Show Review: Human Impact, CNTS and Sorry Babe at The Wayfarer in Costa Mesa 5/21/25

It was a Wednesday night in Costa Mesa and I was reflecting on noise rock legacy as I hoped with figers crossed that the Knicks would beat the Pacers. I think over ten+ years had passed since I had last seen Chris Spencer level Union Pool in Brooklyn with UNSANE and with Made Out Of Babies opening. It was kind of a legendary show in my mental mythology of gigs I have seen, even surpassing a very cool time I saw him play Coney Island High back in the day. 

Unsane and Cop Shoot Cop are legendary New York bands to me and many others, so it seemed not only super fitting to have the Knicks on the tv at the sparsely but passionately attended mid week event here in a best kept secret little cool venue in SoCal. As it was, they lost last minute and Spencer rolled his eyes in solidarity at me and another bummed out dude I met and was getting along with who was rooting for them with me (who I now realize was Jon from the killer band Sandrider). That will be a funny moment for me to remember. Hey, us New York to Cali transplants are often surrounded by Lakers and Warriors or even Clippers fans, so it is what it is. As for Jon -who is from Washington- he just told me that Indiana is kind of a boring state, haha. 

Anyway, I was fuckin' psyched to get the night off work and see Human Impact. All their records are incredible. Imagine the barrage of UNSANE meets the sort of arty edgy side of Cop Shoot Cop but also this momentous and dissonant melodic side almost akin to Jesu but way darker. You feel like you are fighting for your life but also so very alive in the music at the same time, a very physical sense of pushing through waves or emotion and determination. Gone Dark is a crucial listen for modern noise and experimental metal fans.  

Sorry Babe opened and got things underway with some solid mostly mid tempo noise rock meets punk. They had solid chemistry and some humorous stage banter. They covered Shellac and it was kind of well intentioned as a tribute to Steve but also sort of obvious and their own material was more exciting to hear. That said, I enjoyed them.

CNTS were next and my ears are honestly still destroyed and ringing from them as I write this a whole ass night later. Love that heavy SG punked out sound. Very sassy and super high energy, just totally locked in. They really killed. The band kind of reminded me of like Karp, Bronx and Locust afterbirth splashed across the faces of the unsuspecting. And they had some ripping leads as well. 

If you haven't had a chance to see Human Impact yet you are missing out. Make sure to also grab their records. The band are a seismic experience live. I have been taking a few weeks off from music blogging as my day job has been very draining and I was feeling pretty down, so this show was hella inpiring. To see these lifers give it their all on a sort of meager night and just totally deliver the goods kicked my ass in just the right way. Cooper and Spencer also just have terrific chemistry and give a real sense of camaraderie on stage together. Destroy to rebuild, indeed. 

Jim Coleman is nothing short of a wizard and the rhythm section knew exactly how much to pummel or open it up and groove. I spoke a little bit to Jon Syverson before the show about their tour thus far and of course started randomly talking about my cats like I always do to strangers. 

#noiserock #costamesa #humanimpact #ipecac #noiserock #copshootcop #cnts #thewayfarer