Bad Nerves Brings UK Punk to San Francisco
Bad Nerves | August Hall San Francisco | 5.22.25
Are your ears still ringing?
On Thursday May 22, Bad Nerves closed out the club show leg of their American tour at August Hall in San Francisco, with support from The Alive and Spiritual Cramp. The three hour show immediately turned it up to eleven and never let off the gas. Each set got louder and bolder and the crowd got wilder and rowdier with every song.
The Crowd Livens Up With The Alive
California-based rock band The Alive started off the night with a tight 30 minute set that got the crowd warmed up and ready to rock. Composed of Bastian Evans (guitar/vocals), and brothers Kai and Manoa Neukermans (drums/bass), the band urged fans lingering in the back of the venue to move to the front and get into the music. The crowd started to become more alive with every song, and by the time the band left the stage, the audience was buzzing with anticipation for Spiritual Cramp and Bad Nerves. To catch The Alive live, check out there upcoming shows here.
Photos by Garnette Ransone Photography
Spiritual Cramp Comes Home
San Francisco loves a hometown band, and Spiritual Cramp was no exception. As soon as they took the stage, the San Francisco pride was strong from both the band and the crowd. Lead singer Michael Bingham spoke several times about his love of San Francisco throughout the show, and the crowd ate it up, going absolutely wild when he exclaimed that he “f***ing hates” living in Los Angeles compared to San Francisco. Spiritual Cramp played a 13 song set list that never slowed down. Moshing started early in the set, and the pit only continued to open up more and more as the set went on. At the end of the set, Bingham once again restated his love of San Francisco, and thanked Bad Nerves for bringing them on tour, telling the crowd how much Spiritual Camp had loved being on tour with them. Spiritual Camp is continuing on with a European tour for the first two weeks of June.
Photos by Garnette Ransone Photography
Bad Nerves Brings the House Down
Bad Nerves | August Hall San Francisco | 5.22.25
After sampling the Ramones’ “Do You Remember Rock n’ Roll Radio?” Bad Nerves took the stage, opening with their hit “Baby Drummer.” The band played a 15 song set with a three song encore. When they got to their song “U.S.A” (my favorite song), lead singer Bobby Nerves told a story about how long the band had been trying to break out in the United States, and finally getting the call three weeks after writing the US inspired song. This song is where the crowd surfing really took off, and never slowed down. Near the end of the set, Bobby insisted that they would not continue until fifty percent of the crowd was on the other fifty percent of the crowd’s shoulders, while he didn’t totally get his wish, a handful of people got on shoulders and Bobby sang directly to those who listened. When Bad Nerves left the stage, the crowd was ravenous for an encore, they started a “Who’s got the nerve” chant that went on for several minutes, long enough for me to question if they were actually going to come back out. When they did, they led right into their song “You’ve Got the Nerve.” To see more of Bad Nerves, check out their European tour here.
Photos by Garnette Ransone Photography
This lineup made for a fantastic night of heart pounding music that was sure to leave many ears ringing for days to come. If you are a punk fan or are looking for a starting point to get into the genre, check out The Alive, Spiritual Cramp, and Bad Nerves for thrilling yet approachable punk rock, with cool fans who will help pick you up if you get knocked over in the pit…which you probably will.
