Great Scott in Allston isn’t exactly the most ideal venue for live shows. The sound can be shoddy, the space itself is small, and because it’s so dark, taking pictures can be a daunting task. However, The Twilight Sad only seemed to flourish in this all too familiar atmosphere. The Scotland natives were vocal about their love for Boston as they took the stage to a surprisingly full audience for a Tuesday night. Their latest album, No One Can Ever Know, dramatically showcases frontman James Graham’s solemn voice. The polarizing highs and lows of Know also give insight to Graham’s unforgettable stage presence.
He is unflinchingly self-aware, and as they opened with “That Summer, at Home I Had Become The Invisible Boy” from their debut album Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters, it was clear that the man was lost inside of his own creative space. With eyes closed, Graham and his cohorts briskly made quite the hypnotic rock rumbles with songs like “Alphabet,” “I Became a Prostitute,” and “Nil” mesmerizing the crowd. When it came time for “Cold Days From The Birdhouse,” everyone surrounding the stage was rigged and ready to scream along, which is exactly what they did. Although Graham announced that the last song of the evening would be “At The Burnside,” it was clear they could go all night and that the energy The Twilight Sad emanated could easily keep us nourished until they come to back to Boston again.
