If It's Too Loud...

Doing Anything this Weekend? is a feature here at If It's Too Loud... where we feature some live shows in and on the far outskirts of the Boston area. Our main rules are that they have to be reasonably priced shows that you can attend last minute. They'll feature If It's Too Loud... approved bands, and we'll provide event links when possible. If you're looking for last minute plans this weekend, we recommend: Friday March 15 GA-20, Muddy Ruckus, and Troy Mercy at starlite, Southbridge, MA Miracle Blood, The Freqs, Psychic Weight, and Billy at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Viv & Riley at Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation, Waltham, MA Cloudbelly, Jake McKelvie, and TIFFY at O'Brien's, Allston, MA Burp., Tysk Tysk Task, Night Visions, and Cross Girls at Thirsty First, Lowell, MA The Shirts and Shoes, The Roscoes, and WLKRZ at Faces Brewing, Malden, MA Saturday March 16 Matt Charette and the Truer Sound, The Roland High Life, LoboHombre, and Christi...

Artist : Vanessa Peters Album : Flying on Instruments Quick Thoughts : Vanessa Peters is arguably music's best kept secret. As of the time of this writing, she has fewer than 2,400 monthly listeners on Spotify despite putting out album after album of great, folk/country music. Flying on Instruments continues this line of success with so many memorable songs, both quiet ("Halfway Through") and rollicking ("Pinball Heart") that no one else can touch. She's amazing, this album is great, don't miss out. Songs of Note : "Beauty or Grace," "Halfway Through," "Better," "Pinball Heart," "Out to Sea" Artist : Mama Zu Album : Quilt Floor Quick Thoughts : We miss Those Darlins. They never really got their due in their time, and the passing of Jessi Zazu only magnified the loss. Quilt Floor is the culmination of music she was working on before her passing, and it's both a lovely tribute to a musician ...

Now a four piece, Western Massachusetts' Cloudbelly have just released a new single. Their latest, "If You Want," is that kind of indie folk that also mixes electronic elements in, creating this unique and lush sound. This song leans heavily into the world of indie pop while staying rooted in a more folk feeling track. Singer Corey Laitman's vocals are what will truly draw you into the song. They are the showcase of the song with all musical elements complementing their vocals perfectly. "If You Want" is a nearly impossibly mesmerizing song, and is going to be heavily on repeat for any fans of all varieties of folk and pop. You can listen to "If You Want" below. i know i know i know is due out February 23 on Strange Library Records. For more on Cloudbelly, check out the artist's website . If You Want by Cloudbelly

Photo by Nathan Oldham Love Crumbs are a folk/rock and indie trio based out of Massachusetts. When working on their latest single, they couldn't quite get the vocals quite right, so they called upon their friend, Corey Laitman of Cloudbelly. That started off the collaborative single, "Vacant Dreams." This new song is a gorgeous and lush song that has elements of straightforward folk/rock mixed with some indie noise that adds more beauty to the song. It's a powerful song with a powerful subject of loving someone struggling with addiction. Every element of this song just accentuates all other elements. It starts off simply and just builds into a soaring, epic masterpiece. Not many folk/rock songs can hit the six plus minute mark and still have you wanting more, but "Vacant Dreams" does just that. Michael Dubuque of Love Crumbs says of his band's new song: "This song is about my brother - about loving and grieving the loss of my relationship with my br...

Montague, MA's Cloudbelly have been meandering around the line between folk and electro-pop since we discovered them last year, and that sound has never been quite as defined as it is on their newest single. "Leavened" is a beautiful and lush track that has all of the melody and feel of a folk track despite not sounding as organic as folk. If a folk festival had a rave-like chill out room, this is what would be playing in it. The song is as unique and experimental as it is familiar. As fascinating as the music is, the real treat with "Leavened" is principal vocalist and songwriter Corey Laitman's vocals. This is the true centerpiece of the song and is what will have you coming back for repeated listens. You can listen to "Leavened" below. thou / them is set for release this Fall on Signature Sounds. For more on Cloudbelly, check out the artist's website . Leavened by Cloudbelly

One of our favorite recent local discoveries has been Western Massachusetts' based Cloudbelly. The collaboration between Corey Laitman and Anand Nayak has this simply lovely mixture of folk and electro-pop in their songs, and their new single is my favorite of theirs yet. "Whistling" starts off with this gorgeous and simple folk melody. It's just guitar and Laitman's vocals, and you're guaranteed to be mesmerized. As the song includes more instrumentation and Nayak joins in on vocals, the sound gets more lush and compelling. It's a gentle song that sounds like the musical equivalent of sitting in a forest by a stream with only the sounds of nature around you. Cloudbelly are one of the most intriguing bands around right now. You can watch the video for "Whistling" below. The song is available now as a single via Signature Sounds. For more on Cloudbelly, check out the artist's website .

We first discovered Cloudbelly at the Green River Festival. Their unique take on modern folk works perfectly for us. Cloudbelly are a collaboration between two western Massachusetts based artists, Corey Laitman and Anand Nayak, and have released a pair of singles to celebrate their recent signing to Signature Sounds. "Up In Smoke" is this gorgeous folk song that comes so close to being modern mainstream Americana but takes a glorious turn towards the unique in the interplay between the duo's vocals that keeps it interesting. Even though it's early November, it makes us love a chorus of "All that snow falling on the river." "Soft As The Mouths" goes in an unexpected direction after hearing "Up In Smoke." The second single is still folk, but goes in a jazzy direction that edges into pop territory every so often. The pair of singles show Cloudbelly's range within their genre, and has us even more excited to see where they go next! You ca...

With the Green River Festival returning August 27-29, we're going to highlight some of the lesser known artists playing that we're most excited to see. The bottom of the poster at any festival contains some gems you don't want to miss, and especially so this year at Green River! If you like to discover lesser known bands at festivals, Cloudbelly is for you. From what I can tell, they only have one song out currently with a new album on the horizon at some point. "Crayon" is folk, for lack of a better term. It even has some elements of traditional folk, but the overall sound is hardly folk. There's this oddly dark and trippy element, and the song is both sparse and full. It's as hypnotic as it is captivating, and is guaranteed to suck you in. As you try to fall into the internet rabbit hole of Cloudbelly, just a warning. There isn't a whole lot out there. I think we'll all be looking forward to finding out more about Cloudbelly, especially other son...