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: April 19 Rock & Roll Rumble Semifinals featuring Other Brother Darryl, Roser, Looking Glass War, and The Ghouls at Sonia, Cambridge, MA Linnea's Garden, Church and Puppets, and Sorry Mister at Koto, Salem, MA Bodega, Boston Cream, and Big Bliss at The Rockwell, Somerville, MA The Collect Pond, Perennial, Battlemode at Lizard Lounge, Cambridge, MA Monchella featuring Tysk Tysk Task, Neck Dive, Roaches, and The P.A.'s at Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA  April 20 Hard in the 'Head II featuring The FU's, Cuidado, The Modern Faces, and Cou...

Photo by Pooneh Ghana It's only been three years since I discovered BODEGA opening for Jon Spencer + The HITmakers at Great Scott in February 2019, but it feels much, much longer. In that time it seems like the Brooklyn based post punks have played in Boston a bunch of times, but it's never worked out for me to see them. Luckily that streak was broken last Friday when they played one of my new favorite places to see a show: Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theater! I did not think I was going to like Boston Cream when they first started playing. Melanie Bernier came out miming guitar on a broom, and slowly each member entered playing their instrument. The band features two singers (the second one is Peach S. Goodrich) mostly doing minor synchronized dance moves and just seemed a little too gimmicky for my taste. But, the band does feature three members of Hallelujah the Hills (drummer Ryan Connelly, bass player Joe Marrett, and guitarist Nicholas Ward (making this his fourth band...

Artist : The Lied To's Album : The Worst Kind of New Quick Thoughts : I can't recall exactly how I tripped up on The Lied To's, but this latest album is such a great modern folky record that I'm glad I added them to my list. The songs here arrive fully formed and mature, and end up as some super catchy offerings across the board. This album continually surprised me, and in the best way possible - there are few acts that hit that sweet spot for us here quite this way, and The Worst Kind of New is the best of all options this week. Songs of Note : "It's Not Who You Love," "Brokedown Jamboree," "Two Days," "Clay Pigeons," "Long Way Home" Artist : Phebe Starr Album : Heavy Metal Flower Petal Quick Thoughts : It's not fair to call Phebe Starr just dark pop or just electropop, but whatever she is, her debut album works wonders. There's a definite lightness to this combined with some truly catchy songs, ...

Photo by Pooneh Ghana The latest single from Brooklyn's BODEGA breaks new ground for the band in that it's a straight up love song. BODEGA has avoided the subject for quite some time, but Ben Hozie wrote "Pillar on the Bridge of Love" about bandmate and partner Nikki Belfigio. Seeing as this is a love song, it's a softer more gentle and nearly pop version of their dance friendly post punk. It's still a BODEGA song, just a BODEGA love song. Ben Hozie explains the band's new song:  “ Our band, for the most part, has avoided pop’s universal subject matter: love.  Not because we think it an unworthy subject, but because I haven’t been sure how to approach it in BODEGA’s style .”  You can watch the video for "Pillar on the Bridge of Love" below. Broken Equipment is due out March 11 on What's Your Rupture?, and can be pre-ordered and pre-saved here . For more on BODEGA, check out the band's Facebook and Instagram . Upcoming tour dates are belo...

Photo by Pooneh Ghana As you probably know by now, we're really into the dance friendly post punk of Brooklyn's BODEGA. Their latest single strays from their formula a bit, but fans are still going to love it. Instead of dance friendly post punk, "Statuette On the Console" is more dance friendly indie rock. Sure, there are elements of post punk on the new song, like buzzing guitars and singer Nikki Belfiglio's vocals will remind you of Gang of Four, but this is much more of a straightforward rock song than we're used to from BODEGA. This is still a BODEGA song, so "Statuette On the Console" is a party just waiting to break free. Nikki Belfiglio says of the new song: " I have a certain reverence for the symbols of religion; creating iconography with antiquated technology is a big part of my process for the art of BODEGA. I cast myself as the titular statuette on the console, miming the song on top of an old television set, wearing a halo made out...

Photo by Pooneh Ghana It feels like I just discovered BODEGA, despite the fact that their debut album Endless Scroll came out in 2018. The Brooklyn band are back with a new single that shows off everything there is to love about them. "Thrown" is a beyond dance friendly post punk jam. This song is relatively laid back by BODEGA standards, but it's a three minute party by itself. This is one of the most fun live bands around today. "Thrown" might not perfectly capture all of the fun of their live show, but it comes close enough for a solo party in your car or cubicle.  Founding member Ben Hozie says of the new song: “ ‘Thrown’ was an attempt at a self-portrait track.  The older I get the less I trust my own thoughts and perceptions of self  ——> I realize most of my values and judgments come from the records, films, books, and advertisements I have consumed my whole life. Recognizing this ‘thrown-ness,’ while slightly disturbing, has been a source of inspiratio...

We're thrilled that we have new music from Brooklyn's BODEGA. BODEGA have become one of our absolute favorites of the new crop of ultra dance friendly post punk ever since I saw them opening for Jon Spencer + The Hitmakers back in 2019, and "Doers" solidifies our love even more. "Doers" keeps the main elements we've loved from BODEGA. It's all groove and funk, but it's also a mid-tempo alt-rock song. There's far more fuzz lingering behind the song than you'd expect from BODEGA, and "Doers" sounds like it could be crossover mainstream hit if the music industry was still built like it was in the 90's. If they aren't already one of your favorites, these folks are going to endear themselves to you by this time next year. You can watch the video for "Doers" below. Broken Equipment  is due out March 11 on What's Yr Rupture? You can pre-order a copy here . For more on BODEGA, check out the band's Facebook .

Flossing is the new musical project of Heather Elle, formerly of BODEGA. Her new single, "Switch," is a surprisingly catchy electroclash/dance track with some hip hop influences about BDSM. (I have friends that would be disappointed that I didn't pick up on the subject matter based on the title alone...) It reminds me of some of the more mainstream electronica or trip hop of the late 90's mixed with some darker industrial, like Sneaker Pimps mixed with Ruby. It has just the slightest hints of darkness while still being an upbeat song.  Heather Elle says of the new single: "‘ Switch' is the most honest documentation of my psyche in 2020... a messy and perverse mental excavation. In its dual moods, the song represents the complexities of coinciding grieving processes — my mother passing suddenly before tour, ending a five-year relationship, leaving a band, and learning that my city and industry would be on an indefinite hold .” You can watch the video for ...

Photo by Kristen Kay Thoen Our favorite art party rockers out of Brooklyn are back with a new song! BODEGA have just released a video for "Shiny New Model," which is off an upcoming EP. While the songs off last year's Endless Scroll  were a wonderfully weird mix of hip hop, post punk, and folk, "Shiny New Model" is almost just a straightforward song. By most bands this might be an odd little song, but for BODEGA it's surprisingly normal. It's almost like a post punk top 40 ballad, but maybe just a tiny bit faster, and with a killer guitar solo. You can watch the video for "Shiny New Model" below. Shiny New Model , the EP, will be out October 11 on What's Your Rupture. You can pre-order the EP here . For more on BODEGA, check them out on Facebook and Instagram . 

Any time you go see a new project from one of your long time favorites, it's natural to worry about what the show will be like. I've seen far too many shows where a musician hires a band half their age to crank out songs with no emotion or sense of joy. Of course, this is Jon Spencer. There will never be anything to worry about with a live Jon Spencer performance.   Jon Spencer + The HITMakers is similar enough to fans of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion but different enough to warrant a new project. The band consists of Jon Spencer on guitar along with a drummer, a percussionist, and a keyboard player. His new backing band is age appropriate, though. The percussionist is Bob Bert, Sonic Youth's drummer for Confusion is Sex through Death Valley 69.  And by percussionist I mean he hit metal objects with hammers. The band busted out most of Spencer's fantastic 2018 album Spencer Songs the Hits! Definite highlights from the new material were "Ghost" and "Do t...

More American holiday summer doldrums... Album of the Week : Artist : SOPHIE Album : OIL OF EVERY PEARL'S UN-INSIDES Quick Description : Weird pop deconstructions. Why You Should Listen : SOPHIE is a sought-after producer and buzzed-about musician. Overall Thoughts : Album of the week here is sort of a strange, nearly impenetrable one in many regards. Seemingly the result of taking a bunch of pop music, pouring it into a blender full of David Lynch movies, and letting it run for a few minutes, this is an artistic and musical achievement that I fully and completely enjoyed even though I don’t know if I can truly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t enjoy a good, challenging listen. My recommendation? It’s a slow week anyway, and this might open up a whole new genre for you. It’s that good. Recommendation : A challenge, but a good one. Artist : Onlyness Album : Onlyness Quick Description : More retro rock, but without the pretense. Why You Should Listen : You miss th...

We've been loving the art rock meets dance music vibe of BODEGA, and their latest single is no exception. "Gyrate" is absolute fun. For us aging Generation-X hipsters, it reminds me a bunch of Bis without the cutesy aspects of that band. Of course, the origin of the song is quite interesting. According to singer Nikki Belfiglio: " When I was a little girl I used to masturbate in public (once at a JC Penny perfume counter). My parents, not wishing to shame me told me I shouldn’t ‘gyrate’ in front of other people. My song uses the language of Top 40 pop to celebrate self-sustainability and female pleasure. ” The only complaint I has is that with it's under two minute length, the song is over just as it gets started and you've decided you love it. You can watch the video (which was also directed by Nikki Belfiglio) for "Gyrate" below. BODEGA's debut album, Endless Scroll , will be out July 7 on What's Your Rupture? You can pre-order your co...

Photo by Mert Gafuroglu Sometimes you just want a fun dance song. But, when you're a music snob like me, you tend to retreat from most dance friendly music. BODEGA might just be our perfect band. On their new song, "Can't Knock the Hustle," they continue on their mixture of ".. .  post punk, contemporary pop, hip-hop, kraut rock, and folk-derived narrative songwriting" that we heard with "How Did This Happen!?" It's basically is post punk ever decided to not be as intensely serious as old school punk and wanted to throw a party. You can watch the video for "Can't Knock the Hustle" below. BODEGA's debut album, Endless Scroll , will be out on June 1 via What's Your Rupture?. For more on BODEGA, check out their website . Current tour dates are below the video. Wed. May 2 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bazaar w/ No Age Tue. May 15 – London, UK @ The Social Wed. May 16 – London, UK @ Lock Tavern Thu. May 17 – Brighton, ...

Photo by Mert Gafuroglu When a band is described as an "art rock unit," you know the art is going to be more important than the music. That's not the case with Brooklyn's BODEGA. Their new single, "How Did This Happen!?" is far too rocking and catchy to just be art rock. To steal from the band's press release, it is a mixture of "...  post punk, contemporary pop, hip-hop, kraut rock, and folk-derived narrative songwriting." That sounds like a total mess of genres that would just be a trainwreck, but the song works perfectly. It's far more fun than art rock has any right being. You can watch the 360-degree interactive video for "How Did This Happen!?" below. BODEGA's debut album will be out this summer on What's Your Rupture? For more on BODEGA, check out their website . Their current tour dates are below the video. March 10 – Brooklyn, NY @ Union Pool w/ Mind Spiders March 13-17 – Austin, TX @ SXSW March 24 – ...