This could have been either a decent if not particularly original thriller if they decided to focus more on either the psychological and convolutedly plot twisty elements or the struggle between the robbers and the hostages. As it stands, the violence and yelling kept destroying any kind of tension there was, and the gradual unfolding of the back story felt kind of irrelevant to the rest of the film.

Despite some minor cases of characters doing silly things to move the plot along, I wanted to like this at first - in this kind of film, Nicolas Cage is more buyable as someone who’s able to talk himself out of situations and analyze what’s going on than he would be a straight-up action hero, and, before the movie just turns into a yelling contest between everyone in the cast, there are some tense moments of him just trying to get through this with reasoning. There are also a couple of decent, not-overly-obvious Chekhov’s set-ups, and I like that after quickly introducing Cage, Nicole Kidman, and Liana Liberato as a rich but somewhat dysfunctional family, they waste no time in getting to the hostage situation itself. Things gradually get more and more ludicrous plotwise though, and on the whole it just tries so hard to be intense that it just ends up being sort of boring. I will say that this at least does a better job at creating a dark, gritty feel than that other time Joel Shumacher directed a Nicolas Cage film though.  2/5

The final night of the rumble had a pretty large turnout, and also what seemed to be the most enthusiastic crowd. Moments that particularly stood out to me were impromptu squaredancing to Bow Thayer, chants of “Garvy J! Garvy J”, and of course fervent headbanging and beer-splashing throughout Motherboar’s set.

Speaking of Motherboar, who were the wildcard for the night, they got things off to a rousing start. It’s been very cool to see a band this heavy make it all the way though, and they’ve delivered a hell of a tight, intense performance every time.

Between Garvy J and Bow Thayer, two of the three competing bands tonight had more than one member wearing a snazzy hat. This can either mean that a well-deployed hat or two can enhance your live show, or that the rumble judges are secretly in the pocket of Big Headwear.  Regardless, both delivered sets that demonstrated just what got them this far: Garvy J’s expansive sound and celebratory hooks came off even better with such a large crowd. Bow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck, who were (literally) crowned champions at the end of the night, continued to impress with their chops and their gritty but authentic take on roots rock.

The Grownup Noise closed things out as the non-competing special guest of the night. They were originally scheduled to compete on the first night of preliminaries, but had to back out due to an injury in the band. This makes them the only band to withdraw from the rumble but still play the final night. Though I wasn’t able to see all of their set, what I saw definitely showed what they could have brought to the competition: Their sound blends indie folk with orchestral elements, and no matter how expansive their arrangements get, there was a constant air of intimacy around their performance.

The rumble is meant to feel more like a celebration of Boston music, and the final night definitely demonstrated this – there was definite love in the air from performers and audience members alike. Congrats to Bow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck, along with all other bands to compete. Here’s to next year’s Rumble, and the many others to come.

I missed the first semifinal night, but to bring us up to date: Thick Shakes, Cask Mouse, and Motherboar were eliminated, while Bow Thayer And Perfect Trainwreck will be moving on to the finals.

This night was started off with wildcard entry Sherman Burns, who delivered another ferocious performance. Last time they played the rumble, they were immediately followed by Motherboar, so it was a little different to see them on a bill where they were the only metal band. In my write-up of their prelim set, I cited them for their more melodic moments, because that’s what made them stand out from Motherboar, but they definitely hold their own on the heaviness front too.

Ghosts Of Jupiter were next.  While my previous write-up emphasized their early 70’s rock sound, I’d also like to bring up the fact that their music is pretty diverse while still staying in that overall vibe – the heavy blues-rock riffs were what first gained my attention, but their set also included more mood-based prog-rock moments, and even a song that brought in much more of a southern rock feel.

The Rationales were the only band to make semi-finals whose preliminary performance I hadn’t seen, and though I’d definitely heard their name around, I wasn’t previously familiar with their material. Their set demonstrated that they know the importance of keeping the “power” in “power pop” – jangly guitar tones and harmonies were ever-present, but so was high energy rock.

Garvy J. closed out the night, and took the night too. While I definitely enjoyed them during preliminaries, I wasn’t really in full view of the stage at the time – this time I was, and the mood-setting lights along with the band’s stage presence definitely complimented their larger-than-life anthemic pop.

I appreciated getting to see each of these bands a second time (and The Rationales for the first time). While each band tended to stick to what got them here in the first place in terms of material, this also meant that their performances highlighted the qualities that had set them apart. Since this night was all bands that had played preliminaries early in the week, it was also cool to see them all performing to a larger audience than first time around.

Next Friday will be the final night, as Garvy J. faces off against Bow Thayer and a soon-to-be-announced wildcard, with a bonus performance by a special guest band. I’m very excited to see the outcome.

This was the final night of preliminaries, and TT’s was definitely hopping (no pun intended, despite the date). There was an unusually high amount of people present for the first act, and by the second it had to be near full capacity.

The Grinds started us off, and their high-energy set definitely set the right mood for a rockin’ Saturday night. Their spirited punk/garage rock rave-ups and soul-influenced harmonies and call and response vocals were a winning combination, and vocalist Erin Wickens had great stage presence, doing everything she could on the stage to get the crowd more revved up.

This rumble had a few bands with a heavier sound represented, and two of them happened to be booked for the same night:  Sherman Burns combined straightforward metal riffs with complex rhythms, and juxtaposed their more brutal moments with eerily melodic, grunge-influenced sections to interesting effect. Meanwhile, Motherboar, who took the night, stuck entirely to unrelenting heaviness, their sludgy riffs and commanding vocals filling the room. Motherboar were also the source of the most amusing bit of stage banter of the night: “This song’s called ‘Zombie Vomit’. It’s about zombie vomit”.

Finally, Streight Angular closed the night with some infectious enthusiasm and the most visually interesting stage performance of the night, with projections, lights, and colorful outfits.

Semi-finals will be on Thursday and Friday – each night will have 3 of the bands to make it through preliminaries compete with a wildcard act. The two wildcards and full lineup for both nights will be announced tonight at 10 PM on Boston Emissions.

This was the fifth night of the Rumble, which means one more preliminary night, and four more nights overall. TT The Bears was perhaps slightly less packed than the night before, but there was still a solid crowd in attendance.

Pray For Polanski opened up, playing driving songs with passionate dual vocals, intriguing lyrics, and some seriously insistent hooks – the chorus of “9191991” remained lodged in my head the next day. Also, guitarist/vocalist Aviv Rubinstien deserves credit for quickly recovering after tripping and falling backwards into some equipment mid-song.

BrownBoot also had dual male/female vocals and catchy tunes, but had much more of a 70’s hard rock/power pop sound. Their high energy songs and guitar licks had the crowd rocking out, and they also slowed things down a bit with some soulful, piano-based ballads.  

Bow Thayer and Perfect Trainwreck, the night’s winners, had a set that sort of threw me for a loop in a good way – when Thayer took the stage with a banjo in hand, I was expecting something mellow and bluegrass-influenced; instead, while there was definitely some bluegrass in their sound, they rocked much more than I was expecting, combining their roots influences with heavy blues rock and some hints of psychedelia.

I have seen The Bynars before, and tonight they delivered their usual brand of catchy, moog-infused power-pop. There were also a couple of surprises in the form of a tune I didn’t recognize that emphasized a more danceable, new wave side of the band, as well as a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing In The Dark”.

So, thus far, the semifinalists are The Rationales, Garvy J. and The Secret Pockets of Hope and Resistance, Ghosts of Jupiter, Cask Mouse, and Bow Thayer and Perfect Trainwreck. While the winner of the last preliminary night and the two “wild card” picks have yet to be determined, semifinals already look to have a strong and varied lineup.

By the fourth prelim night, the crowd is really starting to fill out – there was a full house by the time the music started, and the majority seemed to stay the whole nigh, which featured another pretty diverse lineup. 

Cask Mouse, the night’s winners, opened with an alt-country sound, featuring standup bass, fiddle, and three-part harmonies. While they played their share of the pretty ballads you might expect from that description, they also surprised with some faster, more rocking numbers, where that fiddle really got a workout.

Never Got Caught were by far the heaviest band of the night, fusing some massive start-stop riffs with melodic vocals in a way that brought to mind 90’s alternative metal acts like Helmet.

Parlour Bells, meanwhile, had more of a new wave/glam rock approach, with danceable rhythms and dramatic crooning vocals.

The excellently named Fagettes closed the night with distortion-heavy garage rock – a unique element of their sound was their minimal drum set of a snare, a floor tom, and a cymbal, and I also enjoyed the interplay between their two vocalists.

As an additional treat, Bradley J was spinning tunes between sets: As a nice touch, his sets featured a healthy amount of Boston favorites from years past, from Tree to Thinktree.

Preliminary night #3 reminded me of one of the things I enjoyed the most about watching last year’s rumble unfold – the musical diversity. It’s always interesting to see bands you wouldn’t normally expect to see booked together play the same room, and it demonstrates how varied the Boston music scene is.

Tonight’s first band were The Susan Constant – their material had a bit more of a somber, introspective feel than the other acts, but all the same they delivered a powerful, energetic performance where songs gradually built up to raging crescendos.

The Tin Thistles played a set of fast-paced, hard-charging punk rock that definitely amped up the crowd – their one allotted cover tune was The Misfits’ “Skulls”, and it fit them like leather pants fit Glenn Danzig.

Ghosts Of Jupiter won the night, and I’ll be looking forward to seeing them in the semi-finals (and perhaps beyond) – they impressed with their chops and showmanship, performing bluesy hard rock with soulful vocals and a tasteful hint of progressive rock, bringing to mind some of the greats of the seventies.

Meanwhile, Letterday brought it home with strong vocals, singalong choruses, and a sound heavily inspired by mid-to-late 90’s emo – their token cover was of The Get Up Kids.

Another night of quality Boston rock. Wednesday will be a day of rest for the attendees and the rumble team alike, then preliminaries will continue up until Easter Sunday. I’m definitely excited for what’s to come.

TT The Bear’s Place, the club I intern at, is hosting the Rock N’ Roll Rumble, a long-standing greater Boston battle of the bands, for the second time. Though I missed the first night, I’m trying to attend all other days if I can, and I was asked to start doing short write-ups - thus far, they’ve been posted via facebook updates, but this will be a more permanent home. Here’s what I had to say about the second night:

Though it was a chilly Monday night, the second night of Rumble preliminaries still had a sizable, energetic audience ready to see some Boston rock.

Thick Shakes kicked things off with charging garage rock, highlighted by interplay between their two vocalists and the always appreciated sounds of farfisa organ.

Animal Talk had the crowd dancing – songs like “Can’t Dance With It” carried strong disco influences, and whether they were playing uptempo rockers or slower songs, there was always an emphasis on tight grooves.  

Garvy J And The Secret Pockets Of Hope And Resistance had perhaps the most unique sound, ranging from haunting ballads to anthemic sing-alongs and putting a modern spin on psychedelic pop.

Finally, Grey Valley Ghost ended the night with what the band themselves have called “evil pop”, combining grungy riffs with tuneful pop melodies.

There was strong competition all around, but Garvy J. won the night,  and will be going on to semi-finals, which are on April twelfth and thirteenth. If you’re at all into local rock, I recommend coming out for as many of these Rumble nights as you can – it’s an exciting celebration of music, and you just might find your new favorite local band. Get in on it soon – if last year was any indication, the finals are likely to sell out.

Year Of Release: 1995

My Estimated Age When I First Saw It: 15

Every time I revisit this, it seems more like a silly, forced attempt at putting together a gen x touchstone, and the more very-special-episode-ish the more dramatic subplots get. Oh, and for some reason, as a music geek, it bothers me that the characters will namecheck The Pixies or The Residents, yet the soundtrack is more along the lines of The Gin Blossoms or Toad The Wet Sprocket - okay, Gwar and Daniel Johnston are in there too, but the point is that the film makes a lot of hip musical references, but plays it pretty safe with it’s actual soundtrack. I’d actually kind of hazard a guess that the main audience for this movie would actually skew slightly younger than the high school senior characters: I was a fan as a 15 year old, and to me a big part of the draw was “wouldn’t it be cool to work at a record store with a bunch of funny, dysfunctional music geek friends?”*, but I think if I had been exposed to the film a little bit later I probably would have found it corny.

Still, there must be something that still draws me to it once in a while, other than nostalgia - I guess a lot of it is the fairly clever dialogue, largely likeable performances, and the repeated digressions into odd little character moments - I’ve realized many of my favorite scenes do absolutely nothing to further the plot, like say, the montage of Marc trying to flirt with a nameless customer with headphones on while supposedly dusting, or Rex Manning deciding to join in on Warren’s mugshots. Overall, I still enjoy this from time to time, but it’s the kind of film where if you didn’t see it at a certain age it’s probably too late.

*Come to think of it, I now intern at a rock club with a bunch of funny, dysfunctional music geek friends, so, uh… teenage dream realized?

Year Released: 1994

Age I Was When I First Saw It: 14

I was a massive Ace Ventura: Pet Detective fan as a 14 year old (even though a significant portion of the dirtier jokes went right over my head), so at the time this came out the main appeal for me was Jim Carrey, and I’m pretty sure I had no idea who that other dude with him was. Nowadays I’ve come to realize how much Jeff Daniels contributes here - the juxtaposition of his more deadpan style with Carrey’s mugging is a major part of why the two work so well together, and I actually find his physical comedy moments a bit funnier specifically because of his character’s otherwise more laid-back personality. The scene where he’s attempting to hit on Beth at a gas station and accidentally sets himself on fire lighting her cigarette is a particularly good example - the incredible awkwardness leading up to the eventual slapstick helps build things up.

Another thing I like is that there’s kind of just enough hints of semi-serous, emotional moments to keep the main characters sympathetic - more the tiniest bit would stall the comic momentum and clash with the black humor and poop jokes, but a little needs to be there for you to actually be able to root for these obnoxious idiots. Overall, I still find this about as funny as I did as a 14 year old, which is probably more than I could say about Ace Ventura.