Wrong, Nothing, Torche. Not the most attention-seeking names a band could come up with. But these bands did not need flash to sell out their show at Great Scott on Wednesday. They relied on one of the most timeless elements of music to back their names: good ol’ fashioned guitar-driven rock.
Wrong started off the night and right out of the gate they got to work deafening eardrums. Relying on old school guitar riffs, they blasted through their short set. Wrong is the creation that has risen from the ashes of legendary hardcore band, Capsule. It was obvious that they had experience, and pummeled through their set with intensity of veterans. All in all, they’re a strong “new” band, and their debut album will certainly be worth looking out for.
Nothing came next, blasting their signature blend of shoegazey rock. The guitars almost drowned out the vocals, but Nothing’s specialized sound utilizes their voices hovering just above the din, like someone just keeping from drowning out in an ocean’s waves. Refusing to be lost in the mix, the two vocalists brought their voices slightly more into the foreground after the first song and maintained that perfect blend for the rest of their set.
Nothing relied on vocal samples and feedback-laden noise to further augment their music live. Whether it was ambulance sirens or people talking about pain and isolation, there was always something surprising emerging from the speakers.
The band was strongest during their instrumental jamming. Most of their songs played into one another with dark noise or heavy feedback in between, which made their whole set seem like it had a grander design to it, like it was portraying a message.
They painted an emotional journey, one that was tinged with pain. The theatricality of it all was very different than something you might hear from Explosions in the Sky, who focus on a very different side of experience.
Building on what bands like Godspeed You Black Emperor have already cemented years ago, they put their own unique spin on the post-rock, but with added flares of hardcore and shoegaze to form a sound all their own. Nothing is definitely not post rock, but it’s easy to see how they get shoehorned into that genre. Their songs’ crescendos were massive, they had long thematic elements interwoven in their music, and they brought the speakers close to bursting.
Then Torche arrived to finish the night off. Their sound is one that blends heavy metal with a classic rock influence. The band managed a well-balanced, crisp sound; no one instrument overpowered anything else. They sounded more traditionally metal than Nothing, but still fit in well with the overarching aesthetic of the show. They grooved along at a steady pace, and ended each short burst abruptly. The set came off like a lot of sprints that accumulated to a marathon.
But for all their short songs, they really excelled during their longer ones, which showed off their skills at their dynamic playing. Torche’s only flaw was their consistency; their songs began to blend together after a while. But if that’s a band’s only flaw, then they’re definitely doing something right.
The band kept up a staggering amount of energy throughout their entire set. During a breakdown in one song, vocalist Steve Brooks raised his fist in the air and cried out “Go Red Sox!” during a planned momentary break in the music, followed by the guitars crashing back in perfectly on time. Sure it was cheesy, but Torche kept up with that schtick, and it proved to be charming in the end. It felt like they legitimately enjoyed playing in a band together and being on tour; they were just having a good time, which is always refreshing to see. So many acts make it seem painful that they’re on stage, or try to act like they’re in pain like it’s part of a gimmick. The rhythm section killed it. Bassist Jonathan Nuñez was wild, and put together with the drums, pounded out a furious show.
The crowd did however seem a little tired towards the end of the night. Brooks made a few remarks on the crowd’s energy level, one being “Boston, c’mon! We walked thousands of miles, barefoot and pregnant, through inches of snow, just to play for crickets!” But ever in good spirits, he immediately corrected his remark to “chocolate crickets” and laughed heartily before beginning the next song.
Torche played mostly new material towards the end of the show. The band recently put out their album Restarter, and it holds it’s own against anything from their decade-long career. The new tracks sounded even stronger than their own material, proving that Torche haven’t lost their touch yet. In fact, none of the bands were a let down. One after the next proved themselves in their own ways, and each proved that heavy guitar-driven music was still alive and well in the world.