There comes a point in many artists’ careers when it’s no longer fun to play the Big Hit. But when the hit in question is an internet meme about a fast food restaurant, does that point ever come? For Das Racist, maybe not, but only because they’re having such a good time in general. It helps that the group has made a lot of great music since “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell” came out in 2009, much of it distributed totally free as mixtapes. They recently released a new album of zany, frenetic rap called “Relax.” Though their trio, call-and-response format might invite comparisons to the Beastie Boys, they’d only be valid if the Beasties were a bit less white, a lot more stoned, and rapping to international samples from the future. Even if you don’t peep them at the Grammys this year, Das Racist will be at the Middle East Downstairs on Wednesday September 28 with guests Danny Brown and Despot. Tickets are $15 in advance and on the $17 day of the show.
Results tagged “middleeast”
Eddie Spaghetti of the Supersuckers is touring in support of his first solo album, Sundowner, and comes to the Middle East in Cambridge on Monday, April 4 at 8:30 p.m. On Tuesday, April 12 at 9 p.m., Ha Ha Tonka will be performing at Great Scott in Allston after releasing a new album, the band's third record, Death of a Decade on Tuesday, April 5.
"I feel like I just got beat up by awesome," we marveled following Quasi's show at the Middle East on Tuesday, and the throbbing of Janet Weiss' drums echoed in our being for a full day afterward. We're still recovering from the onslaught of tight riffs, gorgeous chords, and devastating beats wrought by Quasi, but we wanted to share our experience with you while the sonic wounds were still fresh.
It's another Haiti benefit. It's a good cause. It's good music. There will be photos, prizes, and apparently a podcast (21st-century technology!). And You Can Be A Wesley member Nick Curran even promised "the first known live engineered unicorn," so we're especially looking forward to this one. Rock for a cause, y'all.
After a Friday night of feeling really old, Bostonist's friend Jimmy Mac managed to attend a show where he fit right in. Here, according to Jim, is how Ted Leo and the Pharmacists rocked it at the Middle East on Saturday, December 5. Also, Jim doesn't know how to use a camera, so Sean Hafferty kindly let us use some photos he took for our friends at Ryan's Smashing Life.
Last night, Bostonist had the pleasure of meeting the Portland Cello Project, an enjoyable blend of classical, rock, and pop songs played out on cello strings. From Manuel De Falla's "Danza Del Fuego" to Britney Spears' "Toxic," the group ran the gamut of sounds both typical for and atypical of the classical instrument. PCP member Anna Fritz played her own composition, "Breath and Bone," a gentle rumination on interpersonal relationships. The band moved through other arrangements, including a Norfolk and Western song and the Halo theme. Adam Thompson of Thao and the Get Down Stay Down judged an audience singalong to a string version of Outkast's "Hey Ya," accompanied by Thao member Willis Thompson on drums. Boston received a 7.9 on the Pitchfork scale for its "Hey Ya" skills, besting Milwaukee, tying Urbana, Illinois; and eking by Montreal. Toronto, however, remains in the lead. Justin Power joined the group on for a few songs, upping the indie ante on stage. Throughout the evening, PCP seemed perturbed by the noise from Throwed, the "Indie / Electro Dance Party" happening upstairs at the Middle East, so finish the evening the band fought back with its "Toxic" cover, creating a clash between cello and silicone as disturbing as the clown mobs PCP frontman Douglas Jenkins described encountering at a dual ICP/PCP show in Detroit.
Bostonist saw Ryan Gosling's spooky new band, Dead Man's Bones, with our friend Jill last night. Here's her take on the show (cross-posted at Boston Book Bean).
The old rock 'n roll cliché asks, "Is it better to burn out or fade away?" Thankfully, punk knows that such trivial questions get in the way of things.
With their self-titled debut, Hooray For Earth sought a middle ground between Nine Inch Nail’s industrial thrash and the grunge force of Nirvana’s guitars. The guitars dropped low, the sythns soared high and singer Noel Heroux’s voice claimed the milieu, double-tracked for that Elliot Smith sheen. With their follow up Cellphone EP, they captured the sounds of an exploding star with more focus on swirling, subterranean guitar textures and decidedly celestial synth tones.
Massachusetts' own Grinding Tapes Recording Company has been toiling away in semi-veiled obscurity since its inception in 2005. Like any great DIY label, Grinding Tapes extols an excellent lineup of musical artists and a homegrown manifesto to match it. All the artists on the label recoup a significant amount of money from CD, vinyl, and digital download sales; a small portion of the money that each artist earns is donated to a charity of that musicians' choice; and Grinding Tapes uses TerraPass to offset CO2 emissions from mail-outs.
Some selections from tourfilter to help you get your groove on this weekend. Extra cool shows starred.
Twelve is just the minimum number of joints we'd expect to see lit up tonight at the Middle East, where Sublime tribute band Badfish channels Bradley Nowell and the mid-1990s to ring in 2009. There may be a few pints of booze present as well. Uncle Billy's Smokehouse opens.
It takes some old dudes to make the Middle East shut up.
Bostonist has said plenty about Deerhoof before, so when we were unexpectedly handed tickets for their Middle East show on Thursday night, we said heck yes and grabbed our camera to catch Saunier, Matsuzaki, et al. (and kindred-spirited openers Flying and Experimental Dental School). The audience repeatedly dragged them back on stage, even after the please-go-home-now music came on. By the end of it all Bostonist was exhausted, sweaty, and happy, and we can't even imagine how the audience member in the giant hotdog costume felt.
Like UndergroundHipHop.com, the on-line rap music mecca that has a storefront at 234 Huntington Ave, local music blog Ryan's Smashing Life will transcend e-existence. They're hosting a show tomorrow at the Middle East Upstairs featuring Boston indie trio Static of the Gods.
Bostonist caught Broken River Prophet's CD release party at the Middle East upstairs last night, complete with cupcakes and amazing openers. We just missed Ba-Na-Nas, but had the pleasure of hearing Animal Hospital, BRP themselves, and of course headliners +/-. Here's what it looked like from the crowd.
-- Boston police have charged three in the May killing of a South Boston man. Edward Holloman, 19, of Lynn, and Edward Mendez, 34, of Jamaica Plain were both charged with murder. Darren Hemingway, 19, of Brighton, was charged as an accessory after the fact. The men are accused of killing 27-year-old Curtis Ashford after getting into a fight on 8th Street last May. [BPDNews]
Local acts Lorntell and the Bee's Knees (no link because their site will harm your computer, according to Google!) opened up for NYC-Denver hipsters Motel Motel at the Middle East Upstairs last night. Bostonist was there to catch a bit of the Knees and Motel squared. Each band was interesting in its own way, though the progression between them felt a little odd.
Mountain Goat chief songwriter John Darnielle may not have much control over his instruments, but he certainly has power over the audience. Throughout the band's Saturday night show at the Middle East, Darnielle had issues with tuning and at one point lost an earplug in his pocket.
