Sam Potrkus (left) and Dan Shea (right)- Photo taken by Boston Globe
Yeah, I know I’m about four months late on this, but I just came across it tonight and felt it was important enough to share with everyone. This article by Matt Parish does a good job of explaining what Boston Hassle is all about and the background behind its dedicated creators.
Formerly at Radio on Tuesday April 3, it has been moved back one day to April 2 and will be at Great Scott in Allston. 21+ and Heavy Cream still opens. Cool!
RUNAWAY – GRAVYS DROP (Official Music Video) from Billy Grave on Vimeo.
GRAVYS DROP- “RUNAWAY” first single from the new album For the Love of Gravy out on Burger Records! Way to go Billy! SHATTERED RECORDS TOUR 2009 FOR LIFE!
http://gravysdrop.bandcamp.com/
Artist: Atlas the Atom Smasher
Full Title: The Snowmiser Suite
Release Date: January 1, 2012
Label: Self-Released
Comments: It’s 2012, the apocalypse is almost upon us and the end of the world is nigh. Alright, no, I personally don’t buy into anything relating to the mayan calendar or December 21st of this year. However, if you were to ask Atlas The Atom Smasher, it can be the perfect subject matter to base an album around. “The Snowmiser Suite”, the Punk trio’s newest release, is exactly that: one 12 minute, three part punk rock odyssey about finding oneself and making sense of the world’s problems right in the midst of, you guessed it, the apocalypse. The song’s three movements each call to mind different emotions that might come out of a situation such as this. At some points the lyrics reflect hope for mankind’s future, while in other places there is a sense of anger about the factors that might have led to the world’s destruction. Finally, the boys in Atlas seem to reach a point of understanding and even acceptance with the chaos they’ve depicted here.
The EP begins with ominous guitar chords that build right into the first movement “Snowmiser”; here frontman Aaron Hibbert sings with a kind of pained optimism. The state of the world he depicts is anything but pleasant, but he holds on to a small sense of hope as he proclaims “we’ll be okay someday”, a line that goes on to be a recurring idea later in the song.
The second movement, “Heatmiser”, abruptly transitions from hopeful anthem into furious hardcore driven by the relentless rhythm section of bassist Josh Wilson and Drummer Tyler Bisson. Whatever hope might have existed in the first movement vanishes here; Hibbert and Bisson trade off angry vocals, each railing against humanities’ choices and actions (Killing the mother for fuel to survive/ as if killing each other could keep us alive). To close out the second section, the band features some fine guest appearances, the first by vocalist Chelsea Maida, who brings back the idea that “we’ll be okay”. Guitarist Nicholas Wiedeman (Big Mess) provides a heavily distorted guitar solo over a slow, heavy, blues interlude that marks the end of movement two.
From here, the band progresses into movement three, a quick paced, straightforward punk rock romp that brings back that lighthearted optimism shown at the beginning of the record. Judging from the lyrics, Hibbert appears to have reached a point of peace and acceptance as he sings “I hope that I finally get to see the apocalypse”, as if he knows whats coming, yet has no problem with it. There are even clever jabs at subjects like religion: “raise up your arms as if praising the sun could save us from anything and all that we’ve done to ourselves”. This memorable EP comes to a close with Hibbert and company proudly exclaiming “we’ll be okay”. The difference this time is that they seem confident, as if over the last 12 minutes they were able to reach an understanding of the world’s problems that led to this horrible situation.
Overall, “The Snowmiser Suite” is a very impressive release that approaches the subject of doomsday from many different angles. Hibbert’s lyrics move back and forth between optimism and pessimism, hope and despair, and sometimes pure, unabashed anger. In the process, he brings up subtle political, religious, and even environmental ideas as they could relate to the end of the world. Underneath the vocals, his band moves flawlessly through tempo and meter shifts while effectively interpreting the different moods the lyrics evoke. Each movement captures a different element of modern punk rock. Sometimes it is melodic, other times aggressive, but above all it is quick paced and full of energy while still bringing a complexity not typically seen in punk today.
This is the first single from the upcoming Best Coast LP of the same name, The Only place out on Mexican Summer on May 15!
Artists: Atlas the Atom Smasher, Big Mess, Bella Birds, In the Direction of the Sun, and Crashing Cars
Date: Friday, March 2, 2012
Venue: UMass Lowell Fox Common (Lowell, MA)
Comments:
Act I: Crashing Cars– Nice alliteration in the title! Crashing Cars is seriously a great way to describe this band, there’s a lot of aggression to their performance and they play driving, loud, fast rock music. I definitely get a lot of early to mid 90s grunge vibes and there is a lot of emotion in each of their songs. and the performance itself. It’s not exactly my cup of tea, but they are undeniably talented musicians and I can imagine there is a decent amount of appeal for their angsty approach to this style of music. Check out their band camp page here: http://crashingcars.bandcamp.com/
Act II: In the Direction of the Sun– Unfortunately, much of the audience that witnessed Crashing Cars vanish in the time between Act I and II. Which is a damn shame because these guys really rock hard and give it their A game … for just the four or five of us that are left standing there. It is a set full of tesosterone fueled, angry, death metal/hardcore blast after blast. Once again, this isn’t my kind of music, but I commend them for a charismatic and passionate performance, especially considering the sudden decrease in attendance. At times, I feel like it is the death metal version of Atlantic Thrills, which of course is a great “I don’t give a fuck, let’s just have fun and go wild!” attitude. The best attitude to have. If you’re big into heavier, more diabolical stuff check these guys out here: http://inthedirectionofthesunma.bandcamp.com/
Act III: Bella Birds– Next up is Bella Birds, a charming folk duo with strong hooks and strong harmonies. A bit more people show up and it is cool to see yet another transition in genre/style/approach, which is a characteristic I always note about thse Fox Common shows. Their performance is engaging and they interact well with the audience, often with light humor and positivity. Here’s the link to their site: http://www.thebellabirds.com/
Act IV: Big Mess– Ahh yes, the mighty Big Mess. Generally speaking, I’m not the biggest fan of instrumental music, but Big Mess is a massive exception. This trio rocks and kills it at each and every show. The bands plays slow, haunting quasi metal/hardcore with an equal proportion of sludge and pop sensibility. The songs aren’t poppy, but all of them have incredible hooks that get stuck in my head on a daily basis. When I wear my badass, redneck esque snowboots “The Hook” instantly pops in my head, for example. If I worked out I’m sure Big Mess would appear on my playlist. During this performance I hear a lot of My War/Slip It In era Black Flag in their music. The Big Mess on this evening is no different than the Big Mess on any other evening, but I walk away with those early hardcore/crossover metal, mid 80s-SST vibes. I see a lot of similarities in the two bands, though Big Mess is more in control in their musicianship, it’s less chaotic, but just as cathartic. I’ve seen them several times now and the sets are always familiar, but it never gets old, the songs are strong enough that it’s always refreshing. http://bigmessma.bandcamp.com/album/big-mess
Act V: Atlas the Atom Smasher– Atlas the Atom Smasher is one of the hardest working local bands in Boston and tonight’s show is a celebration for the release of their latest CD, The Snowmiser Suite, a 12 minute punk epic about the impending apocalypse. Despite the dour subject matter behind the muisc, Atlas is infinitely positive and enthusiastic, especially drummer Tyler Bisson, and this is reflected in their music. They play loud, fast punk driven songs, but with a bit more variation and experimentaion than most bands that fall under that category. The sound is incredibly loud and much of that can be attributed to the Fox Common’s permanent ear damaging PA, but it certainly fit really well with the music. Their performance overall is impressive as is The Snowmiser Suite itself. Give it some much earned ear time: http://atlastheatomsmasher.bandcamp.com/album/the-snowmiser-suite
Word, these cats are coming to Boston on May 17 at the Great Scott in Allston.
Two years ago today was one of the greatest experiences in my whole life and possibly the best show I have ever attended. On March 25, 2010 KLYAM and friends and hundreds of others at the Middle East witnessed the greatness of our favorite band The Black Lips as well as the somewhat short lived, but nonetheless phenomenial Box Elders. It was indeed an amazing show, local mainstays, Movers and Shakers opened the show as well. Good times. Great times actually.
Here’s a link to the epic KLYAM review: https://klyam.com/2010/03/30/concert-review-black-lips/
I read a comment yesterday on a Ty song thing on Last.Fm. To summarize, it said that most bands should probably just stop making music. They have failed. This sorta explains that:
Village Voice photo
Here’s an interview with L.A. Record entitled “HUNX: SIR, YOU HAVE TO LEAVE”: http://larecord.com/interviews/2012/03/20/hunx-sir-you-have-to-leave
Also, check out Hunx’s forthcoming love advice column: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/2012/03/hunx_love_advice_column.php
Hunx and His Punx will be making a stop in Boston on Tuesday, April 3 at the Radio in Somerville. New (solo) album is called Hairdresser Blues out on Hardly Art.
Kids Like You & Me (KLYAM) 