Mission of Burma News

Local DIY acts tUnE-yArDs and Citay joined up with other indie acts at the Bowery Ballroom on Sunday to celebrate the 20th anniversary of indie/punk bible Our Band Could Be Your Life .

I don't think I've missed more than a couple of New York City area Mission of Burma shows since I accidentally caught them at the Stillwell Stage at Siren Fest in '04. At that point in the band's history, they were still a somewhat recently reunited group, but clearly devoted to something more than just a few reunion performances.

The postpunk generation is redefining burning out and not fading away. The past decade hasn't merely witnessed still-active postpunkers get reborn again hard, ferocity intact , but also a small cadre of bands reforming and releasing new material that built on their seminal sounds .

As far as late-life reunions go, Mission of Burma's is an anomaly. Motivated by neither money nor nostalgia, the legendary Boston art punk outfit's unlikely comeback has not only done justice to the band's original incarnation, it's actually eclipsed it.