If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Paige Besse Boston's The Downhauls are diving straight into their punk side on their latest single. "Crosshairs" is a punk ripper that is overtly political. It's full speed forward at a breakneck pace and has a great mix of heavy and melodic. "Crosshairs" is straight up classic punk rock with choruses perfect for shouting along and some of the finest guitar solos around. If you're not madly pogoing and looking up when The Downhauls' next show is by the time this one ends, you might want to check yourself for a pulse. You can listen to "Crosshairs" below. The single is available now on Bandcamp, with a special "Revolution is in the Air" charity merch bundle , with 20% of sales going to the ACLU. For more on The Downhauls, check out the band on Facebook and Instagram . Crosshairs by The Downhauls

Supersuckers are just one of those bands I try to see every year when they make their September swing through the area. This year they skipped The Middle East Upstairs and played Sammy's Patio at Revere Beach. Despite them also playing Turner's Falls, which is closer to my house, I chose the Sammy's Patio show because seeing Supersuckers at Revere Beach just felt right. Plus, Sunday night's show also included The Downhauls, and how could I pass that up? Supersuckers have a compilation from 1999 titled How the Supersuckers Became the Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World , and every time I see them, I once again believe that they are. The band has been playing an amped up version of no nonsense rock and roll occasionally mixed with country for decades now, and the trio have a shocking number of fantastic songs to choose from. They opened with "Pretty Fucked Up" and just took off from there. "Creepy Jackalope Eye" is always a crowd pleaser, and they...

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 August 2 The Downhauls, Duck & Cover, CE Skidmore, and Gossip Collar at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Emperor Norton's Stationary Marching Band at Aeronaut Brewing Company, Allston, MA Michael Kane & The Morning Afters, Cheap Cassettes, and Highwater Haulers at Hotel Vernon, Worcester, MA Sun June and allie at The Word Barn, Exeter, NH Saturday August 3 Mario Fest featuring Black Helicopter, Blood Lightning, Blood, Guts, & Beer, Darryl Shepard's Blackwolfgoat, ...

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 July 5 Bella's Bartok at Gallery Walk, Brattleboro, VT The Downhauls, Hammered Saint, Stars Like Ours, and Lonely Leesa and The Lost Cowboys at Koto, Salem, MA Fresh, Ogbert the Nerd, Mint Green, and Oldsoul at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Saturday July 6 Happy Little Clouds, Lovina Falls, and Parlour Bells at The Rockwell, Somerville, MA Tysk Tysk Task, Tetchy, Gross Girls, and Wildfeuer at Taffeta, Lowell, MA Kimaya Diggs at Antenna Cloud Farm, Gill, MA Brainstory at The St...

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 10 The Forest Effect, Ruin the Night, and The Magic City at Warehouse XI, Somerville, MA Sarah Shook & The Disarmers and Nicolette and the Nobodies at The Cut, Gloucester, MA Fishbone's Angelo Moore, Threat Level Burgundy, and The Agonizers at Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center, Greenfield, MA Margaret Glaspy and Ryan Lerman at The Stone Church, Brattleboro, VT BURP, WarGraves, The Downhauls, and GhostWaves at Thirsty First, Lowell, MA Saturday May 11 Walte...

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...

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 15 GA-20, Muddy Ruckus, and Troy Mercy at starlite, Southbridge, MA Miracle Blood, The Freqs, Psychic Weight, and Billy at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA Viv & Riley at Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation, Waltham, MA Cloudbelly, Jake McKelvie, and TIFFY at O'Brien's, Allston, MA Burp., Tysk Tysk Task, Night Visions, and Cross Girls at Thirsty First, Lowell, MA The Shirts and Shoes, The Roscoes, and WLKRZ at Faces Brewing, Malden, MA Saturday March 16 Matt Charette and the Truer Sound, The Roland High Life, LoboHombre, and Christi...

This past weekend might have been the craziest of all time for the Boston area, musically speaking. We had Taylor Swift taking over Gillette Stadium (and everyone's social media feeds) for three nights, Janet Jackson in Mansfield, Blink 182 at the Garden, and countless local rock shows happening every single night of the weekend. I assumed I'd have some FOMO at only making it out to one show, but when that show was the outstanding triple bill of The Downhauls, Stars Like Ours, and Swivel, I could not have gone wrong. I'm about to lose all my Boston rock credibility by saying this, but I did not know Swivel at all before they were announced as the opener for The Downhauls' EP release show. Last week I discovered that Carissa Johnson was in the band, and I assumed they were a new project. Turns out they've been around for at least five years and also feature Damone's Noelle LeBlanc, and released an EP back in December that we completely missed. This won't shoc...

Boston's The Downhauls are just a no nonsense rock and roll band. Their latest single, "Spit the Poison Out," is a shockingly catchy song given how rock it is. The vocals have a certain quality to them that reminds me of the Donnas. It's both harmonies and gang vocals at the same time, which you don't hear too much. Musically the song sounds like both Cheap Trick and The Clash. "Spit the Poison Out" is both a catchy straightforward power pop/rock song that has more than enough punk edge. The Downhauls are both fun and badass at once.  You can listen to "Spit the Poison Out" below. Scream into the Void is due out May 19, and is available for pre-order through Bandcamp . For more on The Downhauls, check out the band's website . Scream Into The Void by The Downhauls

I have an intense fondness for The Bangles, and am always filled with joy to find covers of any of their songs. Boston's own The Downhauls have just released their take on "Hazy Shade of Winter," and it just might be perfect. (Yes, we know it's a Simon & Garfunkel song, but let's just pretend it's not, ok?) It has all of the fun and the pop side of The Bangles' version, with the punk edge displayed just a bit more. The edge and bitingness of the guitar is softened by the killer vocal harmonies throughout the song. This is the exact type of song that could have easily turned into a huge local hit if modern rock radio was still a thing in Boston. Goddamn this is a fun one. You can listen to The Downhauls' version of "Hazy Shade of Winter" below. The song is currently available as a single via Bandcamp . For more on The Downhauls, check out the band on Facebook  and Instagram .  Hazy Shade of Winter by The Downhauls

Photo via Facebook Boston's The Downhauls play fast and tight garage rock. Their latest single, "Lost Soul," is a perfect example of that.  You might get a hint of the kind of music they do based on the names of the band members: Chrissy V: vocals and rhythm guitar LoWreck: drums Karate Kristin: lead guitar Ivahna Rock: bass and backing vocals The song is just straight up rock and roll, perfect for fans of The Donnas or AC/DC. It's fast with killer guitar solos and more attitude than should be allowed. There is no pretense or music snobbery in The Downhauls. They're just here to rock. You can listen to "Lost Soul" below. The song is available now via Bandcamp with all proceeds going to Black Lives Matter. For more on The Downhauls, check out the band's website . Lost Soul by The Downhauls