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The BGN News Archive
Great music is happening every day of the week this summer. Monday we started
at Great Scotts which was full like a Saturday night.
This gig is a little different because they now have an excellent double CD
Double Trouble behind them (Our
Review) Tonight they have to live up to that and they do. They play some
songs from the CD; Muffins, Once is Not Enough, Runaways, Futura 2000 and
a rave up closer The Dukes of Rock.
The audience was primed for the Detroit Cobras. There was a longish wait for the set to begin and when the group got on stage they had a heckler who was telling them to "play already". The heckler kept going during the set annoying Rachel Nagy the lead singer and he eventually got thrown out.
The Cobras did their thing which is a garage rock version of 60's obscure songs. They delivered a set that was comparable to their recorded efforts. I loved the overall sound and Rachel Nagy the lead singer has a natural voice with character that she can control and brings it all home. She's known for that. We know from the Black Souls that there's gold in those old songs and the Cobras' capture some of the magic. This Monday night crowd got what they came for. Tuesday TT's was also full for one of the Farewell Blowout celebrations. You couldn't help but give notice to Evan Dando's name in the lineup and Thalia Zedek is someone we always want to hear.
Upon first walking in we see a non-descript line up on stage. but on a closer look there was Evan Dando, tucked in and playing with the group. They were switching players and leaders and going by different names. When Evan took the lead it was called The Sandwich Police Department which is what his t-shirt said.
A lot of the time Evan was bent over from the waist looking at his pedals or listening to his amp. You would think there was something wrong but that's just what he does. He was singing and playing lightly and you had nothing to hold on to and then…wait…there's a nice solo….there's a well crafted song…finally a stronger vocal. The rewards were there but you had to pay attention. He covered the 13th Floor Elevators You're Gonna Miss Me which stood out.
When Ben Deily ex-Lemonhead (current Varsity Drag) stepped up to play with him as a duo things kicked in a bit more. The songs were more concrete but it seemed there was no rehearsal so it was pretty loose, but hey, it was a reunion of sorts. You could see how their combined talents made the Lemonheads work.
Mickey Holland from The Dazies played an acoustic solo set of snappy songs with clever lyrics that were entertaining. I thought the songs came across a bit better than some of the Dazies low fi recordings. Although he did play Bad Moon Rising by CCR; I was hoping that would never happen to me.
Thalia had six people on stage for her set. Now, finally we had a focused unit not afraid to get loud. Thalia's substantive music makes other groups sound trite. Her songs heave with emotion. The dynamics of the performance reflect the content of the lyrics. The vocals, the elegant piano, the violin and the powerful vocals all add to the heft. There's a power that comes from these serious players. The songs ebb and flow dynamically, carrying you along and giving you an emotional high as a reward.
Hilken Mancini of the Monsieurs added to the vocals on two songs and left her mark. Chris Browkaw created some sonic landscapes in tandem with Thalia on guitar and aided by the violinist (or was it a viola?) who was doing everything except playing straight ahead. He had complete control of feedback to boot.
That was a memorable set and after that It would be hard to concentrate on another band but John Keegan did stay for the final group and says: "Runner and the Thermodynamics brought their big seventies classic rock trio sounds to TT's for a last blast run through. Guitarist Mark Pinansky sported and appropriately porn moustache. The drum fills pounded hard and hit and ran damn fast. The set built momentum and ragged charm as it went. Time was moving backwards and it sounded pretty good." Wednesday Scruffy the Cat had a warm up gig at Cuisine en Locale.
If you were surfing around the usual internet sites you could have caught a
heads up on that.
The name Orbit was thrown around in the 90's but we never saw them. When they started playing I thought they were a little lame. Jeff the guitarist/singer confessed they had not played in a few years. But things changed, in a few songs they found their footing and cranked out a rewarding set. Their better songs reminded me of the Pixies a bit. They revved up a wall of sound with a groove and just kept it steady for three minutes with the bass growling and the guitar feeding back. They had intensity in their playing that added to the impression. They were rewarded by the audience reaction with big whoops going up at the end of the tunes. I would have loved to seen them back in their prime.
I only caught a few songs by Vic Firecracker who were tight and rocking. They had a split EP with Orbit back in 1997. It's sleep, eat and back to TT's on Friday. This is the big night for us with the Neighborhoods who haven't played in two years according to David. The club is sold out and the crowd is buzzing even more.
Moving Targets takes the stage and man are they good. One forgets. We saw them a few years back at Carmelita's Baystate Rock 20th Anniversary. It's intense and Kenny Chambers is jumping all over the place. I love the guitar work which is free of clichés. The songs hold up too. The bass and drums are 100% right on it. These guys should restart this band right now. Why not? It's as good as anything out there. There's a big response from everybody who are giddy with excitement anyway. This feels good.
A lot of people don't seem to know Howie and the Scrapes. We've seen them before . Drummer Walter Gustafson was in the Outlets and Gang Green. I think they gathered a few new fans with the fun and rocking set. The overall sound is very dense and loud. They are not afraid to be too loud. Even though it's TT's celebration they play There's a Hole in My Heart Where the Rat Used To Be about the demise of the Rat.
Howie Scrape the lead singer is a front man with some
panache. He wears sunglasses and sports a dark shirt with a purple neck tie
and a classic Elvis do. He juts into the audience and often spreads his arms
as if he's gathering in the vibes or giving them out.
We've been edging closer to the stage with each set. And now we secure a nice position right at the stage for the Neighborhoods. The Hoods have played a little here and there. They were at TTs in 2013 for the Viva La Eva Benefit. In 2008 we saw them at the Somerville Theatre. David also played at Willie Loco's 70th Birthday in 2013. That's a long way from the hundreds of gigs they played per year back in the day, but that's a story to be told in our interview with David. Now, we have that feeling that we are in the only place we want to be. They run on stage plug in and play Monday Morning. All the things you love about the Hoods come crashing back into your conscious mind; the crunch, the pop, the singing, the way the lyrics sit in the tune, and the Minehan moves. It's all there and now it's almost a non-stop ride of Hoods mania and it's crazy good. I don't think I've appreciated the songs as much as I do this time. With a little distance they sound better than ever. They have some sort of Peter Pan ever youthful exuberance to them.
Prime example would be Pure and Easy and then WUSA,
when that riff hits again and again and you can't get enough of it. Hoodwinked
which I always loved is a bit darker and they dig into that roller coaster riff
and make the most of it.
The night still wasn't over. The Dogmatics were still to play. That's a hard chore and Jerry Lehane mentioned that but that didn't discourage these guys. The club had emptied a bit but there were still many there as the Dogs did their thing. They are very dependable these days and also very satisfying as they launch into the set with Teenager on Drugs.
I
saw this photo by John Keegan of the TT's sound booth and I have
to say that the sound guy (to the left) is always there. I've seen groups ask
him to do a million different things which he does in just a few minutes. No
big whoop or delay of the show, he just knows how to get it done. I've never
had complaints about the sound there either; it's always been balanced and clear.
Kudos to him and my thanks. And now Johnny D's is closing in February 2016. Things are getting bad. Let's hope some new places open up. And in other news....... And here's a story on Please Kill Me about (and including) NY77, The Coolest Year in Hell the documentary about the Summer of 77 in NYC when the Punk scene was at its heyday.
Did you hear about the punk guy who unwittingly got everyone upset and even
got arrested for wearing a punk belt?
Here 's the story and an interview with him after the fact. Check
it out, it's good! When Blowfish and Miss Lyn were on the Crash Course for the Ravers show Miss Lyn couldn't remember the name of the Kendall Square restaurant that recently started having bands play. Miss Lyn remembers!!! It's Firebrand Saints, it's in the One Broadway building. They got the Bent Shapes coming up on August 8th. Here are some shows that are happening this week....
July 30 (Thursday) X, with all original members, are at The Sinclair Tix here July 31 (Friday) “THE DAMNED: Don’t You Wish That We Were Dead” documentary is FINALLY playing in Boston!! It's at the Regent Theater at 7:30. You can buy tix here. Watch the trailer here. August 1 (Saturday) Tiger Bomb is on Crash Course for the Ravers on WMFO 91.5FM from 1-4PM August 1 (Saturday) The Static Dynamic, The Wrong Shapes, Hope & the Husbands and Alchemilla at The Middle east (FB page for upcoming updates) August 2 (Sunday) A Punk Show at Koto with USA Waste (ex A Global Threat), Adults, The Earbleeds, Gravel and Farce! And after that we have.....
August 3 (Monday) Tsunami of Sound and The Vista Cruisers are at Opus Underground, Salem. August 6-8 (Thursday - Saturday) Boston Fuzzstival 2015 is at The Middle East Down. The Fuzztival highlights "the best bands in the region that make psychedelic/fuzz/garage/surf rock" and its goal is "to build bridges within the local music community." Stay tuned for the lineup and more info keep checking their FB page! August 8 (Saturday) - Head over to Store 54 to help Bob Colby celebrate his birthday (two days early) with The Rationales and My Own Worst Enemy! August 8 (Saturday) - The Bush Tetras and headlining at The Sinclair and also on the bill are E, Gene Dante & The Future Starlets and DJ Gang of One (Gang of Four's Hugo Burnham) get tix here. August 8 (Saturday) The Memphis Rockabilly Band are doing an early show at Johnny D's (FB page) 7-9PM August 8 (Saturday) at Firebrand Saints there The Bent Shapes, Hard Left, Didi and Fleabite. FB Page August 8 (Saturday) at The Spotlight Tavern in Beverly The Charms, The Knock Ups, and Mary Lou Lord (FB event page )
August 14 (Friday) at The Midway are The Connection, The Above, Fireking & Special guest to be announced...watch for updates on the FB event page August 22 (Saturday) Memphis Rockabilly Band is at the Marshfield Fair. check out the particulars here August 23 (Sunday) Night Slice is having a party at The Midway 4-8 PM...It's a CD Release, Moving and Birthday party all rolled into one great afternoon! Check the FB event page here. August 29 (Saturday) The Ten Foot Polecats are gonna be on A Crash Course for the Ravers with Brian Young and Mike Stewart on WMFO 91.5 - that's 1PM- 4PM. August 31 (Monday) The Fake Boys, Petty Morals, BDSX, Spectre Hawk and The broken glass kids at Opus Underground Salem.
September 3 (Thursday) Wormwood (mem of Doomriders), Mountain God (NY), Conclave (ex Warhorse), and Livver are at O'briens September 12 (Saturday) Barrence Whitfield & The Savages are at the Brighton Music Hall September 17 (Thursday) at The Oberon this should be an amazing experience: Endation has put together a special show "The Chimera" explores musical and artistic dichotomies. Act I features the raw, intense, melodic force of two-piece Endation accompanied by movement and dance. Act II brings the audience into the dreamy, experimental world of Bent Knee as visual artists create pieces inspired by the band in real time. The Chimera invites the audience to seek their own interpretations in the disparate pieces that form one singular evening of performance. Buy tix here. Get more info on the FB event page. September 18 (Friday) Livver, Tenafly Vipers, Dead Cats Dead Rats and Profit Margin are at Koto in Salem, MA September 19 (Saturday) Pop Gun along with Fireking, Classic Ruins and 138 are at Koto in Salem, MA CONTACT US AT…….misslynbgn @ yahoo.con Send us your gig listings, your news and anything else ya got!!
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Saturday was TT's last day but we couldn't get tickets. It was a great
bill with Randy Black and The Heathcroppers, Willie Alexander,
O Positive and Scruffy the Cat who were the final group to play
TT's…ever.
July 30 (Thursday) There's a mega hardcore
show at Cuisine en Locale with Power Trip, Foreseen, Boston Strangler,
Peacebreakers, Freedom, Fury, Red Death, Intent, CIAC and Take Control.
Music starts at 6:30 SHARP doors are at 6.
August 3 & 4 (Monday
and Tuesday) 
August 9 (Sunday) The Billy Borgioli
Tribute Memorial Show at Cuisine en Locale. Doors are at 2:30 PM.
Oedipus will be DJ extraordinaire for the event. Also playing will be
Nervous Eaters, Classic Ruins with
Pete Taylor on drums , GLiDER , Richie Parsons Band, The
New Frustrations and Fox Pass. For times and updating info as more bands are added
and of course The New England Shake-Up! September
25,26,27 2015! Keep yourself updated at 
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