CONCERT REVIEW
CIRCLE JERKS - GORILLA BISCUITS - MURPHY'S LAW at Paradise Rock Club in Boston MA
The lineup was so good, that Chris and I actually went to BOTH nights of Circle Jerks / Gorilla Biscuits / Murphy's Laws!
I love the Paradise. And the bands were AWESOME!
We met up "pre-game" style with our buds from The Long Wait/wrecking Crew SSD Slap Shot, and with Chris's nice Island friend Jim. I had a zoom with my little girl Melody so I broke off for a while to read her a bedtime story. And when I returned I bumped into Slapshot's Corey Koniz who does studio work too. We both agreed that An makes and Jeff The Wizard RULE and that we love them both, then I joined everyone upstairs. Where it was an honor and a privilege to hangout with some old friends and new. A big hug to my girl Nancy for introducing us to phenom drummer Joey C (Circle Jerks) and for telling him about SONIC BOMB. Jimmy G (Murphy's Law) was as in a jovial-fun mood as always. Jess brought in some beautiful band logo cookies. It was nice to meet Civ (GB) in person, and to talk to talented Zander (CJ) after the show. BTW I don't know if you know but Zander has a solo project too in addition to playing in CJ. The albums are vulnerable, dark and different. Check out Song About Songs and California's Burning). Anyway, Lovely crew.
Then, as soon as we walked into the club hall itself, it truly felt like a high-school reunion. One where all the age groups and their kids got to come together in two nights of total rowdy punk-HC-rawk! Folks from all of Boston's genre clicks and scenes came out. Punk and HC, Skins and Metal heads alike. I got to see some my old pre-shitty-divorce crew whom I've missed dearly. It was nice to reconnect with some of the Big D./Cuidado crew with which we just played, at the Women Of The Pit Coat Drive. Larry Kelly, Chris Gang Green, white clad Springa and all their friends turned the balcony corner into a party within a party. My girl Stephanie Rose hung out with us in the pit when Jimmy G jumped into the crowd. My dear friends Ian King and Dave D'attilio and Michael “fast fret” Locantonio, my girl sweet Debbie Caffone… and so many more awesome friends!
The stage lights went on and boom! The whole place lit up. Murphy's Law opened and boy did they set the tone. This band is so fun. Not uptight, and easy breezy by design. It felt like we were at a BBQ party (BBQ is also one of my favorite songs of theirs) and this great band was entertaining us to no end. I was impressed with the strings, (Felipe Skandal on Bass and Jason Stickney on Gt), who were still pretty new to the band last time we saw the band at the Middle East Downstairs 2-3 years ago. Right after our sweet friends Ben and Amy left the band to do their own thing with Sad Plant. At this show the guys sounded like they had been playing in the band for 30 years. Hopefully Jimmy didn't “James Brown 'em” into playing the songs so well. (I kid, I kid). Speaking of Jimmy, I appreciated that he didn't go into politics which in his case can sometimes be very different than that of the other bands on the bill. He simply stated “I don't care who you vote for as long as you vote”. Jimmy jumped into the audience both nights and made true connections with the pit kids. Jimmy, being a little bit like a big kid himself, totally connected with them from stage and at an eye level / face t'face like that. And they loved it.
Gorilla Biscuits were super high energy and their vibe was contagious. The first night I made the mistake of watching them from the balcony. I thought it was real cool of Civ to give that beautiful shout out to Al Barile (Rawk In Power). I could tell that it touched Nancy's heart and there wasn't a dry eye in the club for that moment. I also loved their version of Fugazi's Waiting Room and Minor Threat's Minor Threat. The 2nd night we pushed my way to the 2nd row and it was an absolute blast. Definitely the right move. It was nice that the pit dancers stayed in the middle of the room vs the usual upfront. I fund myself right behind and beside the Acid Crash kids n dad. I like this crew. they always know every word of every song and are all in. Great energy. So we all sang all the classics like my fav New Direction, and even the songs I didn't know from before were fun to join in on. Civ pointed out those kids as a great section in the crowd which you could tell made em beam. It was cute. GB's band was on point the entire time. Super tight and very energetic. Walter Screifels killed it on gt. He was really really good with Youth Of Today when I saw them at the ME a few years back. He had a wildness about him at that show. Here he was super precise. Styley co-founder/bassist Arthur Smilios was as well. Very very skilled and very fun to watch. And the positive messages rang above it all. Good job guys!
Circle Jerks went on and the crowd went nuts. What a high! My favorite song was of course Wild In The Streets. And the rest of the crowd went wild for it also. My dear friend Jeff The Wizard kept the order somehow. I don't know how. The entire place was alive with dancing, singing along and cheers. Guitarist and co-founder Greg Hetson was smiling the entire time. His energy and playing was so fun to watch and listen to. He was there to dance and support and have a good time, that was clear! Bassist Zander Schloss killed it. The guy is so solid and interesting to listen to. A true musician's musician. There was sensitivity in his playing and heaviness to. The nuclear core / powerhouse of this band was the unbelievable tight and energetic “animal” Joey C. Joey is our drummer Mike Lefave's favorite drummer so I payed extra attention to how he plays and was blown away. I definitely see why our Mike (who is also very skilled and wildly energetic) loves this drummer. Keith's voice is as good as ever. Fresh and angry and melodic. When he spoke he was funny in a complainy sort of way. He told us how he got lost trying to find his way to the stage from the bathrooms in this club. Like a true Spinal Tap moment. And Keith added that you know Boston's a cool town bc no one bothered him for a selfie on the way to the bathroom. Haha. As soon as Kieth ended his funny banter, and started singing, his entire voice took on an entirely different, super hero tone, and he and the band made the whole room break out in a frenzy. Every single soul in the club was soaring!
