Live Report: Problem Patterns delivers thrilling punk tunes at the Workman's Cellar

If anybody dares to say that punk is dead, that it's not political anymore, show them Problem Patterns, a self-described Queer punk, intersectional feminist band from Belfast, who offered up a riveting and gripping display at the Workman's Club Cellar on Friday.

Their visceral energy was there for all to see as the four young women jumped around the stage to heavy bass and gritty guitar, shouting the lyrics to ‘TERFs Out’ in their Northern Irish accents and making the Workman's Club Cellar stage feel as intimate as a neighbourhood garage show.

The following song ‘Poverty Tourist’ exhibited everything that the band stands for and displayed the true meaning of what an intersectional punk band is — as they went beyond the rhetoric surrounding identity by looking further into social matters.

Right after the band members switched instruments for the first time – which they would keep doing throughout the whole show, impressing the crowd with their musical talent — singer Alanah Smith shouted out “this one’s for the dykes!”, earning cheers from the young audience before ripping into the aptly titled ‘Lesbo 3000’.

The group also displayed their knack for putting their audience into a state of excitement for every song. It seemed as if the crowd could mosh to anything, with their efforts being noted by those on stage with a sweet and complimentary “good work!”

Closing their relatively short set, given that the girls had to run and get the last bus to Belfast, was the song ‘Day and Age’, which the whole room knew by heart and left both band and crowd sweaty and dishevelled the way only a good punk show can.

The two opening bands, Big Tears and Hotgirl, both deserve an honourable mention, not only for their incredible energies but also for their encompassing sounds that made them feel like a main act.

Big Tears, a trans flag hung beside them as they recited highly political, queer-themed songs. Although the tone was slightly less serious, they were nonetheless impactful, both in terms of message and audience reaction.

Meanwhile Hotgirl, while perhaps not as traditionally 'punk' as the other two bands,  didn't not feel and inch out of place, a testament of to their hard-core quality and heavy energy.

It was impossible to leave the Workman’s cellar on Friday night thinking that punk was dead. Instead, you were left with a feeling that political music hasn't gone anywhere – it’s just sung by the queer youth.