Everything about the concert at Cuisine en Locale last Friday was somewhat of a dream. In fact, clinic if someone told me right now I was making this all up and was imagining the whole time, pharmacy by golly, I’d probably believe him or her. Now that we’ve had a few days to digest what happened, let’s drill into the bits that made the show.
Let’s start with the lineup, because that alone was a doozy: Alex G, stage name for Alex Giannascoli, headlined for none other than Teen Suicide, Palehound and Dæphne. If that’s not a dream, I’m not sure what is.
Onto the environment: combat boots set to the background of decorative carpeting, green and blue hair lit by chandeliers and even a girl doing cartwheels every once in a while in the back of the banquet hall, which was brightly lit by concert standards. At one point, there was even a mosh pit ensuing during a cover of the Friends theme song – don’t worry, I assure you this was real.
At 21 years old, someone approached me to say I was the oldest one there. While this was definitely far from true, the all-ages night was a reminder of the region’s dedicated punk teens.
While it was hard to tell whom the crowd went to see, Alex G definitely ended the night right, with a refined sound that layers somehow subtle intensities. Musicians’ backs facing the crowd were a theme for the whole night, but Alex G’s set could be characterized by Giannascoli‘s oversized, lazy swaying as he captivated the crowd with a selection from the 100s of tracks he’s released on the Internet since he started his career just a few short years ago.
It was all very casual and bizarre – at one point Giannascoli invited a concertgoer wearing a fuzzy, neon oversized mask on stage to dance, which resulted in a concertgoer wearing a fuzzy, neon oversized mask just standing giddily and awkwardly next to the bassist and waving his hands a bit (also covered in fuzzy, neon oversized gloves). The gleeful fan eventually stage dove into the crowd during the last song of the evening.
Alex G played an eclectic collection of his vast discography, with crowd pleasers ranging from DSU’s “After Ur Gone” right down to the final encore for the night, Trick’s “Change.” Wearing his flannel and with his hair in his eyes, the one thing we can count on is Giannascoli will always face his musical career with the same fierce honesty he won us over with.
Just before Alex G hit the stage came Teen Suicide, just one of Sam Ray’s babies along with Ricky Eat Acid and Julia Brown. The group, while undeniably unpolished and unpracticed out of the gates for fans and foes alike, was the primary source of moshing for the night. The fact the band was there at all was somewhat of enough to rile the crowd. As Teen Suicide’s Facebook puts it, “broke up in 2012 / do some shows sometimes tho.” And that’s exactly how the band operates – toying with the minds of its fans through April fools’ show announcements with sputters of occasional real shows. The world can only guess what’s next for the early 20s rockers, with the recent announcement that they’ve signed to Boston’s own Run for Cover Records.
No matter how sloppy the early selections of their set may have been, Teen Suicide had no problem winning over the crowd with their antics: They opened with a clunky, bass-driven cover of Hozier’s “Take Me To Church,” and by the time they went into a cover of the Friends theme song mid-set the crowd was active for the first time in the four-band bill.
Boston indie rock gems Palehound went up to bat before Teen Suicide, and quite possibly stole the show with their cohesive and familiar sounds. The group was evidence that music had to speak for itself that night – there were no crazy lights, no intense stage presences, not even a rowdy crowd. It was a rare moment in which the music had to speak for itself, and in this case Palehound had no problem rising to the occasion. The band incorporates bits of every piece of rock history with glimmers of ‘80s, surf, grunge, ‘50s and beyond – in short, everything you could ever want. They ended on the beloved “Pet Carrot,” one of the crowd’s favorites of the night.
Up-and-coming Boston gems Dæphne kicked off the night, charming the crowd with their effortless while humble transition-heavy rock. Four out of the group’s six-song set were off of an upcoming unreleased album, and if their studio recordings are anything like the live renditions, we’re in for a treat to come.
Feeling left out? You can stream Alex G’s discography via the group’s Bandcamp here.
