltimore has a big hardcore punk scene. Who are some of your contemporaries that we should know about?
Bob SM: What do you mean by contemporaries?
Dick: Bands that are not broken up yet.
Bob, Matt, and Dave SM: Oh, we love Luxury Teeth and Fear of God. There are so many: Rabid City and Meth Rats are both great.
Dick: These are hardcore bands?
Matt SM: Yeah, hardcore punk.
Dick: Where do you guys usually play around here? The Otto Bar?
Matt SM: Yeah, we have played at the Metro and Otto Bar, but we play at Pedal Pushers more often. It is a bike shop and they have some really great shows there.
Dick: So you got a new tattoo. What is it?
Dave SM: My dog, she passed away.
Dick: Oh man, I’m sorry to hear that. That is a great reason to get a tattoo. Can you tell us a bit about her?
Dave: Yeah, she was a great dog. Her name was Lozee Rose. She was a pitbull and the sweetest dog ever. She was named after the song by The Draft, a side project of Hot Water Music in the mid-2000s. We rescued her from the local SPCA, and she was with us through the birth of all 3 of my kids. Family members would say dumb shit like, “You better watch your dog around the kids; pitbulls are known to bite kids…” but I knew she wouldn’t, and she never did. I taught her how to play frisbee, and we’d spend hours every day playing catch. Lozee was the best dog, so kind and trusting of people.
Tattoo Brett Burnham at Chapterhouse Tattoo in Baltimore. Photo courtesy of David Gregg
She died in October 2023 just as we were putting the finishing touches on the record. It happened really fast. Found out she was sick and dying from cancer on Friday; by Monday it was time to put her down. One year later I reached out to Brett Burnham at Chapterhouse Tattoo in Baltimore to zap a memorial of her on my left leg. That’s the side she stood on when we’d go on walks. I had been a fan of Brett’s art for years and knew he was the only guy I wanted to do the tattoo. It’s the perfect memorial to Lozee Rose; he killed it.
Dick: He did indeed—it’s a great tattoo. My deepest condolences on your loss. But I’m going to try to lighten this up. Where are you from in Baltimore?
Matt SM: We are kind of all over now. I live in Baltimore County in Catonsville.
Dan SM I live in DC.
Dave SM: I live in Annapolis, so I am a poser.
Bob SM: I live down the street. I walked here.
Dick: My partner is a public defender for children here in Baltimore City. Have any of you been the victim of a crime in Baltimore?
Bob SM: I have. I got mugged.
Dick: Oh shit, what happened?
Bob SM: I don’t know. I woke up with my head hurting, and my pockets were empty, and I didn’t have any shoes.
Dick: Yeah, um, sorry to hear that. On another note—what’s in your pockets?
(Everyone had the same shit: wallet, keys, phone—boring stuff, till we got back to Bob.)
Bob SM: All I got is this and some beef jerky. You want some? (He proceeded to open a very large buck knife)
Dick: I took a piece of beef jerky. I guess you’ll be ready if you get mugged again!
Bob SM: I don’t think so. Last time they stole my knife.
Check out SICK MOVE on their Bandcamp and Instagram.
They also have a new live record coming out SOON—KEEP AN EYE ON Dcxpclive.com
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