Live Shows: Snowgaze Fest night 1, Deep Cuts, Medford, MA 12/19/25

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I was truly bummed out I had to miss last year's Snowgaze Fest, with it's wonderfully diverse line-up of shoegaze and shoegaze adjacent bands playing Deep Cuts in Medford. This year saw an equally diverse line-up, and I couldn't resist Friday night which featured Exit 18, Little Oso, Tysk Tysk Task, and Literally/Nobody!

Literally/Nobody opened up the night, and I was excited to see them for the first time. We first discovered them back in May, and were won over by their "shoegaze, dream pop and post-hardcore" sound. That sound worked out even better live, and I was blown away by their noisy and poppy sound. I had described their EP as Jawbreaker meets Slowdive, and I'm doubling down on that one for their live show. The songs were fuzzy and a little discordant, while being some of the catchiest ones of the night.

Next up was Tysk Tysk Task. While the Lowell band has more of an indie grunge sound, they're also awash with fuzzed out shoegaze guitars, particularly on their newer tracks. Their current line-up includes drummer Joe Milia and Keith Dusoe on bass. This new line-up has meshed quite well, with all members truly giving their all in each performance. New songs, especially the recently released single "Toadstool," have an undeniable power behind them, mixing beauty with noise in a way few artists are. One of the true joys of being a Tysk Tysk Task fan over the last five or so years has been watching their constant evolution, and I love where they are currently going.

Little Oso came down from Portland, ME for Friday night's show. Their sound was more on the dream pop side of things, and they had the most pop focused sound of the night. Maybe it's just that I'm a huge kick of The Sundays lately, but I kept thinking about English band while Little Oso were playing. Little Oso has a much more raw sound while keeping the upbeat pop vibe going. Their set was filled with lovely songs with just enough noise to keep things interesting. 

Exit 18 closed out the night, pushing the boundaries of shoegaze the most of the four bands that played. They had a kind of nu-metal meets pop punk and alt-rock sound, reminding me of an unexpected hybrid of Deftones, Paramore, and The Gits. Julia Perry is one of the most dynamic frontpeople in the Boston scene these days, and owned the Deep Cuts stage before the band even started. It was one of those musical experiences where you aren't fully sure if you're enjoying it at first, but you know you want to hear more. Eventually, I was won over to the Exit 18 bandwagon.

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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Monday Mix: Newport Folk Festival 2014 Must See Bands

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With this weekend's upcoming Newport Folk Festival, we thought we'd highlight some of this year's can't miss acts. We're focusing on the bands playing smaller stages and earlier in the day. I mean, you're obviously going to see Ryan Adams and Jack White. Instead, these are the acts worth getting there early for, and seeking out the smaller stages. Phox Friday, 1:50, Quad Stage Phox hails from Baraboo, WI, the winter home of the Ringling Brothers' Circus. I'm not sure if that is connected to their music or not, but Phox has an otherworldly charm and a magical feel. They come across as a more grounded St. Vincent or a less intense version of early Tori Amos. Their music is simply beautiful and uplifting.  Reignwolf Friday, 2:55, Quad Stage Truly pushing the boundaries of what can be considered "folk" are Reignwolf. Reignwolf is Jordan Cook, who sounds like a mixture of The Black Keys and Queens of the Stone Age, mixed with just a lit...
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There's a new Limp Bizkit video, because sure, why not?

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Earlier this week I was expressing sympathy for Limp Bizkit. Limp Bizkit just don't seem to be riding that surge of 90s nostalgia that all sorts of other terrible bands from that era are. Sure, they're terrible. But are they really  that much worse than Filter, Alien Ant Farm, and other bands on those 90s nostalgia packages. And then this video is released. The first lyrics to the song are literally "Go fuck yourself." It then features Fred Durst sitting on a toilet, bikini clad chicks pretending to fellate garden hoses and leaf blowers, and Fred Durst talking about fucking bitches, all while wearing a hoodie and a backwards red baseball hat. Then Lil Wayne comes out. Please keep in mind Fred Durst is a 42 year old man.
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