Deck The Hulls Marks Its Tenth Year

Celebrating tens: That is what a slew of local music fans did this past Friday night at The State House for the 10th anniversary of Deck the Hulls, the annual holiday fundraiser event hosted by local punk legends The Hulls. 

The tradition began at Rudy’s and proceeded to Three Sheets. It ended up this year at the State Street club, where the band was joined by two always-ready-to-party New Haven bands, The Simulators and The Right Offs, to raise money and collect food for a good cause while also gathering friends to get the holidays off to a spirited start.

Monetary donations as well as canned goods were accepted at the door for CT Foodshare (formerly know as CT Food Bank) while Christmas music played overhead and attendees greeted each other after a year off due to Covid closures.

First to the stage was The Simulators, six members strong and ready to get the audience good and warm. A fun and feisty set of rocking reggae-ska-punk felt like a party that welcomed any and all to attend. Guitarists Kevin MacKenzie and Julian Wahlberg traded off vocals and riffs while Frederic Anthony and Zachary Yost kept the beat tight on drums and bass and Cody Freedom and Brian Koopman shared saxophone duties. Together they melded into a smooth sweet sound that got the steadily building crowd to move around, though MacKenzie also egged the crowd on by telling them to ​“shake your booties.”

MacKenzie also thanked The Hulls for ​“putting this on,” to which Wahlberg countered with ​“you just thanked yourself, I think” — in reference to MacKenzie being a member of The Hulls as well. The crowd laughed, loving every minute of this set, which Wahlberg had mentioned earlier marked the band’s first show at The State House. And the celebration had only just begun.

“Good evening. We’re The Right Offs. How you doing?” said Maxwell Omer, guitarist and vocalist of the hard rocking trio, rounded out by Than Rolnick on bass and vocals and Robert Breychak on drums. The band immediately exploded into a stellar set of beloved originals that felt fresh and new again, complemented by a couple of holiday tunes that sparkled with the band’s indelible sound. 

Omer mentioned he was having a ​“hard time getting into the Christmas spirit,” but you would have never known that given the way he stomped and strutted through Chuck Berry’s ​“Run, Run Rudolph.” The band was joined on bells by The Simulators’ Cody Freedom, dressed in an elf hat and holiday sweater, adding a healthy dose of cheer to an already super-fun tune.

With some of the hardest driving beats around, guitar licks that sailed into the stratosphere, and lyrical songs like ​“Fire in the Theater” and ​“Post Bone Savvy,” the Right Offs’ set felt almost celebratory and definitively anthemic. The band mentioned recently on social media that they have only a couple shows left before they take a break. I suggest getting to one of those if you too are feeling the need to be rescued from the holiday blues.

The Hulls came to the stage decked out in holiday attire. Guitarist and vocalist Jess Corbett had on a colorful tree-studded suit, bassist John Meah wore a Santa hat and sweater, drummer Robert Breychak (fresh off his explosive set with The Right Offs) also sported a Santa hat, and guitarist and vocalist Kevin MacKenzie was decked out in a full Santa suit. Smiling and laughing from the get-go, with audience members shouting out to them even before a note was played — ​“watch what you wish for,” MacKenzie yelled back as requests were being made — the band immediately cemented the holiday tone even for those of us not quite there yet by beginning the set with Darlene Love’s ​“Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).” Freedom, now dressed as an elf, joined the Hulls on saxophone for this one and came back to play bells on a few other songs, including Wham’s ​“Last Christmas,” which in their hands became a pulse-pounding punk rock proclamation of loss. 

The band added its own spin to a multitude of classics, such as Tom Petty’s ​“Christmas All Over Again,” Jose Feliciano’s ​“Feliz Navidad,” and The Kinks’ ​“Father Christmas.” They also sang originals, including a holiday song called ​“Christmas Time on the Picket Line,” which Corbett said he wrote years ago for union members; he added to not forget those out there on the lines right now.

For that one the Hulls were joined by Michael Cooper, who also delivered a spirited performance of The Ramones’ ​“Merry Christmas,” dressed as his alter ego from The Hymans, a local Ramones cover band that includes members of The Hulls. A well-known local artist as well as performer, Cooper made the flyer for this show and has made them for the band for years. 

The crowd got crazy in on the action during ​“Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” sung in the style of Bruce Springsteen’s cover of the song, singing and dancing along, and many kept going for the next one, Midge Ure’s and Bob Geldof’s ​“Do They Know It’s Christmas?” 

By the time the Hulls got to its last song, a riotous punk version of ​“Auld Lang Syne,” the crowd was deep in party mode and deeply appreciative. While the night had been a joyous respite from the recent ills of the week, it also did what the best shows often do: instilled a sense of community and hopefulness that could be carried away beyond that evening.

“Here’s to a better year next year,” said MacKenzie. ​“If we all stick together, we can do it.”