Live Shows: The Peppermint Kicks, Beck Black, Jennifer Tefft & The Strange, and Smitt E. Smitty & The Fezztones, Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theater, Somerville, MA 10/24/25

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I miss radio. I originally wanted to work in radio, but got sidetracked by a film major. Being able to choose exactly what song or album you want to hear at all times is great, but I miss the random selection of radio, and I really miss having music curated by a person and not an algorithm. Luckily, BumbleBee Radio exists. Hosted by Kristen Eck, it's a throwback to our favorite Boston radio stations, and if you like what we do here at If It's Too Loud..., there's an awful lot of crossover. BumbleBee Radio held their five year anniversary party Friday night at Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theater, and since it was also The Peppermint Kicks' album release show, I couldn't resist.

First up was Smitt E. Smitty & The Fezztones. The Boston based collective is led by the legendary Smitt E. Smitty. Their blend of garage rock is completely unique to them. It's glammed up and insanely fun, with a giant band to produce their sound. Their songs have a great sense of humor without being jokey. Just try to listen to "Buzzkill Baby" without smiling. It was a covers heavy night, and The Fezztones led the charge with their cover of David Bowie's "Rebel Rebel" and were joined by Gene Dante for a version of Bow Wow Wow's "I Want Candy."

Jennifer Tefft & The Strange were up next, and are one of the secret weapons of the Boston music scene. Tefft puts on a surprisingly great live show that is woefully underappreciated. Songs like "Going Out" are much more fun live, and she always gets a crowd fully up and dancing, which is a rarity in the Boston music scene. She also broke out two covers: The Doors' "People Are Strange" (obviously...) and one originally by The Lumineers. Jennifer Tefft & The Strange need to be on a lot more people's radar.

Beck Black was the one artist I was completely unfamiliar with, and I was blown away by her performance. The Los Angeles based artist has a sound that combines The Stooges and The B-52's. It's raw and edgy, but you can also have a blast dancing to it. Her cover was of Joy Division's "Transmission," which was a perfect selection for her sound. It's more than a little dark, but also completely fun. Let's hope she makes it out to this coast regularly, and I'm sure we'll be letting you know when she releases new music.

Closing out the show were The Peppermint Kicks, celebrating the release of their excellent album Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum. They play a blend of power pop meets garage rock which is one of our favorite genres. Songs like "Radio Wam Bam Boom" and "Number One Record" were perfect for BumbleBee Radio's anniversary show, and they broke out a killer cover of David Bowie's "Suffragette City." I always expect a band that has a vintage leaning garage rock sound to be a lot of fun and have a great live show, and The Peppermint Kicks were all of that and more.

On Repeat...

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