#Devastantem

[kaccvcate]

Today in Hattiesburg drama, Dan Brewer, JJ Floyd, Olivia, and Jelly Danger have started a rumour that I'm back in the closet so that people will start misgendering me (as if anyone ever refers to me correctly here, I tell everyone who asks that I'm a man, including all these cats, and basically just get called a woman or they/themed anyway.) Olivia and JJ ( @devastantemband ) are both trans so this is amazing to me, I've been out since I was 12 and have of course never said otherwise. This town really is the worst shithole on earth.

[devastantemband]

DEVASTANTEM | YOU DESTROY EVERYTHING

[kaccvcate]

A conversation I had with my dad a couple years ago when I was in Rong. Rong is a band my dad and I both sang in - you can listen to it here, or read about it here.

Devastantem (@devastantemband)

Stretch Arm Strong

[kaccvcate]

Last night I saw Devastantem play again (those familiar with my work may recall them as the arch nemeses of my band, Rong.) I have literally never had a good time at a Devastantem show, and if the music wasn't so goddamn good I'm sure I'd quit showing up.

Some punk bands (like the Sex Pistols) made it part of their act that they hated each other. Devastantem takes this a step further by trying to inspire the audience to hate them as well (especially, in my experience, the more of a fan you are.) At a Devastantem show, the air is so thick with barely restrained violent tension that it's hard to breathe. If there's a crowd, there's sure to be at least one fistfight. Invariably, someone in the band or their entourage tries to get me to punch them, though I've yet to oblige any of them (especially since in the case of certain band members, I suspect this is possibly part of some strange courtship ritual invented by their primitive tribe.)

Once I made a Devastantem patch for my vest, and when their lead singer JJ Floyd saw it, they dramatically demanded I remove it on the spot. It was unlike anything I've ever experienced with any other band I've hung out with, so of course the dynamic fascinated me. You can't judge them too harshly, of course - given that they were raised by skunk apes in the wilderness of the Mississippi Delta for 12 years, running naked through the bush and eating mostly wild psilocibin mushrooms and raw possum meat they hunted with their bare hands. That is until, one fateful day, while following the tracks of a wounded armadillo, they came across a dive bar, outside of which an old black dude was singin' the blues. Someone handed them their first Jack 'n Coke, a blunt, and a beat up old Washburn, and they realized their true destiny: to be a rock star. After that, they learned to wear human clothing, and to play a mean guitar, and I'm told they're closely studying our custom of bathing in hopes of acquiring it in the future.

Their sound is grungy, goth, and psychedelic. Somewhere between the Misfits and Bauhaus, but not quite like either. It's got a traditional sound at the same time as being new and unorthodox, a balance that few bands can find. Their lead singer has the most incredible voice, and nearly every song has a remarkably unique and creative structure and sound. They don't really sound like anything else, if I'm being honest. So despite their lead singer being quite possibly the world's biggest asshole, I can't help but keep coming back for more - it's like really spicy food, or BDSM, or getting a tattoo. It just hurts so good.

Princess JJ ostentatiously forbade me from linking to their band if I talked about them online, since I'm just one of the many unworthies, but word on the street is they have a Youtube and a Facebook page.

[kaccvcate]

have you ever heard of the band MS paint? i saw them in my home town a couple months ago and I think they're from hattiesburg! they were real good live i liked them a lot

Everyone knows everyone in Hattiesburg! I never heard them live, but I've heard them on Youtube.

My favorite bands I saw in Hattiesburg were Sloppy Dragon Jackknife, Devastantem, and Mattie and the Yurts, but there's so many good local bands that it's hard to keep track (which is amazing when the local scene only has about 50 musicians.) My uncle Scott Panther's band Amazing Energy is pretty wild, they don't practice, just take lots of psychedelics and improvise. I have some older local bands on my Youtube page, but I don't have the White Trash Supermen on there, or the Stumpgrinders, which I also recommend highly.

[kaccvcate]

I ran into a bit of a stumbling block, because so far as I know my family never registered with the government, so I don't qualify for immersion classes to learn Muskogee. That's okay though, I understand why they didn't, and I don't feel as if it makes me less what I am. I got some great resources from the language department to get me started, and everyone was very nice! I learned my name is Kaccvcate (Kaccv rhymes with matcha and cate is like "latte" with a ch instead of an L sound.) I also learned Devastantem is Hopvnnwecv (Howanweesa) and Rong is Etvfvccv (Et uh fuh chuh.) After that I got overwhelmed and started crying (I am a baby.)

Hopefully if I stay here long enough I'll meet someone very cool who can teach me without my name being on a list, cause I don't think I have enough proof to qualify. My great great grandma was born around the 1850s-ish, she never had a birth certificate or spoke to the government willingly for any reason, which is pretty based when you think about it. I'm going to be a brave boy and ask my grandma, but I'm pretty sure she didn't have any proof she was native but who she was, and that's good enough for me.

[kaccvcate]

Top 10 Punk songs; go!

1. Weather Girl - the Grumpies

2. Food Sickles and Girls - the Mummies

3. My Girl Dressed in Black - Teengenerate

4. Customer - The Replacements

5. I Am A Girlfriend - Nobunny

6. I Love Lucy - The Mobile Stragglers

7. In Frisco - The Pop O Pies

8. Extra Extra - Finale

9. All This and More - Dead Boys

10. Baron Samedi - Devastantem

in no particular order

[kaccvcate]

Hello! I saw your Hattiesburg comic and gonna ask. Do you know anything else abt the Hattiesburg punk scene? I’ve been having a hard time finding anything going on pink related

The best shows are at the Tavern and the Switchyard, but right now all the best bands are broken up because we're all struggling. Devastantem broke up because JJ's bandmates were mad about the way he treats girls, Zach Ross (lead guitarist/mastermind of Sloppy Dragon Jackknife) is recovering from major brain damage after a suicide attempt. I actually just got three friends to agree to start practicing but we haven't met up yet. Three people in the local scene died from suicide in the last year or so, so it's been hard for everyone. Plankers and the Two by Fours got "cancelled" because when Plankers was in high school and turned 18, he didn't break up with his 16 year old girlfriend (they had been together for three years by that point.) These kids look for any reason to tear apart musicians they think are better or more successful than them, and it's something that's been going on in Mississippi a long time (even Elvis Presley sold "I Hate Elvis" pins.) If it was the 50's they would probably "cancel" us for being satanic and playing black music.

I know Gatorfight also got cancelled, supposedly for something their guitarist did, but I can't remember what it was cause I remember thinking it was complete bullshit - they're one of the most popular bands, and when everyone in a small southern town knows you, they start making shit up, and lots of idiots believe it, cause we got lots of idiots. Luckily like me, they are also more popular on the internet, so they're still recording stuff and doing one show a year. One day I dream of opening for them 😻

Genuinely the social dynamics fucking suck here, I'm dreaming of making it big so we can have our own venue where we prioritize the music and not the popularity contest.

[kaccvcate]

Hihihihi I just wanted to say that I’ve really struggled to fully find my fit in any subculture, and your specific brew of punk mixed with hippie mixed with furry has resonated with me more than anything else. Ty for making your art and cataloging your personality and adventures it makes me feel seen and loved <333 even though I am a huge poser compared to your awesomeness <3333333 /genuine

Only members of Devastantem are posers. Go forth knowing that you Are Cool and Unfuckwithable 🤟

[kaccvcate]

I drew this a couple weeks ago, and I gotta say, in light of recent events, I don't think anyone in Devastantem deserves to borrow my amp. lol

[kaccvcate]

I finally got to see this band, DEVASTANTEM, play on Saturday, nearly a year after hearing them on Youtube for the first time. Atrocious vibes and the crowd was rife with drama, 10/10 and I'll see y'all at the next one. Left to right: Matt Cockrell, Daniel Brewer, and JJ Floyd.

Hear them on Youtube here, and check out their social media links in the video description. Give 'em a follow, 'cause JJ has been workin on their album, and I bet it's gonna be sick.

Edit: Apparently JJ has a Tumblr page they never update @devastantemband

[devastantemband]

DEVASTANTEM | CAROLINA/HEARTLESS

[devastantemband]

DEVASTANTEM | AUSTRALIAN SLANG (BROKE B!TCH MIX)

[devastantemband]

~DEVASTANTEM~ Nick’s Ice House, May 2019

[devastantemband]

If you like our stuff, make sure to check us out on Facebook!

There you’ll find a video of our full set, recorded at practice after a long night in New Orleans where we were supposed to play but the venue owner fucked us over! 

www.facebook.com/devastantem

[devastantemband]

Falling Apart-Devastantem, Nick’s Ice House, May 2019