Catching Up With The Villaintinos At The Stoop

The Villaintinos are a powerful punk rock outfit out of Columbus, Ohio founded by guitarist Todd Novak in late 2018. He brought in drummer Matt Grover and bassist Jay Donovan and then the search was on for a vocalist who Todd knew “could only be fronted by a female with a massive amount of attitude and a voice that would feel like a shot through the heart and a kick to the balls.” They filled that tall order by enlisting Leah Pugh as their vocalist. Onstage, she can channel the power of a Joan Jett or Courtney Love in badass attitude and delivery!

The Villaintinos played their first show in February of 2019 and continued performing in and around the central Columbus, Ohio area, building a fan base and networking in the local music scene. They released their self-titled debut record in early 2020…right before the Pandemic. So while they were not able to play live to support this record, they have been working on new material for a soon-to-be-released 4 song EP with Jon Fintel recording and producing at Relay Recording.

Plus, they are now getting back into live performances, including the show Sunday Dec 12th at The Stoop on the west side of Columbus – a music venue that has a skate ramp and caters to the punk, rock and alt-country crowd. The Villaintinos were one of three bands performing and they got a great reception from the crowd who then began moshing during their set.

So what’s in store for the future of the band? “We have been very busy writing new music and determining where we will push our music moving forward. We don’t want it to be a version II of our first record. We are exploring new dynamics in the arrangements, where to push Leah’s vocals and tell new stories through our lyrics. We are still unsigned with no physical pressings and hope to leverage the newly recorded EP to make us a great catch for a label that we can fit well with.”

Check out samples of the band’s music on their website HERE and follow them on social media, spotify and bandcamp!

Scroll for more images by O’Rock Photos from the Villaintinos set, the wild punk rock mayhem created by the bands The Plaid Disasters and Public Serpents and some of the skate ramp action!