Boston Concert Roundup [6/13 - 6/19]

Hopefully you weren't like me and completely forgot about Cults and Guards playing at Brighton Music Hall last night. Luckily the rest of this week brings some equally exciting concerts to town. Here are my weekly picks, at least one concert for every night of the week. For venue information you can find extensive linkage here. Please double check the information provided here, shows are subject to changes and cancellations.

Monday, June 13th
Architecture in Helsinki with Hooray For Earth at Paradise Rock Club
$20 / doors at 7pm
MP3: Architecture in Helsinki - Contact High
MP3: Hooray for Earth - No Love
Architecture in Helsinki is a long time favorite indie band of mine whose sound is constantly changing, and Hooray For Earth just released their latest LP, 'True Loves'. For a Monday night, it doesn't get much better.

Tuesday, June 14th 
Dodos with Gauntlet Hair at Paradise Rock Club
$15 / doors at 7pm
MP3: Dodos - Don't Stop

Wednesday, June 15th
Boston Phoenix "Best Music" Awards Party @ Brighton Music Hall
Free with RSVP / doors at 7pm
Bands: Bodega Girls, Freezepop, Moe Pope, and Mean Creek
 She's Into Black Guys by Bodega Girls

Thursday, June 16th
Antlers with Little Scream @ Paradise Rock Club

$15 / Doors at 8pm

MP3: Antlers - Every night my teeth are falling out

MP3: Little Scream - Cannons

Pearl and the Beard with Chris Bathgate @ TT the bears

$9

MP3: Pearl and the Beard - Reverend
MP3: Chris Bathgate - No Silver

I just saw Pearl and the Beard a month ago but I'm picking this over Antlers because I am infatuated with Chris Bathgate's latest album Salt Year, it's a must listen. Important note: Bathgate is currently not listed on TT's website but his own website says he'll be playing at 8pm and 11pm. I don't know what to believe.

Friday, June 17th 
Jeremy Messersmith and Keegan DeWitt @ TT the bears
$10/ Starts at 9:30pm
MP3: Jeremy Messersmith - Franklin Avenue
MP3: Keegan DeWitt - Two Hearts (Tallest Trees Remix)

Eli "Paperboy" Reed and Jenny Dee @ Middle East Downstairs
$12 advance/ $15 at doors / doors at 8pm

Saturday, June 18th
Kingsley Flood and McAlister Drive @ Great Scott
$10 / 9pm

Sunday, June 19th
David Bazan and S. Carey @ TT the Bears
$15/ Starts at 9pm
MP3: S. Carey - In The Dirt

Givers and Pepper Rabbit @ Middle East Downstairs
$12/ doors at 8pm
MP3: Givers - Up, Up, Up
This is the hardest decision you'll have to make all week. Four great bands spread out between two shows, how do you choose? I've seen Pepper Rabbit three times but I don't mind seeing them again especially because the debut Givers' album sounds like summer. But on the other hand (and right next door) you have two bands that make for a perfect Sunday night line up.

Kingsley Flood - I Don't Wanna Go Home

Kingsley Flood's brand new single debuted as NPR's song of the day a few hours ago and I couldn't be more proud of this Boston based band. They've been playing the song live for months and it's certainly one of the highlights of the show. It's very exciting to finally have the song in an ipod friendly format so I can drive around playing this song as loud as possible.

Kingsley Flood - I Don't Wanna Go Home

They will be giving this song away for free on their website and facebook page for a limited time. Check out their early summer dates, they put on a show you don't want to miss. I would know I've been to more than I can count.

The Acre, Kingsley Flood, Pearl & the Beard Concert

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Tonight in Cambridge at TT the Bear's Place at 8:00pm a concert I have been waiting for weeks to arrive will finally be upon us. A C.D. release party is the best kind of party, and a party it will be tonight. Anybody interested in hearing live music and enjoying themselves should come. If you don't live in the area I'm sorry but here is a little sampler of the bands that will be playing tonight. Facebook event page here. Buy tickets here.

The unofficial set times are as follows

8:20 Ugly Purple Sweater

9:00 Bandit Kings

9:45 Pearl and the Beard 

10:45 Kingsley Flood

11:45 The Acre

The Acre's album Cerca Trova is a gem from start to finish and you can finally purchase it tonight. Blending folk and rock, guitars and the piano, the music will surely grab the crowd's attention tonight. 

The Acre - Stereo

Pearl and the Beard are releasing their second album, Killing the Darlings, on May 10th. "Sweetness" is a track off of the album. Learn about the inspiration for the three person sweater in this video with Jocelyn from the band.

Pearl and the Beard - Sweetness

The Acre - Cerca Trova

The Acre's album, Cerca Trova, is being officially released tomorrow and there is a release party/concert at T.T. the Bear's Place, which quite frankly shouldn't be missed. But more on that later.

The Acre - Guilty Soul

The Acre - Hemmingway

Cerca Trova has been playing intermittently over the past month as I've tried time and time again to pick out my favorites. Finally, I've decided that part of what makes this special is that it works so well as a full album. Starting with "Stereo", a song that uses the power of silence and simplicity allowing the voices of Nick Murphy and Courtney Cavanaugh hang in the air, leaving the listener wondering what's coming next. If you're a sucker for the male/female vocal thing, The Acre does it right.

Throughout the album, stories and themes evolve and grow upon one another as girls traipse through the songs either tired or wide eyed. The consistent voice throughout the album belongs to Nick Murphy as he sings about heavy hearts and a cluttered mind with occasional bouts of nostalgia. Whatever you interpret the stories to mean, it all comes across as painfully real. The love of music shows up often in the lyrics "there's something pulling/ at my heart strings and it's playing a tune" or "a case of nostalgia on the stereo" but is even more evident in the  work they put in on the musical arrangements which span many genres and pull from their love of bands like Wilco, Low, Bon Iver, and Built to Spill as well as traditional folk and Americana music. All of which make it a very difficult sound to describe, but I know I like it, and that's all that really matters. It's a wonderful and sometimes rare thing these days to find yourself listening as much to the music as to the lyrics. I'm glad The Acre can do both well enough that they deserve to have far more than a local audience and following. You can listen to more on bandcamp.

The C.D. release party tomorrow, April 29th, will really be as much a party as a concert. You can look forward to not only seeing The Acre, but other notable and exciting bands like Ugly Purple Sweater, Bandit Kings, Kingsley Flood, and New York's Pearl and the Beard. Get your tickets early, it's bound to sell out. Expect a post with music from all the bands tomorrow.

Kingsley Flood - Mannequin Man

It's no coincidence that I've posted about Kingsley Flood more than a handful of times, I really like them that much. It's not even like that time when I posted about Hooded Fang twice in one week without realizing it either. This is on purpose and for two reasons.

Firstly, as you are reading this the band is on it's way from Boston to Austin to play at SXSW and if you are there or know someone who is there tell them to go see one or all of these shows. I just saw them do a short set a few weeks ago and they blew me away sounding crisper and more lively than ever.

Kingsley Flood - Roll of the Dice

-Thursday, March 17 -  Midriff Records/Liberty and Union Recording Co. Day Party and the official Boston SXSW Day Party put on by DigBoston and Converse. 
-Saturday, March 19 - RSL blog is hosting the Smoke and Sand Showcase which has an incredible line up
More after the jump

Listen Local: Kingsley Flood

 

      Kingsley Flood is emerging as the local favorite and it has been exciting to watch. I interviewed Kingsley Flood back in May, and since then they have only gotten bigger, Boston immediately decided to take ownership of this band, which was a smart decision.
      I have been able to see them play a few times and they put on a great show. What I like most about them is the enthusiastic melding of city and country roots, americana and rock, and their ability to make those dualities come together so flawlessly. Not to mention they are all really gifted musicians, their sound is unique and carefully crafted. Their debut album is impressive and one that I thoroughly enjoy from start to finish. They won Best Roots Act for the Boston Phoenix Music Poll and I'm sure they will continue to win a few more awards as time goes on. Get ready for Kingsley Flood, you're going to love them. Here are two of my favorite songs. Be careful though, "Cathedral Walls" is will be stuck in your head in no time.

Kingsley Flood - Cathedral Walls

Kingsley Flood - Cul De Sac

Buy the Album