Apes Of The State and Pigeon Pit

APES OF THE STATE and PIGEON PIT return to Nottingham once more with support from Cheap Dirty Horse. Apes of the State is an independent Lancaster, PA based folk punk band. Apes of the State was born from the post-rehab bedroom folk punk project of singer/songwriter April Hartman in 2015. In her words: “I picked up a guitar and started writing about s*** instead of doing drugs about it.” Their sound is a distinct blend of classic folk punk, emo, pop punk, folk, and bluegrass with attitude fueled vocals spitting clever lyrical wordplay. The current lineup consists of Dan Ebersole on mandolin & electric guitar, Mollie Swartz on bass & violin, & Ian Cornele on drums. Despite their growth Apes of the State remains fiercely independent and practices a DIY ethos. They hope to serve as an example that you can achieve success outside of the traditional music industry framework. In April’s words, “we don’t beg for anyone to pay attention to us and give us opportunities – we create them for ourselves and our community.” Pigeon Pit is a songwriting project from Olympia, WA which blends psychedelic country, DIY pop punk and early 2000’s era folk punk through the maximalist storytelling of frontwoman Lomes Oleander. Largely playing houses, DIY venues and generator shows, Pigeon Pit has been touring for the past decade in various combinations, from intimate solo performances to their current 6 piece line up, gaining mainstream recognition while holding onto their anti-capitalist values. Their new LP “Crazy Arms” focuses on grief, attachment, trans experience, and the triumph of the human spirit with a raw and unique sound. Cheap Dirty Horse are a big rowdy queer trash folk-punk band from Nottingham. Blending acoustic and electric guitar with banjo, accordion, bass, drums, and sometimes mandolin, they write energetic, joyful protest music. They sing about trans rights, dead billionaires, and the importance of doing the things you love. They sing about grief, washing machines, and stealing shit. Angry, but always empowering.