There’s no one you want to surround yourself with more for an album release show than your friends and maybe a handful of weirdoes. The Cambridge Elks Lodge provided both options this past Saturday night for Kal Marks’ tour homecoming and celebration of the release of Life is Murder, see their recent full-length album put out by Exploding in Sound, viagra order Midnight Werewolf Records, buy cialis and Sophomore Lounge. The lineup was perfectly curated to support Kal Marks with some of Boston’s greatest acts: Sneeze, Krill, and Pile with help from Brooklyn’s Tom Blacklung and the Smokestacks.

Thanks to a poorly scheduled tattoo appointment, I arrived mid-Sneeze and caught their last few songs. I heard exactly what I expected: a power-packed set of Sneeze’s finest tunes with no bullshit.

After Sneeze, more people joined the Elks Lodge for Krill. This was my first time seeing Krill with their new drummer, Ian. He fit in perfectly well with Jonah and Aaron, showing technical greatness behind the kit, not missing a beat. Similar to Kal Marks, they are fresh off a tour, recently playing the Pop Montreal festival. The best part of the evening was when Krill got to play their song about Pile, in front of Pile, for the first time. I’m sure everyone is eager for Krill’s upcoming Pile concept album.

The hardest act of the night was Tom Blacklung and the Smokestacks. I knew their set would be interesting from the moment they introduced themselves with, “We’re Tom Blacklung. Fuck you.” The lead singer/bassist spent a lot of the set wandering in the front of the crowd playing his bass, and the audience, dudes in plaid, was digging it if the synchronized head banging during the performance was any indication. Being a touring band on an all-local lineup can be tough, but Tom Blacklung earned the respect of the Cambridge crowd.

Along with headliners Kal Marks, Pile was one of the first local bands I really got into when I started writing for Allston Pudding over two years ago. The guys in Pile have no idea how much I love them (which is probably a safe thing for them). I’ve seen Pile more times than I can count or remember (thanks, alcohol!!!). I will continue to see Pile every time, because their live performance is unmatched. Their energy on stage and hearing Rick scream his fucked up lyrics as hard as he can go deep into my bones, and the rowdy crowd would agree with me. Things started to heat up in the audience, and a lot of pushing began, but it was all in good fun.

Towards the end of Pile’s set, the lights were turned off, and Kal Marks rushed to the stage to set up. They somehow briefly lost their bassist Mike, but after chants of his name from the audience, he appeared. I’ve seen Kal Marks many times, but this was the most fun Kal Marks set I’ve ever witnessed. Carl and the gang lost no energy off their long tour, and they power housed through new songs off Life is Murder as well as old favorites. There were some interesting dance moves provided by some audience members. I’m almost positive the guy next to me was doing ballet. The pit was at full power, and at times I was worried they would knock the drum kit over.

There are a lot of things I hate about Boston including but not limited to terrible cab drivers, the Green Line during a Red Sox game, and the Boston Bruins, but there’s one thing that will keep me in the city I call home and that is the music scene this city breeds. The Elks Lodge was a perfect venue for the evening to bring back music to what it should be: cheap and fucking amazing. It was a great night celebrating Kal Marks’ Life is Murder release and another reminder of how much I love the Boston music scene.