Boston Rock Photos And Stuff
On Friday I told you why Parlour Bells was a great choice to kick off the We Want The Airwaves: A WFNX Tribute event at The Paradise. On Saturday they proved me right. This crowd wasn’t going to settle for melancholy and self-pity. They wanted a reason to be hopeful. They wanted to be delighted. They wanted to be entertained. They wanted all of this. Parlour Bells delivered.
It’s pretty remarkable how effortlessly the guys in Eddie Japan can blend musical styles.* Pop, rock, lounge and spaghetti western motifs are all in play during an Eddie Japan show. Some songs will have you tapping your toes while others will whisk you away to exotic musical locales. What a great way to cap off a heat wave.
* Or at least how effortless they make it seem.
Great songs have always been a trademark of The Rationales. Saturday night these guys added a couple of new gems to their setlist. I immediately fell in love with “Let It Go,” a song that wouldn’t sound out of place on side two of Abbey Road. Keep an ear out for that one.
Here are The Vivs at Precinct. They sport a classic Boston indie sound that they’ve gussied up with some three part harmonies.* Not willing to settle for the embarrassment of riches that is three competent vocalists in one band, The Vivs invited Sophia Cacciola** up on stage for a particularly haunting number.
* In the grand Boston rock tradition, The Vivs even busted out a Kinks cover.
** Recent “Best Female Vocalist” winner in the Boston Phoenix Best Music Poll for her work with Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling.
The Franc Graham Band mixes a low rock aesthetic with traditional songwriting and modern arrangements. Their Precinct set entertained a crowd seeking relief from the last gasps of an early summer heatwave.
Tallahassee played TT’s Friday night. It’s hotter than Tallahassee around these parts today. Coincidence? Probably. No matter. This was my first time seeing Tallahassee. It’s indie rock with some twang, stomp and singalongability. I like ’em.
The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library experimented with playing along to a silent movie they made. If this is anything like the way Mr. Epstein “experiments” with new bands, expect to see more of this in the future.
I love Cask Mouse. I love their songs. I love their vocal arrangements. I love their attitude, energy and charisma. Most of all I love their enthusiasm. Their love for what they do makes it easy to get behind them. It doesn’t take long for the TT’s crowd to do just that.
While some bands take years to settle into their sound, Velah seem to have emerged with a fully formed musical identity. Will they evolve over time? That’s an exciting inevitability for a unit that is so in tune with each other.
There’s a fire here. There’s a genuine desire to play the hell out of their songs. Aloud wants your attention. Once they have it, they won’t let go.
