Xiu Xiu brought their brand of quiet, loud, quiet experimental noise music to the multi-art facility known as 3S Artspace in Portsmouth, NH on Friday April 14th along with The Boston indie pop 3 piece, Lilith. The drama that Xiu Xiu creates during their live show can often be unsettling. Parts of their set are so quiet and delicate that I held back from taking photos due to disruption from the camera shutter. Jamie Stewart uses those moments of near silence to create juxtaposition by screaming and stuttering into the microphone words of distaste and dissolution along with Shayna Dunkelman’s wild sense of rhythm. Xiu Xiu would provide the perfect soundtrack to a post-apocalyptic love story co-directed by David Lynch & Quentin Tarantino.
Set List
Slideshow
INTERVIEW: Meme, Myself, & Aye Nako
“I really appreciate when albums have interludes or skits” states Mars Ganito of Aye Nako when I ask why the band used a collection of sound bites to open their third record Silver Haze. The one minute and thirty five second track titled “We’re Different Now,” feels like a timelapse from your first day of kindergarten to your last day of elementary school: an amalgamation of sound bites sewn together to illustrate the frantic and unfiltered nature of childhood.
Silver Haze rides that frenzy and unfiltered nature from start to finish, sifting through the ups, downs, and question marks of life over the course of 37 minutes. Through the use of spicy riffs & unforgettable lyrics that’ll stick to your heart long after the record has ended, Aye Nako delivers another heartfelt album that has the ability to underscore that much needed scream you’ve been holding in and the satisfied exhale that follows.
Allston Pudding: For “We’re Different Now,” where are the sound bites from? What was it about those specific sound bites that struck you as content that needed to open the record?
Mars Ganito: It’s from my personal cassette collection from my childhood. There’s four or five of them. Starting when I was around seven, I would walk around with a tape recorder and just record everything. There are some skits, the sounds of me and some other kids wrestling in the backyard, me pretending to do a radio station; and there was once a clip of me singing the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ version of “Love Rollercoaster” shortly after seeing Beavis and Butthead Do America, but I was so embarrassed, I recorded over it.
I really appreciate when albums have interludes or skits, speaking, noise, field recordings and things like that. I chose those particular clips for this track because they are some of my favorites that aren’t too embarrassing. They are taken from the very first tape I made with my childhood best friend labeled “Momy” and another tape from when we were 11 when he was letting me borrow his Talk Boy. A lot of times, I’d record with the Talk Boy in the slow-mo mode, so in playback, our voices sounded like The Chipmunks. Originally, I wanted to have several very short interludes with sound clips throughout the album, but that seemed a bit much. Since I only made one, it only felt right to have it be the opening track.
AP: What was it about “Particle Mace” that moved you to release it as the first single?
Jade Payne: We considered a few different songs before settling on “Particle Mace” as the first release, asking a few of our friends & collaborators what they thought. The song is kind of a handful, but it seemed to have all the structural and hooky elements that make a great first single. It also tells a story that happened over a long period of time and still continues today; in that sense, it encompasses a lot of themes in my other songs on the record.
AP: Did Unleash Yourself and The Blackest Eye inform the direction of “Particle Mace” in any way?
JP: Maybe, maybe not. I joined the band after Unleash Yourself came out, so The Blackest Eye is the only other Aye Nako record I’ve written parts for. I wasn’t particularly thinking about TBE when “Particle Mace” was written. It was actually the song that took me the longest to finish, taking something like four months, piecing it together as I traveled through different time zones. All of our playing styles have definitely evolved since TBE & I think people will hear this across the entire album.
AP: “Regurgitated bullshit sayings” is such a fire lyric and immediately made me think of all the sayings or proverbs people have said to me if I’m having a hard time and like…9/10 times they didn’t make me feel any better lol. Are there any sayings, lines or proverbs folks have said to you that you’ve found really irritating?
JP: Fire is accurate! This lyric is kind of a burn on white-feminist-academics who like to test out what they learned in grad school or practice vocabulary words on you while processing. Or they treat an intimate conversation like it’s a discussion in Theory 101. Someone I had been in a relationship with used these methods often as tactics of manipulation and control to silence me. The phrase “I just want to name…” was something I heard a lot to divert attention away from whatever I was trying to express. “I’m curious about why you feel like you need…” was another one; always said in a patronizing tone, inducing my own self-doubt.
AP: The instrumentals on every song rip SEVERELY like..I’m shook, they’re all so good. Would you ever re-release Silver Haze but just the instrumentals, no vocals?
JP: Thank you! I love the idea of having an instrumental version of the record. This is actually something I wish Limp Bizkit did with Chocolate Starfish & the Hot Dog Flavored Water. More Wes Borland, less Fred Durst. I would listen to it all the time. If anyone reading this can hook up Bizkit instrumentals on Pirate Bay, hook me up.
MG: Heh! I’ve never thought of doing something like that even though I had some Spice Girls, Total and Jon B. cassingles from Wal-Mart back in the day and they would have the instrumental versions so you can do a karaoke version alone in your room.
AP: When I listened to Silver Haze, there were times where I’d picture a lot of fantastical movies and video games like Lord of The Rings and Legend of Zelda. Are there any fantastical movies/novels/video games, etc. that had an impact on the songwriting process for Silver Haze?
MG: Whoa. It’s interesting you say that. Did you know I’m a big gamer? I don’t know how much of that spilled over into my songwriting though.
JP: I was deep in a Tomb Raider 3 k-hole leading up to the recording of Silver Haze. It’s been one of my favorite video games since I was 12. I downloaded a Playstation 1 emulator last summer & bought some USB controllers so I could relive the memories in my adulthood. In TR3, you travel to London, Nevada, India, and Antarctica. The songs I wrote on Silver Haze were pretty much all inspired from being on tour a lot and simultaneously dealing with inner isolation. Lara Croft is the sole main character, and she’s always exploring cavernous, creepy places by herself. So I’d say there’s a good chance it impacted my songwriting process. On the other hand, if I were being completely honest, I would say video games are more of a huge distraction from both me and Mars working on music. But I’m not being honest, because we love video games!
AP: You’re making a Silver Haze themed dinner, there are three courses, appetizer, entree and dessert. What are the courses and why?
JP: silver haze, frozen pizza, & double stuffed oreos = the things that make us all happy.
MG: Spaghetti meme, band meme, New York (of I Love New York) meme = I don’t know how to do an interview without mentioning memes.
AP: Is there a certain song from Silver Haze that you’re particularly amped for people to hear live? If yes, what is it and can you elaborate on why? (if there’s more than one, feel free to name those as well!)
JP: By now, we’ve played everything live, except maybe “Sissy.” We’re excited to get that one ready for the upcoming tour. It stands out a bit more from our regular style because it’s shorter & faster. It’s got a Sonic Youth vibe to it. I really like when Sheena does the 16th note thing on the hi-hat in the chorus. I have a lot of fun playing songs where I can zero in on lead guitar & not have to worry about singing.
MG: “Particle Mace” because it’s my favorite one to play and the first line is always stuck in my head. Jade sings on it and I can kinda freak out on guitar if I want to. Also, I get to kick on this wild delay pedal (that I’m still trying to understand) at the end, and it’s just a big looping noise. I have no idea how to recreate it the same way I did on the record, but I guess it’s good to not be tied to the exact sound of the record anyway.
Silver Haze is out now on Don Giovanni Records. Keep up with Aye Nako on Facebook, and catch them live in a town near you:
4.20 – Columbus, OH @ TBA
4.22 – Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
4.23 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Cactus
4.24 – Minneapolis, MN @ Memory Lanes
4.25 – Minot, ND @ 62 Doors Gallery
4.28 – Seattle, WA @ Werewolf Vacation
4.29 – Vancouver, BC @ The Toast Collective
5.01 – Portland, OR @ Blackwater
5.02 – Arcata, CA @ Outer Space
5.05 – San Francisco, CA @ The Stud
5.06 – Oakland, CA @ TBA
5.07 – San Jose, CA @ Trash House
5.08 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Hi Hat
5.09 – Pomona, CA @ Acerogami
5.10 – Tijuana, MX @ Mod’s Bar
5.11 – Tucson, AZ @ Pomoro
5.12 – Albuquerque @ Corpus Arts
5.13 – El Paso, TX @ Monarch
5.14 – Austin, TX @ Cheer Up Charlie’s
5.15 – McAllen, TX @ Yerberia Cultura
5.16 – San Antonio, TX @ The Land in Between
5.17 – New Orleans, LA @ TBA
5.18 – Gainesville, FL @ TBA
5.20 – Atlanta, GA @ Mammal Gallery
5.21 – Durham, NC @ The Pinhook
5.23 – Easthampton, MA @ Flywheel
5.24 – Boston, MA @ Zone 3 (you’re welcome more details to come 🙂 )
5.25 – West Haven, CT @ Crunchy House
5.26 – Philadelphia, PA @ TBA
5.27 – Brooklyn, NY @ Silent Barn (NYC Record Release Show)
PHOTOS: Vundabar, Horse Jumper of Love & Mini Dresses [Mid East Downstairs 4/8]
We had a heck of a lot of fun at Vundabar, Horse Jumper of Love, and Mini Dresses with our good pal Coach and Sons on April 8th at the Middle East Downstairs. All three bands brought their instruments and enthusiasm perfectly molding the mood for a fun Saturday night. Dodging crowd surfers and moshers, we were there to take some photos of the show. Flip through them below.
Mini Dresses
Horse Jumper of Love
Vundabar
PREVIEW: The Sunset Kings & Miu at Make Shift Boston
Following the release of their most recent single, “Rose Tinted Raybans”, The Sunset Kings will be accompanied by good friend and Haitian Pop Singer Miu this Friday. The show is booked at Makeshift Boston and is bound to be a diverse mix of soul singing, pop, and generally good music as these two are known for mixing up their sounds.
Frontman of The Sunset Kings, Allister Quilon, has also explained that the show will be donation based [Suggested $10], “We really want to make this a donations based event because we get an awesome opportunity that not a lot of people get, to be hosting such a cool person like Miu, who also happens to be a great artist … I don’t see that as success for us. I see that as a success for the community that I am a part of, and I want it to be as accessible as possible to anyone who wants to share in this moment. Who cares if you don’t have five bucks? Just come in and hang out.” Come out this Friday, April 21st from 8pm-10pm and enjoy all of the good vibes that spring is starting to offer us at 549 Columbus Ave, Makeshift Boston.
TRACK PREMIERE: Wedding Camp – “Snacks”
New Hampshire’s Wedding Camp makes fun, scuzzy rock that fuses together catchy pop hooks with distorted guitar and propulsive drums. “Snacks” is the second single off their upcoming EP Clear Fizzy Things, on Dadstache Records.
“Snacks” is simple and short, but its lyrics allude to something deeper:”I don’t want to overstep the boundaries that we made/it would be too much for me to even take,” sings Rachel Ponce before drawing out the Is as she wails, “I don’t want you to waste my time.” It’s a snack of a song in terms of size, but Wedding Camp accomplishes a great deal of meaning in their punchy lo-fi songs that collectively clock in around seven minutes, tops.
Clear Fizzy Things will be out 4/14, and you can listen to “Snacks” from Wedding Camp below.
PHOTO REVIEW: Diet Cig w/ Daddy Issues & Lilith at Brighton Music Hall (04/08)
Diet Cig Set List 4/8/17
VIDEO PREMIERE: Hellrazor – “Covered In Shit”
By THATbirdDID
Members of Speedy Ortiz and Ovlov have come together to deliver another fuzzed out adventure with Hellrazor. The band has released a series of distorted images propelled by heavy bass within their new video for “Covered In Shit”. Although Hellrazor is still yet to play their latest album, Satan Smile, in Boston, this video will tide us over for now.
Check out the video for “Covered In Shit” and be sure to get to know Mike Falcone, guitarist and vocalist, a little better below.
Allston Pudding: What inspired the visuals?
Mike Falcone: The distorted visuals were inspired by Melkbelly’s “Elk Mountain” and old Beastie Boys videos, like “So What Cha Want”. The narrative elements are sampled from JFK Conspiracy documentaries.
AP: Can we expect more new material from Hellrazor sometimes soon?
MF: Yea. Three cassettes full of new demos were recently completed with hopefully a lot more coming soon. Later this year, I’ll be devoting a few months to Speedy Ortiz and finishing school, but we’re always working on Hellrazor whenever we get a chance.
AP: Why the name Hellrazor?
MF: I got obsessed with the Mortician song, “Hell On Earth” which samples the cenobites scene from Hellraiser. I also later found the spelling “Hellrazor” flashed across the screen on a VHS tape of bizarre public access clips that my friends made. Plus, “Hellrazor” is a Tupac song, and it’s the name of one of the worst Marvel characters ever. It refers to lots of things.
Hellrazor’s tagline is “Demons to some; angels to others.”
PHOTO SLIDESHOW: Charly Bliss at BMH (4/3)
There have been two points in my life where I thought guitar theatrics were cool.
The first was in elementary school. My dad was showing me Van Halen’s video for “Jump“, which is primarily a ridiculous duel between David Lee Roth’s high kicks and Eddie Van Halen’s guitar wizardry. The two decades since have been fine for me, I guess, but I didn’t realize how much I missed unabashedly hooky rock anthems with a sugar-high stage presence until Charly Bliss came through Brighton Music Hall last week with Operators.
Pooling mostly from their phenomenal upcoming full-length, Guppy, the Brooklyn four piece flailed, pogoed, tapped on each other’s instruments, and fell into each other mid-solo to an intimate crowd. “Raise your hand if you love your therapist,” singer/guitarist Eva Hendricks asked cheerily in one of the set’s moments of self-reflection before (literally) jumping into fuzz-poppy highlight “Ruby.” The newer cuts similarly don’t mince words on abusive relationships (“Black Hole”), career fears (“DQ”), and cherishing happiness in relationships (a new song called “Heaven”), packing in weighty themes with an aerobic stage presence. No offense, but I think David Lee Roth will have to do a hell of a lot more high kicks to compete with Charly Bliss’ modernized, emotional spin on guitar maximalism.
Check out our photo slideshow below and catch Charly Bliss in Boston again at ONCE Ballroom on June 17th.
REVIEW: NE-HI, Steep Leans, Cove Sauce at Middle East Upstairs (3/31)
It’s a cold and wet night, as the April storm shifts between rain and snow, resulting in a heavy grey slush. Jackets are zipped up tight, and boots poke and plod through soupy puddles. Yet despite the less-than-perfect weather, Central Square is busy and buzzing with excitement. Tonight is the opening night of The Middle East-owned Sonia, a new venue renovated from the ashes of recently closed T. T. The Bear’s Place. With the addition of Sonia, The Middle East has firmly cemented its position as a Boston nightlife powerhouse, now boasting five distinct venues. But Sonia isn’t the only draw of the night, as fans fill the tiny 194-person capacity Upstairs venue in anticipation of Chicago rockers NE-HI.
NE-HI was formed in 2013, making a name for itself in Chicago’s thriving underground scene through powerful and energetic basement shows. The band released its first and self titled album in 2014, which captured the lo-fi aura of their live performances. In February of 2017, NE-HI released its second and most recent album, Offers, featuring a more mature and polished sound without sacrificing the spirit of their first album. Since then, NE-HI has toured with some of rock’s best up-and-coming bands, including Car Seat Headrest and fellow Chicagoans Twin Peaks, expanding their experience far beyond the basement shows of their beginnings.
Opening for NE-HI were local Boston rock bands Cove Sauce and Steep Leans. Cove Sauce began the night with a raw and speedy set, switching players on guitar and bass after several songs to signify the shift from old to new material. Steep Leans went on stage around 10:00pm, soaking the crowd in euphoric energy with songs like slow jam “Columbia,” and walking off to a line of high-fives and fist bumps from the first row. Following Steep Leans, NE-HI briefly appeared on stage for a sound check before disappearing, letting the excitement build until the band hopped back on at 11:00pm.
Once on stage, NE-HI wasted no time warming up the crowd, kicking off their set with a block of songs from Offers beginning with ”Sisters.” From there, NE-HI grooved their way into “Prove,” with a bouncy dance rhythm led by drummer Alex Otake and bass player James Weir. This block of songs fittingly came to an end with the album’s title track, “Offers,” slowing the pace of the show as listeners swayed to reverberating guitars and singer/guitarist Jason Balla’s droning “ohs” and “ahs.”
Jumping back to some of their older material, NE-HI played “Time Wanna” and “You Tell Me,” featuring the seamlessly combined voices of both Balla and and singer/guitarist Mikey Wells on backup. Like with “Prove,” these tracks broke down into full-out jam sessions, with the band rocking and swinging around the stage to the music just as madly, if not more so, than the pumped up crowd.
To end the night, NE-HI pulled out one of their brightest and most upbeat songs, “Stay Young,” the lead single off and final track from Offers. Between Balla’s simple and hooky lyrics, fuzzy riffs, and steady beats, “Stay Young” radiated with a sunny atmosphere, bringing an infectious wave of smiling and head-bobbing over the crowd. When the song was over, NE-HI waved good night and began breaking down their instruments and working their way off stage–––but the crowd wasn’t done with them yet. Even as Otake screwed off his high-hat and packed away his drum sticks, the crowd roared out in unison, “One more song!” And after 30 seconds had gone by and the call for an encore remained strong, Otake shared a look of pride and disbelief with his band mates, then shrugged his shoulders and waved the rest of the band back on stage for one final song.
More than anything else, this genuinely unplanned and graciously given encore perfectly captured the spirit of the band–––a laid back group of guys who continue to charm new fans with their honest and electrifying performances.
NE-HI
Steep Leans
Cove Sauce
Boston Hassle Begins All-Day Telethon Tomorrow
Our friends over at Boston Hassle are kicking off another 24-hour telethon tomorrow on SCATV! A highlight of local talent from a variety of different crafts, the broadcast will raise money for a prospective arts-geared all-ages community center and performance space.
After last year’s successful public access takeover, which saw the Hassle team raise $3500 towards this excellent cause, they’re coming back with a jam-packed lineup that runs the gamut of subjects. From noise, hip-hop and punk sets to art and fitness instructionals to micro-lectures on capitalism and heavy metal to comedy and to performance art, this is an amazing way to explore creativity in your local community. Heck, even the Weatherman from Weather is Happening will be there to help you lose your mind for a few minutes!
The telethon will kick off tomorrow, April 7, at 10 AM and run through 10 AM the next day. Those in the Somerville area can watch SCATV on channel 3 on their local dial while Boston Hassle will be streaming the whole affair here. Tune in and consider donating some money to a very worthy cause!