Monday, February 18, 2019

Live Shows: The Devil's Twins, Diablogato, Salem Wolves, Opus, Salem, MA 2/16/19

Saturday night was an absurdly packed night for live music in the Boston area. Of all the options available, I had to trek way out to Salem, MA for a fantastic loud and local triple bill: The Devil's Twins, Diablogato, and Salem Wolves.

Considering how long I've been writing about Salem Wolves on here, and considering that they're a local band that plays in the area a lot, this was somehow the first time I had gotten around to seeing them live. It definitely won't be the last. Their arena ready garage rock anthems are crafted specifically for a live show, even if the "arena" is a tiny brick walled basement. The band was breaking in two brand new members (guitarist Charlie MacSteven (who also plays in Diablogato) and bassist Cat Verlicco), but you would never have known it. They played insanely tightly, and with an incredible infectious energy. Singer Gray Bouchard is a much more theatrical frontman than I expected. We're not talking about an Alice Cooper type spectacle, but he was extraordinarily expressive while singing and is completely taken over by the rock. Let's hope it takes less time for me to see them a second time.

Diablogato is the band I was least familiar with of the three, but expect more from them here at If It's Too Loud..., hopefully sooner than later. They play this dirty as hell punked up almost rockabilly sound that hits such a sweet spot for me. It's not quite a throwback to early rock 'n' roll, but only because it's just too loud. That's not to say it's purely just crushing doom and noise. Diablogato plays with a swinging groove to keep the audience moving. They're definitely a party just waiting to happen, and even had Nikki Marie of The Devil's Twins join them for a song, just to keep the family like vibe going all night. If you want to check them out, I'd recommend "Gasoline." That's a perfect example of what to expect with Diablogato.

The nearly legendary The Devil's Twins closed out the night. It might be a small local legend, but for those of us that have been ensnared by their claws, The Devil's Twins are legends. It was also my first time getting to see them, and it was a setup that included a horn section, which I'm told is the best way to go. They also have a throwback old school rock 'n' roll sound, but by far the darkest and heaviest of the evening. The dual frontperson siblings of Jeremiah Louf and Nikki Marie are absolutely perfect together. It's just insanely big and loud rock. They busted out a cover of "Twist & Shout" for the second song of their set, and from then on all of Opus was hooked. This seems like a triple bill that happens every so often, and let's hope I can make it to the next one.

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