If It's Too Loud...

For the inaugural Nines Festival, 10 diverse bands were brought to an athletic field in the middle of a decommissioned military base that has never hosted a music event of this size. It could have been a recipe for disaster. Instead it was a fantastic day of music and arts that will hopefully be the first of many to come. Upon walking into the venue, I was struck by how much art was integrated into the festival immediately. Installations and dancers were the first thing we came across before we even got into the main area. The main stage was set up right at the home plate of the baseball diamond, which created a fantastic natural line : People could stand in front of the stage on the dirt, while blankets and chairs stayed back on the grass . It probably wasn’t done on purpose, but it was the happiest of accidents. First up was Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, who were an interesting choice to say the least. As much performance art as they are music, they mes...

Ok.. fine. It's not through us. But we want to make sure you know about a couple of contests to win free tickets to the Nines Festival, happening at Willard Field in Devens, MA on August 10. The inaugural event features Explosions In the Sky, Dr. Dog, Delta Spirit, Shuggie Otis, Walk Off the Earth, Kid Koala, and Matt Pond with more to be announced. There's also a comedy tent curated by Rick Jenkins of The Comedy Studio featuring Erin Judge, Ken Reid, and Jenny Zigrino with more to be announced. You can enter for tickets through Relix here and CMJ here. Hurry, because the CMJ contest ends tomorrow, June 27! And, of course, check out the Nines Festival website for more info.

Explosions in the Sky Central Massachusetts used to be a great area for live music. The Wallace Civic Center in Fitchburg used to host bands like Nirvana, Fugazi, House of Pain, Cypress Hill, Soundgarden, etc., there was the Worcester New Aud, shows at the Centrum, and the Fitchburg Municipal Airport even hosted a Warped Tour before it decided to go all Live Nation shed circuit. But, the last show at the Wallace Civic Center was in 1997 (if memory serves me correctly) and the Warped Tour was in 2006. I couldn’t even tell you what the last concert at the DCU Center was. This is where the Nines Festival comes in. Delta Spirit The 1 st ever Nines Festival is happening in Devens , MA on August 10 th . It’s a multistage, multi-arts festival featuring one of the best and most diverse line ups around this summer. You have the post-punk of Explosions in the Sky, neo-psychedelic Dr. Dog, Newport Folk Festival veterans Delta Spirit, Walk Off the Earth (best...