“Don’t need your money
or the right occasion
I need a thread
when I’m on the run.”
Post-punkers Thus Love have released a rousing self-empowerment anthem: a swaggering glam-punk number called “Put On Dog” (via Captured Tracks). Taking strong cues from The Damned, the New York Dolls, and Pixies, this raucous trio of trans artists (Echo Mars, Lu Racine, and Nathaniel van Osdol) hail from the small hamlet of Brattleboro, Vermont. The fiery track is a frenzy of guitars; snarled, sexy vocals, and joyful confidence. Putting your own stamp on your personal style and carry it with flair, is the message, and we are loving it.
“In 2023 self expression is still a challenge,” says the band. “In the 1920s, ‘Put on the Dog’ was a term coined to express putting on your finery and dressing to the nines. From the old twenties to new twenties, we’re bringing it back, but for the gays this time.” Glory hallelujah!
The video, directed by Min Soo Park, is a delightful romp through NYC: a wonderful BDSM-flavoured satire of the 1% taking their designer pooches for a stroll, as a gimp-masked canine sub is paraded through lower Manhattan on a leash by a blue-haired socialite, whipping around corners for frenzied make-out sessions and guitar breakdowns à la New Rose. The spectacle is certainly intriguing someone mysterious – where will these dreamers end up? Why, a Brooklyn bacchanal at Alphaville, of course!
Go on an outing with these hot rockers below:
Van Osdol describes the music of THUS LOVE, their friendship, and their tight-knit artist community in Brattleboro as an ‘ever-changing organism.’
“I think vulnerability changes. We’re just relearning, and we’re growing together. We’re reacting to what happens, and to other changes that are happening in our lives and in our personalities.” The band hopes they can play a role of inspiration for young misfits searching for kindred spirits.
“It’s the role of the artist – especially as a performer – to bring that vulnerability, that care for each other and that honesty,” adds Marshall. “Displaying that for people gives people power; it makes them feel seen, it motivates them, it makes them feel good, and it makes them feel like they can do stuff themselves.”
You can stream and purchase “Put On Dog” here:
In February, THUS LOVE will be zipping across the pond to the UK to support Dry Cleaning and Dehd on tour. They’ll return to their homeland to perform at NYC’s New Colossus Festival in March. For more information, check out the tour dates below.
Follow Thus Love:
THUS LOVE – 2023 TOUR DATES
- 01.21.23 – The Stone Church – Brattleboro, VT (with support from Lahnah, Prune)
- 01.22.23 – The Stone Church – Brattleboro, VT (with support from Carinae, Tilden)
- 1.31.23 – Future Yard – Birkenhead, UK (Independent Venue Week)
- 02.01.23 – Yes (Basement) – Manchester, UK (Independent Venue Week) – SOLD OUT
- 02.02.23 – Sebright Arms – London, UK (Independent Venue Week – Matt Wilkinson Night) – SOLD OUT
- 02.04.23 – Komedia Studio – Brighton, UK (Independent Venue Week) – SOLD OUT
- 02.05.23 – Strange Brew – Bristol, UK (Independent Venue Week) – SOLD OUT
- 02.08.23 – Merleyn – Nijmegen, NL
- 02.09.23 – Toekomstmuziek – Amsterdam, NL
- 02.10.23 – Grauzone Festival – The Hague, NL
- 02.11.23 – Supersonic – Paris, FR (free show)
- 02.14.23 – Vicar Street – Dublin, IE (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.15.23 – Mandela Hall – Belfast, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.17.23 – Barrowlands – Glasgow, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.18.23 – Stylus – Leeds, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.20.23 – Invisible Wind Factory – Liverpool, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.21.23 – Rock City – Nottingham, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.22.23 – O2 Academy – Sheffield, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.24.23 – Albert Hall – Manchester, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.25.23 – O2 Institute – Birmingham, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.26.23 – O2 Academy – Bristol, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 02.28.23 – The Tramshed – Cardiff, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 03.01.23 – Chalk – Brighton, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning) – SOLD OUT
- 03.03.23 – The Roundhouse – London, GB (supporting Dehd, Dry Cleaning)
- 03.04.23 – The Windmill – London, UK
- 03.9.23 – 3.13.23 – The New Colossus Festival – NYC, NY