PUP rocked a sold out Boston crowd at the Royale on the first night of tour for their latest album Morbid Stuff. Although the band’s third album came out less than a month before the show, fans erupted for new songs which are immediately becoming classics. Ratboys opened the show with some heartfelt indie rock right before Diet Cig slammed the high kicks, intersectional pep talks, and some delightfully poppy tunes. PUP’s electricity had the crowd moving all night complete with a nonstop mosh pit and crowd surfers. Even PUP’s singer, Stefan made sure to jump in the crowd during their…
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One thing was clear on Friday night at the Royale in Boston, those in attendance were witnessing a fuckin’ rock ‘n roll show. As soon as J. Roddy Walston and the Business took the stage they had the place rockin’ with their early hit, “Don’t Break the Needle.” This tour is in support of their new album, Destroyer of the Soft Life, and they did just that. J. Roddy Walston and the Business were definitely not soft on Friday night, and they left no doubt that their hard rocking sound was going to get asses shaking and heads bangin’. I…
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There are two things that are consistently true about seeing Mandolin Orange in concert: You are about to witness or have witnessed near musical perfection. The sets are never long enough. Both of those line items still remained in tact for me as I left The Royale last Friday night. Flanked, once again, by a band of fantastic musicians, the duo of Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz gave the early-Friday-night packed house a show that had even the most bustling folks tightening their lips and taking it all in. As an added bonus, a majority of the crowd were introduced to…
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Living in the Boston area, we’re lucky to have a fantastic array of amazing musicians from every genre calling our fair city home. But sometimes, as a music freak, you fall for a band from another part of the country that you get very few chances to see work their magic. For me, Dorothy is one of those bands. Since I happened upon their self-titled EP in early 2015, their songs have been blasting out of my speakers on a regular basis. And finally, on tour in support of the first LP ROCKISDEAD (Spotify / iTunes / Google Play /…
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It’s taken me years (and a couple near misses) to finally catch the Old 97’s, despite having reviewed Rhett Miller’s (excellent) The Instigator for my college paper when it came out (15 years ago, holy smokes) and abundant recommendations of their live show. Fortunately, the Old 97’s haven’t gone anywhere. Friends, if you too are late to the party, it is time to effect a remedy. They sound timeless, transporting you to an alt-universe in which alt-country had taken over the jukebox rather than disappearing into Jeff Tweedy’s snappy Stetson. At age 45, windmill-strumming his acoustic guitar, Miller looks not…
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On March 29th two of the Music Savage crew, and what seemed like the rest of Boston, packed in tightly at the Royale for one helluva show. We all knew what was in store for us that Tuesday evening but everyone’s expectations were completely destroyed from the knockout blow delivered by the one-two punch of Pure Bathing Culture and Lucius. Having seen Lucius a few times before, most recently at 2014’s Newport Folk Festival, I had been in a crowd of adoring fans that knew all the words by heart, but the Royale audience took the adoration cake for the…
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Thursday night was a special night out for me, my first since my child was born, and one that I’d been waiting for since the day this concert was announced. For months since a fantastic set at Newport Folk Festival, I’d pined over seeing Rateliff and the Nightsweats perform again. Thursday night, we all packed into a sold out Royale, what seemed like hundreds of friends and family who all together danced and sung along to an amazing set that was soulful, groovy, and rollicking. Starting the set with “I Need Never Get Old,” which is also opens the Stax recorded soul album named…
16 CommentsPhotos by Boston Concert Photography [I]f it was ever apparent to anyone that a specific person belonged on a stage, behind their instrument, showing to the world and everyone who will listen that they love what they get to do it is Blake Mills. The wunderkind guitar phenom, who thrilled me with his last album, Break Mirrors, and delighted with his most recent effort, Heigh Ho, has been curiously absent from playing here in Boston. Understandably, he’s busy being a session guitarist for amazing talents from all over, and didn’t tour exclusively for his debut album, we were so goddamn…
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Playing to an ecstatic crowd, Junip hit the Royale last night for their first stop on a cross-country tour. An intimate evening of music was the perfect way to spend this cold Boston night.
First up was the relatively unassuming Sharon Van Etten. To date, I had only heard a small sample of her music, specifically her track Don’t Do It. For fans of acoustic guitar singer-songwriters, Van Etten has a great expressive voice and plays a traditional folk style. But on this night, she was backed by a band, plugged in and, as her mom puts it, “rocking out.” Carefully tuning between songs, she seemed a bit nervous with the silence of the room. Song after song, gaining rapport with the crowd, she became more at ease. The crowd loosened, and soon everyone was sold on her talent.
When Junip’s members arrived on stage, the crowd sure did multiply. It got a lot more packed in, and people were chomping at the bit to hear Jose Gonzalez’ smooth vocals and the ambient sounds of his band. Backed by Tobias Winterkorn (keyboards), and Elias Araya (drums), Gonzalez began the set with a single strum of his guitar, opening with Rope & Summit from their new album Fields. Instantly recognizable, the crowd hung on every one of Gonzalez’ gossamer words. The band filled in the sound with atmospheric keyboards and light bongos, and the room came to life. Minutes into their set, Junip’s ability to simply and elegantly layer together latin jazz guitar, electronic keyboards and percussion shone.
The crowd totally ate it up, even with the band’s calm, chill demeanor. Everyone was fully with Junip. The entire crowd swayed and bopped through an hour-long sonic journey capped off by a three-song encore including breakout single, “Chickens.”
Although their success is slightly hinged on Gonzalez’ popularity, these guys put together a sound that is unlike anything out there. Last night was the first stop on their North American tour; they will cross the continent twice, deploying their special brand of electronic and latin-infused folk, and are certainly worth the price of admission.
Listen to Junip’s Always, or buy the album here
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Check out Junip in your neck of the woods:
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