Born Ruffians (Photo by Laura Lynn Petrick)

When Born Ruffians performed in DC last year, I hailed it as one of the top shows of the year, ranking it at #4 in my Top 10 Concerts of 2015.

“Born Ruffians roared back into DC with a fourth album, demonstrating how the post-punk stalwarts are at least as clever and good as bigger bands in their genre, including Interpol, Vampire Weekend, and Bloc Party,” I said of their show at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Nov. 3, 2015.

And so it’s great that the Canadian post-punk quartet are returning to play again, six months later to the day, at the Rock and Roll Hotel on May 3, 2016, in support of their fourth album RUFF, released in 2015 on Yep Rock Records.

The Wall Street Journal apparently agreed with my assessment, saying Born Ruffians bring “nervy, wily rock that peers back to precursors like Talking Heads and sideways to like-minded contemporaries including Vampire Weekend and Animal Collective.”

Watch Born Ruffians perform “Don’t Live Up” live in the Sawyer Sessions at Mystery Brewing Public House in Hillsborough, NC, from Dec. 10, 2015, on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx-irQl7kU4]

The Born Ruffians are in tremendous form these days, with bandmates Luke Lalonde (guitar/vocals), Mitch Derosier (bass), Andy Lloyd (guitar/keyboard), and Adam Hindle (drums) all truly firing on all cylinders.

Experimental pop trio ON AN ON from Minneapolis open for Born Ruffians. Tickets are available online.

Born Ruffians
w/ ON AN ON
Rock and Roll Hotel
Tuesday, May 3
Doors @7pm
$15
All ages