Congratulations to Boston Hassle and everyone who helped put on Hassle Fest 6 this past weekend at Cuisine en Locale in Somerville. It was an excellent festival showcasing some of the best up and coming and legendary experimental music from Boston and beyond. We were able to hit up the second day of the festival and highlight some of the great acts that played that day. Maybe you will discover or revisit one of your favorite acts? Read more to find out.
Couples Counseling
Couples Counseling is like watching a master at their work. Virgina de la Pozas beautifully layers samples one on top of another to weave a perfectly crafted electro dream. it appears seamless, as if a magician’s trick. Interesting vocal effects add to a dreamlike state, and the post-brunch coma is satisfied without ever falling asleep.
Tomboy
Tomboy was the first act of the day that made Cuisine en Locale feel full. The bass was pumped up all the way blowing proportions of garage punk into the faces of Hassle Fest-goers. Screeching vocals filled with feminist overtones, mostly provided by Madeline Burrows, paved their way into the audience. You couldn’t avoid the messages of their songs even if you wanted to (well fuck you if you do). “Too Bad” was the high point of the set that brought both Burrows’ vocals paired with Ali Donohue’s to create a wall of unmoving, past-paced aggression that helped cut all of the noise and experimental acts throughout the day.
KTB
KTB wins set you are most likely to get hit in the face or that’s how it felt watching the drum slammer/vocalist beat a drum donning their name harder than seemingly possible. He also covered his face in a bandana, adding to the creepy vibes and looking the most menacing of any performer yet. The hard guitar riffs paired interestingly with the vocalist’s aggressive yet whiny vocals.
Jerry Paper (NYC)
Jerry Paper brings forth an ’80s-reminiscent electro dose of awkwardness. In the same vein as Couples Counseling, Jerry Paper’s Lucas Nathan stands behind a series of samplers creating layer on layer of tunes like magic. The audience warmed up to dancing for the first time this afternoon.
Le TRASH CAN (Montreal)
Manuel of Le TRASH CAN creates hard, noisy electronic music piercing through you like nothing you’ve heard before. From Montreal, he is touring alone for the first time. He started his tour a week prior in Texas and has been traveling via Greyhound mostly. It isn’t often that one finds an electronic musician who performs along with his music, and Manuel matches the energy of his sounds by pulsing his body violently along with it. It is like the musical equivalent to a thunderstorm.
Horse Lords (Baltimore)
Our “Italian” emcee Luxardo introduced Horse Lords as “the best band in Baltimore.” The double drummers created a tribal yet powerful beat. It was both funky and energetic to get the crowd dancing once again. I don’t know much about the Baltimore music scene, but it seems that Luxardo might be accurate with his introduction.
Hyrrokkin (OH)
Like two peas in a pod one after another, Hyrrokin followed Horse Lords. The band forced hard, intense instrumental post-rock on Hassle Fest attendees. It was difficult to pinpoint which band member stole the show, all showing off their chops but fitting together as one trio of in your ear loud rock. Drummer Brett Nagafuchi hits his drums with such precision, speed and power that I had deja vu of Tyler Coburn of Gnarwhal.
Prostitutes (Cleveland)
Although I recommend Googling Prostitutes with caution, I don’t want you to refrain from checking them out all together. Prostitutes puts Jim Donadio behind a series of pedals and samplers on a table, none of which I can identify or figure out what they can be used for in music production. Luckily Donadio is a master at it, playing the closest thing to house music that I will admit that I enjoy. It’s like LCD Soundsystem but even more punk. The first full-fledged dance party of the day broke out during his set, a sea of young kids looking to sweat off all the free ice cream from earlier in the day.
Body/Head (W Mass)
A wall of noise began the moment Kim Gordon and Bill Nace placed their guitars around their necks. Nace brought the overall wall structure, while Gordon picked at holes with dissonant and edgy bits to cut through. Gordon’s course, monotonous vocals we have all grown to love through Sonic Youth are filtered through their own series of distortion pedals to bring the noise up just another notch. Nace flailed back and forth on one half of the stage while Gordon traveled around her half, often pressing her guitar against various surfaces including the mirrored wall behind them. The legends played to a packed Hassle Fest crowd, ending both an unforgettable day and weekend.
