Live Shows: Letters to Cleo and The Cavedogs, Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA 11/21/25

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Back in college, Letters to Cleo were basically my Grateful Dead. I'd go see them multiple times in the same week between greater Boston, Providence, and Northampton, plus sometimes back to back nights when they were on the college circuit. These days, we're pretty much down to seeing them once a year when they come back and play the Paradise for multiple nights. This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of their second album, Wholesale Meats and Fish. 

In 2017, Letters to Cleo played three nights at the Paradise, playing one of their albums each night. That year, the first night was the only night I could make it to, so we saw Aurora Gory Alice. Wholesale Meats and Fish is my personal favorite album, so seeing it played live was a true treat. Song like "Demon Rock," "Acid Jed," and "Pizza Cutter" are regulars in their live set, but Friday night I got to see songs I haven't seen live in probably around thirty years. These included "Do What You Want, Yeah" and "He's Got an Answer." Letters to Cleo are always a little bit looser when they play their hometown, probably because they can get away with Kay Hanley forgetting which song they're playing. For the Boston crowd, that's all part of the charm.

After Wholesale Meats and Fish, they played six additional songs, including ones from Aurora Gory Alice (including the big hit "Here & Now") and Go! They also performed a brand new unreleased song, "After the Fall," from what sounds to be a new album. (Maybe the 2026 theme will be performing a brand new album in its entirety?) They broke for an encore, and came back with their Cheap Trick cover "I Want You to Want Me" and closed with the epic "Rim Shak." Back in Letters to Cleo's first run, I think I saw them play "I Want You to Want Me" once or twice, but with the resurgence in popularity of 10 Things I Hate About You, it might have replaced "Here & Now" as their signature song. Friday night might have been the best Hanley has ever sounded, and it's always great to have Stacy Jones back on the drumkit. 

Opening the show were the legendary Boston band The Cavedogs. They're a band I've known by name for years now, but have never really listened to. I always assumed they were more of a punk or garage band, but they were a fantastic power pop trio, more along the lines of Gigolo Aunts than I expected. It's always great to experience as many Boston legends as we can, and that seems to be a new tradition with these Homecoming shows the last few years. (The last two years have seen the return of Heretix and Gigolo Aunts.) Let's hope next year continues this trend, and we get a returning Jack Drag or Orangutang. 

On Repeat...

Minibeast - "High Sea"

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Somehow Peter Prescott of Mission of Burma and Volcano Suns has another band that I never knew about. Minibeast already released an album that I completely missed back in 2012, and they are currently at work on the follow up, Free Will. Based on a track from the upcoming album, "High Sea," Minibeast shares some common sonic ground with Mission of Burma, but with an added emphasis on the groovy side of things. It's basically the noise and dissonance of Burma but heard through a 60s surf groove, as if Frankie and Annette were punks. You can listen to "High Sea" below. Minibeast currently have a Kickstarter to help fund the final production of Free Will. You can get more information on that here . It should be out sometime in June.
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The Beths - "Mother, Pray for Me"

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Photo by Annabel Kean For their latest single, New Zealand's The Beths have released "Mother, Pray for Me." This is a heartbreaking ballad consisting of Elizabeth Stokes' vocals and guitar with just the slightest hint of organ. It's a deeply personal song for Stokes, made obvious with how intimately the song comes across. It truly feels almost confessional, and it's quite simply beautiful. The Beths are most known for huge little indie rock gems perfect for bopping along to, but "Mother, Pray for Me" is quite the opposite. Stokes' vocals and lyrics are right up front on this one, and I can't imagine it any other way. Elizabeth Stokes says of her latest single: “I cried the whole time writing it. It's not really about my mother, it's about me — what I hope our relationship is, what I think it is, what it maybe actually is, and what I can or can't expect out of it.   “My mother is a first gen Indonesian immigrant, and very Catholic....
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Midnight Peg - "Thirstland"

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Photo by Cecil Sykes Midnight Peg are an Edmonton, AB based band that are referred to as "madhouse punk." Their latest single, "Thirstland," is a just barely under control two minute burst of punk. You have guitar riffs that will make you think of At the Drive In, and somewhat spoken and yelled vocals which create a feeling of chaos throughout. This is a loud and angry track that is completely in your face. But, unlike most tracks this loud and punk based, "Thirstland" still keeps a sense of art in their music. Midnight Peg feel like a higher class of loud, angry punk rock. This one is great, with just enough of an emo undercurrent to make the song kind of melodic and almost palatable to a mainstream audience. You can listen to "Thirstland" below. Skinning is due out in October on Thousand Island Records. For more on Midnight Peg, check out the artist's website .
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