Imagine Hearts

I completed the live rock trifecta last night by joining my good buddy Jay Breitling to Great Scott in Allston to see Young Adults and Ringo Deathstarr. I was only familiar with two Deathstarr songs but liked what I had heard, and only knew of Young Adults through reading about the band in Senor Breitling's blog. But I enjoy seeing the live rock music, so off I went.

We got to the club early and caught the full sets of openers Thief Thief and the Vandelles. Thief Thief is a two-man instrumental act, guitar and drums. Guitarist Jeff Johnson employs a two-handed tapping method a la Marnie Stern, while drummer Colin Snyder pounds furiously underneath the guitar rhythms. Very cool, proggy stuff. The Vandelles were impressive, creating a Swirlies-esque racket with hints of psych, surf, and punk. Definitely worth looking into further.



Despite having a national profile, Ringo Deathstarr was not the headliner but they drew a crowd worthy of one (for a tiny club like GS, anyhoo). Jay and I were right up front and buried in waves of feedback and noise. I couldn't make out a single vocal, but I don't think we were meant to. It was a glorious shoegaze explosion that made me glad for the invention of earplugs.

Young Adults came out to a smaller but devoted audience, as some folks left after Deathstarr. But those who stayed were treated to an energetic punk set from YA, who featured new bass player Danny O'Neill. Rockin', ass-kicking way to end the night.