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The 2007 WBCN Round 1, Night 1 |
Sunday, April 1, 2007
The WBCN Rumble started with a bang last night in Allston as four of the area's brightest local bands faced off on the Harper's Ferry stage.
The Octave Museum drew the first slot of the evening and started strong, setting an early tone for onstage energy. Guitarist/vocalist Stephen Brodksy cut a particularly strong figure on stage with his arching vocals and semi-unhinged guitar playing (complete with finger-tapping). The highlight of the set was the multi-part vocal harmony; the end of the set was a big one, complete with Brodsky wielding his guitar like a samurai, coaxing out every ounce of saturated feedback that it had to give.
The Silver Lining drew second set, and they immediately filled the entire room with sweet harmonies and potent vocals. Anne Price stretched out her more-than-capable voice as the group segued cleanly from song to song. 
Over to the side of the stage, Matt Rhodes contributed not just with his vintage guitar but also with his own golden-tinted vocals. Rhodes and Price sing together as good as any pair in town, and they easily clinched the "best vocals" title by the second song – a fact that kept the audience buzzing long after their set.
The Appreciation Post took the stage for the penultimate set, logging in for a set of jaunty, Weezer-flavored rock. Keyboardist Roger Lussier seemed particularly hyped up for the set as he convulsed over his synth set-up. Guitarists Jim Keaney and Brad Herrick shared a crunchy guitar tone that blasted out over the dialed-in PA. The Appreciation Post displayed a high level of band cohesion; most of the songs were extremely tight sing-along smash-along.
Final band of the night was the Larkin Brigade, who brought probably the only fiddle player that the Rumble will see to the stage. The Larkin Brigade had no guitar player, instead each song led by the fiddle stylings of Heavy Set Joe and powered by the piano-punch of keyboardist/lead vocalist Paddy Keys. The Larkin Brigade's Irish stomp-dance was one of the most enjoyable parts of the night, even if the late Sunday hour was beginning to wear on the crowd.
Night 1 Winner: The Silver Lining
Words by C.D. Di Guardia
Photo by Marianne Bolduc
Night two of the WBCN Rock 'N' Roll Rumble began with Cassavettes,
a mostly Texas-rooted four-piece whose smooth spin on alt-country
included jangly guitars and hearty harmonies. The band played
a set with fluid momentum that most definitely impressed, exhibiting
solid talent and strong songwriting but never quite setting the
room on fire. Their shining moment was a soulful ballad (with
vocalist/guitarist Mike McCullagh on lap steel) that seamlessly
transitioned into a raucous southern-flavored number that bordered
on a rockabilly sound. The band has won "Best Americana Act"
accolades but one might suggest that the sound isn't traditional
Americana nor traditional alt-country; perhaps neo-cana-folk would
be more apt.
Aloud immediately started the fire that Cassavettes hadn't, and singer Jen de la Osa was the notable arsonist. She had an unmistakably rock and roll stage presence, wearing all black save for her white studded belt and white leather boots, and a button on her shirt that stated "I [heart] Rock 'N' Roll." She and Henry Beguiristain shared lead vocal and lead guitar duties, but it was hard not to stay fixated on de la Osa, who has bona fide star power. 
The band played a remarkably exciting and crowd-pleasing set, never letting down their guard — between-song banter ran the gamut from audience prodding ("Are you ready to fucking dance?") to Beatles impressions ("This one's on the LP — but you don't say that in the States, do you"). The entire front row knew every word to their songs, and the blazing set seemed to clinch the night's victory for the band.
Ark Royal, whose official Rumble bio explains that the band formed out of the ashes of Almada only two months ago, had a metal look and a pop-punk sound with vocals that dangled somewhere between Rick Springfield and the Sum 41/Blink 182 contingency. The band, who had the wide-legged headbanger stance down cold, never quite engaged the room, half of which was more interested in the Final Four finals on the big screens behind the bar. Though technically they were adept (and that's got to be at least a minimal requirement for Rumble entry, so one should hope so), the songs were forgettable and the lyrics cliché. At one point they made a remark about "meeting with the other losers outside after the show for a debate on how to lose this thing," suggesting that they themselves knew they were out of their league.
Finally, Baker came on and quickly established themselves as most adorable band of the night. Their keyboard-driven pop rock was fun and lighthearted, with keyboardist Nicole Boudreau bouncing non-stop, a la Woodstock in the Peanuts cartoons.
The set was enjoyable and poppy, but didn't make the same fierce impression Aloud's had. They certainly kept the crowd engaged, though, and at one point seemingly out of nowhere audience members broke out egg shakers and started shaking along. This may have been the central move in Baker's strategy for enrapturing the judges with cuteness, and it worked — they were crowned the winners of the night, surprisingly though not undeservedly, making Aloud the band to beat at this point for the wild card.
Night 2 Winner: Baker
Words and Photos by Ashley Willard
Night 3
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
If one is to buy into the idea of the WBCN Rumble as a competition,
then Night 3 was possibly the most anticipated confrontation:
Age Rings and Protokoll with an undercard of Strictly for the
Birds and My Little Radio.
Strictly for the Birds seemed semi-interesting with their non-standard lineup, but their performance was marred by substandard vocals. Clearly a riff-centric band, they blasted out a set of undergraduate rock that never really settled anywhere tasty. Most of their songs culminated in seemingly endless fugues that left the audience checking their watches and shifting around uncomfortably.
Kate O’Brien of My Little Radio took the stage and immediately changed the equation: they were plus female singer and minus one drummer’s shirt. The crowd seemed a little concerned about the topless drummer, but the male members of the band were rendered near invisible by their excessively good-looking singer. Her exceptional vocals seemed out of place amidst the maelstrom of nu-metal noise coming from the band. The band made up for music content with an effervescent stage presence as O’Brien swigged beer, engaged the audience, and at one point had a band member rip off an “itchy tag” from her shirt. It was clear we would not see O’Brien and company past the first round.
The largely lackluster first half made for an interesting situation for Protokoll: while it wouldn’t be hard for them to outshine the earlier acts, they were dealing with a mostly cold crowd. Lead singer Jose de Lara threw himself into each song as if his life depended upon it - whipping his impressive mane of hair around like his neck had come as unhinged as his guitar playing. Protokoll was a picture of pure onstage poise, with little lame banter. Their sound ran mostly to their punk influences – loud and aggressive. De Lara would end one song with a zoo of guitar noise and instantly compose himself for the next one. Their final song turned slightly away from the punk feel and more towards the dance-rock sound of which the band keeps excess stock. The band ended the set by confidently dumping their instruments onstage in front of a large and lusty crowd.
Age Rings definitely had their work cut out for them as the final band of the night, yet seemed up to the challenge. Lead singer/ringmaster Ted Billings showed up in his finest sweater and multiple sets of Mardi Gras beads. Age Rings absolutely commanded the crowd – which had grown to epic proporti
ons. If Protokoll had warmed up the cold crowd, then Age Rings were reaping the benefits. Billings was the focal point with his visceral vocal performance and whipsaw guitar work. He fully sold the vocal performance, letting his voice utterly disintegrate in each song only to bring it back for the next. Age Rings’ commanding performance seemed to be everything required to “win” the round, and their final song felt more like the winning team tucking home an empty net goal than anything else. While the night ultimately went to Protokoll, the authorities of the WBCN Rumble would be hard-pressed not to make Age Rings a wildcard entry into the second round.
Night 3 Winner: Protokoll
Words and Photos by C.D. Di Guardia
Night 4
Thursday, April 5, 2007
One of the best things about the Rumble is its musical diversity, and Night Four was probably the best testament to this, covering a wide range of genres in just a four band lineup. According to WBCN Mad Scientist Shred, this was the first show he booked for this year's Rumble, and he did so by choosing each band and then picking their exact opposite. With bands like Six Day Slide, The Indefinite Article, UV Protection, and The Self-Righteous Brothers, Shred certainly succeeded in creating a diverse lineup and the night was easily one of the most memorable and entertaining thus far.
Six Day Slide went on first, and in the context of the night, they were the most incongruous, yet undeniably (and ironically) the most "radio-friendly" act of the night. Sounding something like Claudio Sanchez (Coheed and Cambria) singing over Matchbox 20 songs with masturbatory Journey-esque guitar solos thrown in for good measure, Six Day Slide were a shaky beginning to an overall entertaining night. A good amount of people were gathered to see them, although it was clear by the audience's bipolar reactions who were friends of SDS and who were not. Alas, one downside of cross pollinating audiences with a diverse bill is the conflict in audience taste, and judging by the comments and sneers of the audience (some of whom immediately left to take advantage of Harper's Ferry's quality pool setup), Six Day Slide weren't terribly well received. To the band's credit, their performance was tight, the sound was good, and the vocal delivery was earnest and poignant in moments. However, when vocalist Dave Fortin bade the audience to sing along with the Boston-lovey dovey chorus, "We all live on these city streets," his request felt shrill and desperate, and fell flat entirely, as no one really chimed in.
Indefinite
Article took the stage in a semi-uniform of dress
shirts, with the odd blazer or tie. Those who came to the event
cold may have looked up onstage at the
large group of “really-we’re-not-from the suburbs
promise!” youngsters and thought “jam band,”
but this was before Abraham Kinkopf bounded up on the stage and
started spitting vocals and fire. Anyone who didn’t think
of Rage Against the Machine during the first song was either 1-
crazy or 2- not in the room, because the rock-hop was flowing
and the crowd was bouncing along in response. MC Kinkopf did succeed
admirably where, until now, every other Rumble vocalist has floundered
– audience participation. Whereas the first three nights
had been marked by bands begging the crowd to clap or dance or
whatever, Kinkopf needed only to bounce himself, wave his hands,
or throw his fist and the crowd (mostly clad in Indefinite Article
t-shirts) would follow suit.
The highly anticipated
UV Protection set was next, and people with bleu,
blanc et 
rouge
sashes were setting up backdrops and lights and tables and video
projectors and all sorts of artistic effluvia. The crowd began
to fill with more sashed folk, also wielding flags. The women
of UV Protection took the stage in white tunics, their hair twisted
up into unicorn horns that pointed skywards. Someone flipped a
switch somewhere and the girls twisted and bent and faced the
crowd, delivering the trademark UV Salute, which was returned
by a large amount of supporters. “Movement artist”
Sue Murard delivered an inspired performance, oscillating in time
with an onstage fan (of the mechanical sort), switching lamps
on and off and “juggling” the light, and then finally
dance-jamming with herself via UV Protection’s impressive
video wall. The theme of the set seemed to be “light.”
Or “YouTube.” Or maybe “France.” Whatever
was going on, the group went through UV favorites such as “Animals”
and “DFend” to the delight of the rabid UV crowd that
at times mimicked the movements of the artists onstage. UV Protection
was definitely the most striking full-on performance that the
Rumble has seen as of yet.
Following this other-worldly performance must have been tough for The Self Righteous Brothers, but the band took the stage confidently and played a raw, energetic set, accompanied by a raucous E-Street Band-esque horn section. Despite a few onstage tuning problems, the set went smoothly. Their unpolished breed of 70s rock with modern indie influences went over well with the crowd, despite the scary guys in fish costumes (from the cover of the band's new record) roaming around in the audience. The Self Righteous Brother's meandering sound translated well from record to stage - the kind of sound that seems like it might fall apart at any moment and you have to keep listening to find out if it does. The band's post-modern take on song structure and melody were particularly interesting, and the audience loved the rockier parts especially.
Night 4 Winner: The Indefinite Article
Words by Adam Arrigo and C.D. Di Guardia
Photos by Marianne Bolduc
At this point in the week, people are beginning to get Rumble crazy. Anyone following the storyline up to this point had witnessed close contests, great sets, awful sets and stunning upsets. Harper’s Ferry was as full as it’s been all week for this Friday night showdown; a lineup which continued the eclectic feel of the event.
First act the Welch Boys were a little something different than the Rumble crowd had experienced up until now. Sure the Larkin Brigade brought their own brand of fast blarney rock, but the Welch Boys seemed like they might actually be dangerous. Their fans looked very dangerous; large men in hoodies and scally caps that would begin pacing aggressively back and forth whenever the music picked up, hoping to bump into something to stab. While the entire supporting cast of The Departed seemed to be lined up against the front of the stage shouting, the Welch boys flexed their muscles and got their Irish up to the delight of the their crowd. The gravel-voiced Ed Lalli brandished the microphone like a Billy club, aiming it down into the armada of beer-soaked fans (Lalli likes to blow beer into the air) who would bellow the possibly appropriate lyrics. Highlights of the night included a vicious missive on the proclivities of Pete Townsend and a touchingly bravado filled ode to the servicemen in Iraq. The crowd seemed both appreciative of the band’s heavy hard cider sound and possibly scared of getting glassed if they didn’t applaud. The highlight of the set was the big mess at the end when friends of the band joined onstage for a beer-soaked finale, turning the Welch Boys into something more like Bang O’Camaro.
Somewhere upstairs in that bright blue room, Shred must have been
twisting his 
hands
together, cackling maniacally as the hardest act of the Rumble
so far was followed by…a jam band with acoustic guitars
and breathy, feeling-centric vocals. Meet
the Day met the audience led by the dynamic guitar
styling of Kenny Polk. Kaptain Kenny was ready at any moment to
go off on a nylon-stringed tangent. While Polk was the highlight,
the overall feel of the band was that of unfortunate blandness;
great for the people who wish Dave Matthews would get more in
touch with his feelings, but not so great for the kids who wanted
to rock. Joe Carter’s airy vocals seemed more of an empty
complaint than anything else. The lack of energy in the vocals
was the opposite of the excess energy of the band’s percussionist,
who seemed like he wanted to win the Rumble all by his onesies;
showily pounding his hand drums. While he probably was having
as good a time as he was trying to look like he was having, the
crowd was not.
Township
has this great feel, like “we just woke up and hell if it
isn’t rocking out today!” Mark Pinansky, a small man
with a big beard and bigger voice commanded the room from center
stage. As has been the trend with the stronger Rumble bands,
Township didn’t just happen on the stage; they took over
the entire room. Thirty years fell off the calendar instantly
the second Pinansky and crew started up with what surely must
have been a mistake; for this first song sounded more like an
ending song; huge hooks, huger chorus and a melody that quickly
infested the souls of all involved. In truth, every Township song
is mini-concert. Rangy bass man John Sheeran powered the affair
from four-strings, knocking out tasty compliments to the guitar
lines so prevalent in Township’s addictive and viral melodies.
Pinansky ranted, reeled and raved on the microphone; hitting and
keeping notes that humans usually don’t. He could scream
like the Who and ramble like Thin Lizzy and the crowd desperately
tried to keep up, singing along whenever they felt it come around
on the guitar. And they felt it a lot.
Poor, poor Kid:nap:kin
found themselves in the unenviable position of playing
directly after Township. They didn’t seem too happy about
it, but then again they didn’t seem too happy about anything;
they sounded downright enraged, screaming through their entire
caustic set. When not shrieking, drummer Patrick Hanlin pounded
out intricate poly-beats complimenting Jamila Weaver’s machine-gun
bass attack. Kid:nap:kin’s set had no real feel of “dynamics,”
the entire affair seemed like a machine set on constant overdrive,
a needle in the red while foul-smelling smoke billows through
the vents. Even though Township had more or less decimated the
stage, Kid:nap:kin soldiered on in their relentless assault against
all that is soft and gentle in the world, but the majority of
the crowd, and it turns out, the Rumble judges as well, were still
glowing from the Township set. Even the guy dancing on the side
of the stage every night knew it, and to absolutely nobody’s
surprise, Township was crowned the winner of Night 5.
Night 5 Winner: Township
Words by C.D. Di Guardia
Photos by Marianne Bolduc
Night 6
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Night 6 Winner: Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves
Semi-Finals, Night 1
Friday, April 13, 2007
After a week-long break, the WBCN Rumble roared back to life last night for the first of the two-night semi-final round. While tomorrow is heralded as the Main Event, anticipation ran high nonetheless for tonight’s surreal lineup of Aloud, Baker, The Silver Lining and Protokoll. The true beauty of the Rumble is that it puts together such bizarre bills of bands that would usually not cross paths. The night ended with a little drama on a final decision that left many cartoon question marks above audience members’ heads.
Aloud drew the first slot, and seemed at an almost unfair disadvantage for it. While the room sound never quite gelled for anyone tonight, Aloud had an exceptionally rough sound at the start, marred by an excessive amount of feedback that was allowed (aloud?) to continue far too long. The young group persevered, busting through several favorites from their 
exceptional debut album. Singer/guitarist Jen de la Osa was particularly effective onstage, glorious notes sailing out of both her guitar and mouth. It almost seemed that she did not sing lead enough; while “other” lead vocalist Henry Beguiristain has a great voice, the crowd seemed to mostly respond to de la Osa’s side of the stage as she whooped and swung and pulled off guitar moves that must put all the dudes in Guitar Center into a panic, soloing and even doing a few rawk-and-roll! pick slides.
Baker brought their large multi-instrumental setup to the stage next, carrying all manner ofinstruments electric, acoustic and brass to the stage. Once set up, they launched, zero-to-
sixty into their brand of tightly wound study-rock reminiscent of local bands like Harris (who were notably in tonight’s crowd). Baker gave an honest performance, throwing fastballs right down the middle in a night of otherwise off-speed pitches and sliders. The clear star of the band is diminutive keyboardist Nicole Boudreau, who spends the entire set bouncing furiously with an angelic smile on her face. While the horrific keyboard patches sounded like General MIDI tones, Boudreau’s infectious energy somehow made it almost-acceptable. Baker seemed like a semi-bland sorbet in the dynamic meal of the evening, getting by on infectious energy in the face of their same-y sounding music.
The Silver Lining was another act that had the people buzzing. If Baker brought Harris as their in-the-crowd mascot, then the Rudds were showing up for the Silver Lining, with several of them seen milling about. The Silver Lining, as the week-old story goes, claimed the first night easily with their sweet harmonies and vocal chemistry. They would have their work cut out for them tonight with the continuing sound issues. Anna Price, the group’s silver-lined hostess spread out her arms and belted out the tunes, sharing duties with crushed-velvet host Matt Rhodes and a vase of flowers that somehow appeared onstage. The flowers didn’t seem to annoy the Harpers’ guys as much as Aloud’s beachballs and were allowed (aloud?) to stay. As usual, the band cut loose with a number of tasty keyboard and guitar solos; perhaps being the most far-from-center offering of the evening. They seemed a little ill at ease with perhaps the onstage sound but continued with their 70’s pop rhetoric regardless, charming those with the right ears.
By the time Protokoll got to the stage, the night was at a weird even-ness. No one had particularly wow-ed the audience up to this point as each of the previous performances seemed to come through some mojo-reducing haze. Protokoll had dazzled last week with their wild basement energy and the entire room seemed to be leaning forward in anticipation. It also seemed Protokoll had the advantage of being quite comfortable with terrible sound – pretty and polished-sounding they are not. It almost seemed like a lay-up for Jose de Lara and company as they played what sounded like last week’s set only backwards. The wild-haired vocalist bounced and sneered and shook his impressive mane from side to side in that certain head sway he picks up every once in a while, yet seemed to be somehow pushing it. The onstage sound was lacking in even their standards as he called some last-minute requests to the soundman through his vocal mic. While the front of the stage was packed and energized, Protokoll’s splash zone seemed to diminish further from the stage as opposed to last week, when they held the entire room in rapt attention.
While all three other bands seemed more interesting, Baker – probably the only band that played or was able to play to the best of their ability - pulled off the upset.
SEMI FINALS Night 1 Winner: Baker
Words by C.D. Di Guardia
Photos by Marianne Bolduc
Semi-Finals, Night 2
Saturday, April 14, 2007
The second semi-final night was packing heat from the start. Rumble or no Rumble, this was a line-up of some of Boston's grandest acts.
Up first was Age Rings, the wild card act of the night. As they had in their prelim round, Ted Billings and his cast of five consumed the room with their gigantic indie sound and solid songs. They book-ended the set with two of their strongest songs —"Everything Will Fall Apart" and "Calm Down" — and played tightly the whole way through. Billings seemed to have a bit of extra rasp to his voice at times, and his vocals strayed off course from the recorded versions of the songs at times. At the end of the set Billings beat the heck out of two drums that were set up on cases of beer downstage, as if to drive home the hugeness of Age Rings' sound. The band has tightened dramatically in the year or so since their first shows; where they may have lost points was in failing to show much personality or engage with the audience like some of the other bands did.
Second up was Township, a band whose stock has risen considerably since before the
beginning of the Rumble when many oddsmakers weren't even considering them in the
running. frontman Marc Pinansky contrasted the previous band by charming the pants off
the audience, his face alive with expression as he belted out signature Township songs
like "Gunnin' Through the Night" and "Millions of People," all sounding like classic
rock hits renewed. The band worked in perfect synchronicity through the entire set,
expertly pulling off all kinds of dynamics like the fake-out ending of "Give It To It"
and the stunning bass line of "Lady Ann."
Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Loves came on next and continued the party of huge music. Reed's blue polyester pants and slicked back hair befitted the big band sounds that filled the room during the set. Reed makes a perfect frontman for the horn-driven band, personifying the era from which he derives his inspiration. At times the songs sounded so familiar, it was hard to tell if they were originals or covers of old standards, but the execution and performance were spot-on, right down to the final song,"I'm Doing the Boom-Boom," a strong finisher that would leave a mark.
The Indefinite Article was up fourth, and again the room was transported in time, this
time to the mid-'90s, when bands like 311 and Rage Against the Machine were king. The
band was calamitous onstage, constantly in motion and fully ngaging the late-night
crowd. They nailed their set, though musically it was a thousand times less interesting
than the three previous acts. The f-bomb- riddled frat-rap-rock enticed a certain
demographic, including a girl dressed as a ladybug — complete with wings — who
appeared to have taken a wrong turn on her way to a Phish show 15 years ago. Where Eli
and Township brought us back to beloved musical eras gone by, The Indefinite Article
took us to a place many would rather leave behind.
SEMI FINALS Night 2 Winner: Township
Words by Ashley Willard
Photos by Marianne Bolduc
The Indefinite Article (Wildcard)
Township (Winner Night 2)
Baker (Winner Night 1)
Sick Puppies (Guest Band)