Live review: Pansy Division live at The X-Ray Arcade

Cudahy WI – 16 Jun 2023

Lookout! legends and gay icons Pansy Division shake up the Midwest.

I never would have seen Pansy Division if it wasn’t for Descendents, Circle Jerks, and Adolescents. I was bound and determined to see the punk tour of the year, and the most convenient show for us was in Milwaukee, about a five hour drive from our Grand Rapids home base. Since we were traveling that far anyway, we decided we might as well make a weekend out of it. I did most of my growing up in rural Wisconsin, and always enjoy going back. 

With Mark, the drummer from local punk favorites The DUI’s as our tour guide, we were able to take in a bunch of beer and music. We caught a Brewers game, and a handful of bonus bands at various punk dive bars throughout the city. The highlight of our bonus bands had to be Pansy Division on Friday, June 16th at The X-Ray Arcade in nearby Cudahy. I love the X-Ray and have been there several times over the last few years. It’s a punk owned bar/arcade/venue that hosts a wide variety of mostly all ages shows and events. You should definitely swing in for a PBR if you’re in the area. 

We missed the first opener Rat Bath, but caught maybe 20 minutes of Chicago’s Bev Rage & the Drinks. I was alternately amused and horrified. The band is fronted by a seven foot tall guitar playing drag queen named Beverly Rage. With her high heels and enormous green/blond wig, she was quite a sight to behold. I think I enjoyed about half the songs, but overall the band was pretty entertaining. 

Speaking of entertaining, Pansy Division took the stage with very little fanfare. They were doing a midwest weekend with additional stops in Minneapolis and Chicago. It was my first time seeing the Lookout! legends, and they did not disappoint. I’m sure most of you are well aware of Pansy Division, but for those who are not, they are an openly gay pop punk quartet from San Francisco, founded in 1991. Maybe aggressively gay would be a better way to describe them. While certainly not the first openly gay punk musicians, they were probably the first to write pretty much exclusively about gay stuff. 

The majority of the songs are tongue-in-cheek, catchy fun. The lyrics would make most of our mothers blush, but they generally just made me laugh. (I also laugh imagining the soccer moms that took their teeny boppers to see Green day in 1994, only to hear the opening act sing about fisting and rim jobs.) Each member was dressed in a solid color. Co-founders vocalist/guitarist Jon Ginoli and bassist/vocalist Chris Freeman were in pink and black respectively. (Freeman eventually stripped down to a black top and sequined skirt.) Token straight lead guitarist Joel Header wore red and drummer Louis Illades white.

A little bit of R rated choreography occasionally added to the fun, as did the friendly between song banter. Songs like “Fem in a Black Leather Jacket”, “Dick of Death”, “The Cocksucker Club”, “I’m Gonna Be a Slut” and “He Whipped My Ass in Tennis (So I Fucked His Ass in Bed)” had the audience singing along. Not surprisingly, it was among the most diverse crowds I’ve seen at a punk show. Seeing Pansy Division live might be as close as this straight old guy gets to participating in a pride event but, I must say, I really enjoyed it!

Confessions of a merch whore: Nothing really caught my eye, and I figured I was going to spend a bundle at the previously mentioned Descendents/Circle Jerks/Adolescents show, so I just drank a ton of reasonably priced High Life.