PLAYGROUND BOSTON

The Force - Photo by Steve Wollkind

Captain Cutthroat – “Dakota” (feat. Dana Colley of Morphine) – Maciste

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Planetoid - Photo by Steve Wollkind

This CD Release party for both Alchemilla and Captain Cutthroat featured a full-on prom theme: decorations, photo booths, formal attire, catered refreshments, and, thanks to The Few, the finest powder-blue tuxes this town has seen since 1976. Check out these amazing pictures, all courtesy of Steve Wollkind. You can see more of his work at his website.

Alchemilla (CD Release!)

Captain Cutthroat (CD Release!)

The Force

Planetoid

The Few

Shaemus Shepard, Dapper Drummer of The Few - Photo by Steve Wollkind

On a night where there are an insane number of great shows going on around town, none can match the insanity that will be happening this Saturday night (7/10), Downstairs at the Middle East. We’ve got a dual CD Release Party for North Shore experimental psychos Captain Cutthroat AND Boston crooning indie rockers Alchemilla. These guys have assembled one of the best front-to-back lineups in recent memory, featuring the galactic stoner metal of Planetoid, the aggressive-as-all-hell funk o’ The Force, and the polished vintage rock dance party known as The Few! You know it’s a great lineup when 3 of the bands on the bill are all past Track of The Week honorees!

So what’s up with this prom thing? Well, to help celebrate the dual CD-Release, the entire night has a prom theme, complete with costumes, decorations, a photo booth, and FREE FOOD catered by New Moon Catering! We here at PGB don’t normally do this, but the inestimable Victor Valentino Foresta, fierce fro’d frontman of The Force, did such a great job explaining all you need to know about Saturday night that we’re gonna let him take it from here. Just remember to get there nice and early – free food never lasts all night, and you don’t want to miss a second of any one of these bands!

Mr. Vic Foresta, your guest author for the next few paragraphs - Photo by Rebecca MacPherson

Here’s some music from the new Captain Cutthroat album to give you a soundtrack while you read, and after you’re finished reading Vic’s masterpiece be sure to check out the video of The Few covering Primus’ “Those Damned Blue Collar Tweekers” at the bottom!

Captain Cutthroat – “Paradox” – Maciste

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WE’RE THROWING A FUCKING PROM!!!!!
…yes kids, you read that right, A PROM!!!!

Borrow mom’s car, wear your classiest duds, grab that lucky fella/or gal, and pop the virgin cherry, in 2 glorious seconds of pre-marital fornication.

Goin’ stag…no problem!!!! There’s gonna be plenty red hot mama’s, and stallion sized bulls lookin’ for that one night mr./ms. right!

All the cool kids, and all the losers too, are gonna be there! (they are one in the same, you see! :)

Planetoid frontman Locrius - Photo by Pete Legasey

Fully catered desserts (while they last), photo booth to capture all your ugly mugs, and 5 of the keenest bands in Boston!
ALL FOOD BY: New Moon Catering!

BE FUN!!!
DRESS TO IMPRESS!!!!
…prom dresses, tuxedo’s, well manicured suits, or just get creative with it! (formal attire not mandatory but STRONGLY ENCOURAGED!)
…it is your world after all!

Musical chaperones include:

“ALCHEMILLA” (RECORD RELEASE SHOW!!!!!) …jammie, alternative, hard-rock, with haunting female vocal leads, and riffs to tingle yo dick into a musical fit! It’s the RECORD RELEASE so please support your heroes…they need you!!!

“CAPTAIN CUTTHROAT” (RECORD RELEASE SHOW!!!!!) …avant-garde, hard rock, with a surf guitar, funky punk rock sheen, and a swing that gets your mother pregnant, and aborted all in the same song! SO FUCKING GOOD!!!! …that’s what she said! ;) Again…It’s the RECORD RELEASE so please support your heroes…they need you!!!

The Few's Ryan Martin playin' his Bootlegger Bass - Photo by Rebecca MacPherson

“THE FORCE“…A dance party favorite! Dirty, funk laden, hard-rock, with xxx induced scenes of pleasure drenched fun! An energy tsunami, that wipes out inhibitions, and allows your body to be free of insecurities. Enough funk for any bum! Not a dry seat in the house!

“PLANETOID“…Intellectual and physical superiors from another planet, sent from the past to teach humans the ways of rock! Blues driven, ultra tight, heavy jams that you’ll remember the second the song is over. Could be a mind alteration of some kind, but you won’t care…this is the takeover. The aftermath of their strike has been known to melt faces, in the wake of their storm. Be warned!!!! All who stand opposed shall be destroyed!!!

“THE FEW“…The most powerful female voice in Boston gently caressing funky rock ditties that are a great start to any party-goers evening! This band is ultra funky, classy, and a straight good time! be here early, and don’t miss this…it’s a party…everyone’s invited!

THIS IS IT!!!!
Tickets will go fast so do contact any member of above mentioned bands or get them online @: http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/01004490D4FFB2B7?artistid=1452903&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=60

The ProblemAddicts - Photo by Katherine Taylor

So many shows, so little time. This weekend is absolutely chock-full of great local music. We’ve already featured a few in separate posts – BBC’s “What’s your Major” Series, Hempfest, etc. – but there are so many more we think you should know about! Here’s a little rundown of what’s going on this weekend in Boston Rock.

Friday, September 18th

Boston Band Crush “What’s your Major” Day 1 – Church –  check out the preview here

MassCann Boston Freedom Rally Preparty & Awards Show – Middle East Upstairs – featuring performances by Casey Desmond, Keep Me Conscious, Final Hour, and the ProblemAddicts. Band4MassCann will also be giving out awards for the best Boston music acts of the year.

Boston Music Spotlight Battle of the Bands – Oliver’s / Cask & Flagon – featuring PGB favorites Silent Century, as well as In Like Lions, Polyethylene, Shadwell, and Taste. Grand prize is worth over $5k, come out and support your favorite band!

Lauren Flaherty Acoustic set – Middle East Corner – Lauren will be performing two separate sets with her band at the Corner on Friday night. The first set will start at 10:30 and will feature a more traditional singer/songwriter style, while set #2 at 11:30 will get a little crazier and more upbeat. Lauren’s one of the nicest people I’ve come across in the entire local music scene, and a talented musician to boot!

The Wrecking Coast Debut show and EP Release – Copperfields – The Wrecking Coast will be joined by a great lineup featuring This Blue Heaven, Birds Make Birds, and Cola War Vets. They’ll be giving away free music all night too! Presented by Hear Now Live!

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Captain Cutthroat

“The Horror Song”

Captain Cutthroat

© 2008 Self-Released

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Haven’t been on a boat yet this summer? Do yourself a favor – get on over to Rock On’s website as soon as humanly possible and get yourself some tickets. There’s only a few cruises left this year, you don’t want to miss out. Check out these pictures – yes, all of this madness occurred on a boat in the middle of Boston harbor! These pictures are from last week’s cruise, featuring Captain Cutthroat, The Force, L.A. Mob, The Dunnas, and Graveyard BBQ… and a sold-out crowd of crazy assholes drinking, smoking, crowdsurfing, moshing, and generally raising hell!

If you like what you see, head on over to RockOnConcerts.com to see what cruises remain for this summer and get yourself on a boat!

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Graveyard BBQ
Captain Cutthroat
The Force
LA Mob
The Dunnas
Rock On! Concerts

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Next Friday, August 14th, Graveyard BBQ will host their third annual White Trash Bash – and this time it’s going to be on a boat! We got what might be the party of the summer on our hands, and its only about a week and a half away. The weather’s finally getting nice, so its the perfect time to rock out booze cruise style to some of PGB’s favorite local bands! In addition to the BBQ, this boat will have Captain Cutthroat, The Force, LA Mob, and The Dunnas on board! This is an unbelievable lineup with something for everyone – rock, metal, prog, funk, hip-hop – this boat’s got it all! (If you have a chance, go to the Dunnas’ Myspace and check out the track ‘Douchebag’ – I couldn’t stop cracking up!)

Rock On! always knows how to throw a hell of a high-seas party, but I’m not sure they know what they’re getting themselves into this time! Check out this video from last year’s White Trash Bash on dry land out in Waltham, MA -

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Photo by Scott Gacek

No matter which side of the marijuana decriminalization debate you’re on, you gotta give it to the MassCann guys – they know how to throw a hell of a party… especially when they team up with super-promoter Shred for a night of musical madness! Saturday night at the Middle East downstairs was no exception. 6 bands graced the stage, all for the benefit of MassCann/NORML (Massachusetts’ Chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) and the Boston Freedom Rally – better known around these parts as the HempFest. The Boston Freedom Rally is in its 20th year and is considered the 2nd largest pro-marijuana reform rally in the country, and throughout the years has been funded largely by benefit concerts such as this one. The bands take no money whatsoever for their performances, choosing instead to donate their door fees to a cause they believe in. Regardless of whether you’re a regular smoker, an advocate of personal freedom, or you’re rabidly against all things weed-related, MassCann surely put together a great lineup of bands that rocked the Middle East all night long.

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This Saturday, the Middle East Downstairs is hosting a benefit for the Boston Freedom Rally (better known as the HempFest). This benefit show features an all-star lineup of Prospect Hill, The Force, Captain Cutthroat, Planetoid, Neurological Damage, and Build A Machine. While the show was originally scheduled for the Upstairs venue, it had to be moved downstairs once the true drawing potential of all these bands, plus the Boston institution that is Hempfest, was taken into consideration! This is going to be an incredible show – amazing bands, a common cause, and the Girls 4 Ganja will be out in full force, meeting and greeting as well as holding an open casting call for future models! Also, local NORML hero Mike Cann will be filming the festivities, interviewing concertgoers about decriminalization, etc. to post on his blog and Youtube channel.

Tickets are available through Ticketmaster or at the Middle East Box Office… or if you purchase tickets through any of the members of The Force they’ll include a free T-Shirt or their debut CD with purchase! Click here for a review of the CD – if you haven’t picked up a copy of their incredible album, now is the perfect opportunity. This show WILL sell out, so why not grab a freebie if you’re getting tickets anyway? So head on over to their website, send them an e-mail, and work out a time and place to meet up to pick up tickets!

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