Holy Hell, folks. Have we got a lineup for you! Leave it to O’Brien’s to host a gathering this good, a bill of acts ranging from the soft spoken pathos of Loom’s Kevin King, to the heavy hitting roar of Choke Up. In between the two we have Raw Blow, Banquets and like some trash-clown cherry atop this perfect mass: Pile.
We’re waiting for Saturday like freegans for garbage day, like Danny Tanner to a family group hug, like senior citizens to bingo night at the old folks home.
This is our bingo night. And Choke Up’s record release show.
Kicking off the night is Loom, moniker of noteworthy solo-act, Kevin King. Hailing from Somerville, Kevin focuses on his observations of life in the city, spinning lyrics of gentrification and winter indoors amid poignant notes of more personal experiences like those with his grandmother, a woman he pays tribute to with “You Are The Air.”
Once frontman to heavily reverb-driven Maura, Kevin’s new project reflects the more subdued tones of a man and his guitar. Not that Kevin’s simplicity marks him ordinary by any means. Just a few minutes into any Loom song hears intricate guitar work and the perspective of an artists who finds inspiration in everyone from Pedro the Lion to Nina Simone.
Boston’s Raw Blow follows Loom on this line-up, and will very likely create quite a contrast. From Loom’s tender sentiment will come familiar faces to the Boston hardcore scene, a group whose collective roots span bands like Now Denial, Bar Sinister, Furnace and pop punky Luau. Their roots work. Though Darryl Pohas, Brian Donovan, Jake Quarrel and frontman Adam Caries have been playing under this moniker for less than two years, it’s clear they’re been around the musical block. Look to Raw Blow for dueling vocals, explosive percussion and ever-climing guitar riffs. Look to Raw Blow for, frankly, what you’d expect in their name.
Banquets come third as the night’s only not-so-local bunch. This New Jersey collective brings a sound whose sharp melodies straddle the lines of Gaslight Anthem and The Menzingers, and will likely make for one of night’s more melodic acts. Here’s a band whose focus lands on a certain type of optimism. One fueled by beer, Big Lebowski references and a background whose mutual experience lays far beyond the studio. This is a band built entirely on friendship.
Given the night runs smoothly, it’s very likely that Pile will come next. Though we can never be too sure. Just weeks ago a car crashed through the street-facing wall of Allston hot-spot, Common Ground—a venue just a few feet from O’Brien’s—known just as much for it’s Y2K dance nights as the drunken fools known to grace it’s boozy karaoke stand. Common Ground’s brick façade of has since been rebuilt, and thank God! Where else could we get a mix of Backstreet Boys and Bacardi, and maybe cheap drugs in the bathroom?
But anyway, Pile.
The night will run smoothly, of course, until Pile takes the stage to create the ruckus known to follow this outfit around town. Here’s a band getting some serious attention, and very well-deserved sort at that. From 2010’s Magic Isn’t Real, to 2012’s Dripping, to the long awaited You’re Better Than This set to release early March, Pile has perfected a genre of hard-hitting weirdness through chugging guitars, seamless percussion and Rick Maguire’s ability to mix heavy groans with the vocals of the highest octave. He may not be the full Mariah Carey, but still. The guy’s got range.
If the night hasn’t already brought out those daring enough to mosh, you can bet it’ll break out here.
As the fifth and final act of the night, Choke Up is set to carry out the sweaty crowds with a finale of, what’s that? A record release! Having recently signed to Black Numbers, these four best buds will release their label debut, Black Coffee, Bad Habits on February 3. Last month the band premiered “Thicket and Vine” for our lucky ears, a tune whose swaying guitars and howling vocals have a way of getting into your brain and staying there, only until the song turns on itself in a quick breakdown and all turns quiet for good.
But that’s just the recording. Who knows what could happen at this show! C’mon down to O’Brien’s this Saturday for a sweaty mix of sad songs and angry music, acoustic guitars and heavy, heavy reverb. It’s grab bag of emotion, for sure. Grab your ticket today!
Doors at 8 p.m. Tickets $9. 21+