Here’s Rule barreling through their song “Das Brute” at Church last week.
Rule – “Das Brute” @ Church 5.24.2012
Rule @ Church 5.24.2012
Rule opening for Manitoba?* You know I’m there. The band blasted through their set (and a kick drum head!) at Church. Rule doesn’t mess around.
* I know they aren’t local, but I’d be remiss not to mention how great Handsome Dick and his band of merry men were. Hopefully Manitoba will be back around these parts again soon.
The Dirty Truckers @ Radio 5.4.2012
The Dirty Truckers were back in action Friday night. The band was celebrating the release of their new Tiger Stripes EP and the 7″ single for the song “Human Contact.” It had been a while since the last time I saw these Boston wranglers. I was starting to get the shakes. Their set at Radio was just what I needed. The Dirty Truckers blasted out one of the best sets I’ve ever seen them play. They played the new stuff. They played the old stuff.* They rocked the in-between stuff like nobody’s business. “Sea Pines” and “3 Weeks To Go” blew the doors off the joint.** They threw in a couple of covers to keep themselves honest. In the end, the ‘Truckers reminded everyone that they’re one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands around, not that we’d forgotten.
* Including “Backpack” from their first record.
** Both off of 2008’s fantastic Loose In The Joints
Rule @ Radio 1.20.2012
Growing up we had a cat. When we got him, he was a tiny little kitten. My mom named him Pudge. He pretty quickly grew into his name.
Pretty much the same thing is happening with Rule.*
* Living up to their name, that is. Not getting pudgy.
The Irreverends – The Irreverends (2005)
The Irreverends
The Irreverends
2005
With a few bars of backbeat followed by a great harmonized guitar line, The Irreverends are off and running on their debut EP. The band powers through “Annalise” with conviction. The song could have come right off of Damn the Torpedoes, with chiming guitars and Adam White’s Tom Petty-esque vocal phrasing. It works and it’s catchy as hell. The band keeps rocking right through “Ghettos On Fire”, with some snappy drumming by Chris Keene.
The band slows things down on the reverb-soaked third track, “Evangeline”. This song has a long slow build that showcases John Brookhouse’s incendiary lead guitar work. His solo that starts at the 5:50 mark should be a primary exhibit in any case presenting him as one of the finest guitar players in town.
Closing out the EP is “Double Negative”, a country-tinged tune with the clever lyric “You don’t mean nothing to me.” The dynamic changes in the song are beautifully executed, building up and tearing down at all the right times. It’s a fitting way to close out this introduction to a dearly missed and under-appreciated Boston band.
Where to get it:
Rule – “Bloodletter” (2011)
Rule
“Bloodletter”
2011
Remember when I asked you to remember when you liked metal? This is why…
“Bloodletter” is Rule’s first single and it’s awesome. The future classic metal riffs come flying right from the start. John Brookhouse’s throaty guitar riffs are propelled by the bombastic duo of Greg Beadle on drums and Jim Zavadoski on bass. This metal has a groove. Even when they thrash through the song’s outro they never lose the heaviness. The guitar solos have just the right ratio of flash to trash.* Above it all, Mike Soltoff’s vocals soar to metal glory. The dude can wail. Rule can wail.
Where to get it:
* This is metal and John Brookhouse is on guitar. You knew there would be guitar solos, right?
Rule @ Radio 11.19.2011
Do you like metal?
Wait! No no no! Don’t go anywhere. Let’s try this a different way.
Remember when you liked metal?
Rule plays that kind of metal. It’s Ronnie James Dio fronting a reinvigorated Black Sabbath. It’s Joey Belladona-era Anthrax without the Jams shorts, backward hats and goofy rhymes. It hints at Judas Priest, Ozzy, Maiden and early Metallica while, amazingly, not relying on nostalgia.
I know it sounds like I just contradicted myself with the whole “remember when” thing and then saying Rule isn’t nostalgic. I get it. It’s true, Rule plays a very classic sort of metal. However, my enjoyment of their debut show was not based upon my fond memories of being a mulleted teenager blasting Painkiller in a wood paneled basement with my fellow misfits.* Rule’s set seemed vital. There was no irony in what they were doing.
Rule is metal.
* Although my mulleted teenage self would have loved Rule.
The Dirty Truckers @ Radio 10.8.2011
Nicole Tammaro once commented: “Dirty Truckers shows are fun. Everybody plays. Everybody gets up on stage.”
The Dirty Truckers show at Radio was fun. Everybody played. Everybody got on stage.
Wagon Battle @ The Middle East Downstairs 9.24.2011
Wagon Battle. One Night Band. Pioneercore.
We saw John Brookhouse, Chrissy Vaccaro, Danny McNair, T.J.Horn and Mary Flatley circling the wagons. They were tight. They were aggressive. They covered The Misfits (sort of). They took no prisoners. To top it all off, John Brookhouse let loose with an absolutely jaw dropping solo on their final song. No one was left standing. Wagon Battle killed.
The Rudds @ The Rosebud Bar 3.24.2011
What do you get when you take 1/2 of the original incarnation of The Rudds and mix it with 3/4 of the latest version of The Dirty Truckers? The Ruddy Truckers? The Dirty Rudders? Son Of The Rudds, as the posters advertising the show suggested?
Whatever the name, it rocks in a very entertaining way. Here are some pictures of John, John, John and Jamie from The Rosebud.
