So, you’re headed to the sold out Rock ‘N’ Roll Rumble Finals tonight and you’re wondering what to expect. Look, these things are pretty unpredictable. No one ever really knows what’s going to happen. Petty Morals, Await Rescue and Goddamn Draculas have been on point the whole Rumble. There’s no reason to expect anything less tonight. However, if you think you know what tricks the bands have up their sleeves or who’s going home in a tiara, you may be in for a surprise. We’ll find out soon enough when we pack into TT’s to watch in all unfold. Then we’ll catch a set from The Information before they announce the winner and spray the champagne. In the end, we’ll have our memories. Maybe we’ll have some pictures. Here are a few of mine from the last 3 Rumble Finals. See you tonight!
The Dogmatics – 2013 Rumble Special Guest BandEddie Japan – 2013 Rumble ChampionsGlenn Yoder And The Western States – 2013 Rumble FinalsTwin Berlin – 2013 Rumble FinalsThe Grownup Noise – 2012 Rumble Special Guest BandBow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck – 2012 Rumble ChampionsGarvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance – 2012 Rumble FinalsMotherboar – 2012 Rumble FinalsThe Shods – 2011 Rumble Special Guest BandSpirit Kid – 2011 Rumble FinalsJohn Powhida International Airport – 2011 Rumble ChampionsOldJack – 2011 Rumble Finals
Various Artists Boston Does Boston Vol. 1 & 2
2013
Boston Does Boston Vol. 1 & 2 is out. It’s 26 tracks of Boston bands covering each other to raise money for the Animal Rescue League of Boston. Read all about it right here. This is my first time through the collection. I’ve been waiting to listen until I had time to go end-to-end all at once. I’m jotting down some notes. Let’s see what happens…
“Get Away” (Township covering Jenny Dee and the Deelinquents) – Hell, yes! I love the original. This version is just Township doing their thing. We’re off to a good start.
“Bright” (Will Dailey covering Reverse) – Yes and yes. The original sings with supersaturated glory. This version kicks back. Perfect.
“True Star” (Reverse covering I, Pistol) – Reverse gets a cool groove going on this I, Pistol tune. Sweet harmonies and guitar lines. Three songs in and this collection is blowing my mind a bit.
“Amylee” (I, Pistol covering The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library) – When in doubt, rock it out. Especially when it sounds this natural.
“A Madness To His Method” (The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library covering Gene Dante & the Future Starlets) – The “watch me falling down” parts on this version sound really good.
“Trainwreck” (Gene Dante & The Future Starlets covering Miss Fairchild) – Everything Gene Dante touches is delightfully seedy. This cover is no exception.
“Costumes” (Miss Fairchild covering Mr. Vertigo) – Tremolicious.
“Sleeping Alone” (Mr. Vertigo covering The Field Effect) – A modern-rock-radio-ready take on a stripped back Field Effect tune.
“The Sun Shines” (The Field Effect covering Sidewalk Driver) – Come on. The Field Effect covering Sidewalk Driver? Do you know me? Thank you Boston Does Boston.
“Straitjacket” (Sidewalk Driver covering The Luxury) – Sidewalk Driver make magic. When the boy/girl vocals meet up with the bop-baddas, good things happen.
“Infinity Minor” (The Luxury covering Ted Billings) – Meticulously layered and melodic.
“Pavement Prophet” (Garvy J. covering Sarah Rabdau and Self-Employed Assassins) – Subtly glorious. Shrouded in mystery and synthesizers.
“Rian” (Jenny Dee and The Deelinquents covering Township) – Jenny Dee and The Deelinquents return the favor, turning a Township tune into one of their own. Geez. These cats are good.
“No God in Massachusetts” (Sarah Rabdau & Self-Employed Assassins covering Dead Cats Dead Rats) – Whoa. That was unexpected. Sarah turned herself inside out without losing sight of who she is. Impressive.
“On Fire” (Dead Cats Dead Rats covering The Lights Out) – Blistering take on an already rippin’ tune.
“Atom Bomb” (The Lights Out covering Walter Sickert and the Army of Broken Toys) – There’s still some grit under the nails, but steamcrunk cleans up nicely. Nice pairing.
“Less Talk, More Rokk” (Black Thai covering Freezepop) – Yes, yes, yes and more yes! Black Thai slay the synth-pop giant.
“Sweater Weather” (Freezepop covering Parks) – Look, a perfect pop song is a perfect pop song, OK? Proof.
“Badfinger Bridge” (Parks covering Corin Ashley) – A natural pairing with a lovely bouquet.
“Marigold” (Corin Ashley covering The Curtain Society) – I’m not familiar with the original, but this version is lovely.
“Birds Fly Information” (The Curtain Society covering Here We Just Dream) – Poppy. Trippy. Melodic. Great guitar solo.
“The Most Beautiful Thing” (Here We Just Dream covering Sarah Blacker) – There are a lot of nice, subtle touches in this one.
“Whiskey” (Three Day Threshold covering Nemes) – Three Day Threshold singing about whiskey? Shocking.
“Kindness” (Nemes covering Will Dailey) – Impressive shared vocals and a wonderful sentiment. Nice way to end the comp.
Yeah, so this is great. All you have to do now is download this thing and enjoy it yourself. Oh, and maybe check out one of the live events happening this weekend.
Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance blow my mind every time they take the stage. Their presence at The Daykamp Poster & Photo Show was no exception. Their sound bends the space–time continuum as much as it blends genres. They are diametrically opposed to themselves. Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance are the tranquil freak-out.
We’re putting on a a couple of shows with rock bands, photos and posters at TT’s in October! It’s going to be more awesome than we can put into words. That’s why we had Richard Bouchard do it for us! Here’s a special guest post from the Indie Rock Ranger with the details…
When I was first hired to do booking at TT the Bear’s Place, one of the first things I wanted to do was set up a show with Nicole and Johnny Anguish of Daykamp Creative and Daykamp Music, respectively. I’ve been hiring Nicole to create show posters since back in the Boston Band Crush days, usually giving her no guidance other than the list of bands and the date of the show. She always delivers an incredibly eye-catching, colorful design that doesn’t just provide information; it’s something I want to hang on my wall forever. Then there’s Johnny, always front and center for a rock show before posting amazing photo recaps on his Daykamp Music website. They tirelessly support the music community here, and knowing that I wasn’t the only one to feel that way, I felt that it was high time they present a show. Not just any show, mind you, I wanted them to pick the bands – artists they’ve worked with over the years and bands they’re longtime fans of – but I also wanted to display their work in the club for everyone to see. After some brief discussion, Nicole emailed me back: “We’re thinking we need to do two nights…”
Here’s what they came up with:
It’s Rumble season. Every year around this time I’m filled with an equal mix of anticipation and nostalgia. That’s the kind of event The Rumble is. You get to check out 24 of the best bands playing around town in one* fell swoop while making memories that will haunt you you’ll remember for a very long time.** With that in mind, here are 24 reasons why I can’t wait for the 2013 Rock ‘N’ Roll Rumble to get underway on Sunday night. These are in no particular order, but I numbered them 24 to 1*** because that’s what all important lists do. Oh, and here’s the full schedule in case you missed it.
Opening night is going to be awesome. The lineup of The Okay Win / Cancer Killing Gemini / The New Highway Hymnal / Velah is as good as they come. You’d be hard pressed to find a better way to spend a Sunday night all year. It’ll be better than the Mad Men premiere.
The Rumble is known for eclectic bills, but this year takes the cake. Saturday’s Parks / Jack Burton vs. David Lo Pan / Ruby Rose Fox / The Daily Pravda lineup is certainly in contention for most diverse night of this year’s event. Thursday night’s Mount Peru / Whitcomb / Lifestyle / Twin Berlin bill is in that conversation, as well.
Ruby Rose Fox is part of the crazy-diverse Saturday night lineup.
There’s almost no stage banter. With only 30 minutes to impress the judges and win over the crowd, most bands have fine-tuned their sets. That makes a good line all the more memorable. My favorite came from 1998 Rumble winners The Ghost Of Tony Gold: “Vote The Ghost. We need the cash.”
Pre-show beer at the back bar while shooting the breeze with some increasingly tired friends who keep coming out night after night? Yes please.
There’s always a good story. Old Jack had quite the memorable run a couple of years ago. Last year Tommy Lada competed against himself in the semifinals playing with Ghosts Of Jupiter and Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance on the same night. We also had The Grownup Noise as the special guest band after they had to drop out of the competition due to injury. I’m looking forward to watching this year’s event unfold.
OldJack’s run was something special.
Anngelle Wood is going to cry. It’s inevitable. She just cares so damn much. This town needs more people like her.
It’s always fun to see a band a second time. You’ve got an idea of what to expect, but you certainly don’t know all of their tricks. I get to do that 3 times on Monday (Endation / The Deep North / Camden) and one more time on Tuesday (Blackbutton).
Editing photos at 3 o’clock in the morning is awesome. I think. I can’t really remember. I mean, half of the time I black out and can’t remember doing it. Sometimes I just fall asleep with my eyes open and my hand on the mouse, waiting for my brain to decide if the exposure needs to be nudged up a bit or… zzz…
Bow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck won The Rumble last year. Cask Mouse had a stellar showing as well. Girls Guns And Glory won it all a few years back. A touch of twang seems to go over well with the judges. Coyote Kolb and Glenn Yoder & The Western States would probably like to see that trend continue.
Bow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck twanged their way to a Rumble victory last year.
I love seeing live bands.
The Rumble is a living, breathing thing. It adapts over time. After a particularly contentious semifinal round in 1998, the wildcard was added to advance to the finals. Since then, three of those wildcards have won the whole shebang. The spirit of the event has evolved, as well. What was once a true competition is now more of a home grown music festival. Change can be a good thing.
I have no idea who is going to win.
I saw some of my current favorite bands for the first time in The Rumble. I’m looking at you Sidewalk Driver****, Mellow Bravo and The Susan Constant. Am I going to become obsessed with The Okay Win, The New Highway Hymnal, Herra Terra, Supermachine, Glenn Yoder & The Western States, Coyote Kolb, The Suicide Dolls, Mount Peru, Whitcomb, Twin Berlin, Parks or Jack Burton vs. David Lo Pan? I wouldn’t bet against it.
Mellow Bravo won me over at The Rumble.
I love Eddie Japan. It’s movie music where I get to make up the movie in my mind. I don’t know who will advance from Tuesday night’s lineup, but I’m pretty sure everyone will walk out of TT’s with the trumpet line from “A Town Called Nowhere” in their head.
White Dynomite members have participated in more Rumbles than all of the other bands combined. Hell, my band even lost to one of these guys back in 2002. Will all that experience give these guys an edge? Find out next Friday.
Looking at the list of past Rumbles makes me wish time travel was real. If I could go back in time to see one Rumble final that I missed it would be 1996. Trona and Quintaine Americana? Are you kidding me? So good.
I need to see Parks live. I’m in love with their first twosingles, but I haven’t been able to catch a show yet. This all changes next Saturday night.
What about heavy music? Motherboar made it all the way to the finals last year with some brutally amazing sets. Sherman Burns tore their way into the semis as a wildcard. Jack Burton vs. David Lo Pan, Whitcomb and Supermachine are likely hoping for similar success.
This.
The time between the last band finishing their set and the night’s winner being announced is gloriously awkward.
The Rumble is never boring. The American Measles wore Kiss makeup. Cracktorch could jump really high. Keith Pierce finished Mellow Bravo’s preliminary round set on top of a car in front of TT’s.***** What’s next?
For the bands, The Rumble is a great way to get in front of people who may not have any idea who you are and win them over. Rumble crowds are good like that. I’ve seen The Field Effect take on some pretty diverse audiences in the past six months. Their enthusiasm is undeniable. Win or lose, The Field Effect is going to walk away with a boatload of new fans.
The Field Effect will win some new fans, but will they win their night?
I’ve seen a lot of Rumble shows over the years, but last year was the first time I was able to attend every night. It was a blast. I can’t wait to do it again.
Have I mentioned that The Okay Win, Cancer Killing Gemini, The New Highway Hymnal, Velah, Endation, The Deep North, Herra Terra, Camden, Eddie Japan, Supermachine, Glenn Yoder & The Western States, Blackbutton, Mount Peru, Whitcomb, Lifestyle, Twin Berlin, Coyote Kolb, The Field Effect, The Suicide Dolls, White Dynomite, Parks, Jack Burton vs. David Lo Pan, Ruby Rose Fox and The Daily Pravda are playing? That should be reason enough.
Rumbles are unpredictable. There will be “upsets.” Bands will be “robbed.” Allegations will fly. Someone might get glitter bombed. Life will go on. A good time will be had by most. Friendships will be made. Future shows will be set up. Somone will leave with a tiara on. We’ll all have a good laugh about it in the morning.
Is it Sunday yet?
* Well, nine fell swoops, I guess.
** Personal experience tells me at least 15 years.
*** Oops. That list reversal attribute in an HTML5 tag. some of you may be seeing this 1-24. Isn’t technology fun?
**** Technically not the first time I saw them, but that’s a story for another time.
**** I missed this show. Sad face. Thankfully there’s this video.
I’m at a loss. I want you to know how I feel when I watch Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance, but the words aren’t coming. “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture” and all that. Imagine standing in the sunshine with all the dark clouds held at bay. What do you call that feeling?
WFNX has been sold to Clear Channel and will cease to exist as we know it. Time to celebrate!
Wait. What?
We Want The Airwaves: A WFNX Tribute was about three things: raising money for The Progeria Research Foundation; getting all sentimental about the ‘FNX that was; and looking to the future of the DJs, staff, artists and local music community the station supported.
Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance are playing “What If It All Works Out” and that future seems bright. WFNX will live on in some form online. A bunch of the station’s on air talent are heading over to Boston.com for a new venture. Sure, these outlets may not have the same reach as a commercial radio station, but what if they find a more engaged audience? What if they can connect with truly passionate music fans? Wouldn’t artists love that? Wouldn’t it be great to have the sounds of Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance heard by people who actually care? Let’s send their wall of layered guitars, dynamic bass lines, thunderous drums and vocal crooning directly to those who need it. Something needs to happen. It may all fail spectacularly, but that’s a worry for another night. I’m too busy watching Garvy J. rip another crazy-distorto solo on his 12-string acoustic guitar.
Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance
“Celebrate”
2011
Garvy J And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance were one of the standout bands of the 2012 Rock ‘N’ Roll Rumble. This song was one of the big reasons why. “Celebrate” bristles with life both in a live setting and on this recording. It’s an upbeat Summerteeth-era Wilco tune with an adventurist twist. It’s a kinetic Flaming Lips track with a smooth vocal delivery. It’s vibrant. It’s vivid. It’s vital.
Garvy J. And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance’s 2012 Rock ‘N’ Roll Rumble run was dazzling. Dueling EBows, distorted twelve-strings, a massive rhythm section, psych-tinged tunes and a smooth vocal croon all sparkled under the TT’s lights. It was simultaneously joyous, achingly gorgeous and slightly mind bending. Spectacular.
