Gully Boys and Skating polly at Turntable in Indianapolis on Saturday, March 22, 2025!
Gully Boys
The Gully Boys origin story plays out like the perfect domino effect. While sorting vintage clothes in a
Minneapolis-area thrift store in 2016, Kathy Callahan (she/her) shared her dream of becoming a vocalist with theirco-worker, Nadirah McGill (they/them).After encouraging a friend from middle school, Natalie Klemond (she/her), tojoin the trio on bass, Nadi picked up a pair of drumsticks and counted off a cover of Best Coast’s “Girlfriend.” Gully Boys had officially been born. Having to master their instruments on the fly, the band's sound grew quickly - taking inspiration from 90's icons like No Doubt, Garbage, and Hole. After 2 years of relentless gigging, Gully Boys released a collection of demos, Not So Brave in 2018, earning Best New Band honors from their hometown City Pages and sharing the stage with everyone from The Hold Steady to Third Eye Blind. The band’s Phony EP arrived in late 2019 right as the live music industry came to a screeching halt.
Inspired by this break in the action, the band started working with Zach Zurn at Carpet Booth Studio and added lead guitarist Mariah Mercedes. They released their first produced EP 'Favorite Son' (2021), followed by singles ‘See You See’ (2022) and ‘Optimist’ (2023).
Throughout this aggressive release schedule, the band has continued gigging - appearing at official SXSW showcases and playing iconic stages across Minnesota including First Avenue’s main stage and across the nation, touring with artists Nova Twins, Motion City Soundtrack, Destroy Boys and Bad Bad Hats.
With a recent trip to Audiotree, a debut LP in pre-production, Gully Boys have no plans to slow down.
Skating Polly
Over the past decade, few artists have embodied the unbridled freedom of punk like Skating Polly. Formed when stepsisters Kelli Mayo and Peyton Bighorse were just 9 and 13, the Oklahoma-bred band have channeled their chameleonic musicality into a sound they call “ugly-pop,” unruly and subversive and wildly melodic. With Kelli’s brother Kurtis Mayo joining on drums in 2017, they’ve also built a close-knit community of fans while earning the admiration of their musical forebears, a feat that’s found them collaborating with icons like X’s Exene Cervenka and Beat Happening’s Calvin Johnson, touring with Babes In Toyland, and starring as the subject of a feature-length documentary.
On their double album Chaos County Line, Skating Polly reach a whole new level of self-possession, ultimately sharing their most expansive and emotionally powerful work to date. The follow-up to 2018’s The Make It All Show, Chaos County Line finds Skating Polly working again with Brad Wood, the acclaimed producer behind indie-rock classics like Liz Phair’s Exile in Guyville. As their songs journey from art-punk to noise-rock to piano-driven power-pop, the band matches that musical complexity with a sharply honed narrative voice that manifests in countless forms (ultra-vivid poetry, diary-like confession, fearlessly detailed storytelling, etc.).
Not only the outcome of their constant growth as songwriters, Chaos County Line’s scope and depth has much to do with Skating Polly’s newly heightened clarity of vision. “All these songs are the most special to me of anything I’ve ever written, and I think Kelli feels the same,” says Peyton. “In the past, I didn’t always write with a clear purpose, but this time I knew exactly what I wanted to say. We both ended up writing about the most difficult emotional experiences we’ve ever been through, and instead of being terrified of saying exactly what I was feeling, it just all came out so naturally.”
Whether they’re opening up about matters internal (identity, disassociation, unhealthy coping mechanisms) or external (obsession, deception, gaslighting), Skating Polly imbue that outpouring with an unfettered emotional truth. On songs like Chaos County Line’s frenetic lead single “Hickey King,” Kelli and Peyton trade off vocals as they share their distinct perspectives on closely related experiences—in this case, the minefield of power dynamics in sex and relationships. “In Peyton’s verse, she’s talking about never knowing how far to go or how much of yourself to give to someone, and when my part comes crashing in, it’s about guys being possessive and always trying to leave their mark on you,” Kelli says. “To me, it’s the most Skating Polly song on the record, because it’s all these different energies happening at once.”
Meanwhile, on “I’m Sorry For Always Apologizing,” Skating Polly deliver a bouncy piece of bubblegum-punk in which Kelli calls herself out on certain messy behavior in her past. And on “Double Decker,” Peyton examines her own possibly self-sabotaging patterns, magnifying the song’s mood of confusion with a dizzying guitar solo and breakneck vocal performance. Elsewhere on Chaos County Line, Skating Polly offer up moments of unabashed fun—“Rabbit Food,” for instance, serves up a pure rush of punk delirium spotlighting Kelli’s gift for infusing so much psychodrama into her vocal work.
Over the course of its 18 kaleidoscopic tracks, Chaos County Line embraces the kind of combustible emotionality that comes from fully uncompromised self-expression. “I think on this record Kelli and Peyton were really confident in being more honest and more experimental at the same time, whereas in the past they might’ve made the lyrics more poetic in order to cloak that honesty a bit,” says Kurtis. And as their songs shift from devastating to exhilarating to gloriously cathartic, Skating Polly hope to provide the same sense of solace they found in creating the album.
“I’ve had people tell me we’ve helped them get through a breakup or an abusive relationship or the death of someone they loved, and all these other heavy obstacles everyone goes through,” says Kelli. “I feel like I’m not necessarily the best person to draw a map on how to live the happiest life, but I like the idea that our songs can make other people’s lives better in some way. I want our music to be like armor.”
GULLY BOYS AND SKATING POLLY
SATURDAY, MARCH 22, 2025
18+
TURNTABLE
INDIANAPOLIS, IN
TICKETS AT TURNTABLEINDY.COM
ABOUT TURNTABLE
Turntable is Forty5's newest venue, nestled in the vibrant Broad Ripple neighborhood of Indianapolis at 6281 N College Avenue. Adjacent to The Vogue Theatre, this recently revitalized space exudes the charm of an exclusive speakeasy.
The front features a stylish bar and vinyl listening room, while the back opens up into an expansive concert hall, purpose built for live music. Reimagined to be inviting and warm, it’s a place built for discovering your next favorite artist.
PLEASE NOTE:
THIS SHOW IS GENERAL ADMISSION AND SEATING IS NOT PROVIDED. YOU MUST BE 18+ TO ENTER THE VENUE WITH A VALID FORM OF IDENTIFICATION. ALL TICKETS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE. TWO FORMS OF IDENTIFICATION MAY BE REQUIRED FOR ENTRY.
NEED ADA TICKETS?
CONTACT THE TURNTABLE BOX OFFICE VIA EMAIL AT INFO@TURNTABLEINDY.COM AND WE WILL ASSIST YOU!
