If It's Too Loud...

Cover songs are a big component of what we do here at If It's Too Loud..., and we're huge fans of a great cover whether that's cool or not. It feels like it's been a while since we've brought you a great cover, so luckily for us all Salem Wolves just released an EP of five cover songs! You get covers of The Replacements' "The Ledge," Husker Du's "Don't Want to Know if You're Lonely," Jawbreaker's "Jet Black," INXS' "Never Tear Us Apart," and Tom Waits' "Dirt in the Ground." It's five wildly different songs that are all iconic and beyond fantastic, done in the garage rock shooting for arena levels of huge style of Salem Wolves. All songs keep the roots of the originals intact, but definitely have a new spin on them. Even a song like "Never Tear Us Apart," which is the least Salem Wolves-ish of all the chosen songs, ends up working perfectly in their style. If you love covers a...

Artist : Goodnight, Texas Album : Signals Quick Thoughts : Goodnight, Texas has a strong record of quality alt-country efforts, but this one feels like it levels things up a bit. Equal parts rockin' roots and more traditional country, plus some interesting bonuses (like Kirk Hammett of Metallica) make this an excellent mid-summer listen. Don't miss out on this one. Songs of Note : "Dry Heat," "RUNAWAYS," "Frankie, Where Are You Now?" "Among Tumbleweeds," "The Offer," "The Lightning and the Old Man Todd" Artist : Salem Wolves Album : The Psychotron Speaks Quick Thoughts : We like Salem Wolves quite a bit here. This latest album, however, really hit perfectly for me. It's the sort of punk-adjacent indie I'm looking for in an act, and the songwriting here is so strong and so compelling that I am looking forward to getting back to this as soon as I can. Don't miss out. Songs of Note : "Low Car...

Photo by Black Cherry Creative We couldn't be more excited for the upcoming concept album from Salem Wolves about Danny Morton, Jr., a down on his luck pro wrestler in the '80's who gains mysterious powers from The Psychotron and returns as The Stranger. (Of course, we're wondering if the tale exists in a world where wrestling isn't predetermined, or if it will end with a super powered wrestling league like The Thing joined in Marvel Comics...) The band's latest single, "November," finds The Stranger back in the ring and utilizing his new abilities. The song is a massive, arena ready punk/garage anthem. Salem Wolves have always sounded huge, and "November" sees them take another step towards an absolutely giant sound. This is big rock music, and it quite simply kicks ass. Frontman Grey Bouchard says of the new single: “‘November’ is a heel turn. It’s about that feeling of coming in hot after you’ve been away from the game for some time. It’s ...

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. And since we're in outdoor music season, these events are weather permitting. If you're looking for last minute plans this weekend, we recommend: Friday May 31 The Wolff Sisters and Molly O'Leary at Askew, Providence, RI Zip-Tie Handcuffs, Kal Marks, and Idiot Genes at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Buffalo Tom at The Drake, Amherst, MA Hubby Jenkins at The Porch Southern Fare & Juke Joint, Medford, MA The Promised End, Origami Summer, Miniluv, and One Fall at Koto, Salem, MA Abigail Lapell and Helen Hummel at The Parlor Room, Northampton, MA Saturday June 1 Abigail Lapell and Audrey Pearl at Club Passim, Cambridge, MA Fiel...

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. And since we're in outdoor music season, these events are weather permitting. If you're looking for last minute plans this weekend, we recommend: Friday May 17 Nuggets Celebration featuring Lenny Kaye & Friends (Jon Wurster, Ted Leo, Bill Janovitz, David Minehan, Clint Conley, Tanya Donelly, Barrence Whitfield, & more) at The Cut, Gloucester, MA Miracle Blood, Spiritkiller, Deprogrammer Cult, and Jiddo at O'Brien's Pub, Allston, MA Twin Foxes, Her Head's On Fire, and Salem Wolves at Wes' Rib House Upstairs, Providence, RI Willi Carlisle and Aaron Jonah Lewis at 3S Artspace, Portsmouth, NH Jon Snodgra...

Photo by Black Cherry Creative You ever get the suspicion that a band made a song just for you? The latest from Providence's Salem Wolves is "So Desperate," is part of an upcoming concept album that tells the tale of a down on his luck wrestler in the 80's who taps into the mysterious power of the Psychotron. The song takes the band's amped up garage rock sound and transforms it into this absolutely epic alt-rock sound. Frontman Gray Bouchard has always had a bit of a rock 'n' roll preacher aspect to his vocals, but "So Desperate" sees that multiplied. Salem Wolves have been teasing an arena rock ready sound recently, and this furthers that while keeping a dirty sound intact. This is just a huge song, but a natural evolution of one of our favorites.  Gray Bouchard says of the new single: “'So Desperate’ is about recontextualizing what should be a moment of triumph as something grimy. If you’re ambitious or a dreamer, it’s easy to just focus o...

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: Friday March 1 theWorst, Grub Lord, and Psych Ward Disco at The Stone Church Music Club, Newmarker, NH Padded Waltz, Linnea's Garden, and Cars Go West at JJ's Tavern, Florence, MA Tree, Inverter, Old North End, and Samara at The Shaskeen Pub, Manchester, NH Olivia Dolphin, Imposters, Salem Wolves, and Eric & The Nothing at The Parlour, Providence, RI Perennial, Trophy Wife, and Bubble Scary at The Stone Church, Brattleboro, VT Speedfossil, Modern Day Idols, Tad Overbaugh and the Late Arrivals at The Square Root, Roslindale, MA Saturday March 2 theWo...

Doing Anything Fun this Weekend? is a new 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: Friday, February 2 PonyBoy, Muzzins, Minibeast, and The Z-Boys at The Parlour, Providence, RI Princess Bleach, Miracle Blood, and Burr, DNB Craft Kitchen, New Bedford, MA Baabes, Salem Wolves, Sexx Fix, and Komodo Rojo at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Recent History, Kid Gulliver, and Eyrie House Ruins at JJ's Tavern, Florence, MA The Wolff Sisters and Hush Club at The Press Room, Portsmouth, NH Saturday, February 3 Gut Health, Miracle Blood, Fox Canadian, Superjerk, and Berm at Hotel Vernon, Worcester, MA  Happy Little Clouds, Crow Follow, and Cold Expect...

If you're looking for plans on Cinco de Mayo that don't involve a bunch of college kids slamming back margaritas in sombreros, might we suggest the fantastic triple bill of Asbury Park's fantastic pop punk/indie rock heroes Dentist, the mighty Salem Wolves (now of Rhode Island), and the downtempo sounds of Strange Pains? The three are playing Faces Brewing Co. in Malden, MA, and we've once again teamed up with RTT Presents to giveaway a pair of tickets! In order to win, simply email us at ifitstooloudblog@gmail.com with the subject line of "Dentist," and your full name in the body of the email. We'll draw a winner Thursday morning, May 4! Good luck! For more information on the shows coming up at Faces, check their website here . They have a ton of If It's Too Loud... approved shows, including Kepi Ghoulie, The Jacklights, and Brad Marino May 13, Children of the Flaming Wheel, The Dreamtoday, and Astral Bitch May 18, Dead Bars, Perfectly Lethal, and Hel...

One of the highlights of 2021 was the quadruple bill of Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, Julie Rhodes, The Devil's Twins, and Salem Wolves at ONCE Boynton Yards. It was four of my favorite Boston area bands at the very top of their game laying it all on the table after not playing live (or barely playing live) for well over a year. Turns out Salem Wolves recorded their set, and now it's out as Live at ONCE. We don't cover live albums very much here, but occasionally we make an exception, and this is definitely one. This nine song set shows the reconfigured Salem Wolves in their first live performance. It's filled with songs played for the first time and old favorites played with the new band. A long time favorite like "More Weight!" is given new life with the newer sound. It's still garage rock, but with a little more metal and turned into an arena ready anthem... or at least a parking lot ready anthem. Gray Bouchard is at the top of his game,...

Photo by Erin Patton I don't know if any band we've been following has evolved so much while still keeping their sound intact the way Salem Wolves have. The band's new line up continues to impress more with each song. "Breaking Grounds" is their latest, and possibly best, release. Gray Bouchard and company still have that arena ready garage rock, but lately they've been going heavier enough to border metal while also going more pop at the same time. They're doing this without being even remotely pop metal (either the 80's kind or the current version of pop metal). Bouchard has been going a little more pop with his other band The Dedications, and those pop hooks are starting to filter into Salem Wolves more than a little. It's rare for a band's sound to evolve this much while still sounding like what you first loved about them, but Salem Wolves pull it off impeccably.  Gray Bouchard says of the new single: "It's that feeling that you...

Photo via Facebook Salem Wolves have been one of my local favorites for quite a while now throughout their tweaked line ups. Their latest configuration has also allowed for a changed up sound which is very apparent on their latest single. "Hostile Music" is still that arena rock ready garage rock that we know and love from the now Rhode Island based band, but the band has injected a tiny bit of metal into their sound. While the song is still rough, it has a slightly smoother sound than we're used to. That could also be because singer Gray Bouchard is almost crooning in the verses. Add in an equal amount of New Wave, and "Hostile Music" is one of the heaviest and oddly pleasant songs to come from Salem Wolves to date! You can listen to "Hostile Music" below. The song is available as a single via MegaHex Records and can be downloaded along with some killer merch bundles over at Bandcamp . For more on Salem Wolves, check out the band's website . 

Photo by Lauren Piandes Last year saw Gray Bouchard & The Dedications cover Stevie Wonder's "Someday at Christmas." Hopefully a cover from these guys will become an annual tradition, because this year sees them taking on The Kinks' fairly immortal "Father Christmas." "Father Christmas" is the kind of song you've probably heard roughly a hundred times this year if you've wandered out in public at all, but Gray Bouchard & The Dedications have a fresh take on the classic. As expected, the cover has a little more of a heavier take, but just slightly. "Father Christmas" might just be a perfect song for Bouchard to cover. It allows for a huge, glammed up rocker, and Bouchard puts a little extra menace on the infamous machine gun line. At times they threaten to go into an almost metal territory, but it stays faithful to the original classic holiday power pop original. You can listen to Gray Bouchard & The Dedications take on ...

Photo by Sasha Pedro We're thrilled any time we get to bring you new music from Salem Wolves! "Paraffin" is the first single featuring the now Rhode Island based band's new line up. The changes seem to have injected a new life into the band. "Paraffin" is louder and faster than anything Gray Bouchard and his band have concocted in the past. It's still that arena rock ready garage rock, but this time with a little more of a punk edge and a pop sheen. That may not sound possible, but somehow they've pulled it off. It's a sound that is going to instantly draw you in, and are only complaints are that it's just one song and at just over ninety seconds we need more. You can listen to "Paraffin" below. The song is available on the 617 Sessions Sound of Our Town 2021 compilation, which you can find here . For more on Salem Wolves, check out the band's website .

This past Saturday was an interesting one. While all four bands that played are some of my favorites, Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, Julie Rhodes, The Devil's Twins, and Salem Wolves are four bands I would never have picked to all play together. Sure, any two of them would make perfect sense, maybe even three of them would. But all four just seemed like a strange bill. A fantastic bill, but a strange one. Plus, it was a chance to check out ONCE Somerville's latest chapter. Obviously I was going, no matter what. ONCE Somerville was/is a beloved local independent venue. Somehow they transformed a restaurant's function room into one of the best places to see a live show in Boston. When it closed last year during the pandemic, it was a huge blow to the arts community, but they vowed to continue in a new location. The temporary new location is at Boynton Yards. Maybe it was the inclusion of the word "yards" in the name, but I pictured a green space with ...

"Someday At Christmas" is a classic song, but let's face it: It's about as hokey as Christmas music gets, which is pretty hokey. Stevie Wonder's brilliance is impossible to question, and the dream of peace is shared by everyone, but this just isn't my favorite Stevie Wonder song. This is where Gray Bouchard & The Dedications come in. They turn "Someday At Christmas" from a twee little carol into a rocker. In fact, this might be the heaviest we've heard The Dedications sound. This is a crunchy hard rock song more aligned with Bouchard's other band, Salem Wolves. The true joy of this version of "Someday At Christmas" is it keeps all the sentimentality of the original but transforms it into a grunge/80's metal power ballad, which I didn't think was a physically possible combination, but I've been proven wrong. Gray Bouchard explains his choice of a cover: “The fact is -- in spite of being a Jewish and generally non-reli...

Photo by Lauren Piandes Back in the early days of rock 'n' roll it was standard practice for musicians to cover songs from their contemporaries and friends. Everybody did it, and if it was good enough for Johnny Cash and everyone else... Somewhere along the line, it fell out of favor, and most artists seem to only cover classic bands and their influences. Gray Bouchard & the Dedications are going old school and covering The Devil's Twins' latest single "Bad Karma." The original was just released back on October 30, and Gray Bouchard and his band have already cranked out a new single. The cover keeps the groove of the original (which would be expected), but drops some of the harder rock elements of The Devil's Twins in favor of a bit more of a pop side (also expected). But this is definitely the hardest we've heard the Dedications rock so far. It's almost like if The Cars reformed in the 90's and tried to get played on alternative rock radio...

We've been pretty high on Boston's Salem Wolves for a few years now. They've always had a version of garage rock that has worked for us, even as their sound has evolved into a larger, almost arena ready sound. With their new single, they're completely blowing up their garage rock past into something new. And huge.  Ok, maybe "Titanium" doesn't completely throw away Salem Wolves's past. There's still some garage rock in this new song. But as soon as the nearly metal into starts, you know this is a new, mutated band. And once the force of "Titanium" picks up, the best you can do is hold on for dear life. Gray Bouchard is letting some of his more pop side he normally reserves for The Dedications out, but just a little. Somehow "Titanium" is both more mainstream and heavier than anything Salem Wolves have released in the past. It's a huge, slick, loud, and heavy rock song. This could be what finally propels the band out of t...

Photo by Lauren Piandes Huey Lewis and the News are just one of those bands I never got into, even at their height in the 80's. I'm sure I knew they were cool, but they just never did it for me. They did it for a lot of people, and still do. Inspired by re-watching Back to the Future , Gray Bouchard & the Dedications have decided to make the latest installment of their quarantunes series be a cover of "Power of Love." Once again, their decision might have been divine intervention. Gray Bouchard & the Dedications are masters of mimicking the huge over the top 80's sound needed for any Huey Lewis and the News cover. Sure, this one might be a little sloppy at times, but it's the kind of fun that's just a little bit silly, and we can all use that right now. You can watch the video for Gray Bouchard & the Dedications's cover of "Power of Love" below. For more on Gray Bouchard & the Dedications, check out Gray Bouchard's w...

Photo by Lauren Piandes As we all sit in quarantine for longer and longer, we're all getting bored and videochatting with groups of friends is getting more and more common. This is also leading to bands hopping on Zoom or another software and practicing or even recording. We're all for this, especially when it leads to kick ass covers. The latest is from Gray Bouchard & The Dedications. The power pop leaning towards pop but also some pretty epic rock band have recorded a cover of The Cars beyond classic "You Might Think." If you've been listening to their album Love in the New World  as obsessively as we have since it was released a lifetime ago in February, this is a perfect cover for The Dedications. They stay faithful to the original, albeit with crunchier guitars. Bouchard even does an admirable job singing in his own voice and not imitating Ric Ocasek. (That might sound obvious, but have you ever sung this song out loud without doing an Ocasek impress...