NEWS!

Scrooges at Once
Photo: Blowfish
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We went to the New Alliance art show Dark Days Long Nights. We wanted to see
what it was like after a half a year. We went to the opening in May of this
year.
It’s almost a joke now that we show up and just miss Dave Tree’s
See This World. We walked in the room as the last notes were sounding.
We did make it a point to not miss them last
month at the Midway And we were not disappointed.
This was a mid-winter bash to get the spirits up. There was a generous amount
of Dave Tree’s art in the hallway galleries. His paintings
are marked by his mastery of techniques. He does art in different styles and
media depending on his intent. The works are agit prop and meant to get a rise.
There’s lots of politics and religious skewering going on. This guy has
the goods.

Dave Tree
Photo: Blowfish
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Entrance to New Alliance.
Photo: Blowfish
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We saw some work by Mark Doherty of The Pint Killers.
We didn’t know he was an artist! They are colorful and pop out. We were
drawn to them before we knew who did them. Here's one - click here.
The place was crowded with people coming and going every second. New
Alliance has the vibe and they have the support of the community. It
was nice to see. Also, The New Alliance recording studios look like
they are back in full swing. Stop Calling Me Frank
has just finished up doing their next album there.
For the last few years we've gone to the Loser’s Circle
Toys for Tots show. That’s where we were mid-day
Saturday. As is usual for Toys for Tots there were two Marines there
as representatives of the drive. They had a big box there for those
that brought toys. We didn’t have toys but gave extra money at
the door. Next year though we make the pledge to bring some toys because
this show always gets you in the Christmas spirit of giving.

C.O.B.
Photo: Blowfish
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As aspiring as that is, we still want our punk. We caught the whole set by
C.O.B. which made up for missing them at Maggy’s
Lounge two weeks ago. They played some snappy street punk. There was just
a tad of the Irish thing in there as well as Oi. It worked big time for us.
The singing lifted some songs by giving the choruses an extra punch. The lead
singer had a controlled voice that latched on to small melody tweaks and made
them memorable.
They drove home a cover of Operation Ivy's "Knowledge". That's the second video above.
We liked them when we first
saw them last August and this time we got into them more. Their overall
punk sound is not that far from Loser’s Circle which made them fit this
bill.

Loser's Circle
Photo: Blowfish
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Up next Loser’s Circle were in top form. They had the
moment we wait for every year; they gave us the first Christmas song of the
season. it was a punked up “Jingle Bells”.That's the second video below. Then they did another
thing we love; they played a few new songs that they've been recording. That
told us that this next album should be right up there with their first amazing
effort – Took Long Enough... and that is some of the best punk
pop put out in Boston, period. Do yourself a favor and get up to speed on that
if you haven’t. Here's their Bandcamp
page for that.
They ended by Christmas-izing “Own
Worst Enemy” by Lit. It had Santa coming down the chimney somehow. That's the first video above.
It was a fun topper to a nice feeling show. I think we can all agree that this
is not one of the most uplifting times to live through. Our recipe for that
is to go to a show like this and get some hard hitting punk and join in with
other giving people that are doing something to make things better. Punks, marines
and Toy for Tots are one great combo.
With a boosted Christmas spirit we headed to The Scrooges
at Once.

The Von Traps
Photo: Blowfish
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It seemed like a long time that we couldn’t catch The Von Traps
at a show because they were mostly north of the city. We’re making up
for that now. We’ve seen them lately at Jungle and Maggy’s Lounge
and now they opened up this show.
The stage was set up dramatically for them with a black backdrop and white
spotlights. They looked cool up there and they took advantage of it
by hitting extra hard on their first few songs to make a big impression.
One of those songs was a new one and that’s maybe the best song
they have in their set now and that’s saying something. They also
included that knockout version of the Pleasure Seekers song “What
a Way To Die” which they have become identified with. They also gave us the first shot of Stooges music with a cover
of "I Need Somebody".
Part of the thing with The Von Traps is the way they look
and play. Often all three guitar players will be lined up in a row singing.
Skipp on vocals had that look like a punked up pressure cooker
letting off steam. At Once Brian had a bright white shirt that
got super white under the bright spotlight. James hunkers down
and had that low slung bass stance.
There was a nice moment where Brian brought his son
Jake on stage to pay him tribute and the audience sang Happy Birthday.
It feels so uplifting to be part of a moment like that which should
be life time memory for him!
And we happen to know his Dad got him an awesome mini bass for his birthday. Yeah! Keep up the tradition Rileys!
Photo of Jake on stage in the photos below the show listings.

Nice Guys
Photo: Blowfish
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The next set was a chance to see Nice Guys on a raised stage.
They've paid their dues in so many low key local shows. They must have played
so many basements. We’ve seen them many times and talked about how they
have changed from a loose
garage band in 2016, to a tighter sort of Led Zeppelin phase and then to
this current jerky arty set.
The songs were sharp and the twists and turns were precise. They have doubled
down on the Captain Beefheart sound. They had that thing where the two guitars
played alternating stabbing chord shapes that were different but somehow make
sense in the way they bounce against each other. One of the things they do every
show is to contribute an upcoming song to Sting. Then they riff on Sting a while.
For some reason they have a thing about Sting. It gets funnier every succeeding
time you hear it.
Most people we talked to didn’t know of Nice Guys. After
the set we heard some good impressions. We liked that and we liked that someone
thought to put them on the bill.

Brix'n Mortar
Photo: Blowfish
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Next it was a change up with Brix’n Mortar. Like The
Von Traps they have a strong image on stage. They have Troy who
has the Oi look. They are hardcore/Oi/Metal with the extra twist of Joey
Riots melodic gift. The key to Brix’n Mortar is to hear that
dynamic of Troy/Joey working in the songs. In the set we had
our ear on their voices. There are sections that are obviously Joey Riot melodies
that alternate with Troy Oi choruses and then the best parts where they combine.
One of the best songs of the set was “Wasted”
where you can hear some of the dynamic that we talk about here. Or you could
just forget all that and just get into the roar coming off stage with the monumental
bass sound and the thundering metalish drums from Devon.

Scrooges
Photo: Blowfish
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It seems that The Scrooges have been going their Stooges/Santa
= Scrooges thing for twenty years ... but we just got to them this show. We
knew that it would be fun to see a stage full of band members in Santa gear,
we didn’t know that we would love the music so much.
First off, yes they were all head to toe in red flannel with white fur and
black belts…and a tail!? Just seeing them goofing around and sweating
those outfits up was worth the price of admission.
It was the way they played those Stooges songs that gave it validity beyond
the spectacle. They roared through the catalog. “1969”, “No
Fun” and “TV Eye” were highlights but every song hit it’s
mark. They all had a wonderful flow to them. They kept the tempos brisk as they
glommed onto the core riffs, reveling them as the primitive gold they always
have been.
White Dynamite lead man Dave Unger brought
his subtle bombast to the head Santa/Iggy position. We don’t know anyone
else that could pull that off. That guy has a certain charisma, no doubt about
it. We were late to the game on the Scrooges phenom but we'll be back next year!!
Meanwhile, this Saturday put us in the Christmas mood. We’re ready to
shop.
Click Here for more band photos.
Thursday John Keegan found the holiday spirit in the Christmas spectacle
called Horton's Holiday Hayride 2019 at the Paradise. The Reverend
Horton Heat had buddy Dave Alvin as quest.
The Voodoo Glow Skulls and the 5.6.7.8's
rounded out the holiday bill. John gives a full round up of the action
and has plenty of photos. Click the photo below to go to the review.
John has also has interviewed some of the principals behind the Whistle
Stop Rock tour that is going to start in a few weeks. It's
a lot of bands you love and everyone involved is excited about the concept.
We can see that this whole thing could start a new way of bands touring
the region.
Here's a fast run down of the bands in the tour and the people being
interviewed. Cold Expectations (JoEllen), Tiger Bomb
(Lynda), The Knock Ups (Cat, Gretchen),
The Chelsea Curve (Linda), Kid Gulliver (Simone),
PowerSlut (Linnea), Field Day (Joan),
Heather Rose in Clover (Heather, Lisa), and Justine
and the Unclean (Justine).
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And in other news .....
Rum Bar Records just does not stop!! This week they put out
a few things. One is It's About Time, a compilation
by The Real Impossibles who were active in the mid-eighties.
They're a pop rock group with lots of the right influences. We have their “With
A Girl” on our top ten.
Tom Baker’s new album is called Dirty Snakes.
There are a few songs pre-released off of it posted on Bandcamp. We’re
big on “Cancel
It” where the band rocks it out and the guitars sound like they are
stacked on top of each other.
Then there’s a group called Spanking Charlene that sounds
a bit like the Yardbirds (because of the harmonica mostly). Their song is called
“Find
Me Out”
Irresistibly sunny....And pop, pop poppy... is “Rise
and Shine” by Telamor, which is Tom
Hauk (Atlantics). This song is about how there’s a better sunny
day after that bad love affair. We warn you, it is an earworm. and it’s
on our Top Ten Songs
Mark you calendar for:
Stop Calling Me Frank is having their yearly Christmas
show at the Midway on this Friday Dec 13. The cool think about SCMF
is that they don’t just cover Christmas songs, they actually have a whole
bunch of original Christmas songs.
Like Santa Buy Me A Beer But they'll also play new material they just finished
recording at New Alliance Studios. Also on the bill: Tom Baker
who'll be playing that “Cancel It “ song..... Then you have Jamaica
Plain hometown heroes The Grommets playing punk with old school
style. Ex Avenue rounds out the bill. Here's the FB
page.
December 15 (Sunday) The 3rd Annual
Rum Bar Records Holiday Mess-Around - this will be quite the party
folks!!! Go to the
FB page for the list of participants...its long and good!! at The Plough
3-7PM
Friday Jan 3 Oh The Humanity!, Loser's Circle, Tensor, Rage//Quit at
O’Brien’s
Saturday January 11- Lyres (record release party) Middle East
Up -early show at 6:30.
Alternative Christmas shopping....there's
a TON of markets happening this year with offerings from local artisans &
businesses ...support your local non corporate people!!!!......
Friday December 13 - Union
Square Holiday Market - Warehouse XI @ 6Pm - FB
page
Saturday Dec. 14 - JP
Holiday Flea 2019 - First Church in Jamaica Plain Unitarian Universalist,
6 Eliot St, FB
page
Dec 12-15 (Thurs - Sunday) Allston-Brighton
Winter Market FB
page
Saturday Dec. 14 - Cambridge Holiday
Market - 11Am- 5PM @ Saint Paul AME Church
Bishop Allen Dr Cambridge FB
page
Sunday December 22 - Holiday
Buzz Markets, 2 floors and over 40 vendors each! Come check out local
folks with handmade, craft, vintage and fine art @ Once Somerville - starts
at 11AM - FB page
Here's some good shows coming up this week.....
December 9 (Monday) Rock &
Roll Trivia w/ Erin & Brett + Guest Shaun Young! at City Winery
FB
page
December 13 (Friday) Merry Friday the
13th Rockin' Bob Punk Band at Koto Salem
December 13 (Friday) Stop Calling
Me Frank, The Dirty Truckers, Ex-Avenue, The Grommets at The Midway
December 13 (Friday) FU’s,
Duck & Cover, Rockin Bob Punk Band & Doug MacDonald
Band at Koto
December 14 (Saturday) Baabes,
The Chelsea Curve, The Hi-End, The Stigmatics at the Midway Matinee
Show 3-7Pm
December 14 (Saturday) Jenn D'Angora
Birthday Fest at Sally O'Brien's
December 14 (Saturday) Wormtown
Ska Presents a benefit for The Mustard Seed Soup Kitchen in Worcester:
bands start at 3PM - in order of appearance: Evil Felipe, The Shoats,
Jerry's The Screw Ups, The Lousekateers, Shape Shifter - It's at The
Raven in Worcester - here is the FB
page Excellent cause folks and only FIVE DOLLARS at the door!!! OR....5-6
cans of food for FREE admission! (or maybe both!)
December 15 (Sunday) Thrash N
Bang's 8th Annual Punk Pizza Party! with The Neighborhood Shit,
Fast Times, The Ratz, The Hangovers at The Midway 3PM matinee - ony
$5!!! and free pizza.
December 15 (Sunday) The 3rd Annual
Rum Bar Records Holiday Mess-Around - this will be quite the party
folks!!! Go to the
FB page for the list of participants...its long and good!! at The Plough
3-7PM
And further out there is.....
December 16 (Monday)
We Are Space Horses, The Zygote Theory, Rawstrum, Kevin Madden Band
at The Jungle
December 18 (Wednesday) Randy
Black & The Heathcroppers Plough & Stars Residency 6-8 pm
December 20 (Friday) WBCN and
the American Revolution Screening at The MIddle East down 6:30PM
December 20 (Friday)
Instamatics, Radium Girls, Thee Fightin' Fish, Johnny No Graves at
The Jungle
December 20 (Friday) Crunchtime,
The Hi-End, The Chelsea Curve at Koto Salem
December 21 (Saturday) A Crash
Course for the Ravers featuring Mad Painter! WMFO 1-4PM
December 21 (Saturday) MOTO, The
Thigh Scrapers, The Thirsty Pirates (NYC) , The Montgomerys
at The Midway for a Matinee Show 3-7:30PM
December 21 (Saturday) Black Helicopter,
Blood Built Empire, Above the Din & NSTW at Club
Bohemia
December 21 (Saturday) Lily Black,
Set Fire, Baabes, The Spins at Sally O'Brien's
December 21 (Saturday) A Rum Bar Holiday
Spectacular with Jay Allen & the Archcriminals, A Bunch of Jerks,
Hambone Skinny, and The Black Souls at The Midway
December 21 (Saturday) Mother
Iron Horse, Tied to a Bear, Von Traps, Skytigers at Opus in Salem
December 29 (Sunday) Cook Bag,
Louzy, DownBoy!, Circus Battalion at The Midway matinee show 3-7Pm
December 30 (Monday) The Last Rebuilder New Year’s Eve Party at Charlie's
Kitchen with Save Ends, Sorry and 1 special guest to be announced
December 31 (Tuesday) Ken Highland's
HAPPY LOU YEAR 2020 New Year's Eve Club Bohemia
December 31 (Tuesday) NYE show with Margaret
& The CoPilots & Sugar Blood Jinx at Atwood's
January 3 (Friday) Oh The Humanity!,
Loser's Circle, Tensor, Rage//Quit at O’Brien’s
January 4 (Saturday) The McGunks,
Hamhocker, We Own Land, COB matinee show at The Midway 3-7PM
January 4 (Saturday) Handsome,
Four Point Restraints, T and the Wrecks, Micah Howeson at The Jungle
January 4 (Saturday) Freaking,
Minibeast, Service, Nice Guys @ Great Scott
January 10 (Friday) All Mod Cons
Final Show....this will be a special event...after 30 years and lots
of shows in the UK All Mod Cons are planning a great night
with great music and a host of local musicians getting together to celebrate
the music of The Jam and the music of Boston. Also on the bill are The
Cretins and Didn't Planet. Also, since the band Boy's
Life twice played support for The Jam (at The Channel and the Orpheum), John
Surette will take to the stage with All Mod Cons as his back up band
to play a couple of Boys Life tunes and then a dive headlong into Private Hell
to end it. It all happens at Once Lounge (upstairs) Music atarts at 9PM. Tickets
here. FB
page
January 10 (Friday) Nomad Stones,
Labor Hex, Chrome Over Brass at Opus Underground Salem
January 10 (Friday) The Mercy
Case, Bystander, blindspot, Foxes at Koto Salem
January 11 (Saturday) Lyres (record
release party) Middle East Up -early show at 6:30.
January 11 (Saturday) WhistleStop
Rock Festival at Askew in Providence- this is the first Whistle Stop
- Featuring: Heather Rose In Clover, The Knock Ups, The Chelsea Curve,
PowerSlut, Kid Gulliver, The Cold Expectations, Justine and the Unclean
January 11 (Saturday) No Fucker (NY), Sadist,
Innocent and Bakkara (Maine) at the Hong Kong in Harvard Sq 8pm
January 15 (Wednesday) Randy Black
& The Heathcroppers Plough & Stars Residency 6-8 pm
January 18 (Saturday) Triple Thick,
Crunchtime, 1.4.5., Butterscott at The Midway 3-7PM matinee
January 18 (Saturday) Barrence
Whitfield & The Savages, Muck and the Mires at The Middle East
FB
page and tickets
January 19 (Sunday) Stoploss, Secret
Spirit, F.U.’s, more TBA at The Thirsty First Tavern Lowell FB
page
January 27(Monday) il Mostro, Between Skies,
Silver Screams at Charlie's Kitchen
February 1 (Saturday) Stop Calling
Me Frank,Greg Allen's Fringe Religion,Tsunami of Sound
at The Square Root Roslindale
February 7 (Friday) Lucid Lynx,
Above The Din, Luxury Deathrap, Heavy Hands at The Midway
February 7 (Friday)
Immolators, Labor Hex, Wire Lines, Brain Vacuum
at 13th Floor Music Lounge Florence MA.
February 8 (Saturday) Scuzzy Yeti,
IL Mostro, Z/28 and Wrought Iron Hex at The Midway
February 8 (Saturday) Nick And
The Adversaries (CD Release), Jason Bennett and The Resistance,
Triggered at The Middle East Up
February 16 (Sunday) Stop Calling
Me Frank, State of the Union, The New Frustrations, The Steamies at
The Midway - matinee 3-7PM
February 22 (Saturday) Justine's
Black Threads EP Release Party w/Two Fathoms Down
at Atwood's TAvern - this is a 4-6PM show.
February 22 (Saturday) Rum Bar
Records Anniversary Show with The Dogmatics - 11:00
PM, Muck and the Mires - 10:00 PM, The Dirty Truckers
- 9:00 PM at The Square Root
February 28 (Friday) LUX LIVES
East Coast 2020 with The Evil Streaks, The Demon Seeds, Thee Benevolent
Tarots and DJ Kogar the Swinging Ape playing Lux and
Ivy's Favorites all night long! at Opus Underground Salem. FB
page.
February 29 (Saturday) DJ Easy
Ed presents: Lynnette & the Sundowners, The Barley Hoppers,
Easy Ed's Record Hop at The MIdway for a 3-7PM matinee show.
February 29 (Saturday) PowerSlut
“Fun With Junk” Release Party...AND...WhistleStop
Rock Fest featuring The Chelsea Curve, Cold Expectations, Field
Day, Heather Rose In Clover, Justine and The Unclean, Lockette, Kid Gulliver,
The Knock Ups, The Shang-Hi-Los, and Tiger Bomb! EARLY
show 3PM - Midnight mat Once Somerville.
March 13 (Friday) This is Night 1 of a
2-night Whistle Stop Rock festival in Salem!! Featuring: The
Knock Ups, The Cold Expectations, The Chelsea Curve at Koto Salem
March 14 (Saturday) This is Night 2 of
a 2-night Whistle Stop Rock festival in Salem!! Featuring:
Kid Gulliver, Heather Rose In Clover, Justine's Black Threads...
And special guests: The Dents!! at Koto
March 28 (Saturday) The Zulus at The Paradise
March 28 (Saturday) WhistleStop
Rock Festival Portland with Tiger Bomb, Heather Rose In Clover,
The Knock Ups, PowerSlut, The Chelsea Curve, Kid Gulliver, Justine and the Unclean
at Sun Tiki Studios 6PM start!!! FB
page
April 19 (Sunday) The Undertones
at The Paradise
April 25 (Saturday) WhistleStop
Rock Festival Western Massachusetts - featuring: Heather Rose
In Clover, Kid Gulliver, The Cold Expectations, OTP and special guests
State Of The Union at HiLO North Adams - FB
page
May 16 (Saturday) Baabes, The
Knock Ups, Mister Vertigo, Motel Black at The Jungle
CONTACT US AT....misslynbgn@yahoo.com
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for that too.

C.O.B
Photo: Blowfish |

C.O.B.
Photo: Blowfish |

Loser's Circle
Photo: Blowfish |

Loser's Circle
Photo: Blowfish |

Brix'n Mortar
Photo: Blowfish |

Brix'n Mortar
Photo: Blowfish |

Nice Guys
Photo: Blowfish |

Brian and son Jake - The Von Traps
Photo: Blowfish |

The Von Traps
Photo: Blowfish |

Scrooges
Photo: Blowfish |

Scrooges
Photo: Blowfish |