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...

1. A truly diverse line up Even “diverse” line ups tend to be pretty homogenous lately. Most festivals feel thrown together with whatever the big names of the moment tend to be, plus maybe a rapper. Because of this, you get a lot of bands that are pretty interchangeable and nothing unique. The Nines has done the opposite. Of all the bands, you can’t really point at any two and call them the same. Hip hop is always an iffy thing with festivals, as most just throw on the token rapper and call it a day. With both K Flay and Kid Koala performing, hip hop has a home, and two completely diverse sides are shown. 2. K Flay Ok, I’ll admit it. As soon as I saw K Flay’s picture and read her bio, I completely judged her. I think I was still feeling the burn from getting excited about Kitty Pryde (now Kitty), and then hearing really juvenile beats and lyrics . Most alternative rap today is either trying to be Jay Z and Kanye with lower production values, or people that can’t rap ...

He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister are going to get lumped into the whole freak folk thing based on their name and their look. However, they are nowhere near as cutesy as you’d think based on those two factors. They’re much closer in style to bands like David Wax Museum and Dr. Dog. Right now Noisetrade is offering the 5 song " Let It Live Free " EP sampler mostly consisting of Daytrotter and Audiotree recordings. I’m going to highly recommend you download it and take a listen. It’s good, fun folk rock with a pretty good emphasis on the rock aspect. Download "Let It Live Free" over at Noisetrade , and check out their tour dates and the video for "Can't See the Stars" below. Jul 19 2013      London UK     Somerset House with Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros Jul 23 2013      Manchester UK            The Castle Hotel      ...

The Nines Festival, which already included Explosions In the Sky, Delta Spirit, Kid Koala, Matt Pond, Dr. Dog, Shuggie Otis, and Walk Off the Earth, just added two new acts to the bill: Brooklyn based rising hip hop star K. Flay and Boston's own Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys. K. Flay is one of indie hip hop's fastest rising stars and will definitely appeal to "the kids." Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys is less a band than an experience, with 7 musical members being joined by all manner of midway and burlesque performers. Both acts add something truly unique to an already diverse line up. The Nines Festival takes place at Willard Field in Devens, MA on August 10. For more information, please check out their website. Early bird tickets end on July 7, so buy them now!

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...