If It's Too Loud...

Some nights music can transcend the space you're in. This is especially true for shows that you don't have high expectations for. You go kind of on a whim, and end up being blown away by every artist you see. That was the case Saturday night at The Cantab Lounge with the triple bill of Ghais Guevara, student 1, and Cavalier. Cavalier opened the night. As with most indie hip hop shows, he played his backing music on a laptop. Usually that's not the best option, but Cavalier made it work. He has this ultra laid back flow that immediately engaged the audience. His style was very lo-fi in a way that only added to his sound. This was my first experience even hearing Cavalier, and I was a fan by the time he left the stage. Up next was student 1. Much like Cavalier, he had an incredibly laid back style. With someone manning his laptop, he came on stage almost immediately after Cavalier and kept the music going. Even the songs he introduced by saying they were aggressive or dance s...

Some shows are simply can't miss ones. When I first saw that Cape Crush were celebrating their excellent new album, Place Memory , at Deep Cuts with ONE FALL, Good June, and Hell Beach, I knew that would be a contender for bill of the year. All four bands are fantastic, and while all four play some version of pop punk/emo/melodic punk, they all do it differently enough to keep the night interesting. As high as my expectations for Friday night were, they were all blown away. Good June was the band I was least familiar with, and the only one I hasn't previously seen live. The emo rock band took the stage first, and set the bar for the evening high. This is emo with an alt-rock edge, and every song was catchier and more fun than the last. Every band seemed to have their own diehard fans right up front and singing all the words, and Good June were no exception. I simply can't emphasize enough how catchy every song in Good June's set was, and I've had multiple taking tur...

Photo by Kate Strowkowski Sometimes bands end up pairing together beautifully. That was the case Wednesday night when the highly political saxophone party punk of Downtown Boys was paired with the artpunk/mod of Perennial. Both bands are two of my favorites, and I try to see them separately as often as possible. Together? A complete can't miss! The show took place in the TV studio of Holyoke Media, which was an odd and interesting but perfect place for a show. There wasn't an actual stage as much as a line created by monitors on the floor, but that worked perfectly for these two bands. Perennial was up first, and it had been far too long since I last saw them. They've always been one of New England's most fun live bands, and if anything, they're even more so now. It was an ultra-high energy set that saw the live debut of their killer new single, "What's New On the Beat Scene." Perennial are at their best with high audience participation, which was brou...

Karly Hartzman of Wednesday Photo by Ken Sears Welcome to the third and final day of the Green River Festival, where if you weren't wearing a piece of Geese merchandise, one was provided for you. It was very obvious who most of the crowd at Green River were there to see (which led to the biggest attendance in Green River's forty years), and the big question was if the band of the moment would live up to the hype. Of course, there was a lot of music to be heard Sunday, and we took in as much as we could! Angela Autumn, Backporch Stage Angela Autumn was one of those artists I discovered while preparing for this year's Green River Festival, and I'm glad I did. She plays that style of Americana/roots music that comes right up against the mainstream while still having her own unique sound. Her songs are beautiful, but with an edge to them. Before Sunday afternoon, I had only heard a handful of songs of hers, and after Sunday afternoon, I'm more than a little obsessed. Au...

Britt Daniel of Spoon Photo by Ken Sears As one of the announcers said, Saturday at the Green River Festival was a marathon. I got there early for Lily Seabird and stayed late for Spoon. It was over ten hours of diverse music, from Americana and folk to cumbia to indie rock to experimental music. It was absolutely exhausting, in the best possible way as I tried to take in everything possible. Here are my highlights from day two! Lily Seabird, Backporch Stage I've been trying to see Lily Seabird live for almost three years now, and the Green River Festival finally let it happen. My expectations were high, and she and her band blew them completely away. I had meant to watch half of her set and then head over to Dean's Beans Stage for the second half of The Animeros, but I was transfixed by Seabird's set. Live she seemed to lean into her more indie rock side with folk elements. It was kind of like if Nirvana or Sonic Youth decided to try out Americana. Lily Seabird set the bar...

Charley Crockett Photo by Ken Sears I was a bit of a hypocrite this year for the Green River Festival. As much as I preached for getting there early, life and the day job got in the way on Friday, and I didn't get there as early as I wanted to. It was still a great day of music, even if I got a late start. Here were my favorites from day one! Tre Burt, Backporch Stage I first discovered Tre Burt opening up for Haley Heynderickx, and I've been dying to see him again ever since. His set at this year's Green River Festival will be talked by anyone who saw it for a while. Burt and his band played incredibly tightly, mixing rock and roots music in a way that has wide appeal but is completely unique to him. I had "Santiago" stuck in my head for a week from listening to the Green River Festival Spotify playlist so much, and now it's embedded there, possibly permanently. His version of folk and roots is so upbeat and catchy that it's practically made for festivals...

There are some bands that I don't think I'll ever get to see live. They tend to be smaller bands from other countries that I doubt will ever fully tour the states. Maybe one of those quickie tours around a massive festival where they only play New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, but those always skip Boston. You can imagine my delight when I saw that Panic Shack were coming all the way from Wales and playing the tiny The Rockwell. I obviously couldn't miss it. I was wondering what Panic Shack's draw would be. I am a terrible judge of how popular artists are, so I had no idea if it would be ten people at the show or a packed house. Turns out, The Rockwell was packed tighter than I've ever seen it, with anticipation bubbling from the crowd. Panic Shack took the stage and met the energy from the crowd in an endless loop of excitement. It turns out that Panic Shack put on what might have been the best show of the year in Boston.  The energy Wednesday night was insane. P...

Toadies and Local H are two bands who seem to finally be getting the respect they deserve. I've never heard anything but gushing praise after a Local H live show, and Toadies have one of the most underrated catalogs in music. Plus, their music has aged surprisingly well. If you haven't listened to Local H's As Good As Dead or Toadies' Rubberneck  for a while, I guarantee they are far better than you remember. Plus, I haven't seen either band live in decades, so when they announced a tour together, I instantly wanted to go. (Apologies to Vandoliers for missing their set. They're a band I adore, and they rarely make it up to Boston, but the early start time and my schedule didn't work out.) The shocking thing about the crowd for Local H was just how young it was. There were some forty and fifty-somethings speckled in the crowd, but the majority was Gen Z. And The Kids got a masterclass in 90's alternative rock. As I said, they were always a surprisingly gr...

Ever since I stumbled on the music of Little Hag back in 2020 or so, I've made it my mission to see the Jersey Shore band any time they roll through New England. Friday night they swung through The Lilypad in Cambridge, which let me see them for the third time, and let me discover two new favorites: Blvck Hippie and Grocer! Little Hag took the stage a little before the listed 8:00 start time, and started just as I walked in the door. They played a fun and energetic set focusing on their newer music (and leaving off 2020's "Tetris!"), but luckily they keep releasing killer songs. Their sound is a pop-ish blend of indie rock, and they shone with favorites like "Blood" and "The Machine." Avery Mandeville is the perfect frontperson for this style of music, and has an awkward charm that is irresistible and just adds to the fun of their live show. They included the just released this week "Watchlist Rock," which is a companion piece to last yea...

I've been a fan of Dry Cleaning since I first heard "Magic of Meghan" way back in 2019. In the past seven years, they've played Boston a few times, but it's just never worked out to see them. They swung through Boston again on Tuesday night, and everything aligned to finally see them. I was a bit hesitant since I had seven years of anticipation, and sometimes a fairly mellow, experimental post punk band with spoken word lyrics doesn't translate to a live show. Turns out, there was nothing to be hesitant about. Dry Cleaning overdelivered any expectations I had for them. They were an intensely engaging live band, and even their most mellow songs translated perfectly to the stage. As expected, their setlist focused on Secret Love , their album that was released back in January. Luckily, it's an excellent album, and all eleven songs were fantastic live. Personal highlights from the new album included "Let Me Grow and You'll See the Fruit" and ...

I've been a huge fan of Glixen's ever since I first heard "foreversoon" back in 2024. Seeing them play with Glitterer shortly after solidified my fandom, and I've been trying to see the Arizona heavy shoegaze band every time they make it up here. Wednesday night they headlined The Sinclair with three other diverse shoegaze bands: Trauma Ray, Her New Knife, and Knifeplay. Philadelphia's Knifeplay opened up the show. I was completely unfamiliar with them until Wednesday night, and they quickly won me over. They played a set of loud/quiet/loud shoegaze that went from gorgeous to punishing. Their music was simply mesmerizing and sucked the crowd in almost instantly. Some songs were almost completely quiet and almost folklike, and others were fully heavy. They played three or four songs in their just under thirty minute set, and set the tone for the evening perfectly. Her New Knife played next. They're also from Philadelphia, and while considered a shoegaze ban...

Poison Ruin have released one of the most intriguing punk/metal albums of the year with Hymns from the Hills. Lots of bands blur the lines between punk and metal, but no one does it quite like them. Their tour has brought them to a few venues around New England, and considering how much I love The Stone Church in Brattleboro, VT but rarely get there, that was the date I chose to check out. Poison Ruin are an absolute beast live. It's loud, it's heavy, and it's great. Just pure, no nonsense punk mixed with metal. They play shred heavy rock without being overly showy. What's truly great about Poison Ruin's music, and in turn their live show, is how diverse their sound can be. Some songs are more punk, some are more metal, and some had an undeniable groove that leaned into funk. This is the kind of band that attracts hipsters in ironic mullets and metalheads in unironic mullets. And both crowds make complete sense at a Poison Ruin show, and both had a great time. It wa...

Hepcat are one of those legendary bands I've been meaning to see for a while. To be honest, I wasn't intimately familiar with the band's catalog, but they are ska legends, and I'm currently going through my midlife crisis second ska phase. When I saw they were playing the Paradise Sunday night, I knew it was my chance. The fact that The New Limits and Pink Slip, two of my favorite local ska bands, were opening only made it more tempting. Hepcat are legends for a simple reason, and that reason is that they are great. They're closer to the first wave of 60's ska than what you typically think of with bands from the 80's and 90's. It was upbeat hit after upbeat hit. All their songs are impossibly dance friendly even if they can be a bit laid back. They had the Sunday night older crowd participating in a dance party for their entire set, which is never an easy feat. It's easy to forget just how many great songs a band like Hepcat have since they never tru...

I went into Mclusky's 2024 set at The Sinclair in Cambridge as a casual fan. Part of me felt guilty since the show was very sold out, and I felt like I was taking the place of a diehard who deserved it more. By the end of the show, I became one of those diehard fans, and desperately wanted to see them again. Last month they released the excellent EP i sure am getting sick of this bowling alley , and came back to the States to support it. This brought them to the Paradise Wednesday night, and I was right up front and thrilled to be there. Mclusky opened with "Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues," almost like they just wanted to get it out of the way. The crowd absolutely exploded, and, unlike most bands that started three decades ago, the energy of the crowd increased with each song. Mclusky sets tend to be a bit unhinged, but that only accentuates their post-hardcore sound. Their songs are noisy and disjointed, and that's exactly why we love them so much. It's also easy ...

My expectations for Monday night's Tigers Jaw show were fairly high, possibly too high. I missed Something in the Way Festival on Saturday, but their set that day was the talk of Sunday. All day I kept hearing people talk about how great they were, so I instantly wanted to check them out next time they came through the area. Luckily I didn't have to wait that long since they played The Sinclair on Monday night. Tigers Jaw's set started off good. Really good, but not quite the level of great I was expecting. I was enjoying it, but thought they might have been more than a little overhyped. And then the third song, "Head is Like a Sinking Stone," kicked in, and suddenly I fully understood the hype. From there my casual fandom multiplied, and I was completely invested in the show. The crowd erupted for virtually every song, and after they played "Never Saw It Coming," it was an all out frenzy for the band. As a (formerly) non-diehard fan, I was surprised by ...

Thursday was one of those nights where a bunch of shows were happening all over the greater Boston area. Some nights it's hard to decide which show to go with, but when a band is coming all the way from Indonesia for their first U.S. tour, that's the one I had to go with. I had assumed Grrrl Gang would never make it to Boston, so their show was the obvious choice. Opening the show was Boston's own Little Miss Echo. The trio played a fun set of their sunshiney dream pop and indie rock. Their songs had this great dichotomy of being light and poppy sounding while having the slightest edge of aggression. They have a great 90's influenced style while still sounding modern. They played a fun, short set that set the mood for the evening perfectly. Thursday night's show was wonderfully curated, and up next was Horrendous Downplay. They had a similar sound to Little Miss Echo, but with an artsier vibe. Their music was noisy and beautiful, with an engaging delivery. As discor...

Last year's Boston Bitdown was one of my unexpected musical highlights of 2025. I was only able to make it one night last year, but I was blown away by how diverse a festival of chiptune bands could be, and how much fun I had. I wanted to make it to more dates in 2026, but life and family obligations prevented me from taking in as much of the festival as I wanted. I made it on Saturday to bounce between Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theater and The Rockwell. I wasn't able to take everything in, but what I saw was fun and great. The first artist I saw wasn't chiptune at all, but still fit in with the vibe of the festival. Boston Typewriter Orchestra are one of those artists I've been meaning to check out, and Saturday night was my chance. They're a band that consists of all members playing typewriters. Yes, virtually every sound coming from the stage is coming from an old fashioned, non-electric typewriter. It's the sound from the keys, drumming on the back, bel...

Photo by Aileen Lam One of the negative aspects of having a music blog is that you start discovering bands from all over the world that you'll never get the chance to see live. It's fairly cost prohibitive for a band to fly across an ocean all the way to the U.S. to tour small clubs, and given everything going on right now, I certainly wouldn't expect a band to fly all the way over here since who knows what could happen. Imagine my surprise and delight when Lucid Express announced they were coming to the U.S. to tour, and were playing the tiny O'Brien's in Allston. Opening the show was Boston's own Sophie's Body. They were a band I was completely unfamiliar with but they quickly won me over with their bubblegrunge sound. It was a fun, quick set filled with fuzzy indie rock gems with a strong pop streak. Vocalist Sophie McMinn implored the crowd to dance, but the Boston hipster crowd isn't known for its willingness to dance. By the end, many in the crowd ...

I'm going to age myself here, but the first (and last) time I saw Tracy Bonham live was at the album release show for The Burdens of Being Upright way back in 1996. It was at The Middle East, and you could get a free ticket if you purchased the CD at Newbury Comics. I'm not sure why I never saw her again after that show, but I've been on a bit of a Tracy Bonham kick lately. The Burdens of Being Upright might be the most underappreciated songs of that era. We all know and remember the big megahit "Mother Mother," but "Navy Bean," "Tell It to the Sky," "Kisses," and "The One" are all far better than you remember. Once I saw that she was starting a residency at The Burren to mark the album's thirtieth anniversary, I immediately acquired a ticket to the February show. Sunday night's show was moved an hour earlier due to the huge snow storm still happening, but instead of weighing on everyone like a cloud, the impending s...

Last week was a crazy week of amazing triple bills for me. The night before Valentine's Day was a truly can't miss show for me, with JVK hosting their second JVK Day show at Taffeta Music Hall in Lowell with two equally fantastic local bands: Tysk Tysk Task and The Ghouls! Opening the show was Lowell's own The Ghouls. They're always one of the most fun live bands out there today, and Friday night was no exception. They announced they were only playing love songs during their set, and then just rocked it out, setting the tone for the evening. They have mastered the art of playing loose and tight at the same time, and have an amazing mixture of 90's slacker cool while still playing unbelievably well. A huge help is that their fans always show out to their shows and match the bands energy. Even if you've never heard of The Ghouls before, it's impossible not to get swept up in the excitement between the band and their fans. Plus, they closed with a wonderfully 9...