The next night (which was 4/20 by the way) I saw White Fang who are The Band To See On 4/20™. That’s right, Boston was the lucky city to be graced by White Fang’s presence on that glorious day this year. Free Pizza were up first in this jam packed bill. This band is fairly new and I had never seen them before but I was quite impressed. They played power punk that I wouldn’t exactly call poppy. Their songs were for the most part short fast and not very sweet (by the way I mean that as a compliment). Next up were Boston’s version of FIDLAR, the Nice Guys. They like to party and rock hard. I am hoping for big things coming from them. Next up were Boston’s best synth punkers Earthquake Party! They recently recorded a bunch of new songs for an upcoming album and they played a number of them tonight. The one non local opener was Denney and The Jets from Nashville who at first I thought were gonna be an Elton John cover band or something. They were not. The name comes from the fact that their singer’s name is Denney. They played good ol’ fashioned rock n roll. They are homeboys of Natural Child who I saw the previous night with the Black Lips.
Now it was time for the mighty White Fang! Guitarist Kyle Handley, Drummer Jimmy Leslie and Bassist Chris Uehlein started playing with lead singer Erik Gage in the background. When he was ready to sing Gage stormed to the front of the stage and started jumping around like a madman. Their songs border between punk, hardcore, metal and hard rock with the band into it the whole time. Some of the funnier moments included when Gage backhumped the stage for about a minute and when Gage lifted Uehlein while he was playing bass and spun him around. I am planning on seeing Gage and Handley again later this month with The Memories, their mellower other band. After the show I saw for merch they had a number of gnarly Gnar Tapes.
Boston Hassle Presents: EX-Cult @ O’Brien’s Pub – 8 PM – $8 – Memphis’ current garage punk kings, EX-Cult are rocking through our fair city once again, after nearly breaking our bones at an epic punk slime show last July. Before EX-Cult hits the stage you may not even be standing straight, because Allston sociopaths Strict Agnostics are playing as well; definitely dudes you wanna know. Real, no bullshit punk featuring members of Nice Guys, Miami Doritos, Thigh Masters, and Big Buck Hunter. Additionally, fellow local garage rockers White Pages and Denton, TX doom metal sludgers Terminator 2 round out this fine ass bill.
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
The New Highway Hymnal @ Wilder Zangcraft – Over in Lowell, they are zanging out to one of the zickest bands I’ve ever zeen: The New Highway Hymnal, a psych drone machine that will blow your mind to smithereens. NHH will be joined by the jam/soul rock of Northampton’s Lord Jeff and the stoner fuzz rock of Austin, TX’s Mirror Travel. Kicking things off is a band we repped back in July: Allston’s Bellwire will sooth your sore ears with their soft rock ‘n’ roll gems.
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
FIDLAR @ The Sinclair – 8 PM – $13 Adv/ $15 day of – Well well well, looks like we have ourselves a stacked line up. We’re excited to finally see LA’s cheap beer extollers and rock ‘n’ rollers, FIDLAR, but we’re even more psyched to witness the greatness that is The Orwells once again for the third time this year! Last and most definitely not least, one of our favorite local bands, the always slimy Nice Guys are opening up this show, and if you haven’t heard or seen them yet you’re in for a treat. I can’t wait to see you sixteen year old kids go nuts!
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Saralee @ The Spot JP – One of Boston’s best bands, Saralee is in the middle of a big ass tour with fellow underground rock ‘n’ roll crusaders, Giving Up and on this special night they’ll be back and killing it in their hometown. Joining them is the freak out soundz of one of their noisiest contemporaries, Guerilla Toss.
Chastity Belt @ Chum’s Coffeehouse (Brandeis University) – Seattle’s “Vagina Rock” quartet Chastity Belt are coming to Boston to destroy everyone’s favorite random venue, Chum’s in Waltham. Opening is tour mates Pony Time – a guy and girl rock duo sorta thang.
Kal Marks @ The Laundry Room (formerly known as the Ant Cellar) – Over in my old stomping grounds of Lowell is one kick ass show from the likes of one of Boston’s finest and most successful artists, Kal Marks. The other players include psych rockers, Vundabar, who are simply vunderful, ambient post-rock North Shorers, Harborlights, and old school folk dudes, Root Juice.
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If you think we missed any shows that a tru KLYAM gangsta would vant to see. Hit us up at KLYAMEMAIL@GMAIL.COM
ONE WEEK from today – Wednesday, October 23 – you will be going to The Sinclair to see the Orwells and FIDLAR AND our hometown Nice Guys – just added to the bill!
Remember that time Nice Guys opened for Orwells at TT The Bears? I do, well. It was sick.
THOSE DARLINS @ Great Scott – 9 PM – $12 – Nashville country punk slimers Those Darlins roll into town with a fresh new LP in hand Blur The Line. Their new stuff has a more personal sheen yet I bet their live show is still as wild and sweatily satisfying as ever. Folk New Yorker Gambles will allow the crowd to catch its breath after the manic, organ led garage of Boston’s own Thick Shakes.
Monday, October 14, 2013
FUZZ @ Great Scott – 9 PM – $10 – 18+ – Ty Segall comes back to Boston after three years of ACTIVITY. He’s been busy. We’ve had a chance to see him twice in New York as himself, but here he checks in as FUZZ, which is like his album Slaughterhouse personified, with regular band-mate/buddy Charlie Mootheart co-masterminding the group. Leading things will be local psych/garage staples Creaturos and San Fran’s CCR Headcleaner, whose own hooky noise assaults quite complement FUZZ.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Sonic Avenues @ O’Briens – 9 PM – $8 – 21+ – Coming down from the great land of Canada are powerpop fueled Sonic Avenues who’ve got an enjoyable Jay Reatard/Adverts sound. Opening for them are the ATLANTIC THRILLS, the Providence band that we can’t seem to praise enough around here. They ignite crowds with old school punk (think more Peru 1965 than NYC 1977) ‘n gunk; their surfy debut Day At The Beach 7″ came out a few months back on Almost Ready…check it out! Also reviving garagier daze are Thee Legendary Rockin’ Prophets and self-described Ramonescore punk pop north shorers The Little Richards start festivities.
Future Days@ Lilypad – 9 PM – $5 – This is a special show celebrating the video release of “Blonde Wig” from Future Days latest release Tony Plante. Supporting the catchy psych pop of Future Days are two KLYAMMY bands: Free Pizza, fresh off an absolutely mesmeric performance at the KLYAM Radio Down show Friday night, and The Silkies, who we saw dominate at PA’s Lounge months ago with their girl group/new oldies charm.
Leamers @ 119 Gallery (Lowell) – 8 PM – Bounce provocateurs (as in literally causing people to bounce) Canadian(nes) Leamers descend to Lowell for what’s sure to be a great deal of fun. Also playing are some punks: Providence punks Downtown Boys, Boston punks The Vegans and some more experimentally minded groups like Les Rhinoceros (Washington DC), Dust Witch (Northampton), and Shogun Horny (location UNKNOWN).
Horsehands @ PA’s Lounge – 9 PM – 21+ – A watery show for those who are more inclined toward the less straightforward: robotic/melodic post-rockers Horsehands top the bill – they just recently released a split 7″ with Lady Bones, prolifically upbeat zany pop punk Zookeepers, primeval Middle Agelic ambiance/psychedelic pop comes courtesy of J COLE and company in Warped Forest, and Guerilla Toss singer Kassie’s Molasses is similarly making centuries old sound affects come alive.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
HALLOWEEN SHOW 2 @ Cambridge Elks Lodge – 9 PM – $8 – 18+ – Four of Boston’s finest groups playing as: The Mummies, Meatloaf, The Cramps, and Blink 182. The four bands are Fat Creeps, Designer, Nice Guys, and Guerilla Toss. Who is playing who? Go and see!!!!!!!
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Think we missed a show that a tru KLYAMer is itching to see? KLYAMEMAIL@GMAIL.COM
Bands: Nice Guys, Fagettes, Moniker, Guillermo Sexo, CreaturoS, The New Highway Hymnal Date: Saturday, August 10, 2013 Venue: Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge, MA)
I’m not the right person to be writing about the Fuzztival… and I assure you no one else will make that claim right off the bat to you in any other “review.” I also assure you that no one else has the the right to review this show more than me either. Reviews are pointless to begin with, don’t listen to reviewers, nothing but trouble. Never done me any good. But, I am going to write about this show anyway because that’s how it goes, that’s how it’s always been. The Middle East Downstairs, fuck man, this brings back memories. No other venue compares. KLYAM attended shows at Mid East Down way before there even was a KLYAM! We saw Black Lips, No Age, The King Khan & BBQ Show, and Box Elders (opening for Black Lips) here. Here. These suckers, these fuckers, these icons were inches away from us; their saliva smoothly sailed down my beat up, gray Ramones shirt. The next day at school I would brag about what I saw, oh boy! “Girlfriends” would feign interest, it was a glorious time to be alive. But, the fun can only last so long. Soon I would realize that they just thought I was cool because I read Noam Chomsky and Malcolm X, and indeed those men are cool, but these femmes never wanted me, they never wanted us, they never wanted rock ‘n’ roll . They just saw my slick, leather jacket and assumed I was cool. KLYAM began on the concept that cool was death, we were anarchists, rebels, nerds, dorks, sociopaths, retards, reatards. Reatards. We didn’t know (and still don’t know) how things work. Late at night/ early in the morning, you could listen to Black Lips, Jay Reatard, King Khan & The Shrines, The King Khan & BBQ Show or even that psycho gorgeous band Deerhunter and for two seconds it made sense! The world was a fucked up place, but these dudes were fucked up too and they loved it and they drank their own piss and that was okay that gave us hope, honestly.
And with that lovely introduction, here are Nice Guys! Woooooo Nice Guys woooo. How many shows has it been? Fuck it, you been counting? Me neither (yeah right) have I, I don’t fucking know, calm down. NIce Guys are a funny band though they play this abrasive, semi-hardcore, quasi garage style of music that just makes the hairs on my testes jet up and dance, It’s fucking loud and fun and noisy. They shit out various hits y’all oughta know like “Herb Chambers,” “Cop Walk,” and “Burrito Boner,” which is a favorite among dental receptionists.
I’ve seen my fair share of Nice Guys sets, yeah yeah yeah yeah, and they typically rock, but this one is a comparatively exceptional rocker. Cam Slays on the drums, up on that little drum riser thing like a Greek God – must be new to the Mid East Down, cuz I’ve never seen it before. Jake, Matt, and, Alex jolt back and forth on the guitars, bashing into one another, crawling over their bandmates’ sweaty skin, tangling in wires and such. My favorite moment in the set is when Cam rushes up from his drum set and tackles Jake to the floor. That’s what I like to see, I love aggression, I guess I am just a sick guy. Nah, metal folk are sick, I am just having fun. Nice Guys are fun and sweet! http://niceguys666.bandcamp.com/
Set – List:
“Gary”
“Herb Chambers”
“Unholy Sacrifice”
“Free”
“Finale”
“Cop Walk”
“HD”
“MD”
“Burrito Boner”
Watch Nice Guys play “Draggins” at the Fuzzstival HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdqiUk8gGi0
Nice Guy Matt Garlick is back again in The Fagettes and he’s joined by Ryan, Melanie, Peaches, and Joe. Fagettes are a KLYAM fave, only a fool couldn’t tell you that. They lean toward the nastier side of rock and roll that we cherish. Besides delivering humorous and informative weather reports, they unleash many essentials including “My Girl Looks Like Johnny Thunders,” “On Drugs,” “Water, Tea, and Alcohol,” “Tsunami,” and “Gonna Die Out Here.” In addition to the gunky classics, the fivesome also bash out some new numbers with “Bad Catholic” being my top jam for this holy evening. I too was a bad catholic, drank the holy water, bopped the bishop, and licked plenty of peanut butter.
A cool breeze just splashed over me, it’s a sign that Fagettes are the future of American pop music OR a favorite band of mine, Either way the future looks bright. http://thefagettes.bandcamp.com/
Watch The Fagettes play “On Drugs” at the Fuzzstival HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jug1J4cAub0
Moniker – I catch flashes of Moniker’s set, I dig, but I need to hear more to judge. Find out for yo self here: http://whatsyourmoniker.bandcamp.com/
Now to Guillermo Sexo. Not as sexy as I would have thunk; not enough gunk punk in thee old junk. That’s okay though, I think some of y’all would dig them. For the first ten minutes or so, I’m feeling sexy, but then it just drags and my psyche yearns for some “Light Shines,” but that’s another band for another day, Ultimately, this is a decent band, just not exciting enough for my tastes. http://guillermosexo.bandcamp.com/
CreaturoS are a psych outfit that often pop up on local listings and rightfully so. While, I can’t say that they are the right kind of punk slime dish that I prefer, they do rock pretty hard, enough so to garner an onslaught of fuzzstivalers, friends, and fans up on stage moshing and boppin’ about. A killer way to conclude a set. http://creaturos.bandcamp.com/
During CreaturoS’ and Sexo’s sets, I”m clutching on to the monitors and dreaming about a three way between Betty Rubble, Wilma Flintstone, and myself. Gee whiz, that would be a swell time, but I must be at least a tad bit insane in the old membrane for me to conjure up such images. Ironically, The New Highway Hymnal put me in my place. Arguably, The NHH are the freakiest of the bands tonight and that works to their advantage. Vocalist/guiarist Hadden Stemp utters “Let’s give it up for CreaturoS,” receiving very little crowd response. “That sucked,” Stemp accurately asserts. He gives the Boston crowd one more chance and with a slight improvement we segue way into the New Highway Hymnal’s diabolic set. The trio, which includes Travis Hagan on drums and Amelia Gormley on bass and vocals, open with “Whispers,” the title track off their epic LP released last year on Vanya Records. The fuzziness continues with the grimy album opener “Through Stained Glass,” and then my memory is fuzzy after that (yes just a few hours later). I think there’s some new cuts tossed at us or just stuff that’s fresh to my ears. Last I remember is “Hey Kid” and then Hadden i s suddenly on the floor with us in the audience, jumpin’ around and what not, and then he’s back up on stage like a ninja. He’s quick and I’ve had too menty, a deadly combination. In any setting, listen to The New Highway Hymnal’s Whsipers LP here: http://thenewhighwayhymnal.bandcamp.com/releases
Bands: Nice Guys, Ex-Cult, OBN III’s, The Tampoffs Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2013 Venue: Great Scott [Allston]
Maybe I haven’t been looking hard enough, but I don’t think that I’ve seen a ‘stacked’ purely garage/punk bill at Great Scott in months. That changes on this Tuesday night as all of these bands are teeming with the kind of energy and showmanship that most bands I see live unfortunately lack.
The Tampoffs take the stage and word around the band’s fascist book page is that this is their second to last show. One can hope that isn’t really true as The Tampoffs have been a local R’n’R staple for a long time now. I’m not exactly in a position to talk about the time I saw them at the RAT – but I will say I first saw them open for Nobunny at Church a couple of years ago. All I can remember from that show is that some moshing erupted and the band was loud and forceful. Not sure what they’ve been up to between that show and now. I didn’t know they played Gonerfest 6. There’s YouTube footage. It’s great. What makes up for my lack of knowledge of their songs is the feeling of watching the closest thing to the Oblivians that isn’t actually the Oblivians. This is a compliment. Tight, fun, times. The song toward the end that the drummer sings stands out as my favorite.
OBN III’s step up onto the stage. I didn’t see this happen, but I know it did. As I’m making my way back towards the venue (after stepping outside), I hear the band playing. I’m missing out on some crucial action. I hope I didn’t miss out on much, but when I walk up to the front I see dudes and girls going wild. Familiar faces just really enjoying themselves. Several had seen OBN III’s before – I can tell – and several had not. Orville jumps into the audience, touches the heads of dudes like Joey Roach, all while shouting out instant jams like “Runnin on Fumes” and “You Wanna Bitch?”. I’m not even really familiar with OBN III’s, but I remember those really sticking out. So for people that know the band, I can imagine that these are incredible moments in show-going history and for others, it’s an equally satisfying performance. You can’t stand around the stage bored. You’ll get punched in the nose.
So after some pushing and shoving and falling to the ground, that kinda stuff doesn’t stop after Orville and crew finish. Of course, there’s the obligatory clearing of equipment and setting up of new stuff. Ex-Cult is cut from the same cloth as OBN III’s – energetic frontman included in the package. It’s all rock ‘n roll. I’d say Ex-Cult is more punchy, stompy, and darker than OBN. There’s more atmopsheric/cacophony guitar heroics. Swell Maps minus the Brit accent. I’m definitely won over as a fan. “Mister Fantasy,” their new single, is really good. Definitely a highlight. I’m fascinated by the antics of guitarist JB Horrell. Dude was making these crazy faces all throughout the set. Seemed like he was having a great time. They all were. We all were.
Some party poopers make a run for the doors after Ex-Cult. Not really sure what was going through their minds. Gotta stay for Nice Guys. Gotta miss trains for Nice Guys. I would think. Well the truest of rock ‘n rollers stuck around and I think we can all agree we were in for yet another treat. Nice Guys are a perfect fit for this bill as they pack in a lil bit of all the sweet qualities of the previous bands. It’s safe to say that “Cop Walk” is always a KLYAM favorite – it stirs things up and is memorable as can be. Of course there’s the perennial “Burrito Boner” and the specially dedicated “Free Slice” to Ryan from Fagettes. Good times all around. Add a dose of excitement to your night life and catch these guys always.
Bands: Nice Guys, Teenanger, The Soupcans, Thigh Masters Date: Friday, April 12, 2013 Venue: Discovery Zone (Allston, MA)
Thigh Masters – Correct name? I hope so. Thigh Masters aka Kurt opens the festivities with some mind bending one mon noise. Noise – kind of a vague term, but I think noise enthusiasts would dig this. It certainly is loud, so I will call it noise to make it easy for all of us. Kurt Thigh Masters plays guitar and I believe he is accompanied by a drum machine. He also wears a mask and within this mask is a microphone attached to Kurt’s mouth a la Lightning Bolt/Black Pus. I’ve never seen this set up before, so that’s a plus. With that being said, I feel like I’ve seen this performance before and I’ll see it again, just different names. That isn’t to say it’s bad. Kurt Thigh Masters is cool and any local venue/DIY space would be happy to have him.
Soupcans – I’ve always loved Canada. Only been there once and like a good, little American I watched pornography on late night television and ate McDonalds every day. I also bought a present for my grandmother. Soupcans are from Toronto and they are tall, kind-hearted gentlemen. They too enjoy icy cold beers, rock ‘n’ roll music, and perhaps late night pornography and fast food. They will shotgun a beer with your brother, make love to your sister, but when they come home at night they’ll kiss their mothers, and I’m positive that when they are away they buy gifts for their grandmothers.
Fine gentlemen, who aggressively knock your ass out cold on the dance floor with their punk rock music that just greeted my ears in recent weeks. The nicest guy in Allston, Matt Garlick (shake his hand, buy him a drink, give him a high five) introduced me to the mighty Soupcans at approximately 9 P.M. on Friday, March 15, 2013. Fresh off a Nice Guys/Fagettes tour himself, Garlick spoke of a band heading on tour to Boston in the following month. Not usually one for band recommendations, I didn’t know what to expect. I know the guy that recommends bands all of the time doesn’t like band recs, Slutever. What happened next, however, was “a great moment in rock ‘n’ roll history.” Only hearing half of what Garlick said, I was instantly hooked when he mentioned that one of the Soupcans (at this point I thought he was saying “suit cans” too) sings through a beer can! And then when I found out that they were Canadian, my God, that’s it. No more descriptions needed. Perfect band rec. Most kids will tell you something along the lines of “they’re post-punk fused with psych garage punk.” No! We all do it though. But, beer guzzling, swinging, rowdy, Canadian nuts is all I need. It planted an image in my head of the almighty Soupcans. Bandcamped it up and here I am now. Ready to rock ‘n’ roll and you can’t erase those words from history.
Jumping back to this evening, Soupcans open with “Shocked,” a pulsing slammer that shows off the trio’s (classic guitar, bass, and drums y’all) ability to produce fast, pummeling, difficult to describe, but undeniably catchy, raw, punk. Punk in the purest sense. Bestial, no nonsense, straight to the point, simple, but not dumb. No fancy smanchcy bullshit, but not sloppy either, you’re gonna wanna kiss and tell after seeing this band. Lead singer Dave’s vocals are monotone, reminding me of hardcore punk legends, DOA and Joey Shithead’s vocals – also Canadian! Low, baritone, monotone but simultaneously chaotic, exciting – shouts and screams that captivate my heart. The guitars smoothly roar like a serial killer that poetically hacks his victims to death. Right up in your face – raw – but calculated like the work of Jay Reatard in just about all of his bands. The drums are equally frenetic, drummer Gideon slams his kit with extreme precision, kind of feels like my attempts at playing drums, the thrill of hearing the stick smack the snare drum like a slap across the face, except this guy actually knows what he is doing and can control his destruction.
Soupcans play a sound show and they bash out some of my favorites from their LP Good Feelingshttp://thesoupcans.bandcamp.com/releases including “Shocked,” “Outlander,” and “Deadbeat.” Great to meet the dudes, especially chatting about other sick Canadian bands like The King Khan & BBQ Show and Vomit Squad. Nick knows his Alice Cooper too haha! Great performance, but I wish more people would move and mosh and what not, but still a fun show. Next time will be a wild, drunken, Soupcans riot.
Teenanger – I’ve been calling them Teenager this whole time! What a waste of breath. Ahh well, in the line for the bathroom I notice a bald dude wearing a yellow Suburban Lawns shirt. I vaguely know who they are, late 70s punk band I think. I ask the dude if this is correct and he confirms this. At the time, not knowing much about Teenanger other than the name, which I fucked up anyway, I do not realize who this man is. Moments later, I notice he is singing with his band Teenanger. They blast through a fast, 70’s punkish set. Their music fits very well on a bill with Soupcans and Nice Guys. The singer is enthusiastic, prowling around, hopping into the crowd, making use of the living room space around him. I dig it, but Glen seriously digs it, even more than Soupcans. Speaking of Soupcans, Teenanger also hails from Toronto, Canada. https://soundcloud.com/teenanger
Nice Guys – Nice guys, eh? Just how nice are these guyz you may ask. Sweethearts. Pizza punks from Bawlston – proudly reppin’ the Boston underground. Tonight, the foursome celebrate one of the best first years I have seen for any band. I thought they had been around for a few years. Over the past twelve months, these pizza punks have played many a show, toured twice, and won over the hearts of Kids Like You & Me, in the process making a name for themselves around town.
Nice Guys are like The Beatles. Four Beatles, four Nice Guys, and everyone’s got their favorite. Ahh, I like them all: Drummer Cam (rhymes with Jam, easy enough), Alex “sick moustache dude” Alexson on guitar, Matt Garlick on guitar – hey isn’t that the guy from Fagettes?!, and Jake Gilbertson – vocals/bass. He reminds me of a young Jared Swilley (Black Lips). Hopping and bopping about, right slab in the middle. He and his bandmates get the crowd moving a little bit with their Germsian take on sludgey garage punk. Alas, we KLYAMERS, have to make it to that damn train station, so we only catch the first few tunes. I want to say I hear “Pizza Bong,” one can only hope. You can hear it and all the jaw droppingly exquisite Nice Guys numbers here: http://niceguys666.bandcamp.com/album/mean-songs-demo
Here’s a big shout out to some of the kewl cats we ran into tonight. So Onam/ Fast Apple (who put on the show! like their page – https://www.facebook.com/fastapplebooking?fref=ts), Jen Knight – really nice to meet you!, DJ John Freeman, always spinning the classics like Vivian Girls, Daniel Johnston, George Baker, Tina Turner, you name it. Tim, if you’re reading this, keep drinking those 40s son. Then, my boy Ian, you and your acid tales. You represent the youth of America, the wave of the future. And of course, the Prof$t, who is always lurkin in the shadows at the best shows.
Here’s a video from this show of the nice dudes playing my favorite NG song, “Cop Walk.”
Steep Leans are a new band and in fact this is their third show ever, which is pretty incredible considering how smooth their set is. If I had to guess I would have thought they had been playing shows for at least a few months. Going into the set, I do have somewhat high expectations because moments earlier Moontower/Spacebum, Tim Cushing delivered some serious accolades for these dudes. Indeed, the Steep Leans put on a good show and Tim’s enthusiasm seems to be shared among most crowd members. There’s a fair amount of folks upfront dancing and swaying along to Steep Leans’ mellow, tropical, psych rock. I almost feel like I’m on a cruise, like that sort of music but with a bit more experimentation. I also get some Pink Floyd/prog vibes. Lastly, I particularly dig Wakefieldian, Chris Eddleston’s guitar playing, especially when he plays it lap style like Memphis legend, Will McElroy. Solid start to the show. Check out their bandcamp here: http://steepleans.bandcamp.com/
The second band tonight is Guilty Party and they are a three piece. Guilty Party plays loud, fuzzy garage punk, perhaps even leaning towards metal at times. There’s definitely a loud, headbanging, in your face quality to their music, but it’s not overly sloppy or stripped down either. Overall, pretty good, but not exactly the “garage” I adore, I plan on listening to their music more in the future though. http://guiltypartyboston.bandcamp.com/
Up next is our homies, Fat Creeps, yes I just used the term “homies,” most likely a first for KLYAM. The great thing about being a fan site, if you will, is that we get to see and write about our favorite bands on a consistent basis. As always, I am ecstatic for this Creeps show and they satisfy my expectations. The set begins with a cover of Devo’s “Gates of Steel,” a past staple for Fat Creeps that has been popping up every now and then in their live shows. I love hearing this as the opener and it gets me even more pumped up for the rest of their performance. I’m a big Devo fan, but I honestly prefer their cover, it’s heavy and almost feels like another Creeps song, because they make it their own. With very little breathing room in between songs they transition to their fastest and heaviest cut, “Daydreaming,” and you can watch its badass music video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP0l0Xg6-ZQ. They continue with more ear spliters such as “Going to the Party” and “Secrets,” which showcase some of bassist Mariam Saleh’s greatest vocals. At one point in the set, Mariam plays the bass on her knees and even on her back. The trio closes the set with the quick, instrumental jam “Back to School.” If you haven’t heard or seen Fat Creeps live, YOU FAIL AT LIFE! You can start by listening to their self-titled EP: http://fatcreeps.bandcamp.com/album/fat-creeps-ep Stay tuned for its 10-inch vinyl release on our very own KLYAM Records! Release date TBA.
Headlining the show tonight is one of the city’s finest, Nice Guys. The Nice Dudes are fresh off a tour with The Fagettes, which included stops at the legendary (and apparently smokey) 529 in Atlanta, GA, a vibin’ house show in Charlotte, NC, among other sweet spots in Brooklyn, Baltimore, Philly, and Richmond. Happy to hear the tour went swell. Now, to this show. I’m excited to see the Nice Guys again, especially since the first time I saw them I didn’t know who they were and the second time I saw them they did a Coachwhips cover set. This time, I am familiar with most of their songs and I enjoy all of them. Nice Guys have a calculated ramshackle to them. The sounds they make aren’t pretty in the conventional sense, but they sound beautiful to me. My mom says it sounds like the singer is walking on hot coals, maybe, probably not though because that would hurt a lot. This set consists of some crazy Nice Guys tunes like my favorite, “Cop Walk,” which is like Black Flag meets Black Lips. In general, as I’ve stated before, Nice Guys create a sick marriage of garage and early hardcore punk (early 80’s, the only hardcore style I dig). It’s fast, it’s slimy, it’s noisy, and it’s full of slams and shrieks, but best of all it will give your noggin the perfect floggin. Listen up: http://niceguys666.bandcamp.com/album/mean-songs-demo
Kids Like You & Me (KLYAM) 