bradley's almanac - a boston-based music blog
navigate the 'nac
almanac mp3 archives almanac shared mp3 archive
live show photo archive boston-area live shots on flickr
'my life or some dream'
original mp3 compilation

free mp3 compilation on club fub
bands i've been in bands i've played drums in
the 'nac faq & contact info
contact info and more
the 'nac on the 'net
the almanac rss feed
subscribe to my rss feed
follow me on twitter the almanac twitter account
become a fan on facebook the 'nac on facebook
the almanac tumblr page bradley's tumblanac
hype machine 'nac page the almanac hype machine page
the almanac soundcloud page the almanac shuffler page
the 'nac songkick gig page the almanac songkick gig page
almanac events on sponty the almanac sponty events page
the almanac last.fm page the almanac last.fm page
listen to 'nac mp3s on shuffler the almanac shuffler page


the almanac archives


search the 'nac

recommended boston area events

tuesday, december 4th

kelly hogan

@ johnny d's


thursday, december 6th

conor oberst

@ converse hall, tremont st.


thursday, december 6th

jason isbell &

the 400 unit

@ the sinclair


friday, december 7th

the weisstronauts 14th

annual holiday jubilee

with guests tsunami of sound

preacher jack, & the derangers

@ the midway cafe, jp


friday, december 7th

caspian

moving mountains

o'brother

@ the sinclair


saturday, december 8th

patrick watson

@ the sinclair


saturday, december 8th

the faint perform

"danse macabre"

trust

icky blossoms

@ the paradise


sunday, december 9th

band of horses

@ house of blues


sunday, december 9th

japandroids

diiv

@ the paradise


wednesday, december 12th

concrete blonde

jim bianco

@ the sinclair


thursday, december 13th

annual boston christmas cavalcade

benefit for the homeless

featuring tons of artists

(see fb event for details)

@ johnny d's


thursday, december 13th

nada surf

eternal summers

@ the paradise


thursday, december 13th

mates of state

in the valley below

@ brighton music hall


friday, december 14th

forgetters (blake from

jawbreaker's band)

& more tba

@ democracy center, harvard square


sunday, december 30th

sufjan stevens

sheila saputo

@ the royale


monday, december 31st

my morning jacket

@ agganis arena


monday, december 31st

deer tick

two gallants

@ the sinclair


monday, january 7th

quicksand

@ the paradise


tuesday, january 8th

hospitality

@ great scott


saturday, january 19th

mission of burma

@ the sinclair


sunday, january 20th

camper van beethoven

cracker

@ the middle east down


sunday, january 20th

soundgarden

@ the orpheum


sunday, january 20th

ra ra riot

@ the paradise


sunday, january 27th

widowspeak

@ great scott


tuesday, january 29th

kathleen edwards

sera cahoone

@ brighton music hall


wednesday, february 13th

yo la tengo

@ the paradise


saturday, march 2nd

unknown mortal orchestra

@ brighton music hall


tuesday, march 12th

tame impala

@ house of blues


thursday, march 14th

jukebox the ghost

matt pond pa

lighthouse and the whaler

@ brighton music hall


tuesday, march 26th

yo la tengo

@ the paradise


wednesday & thursday

april 3rd & 4th

they might be giants

@ the paradise


visit tourfilter for more shows






Friday, July 13, 2012

[New England Premiere] ARCHERS OF LOAF concert film at the Brattle on Wednesday




First, the straight facts...

On Wednesday night, July 18th, 2012, the new concert film "What Did You Expect? Archers of Loaf Live at Cat's Cradle" will make its New England premiere at the venerable Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square, Cambridge. The film, which documents last year's surprise live return of one of the greatest rock bands of all-time, North Carolina's Archers of Loaf, will screen at 9:30pm after a special showing of director Gorman Bechard's other excellent music doc, "Color Me Obsessed: A Film About The Replacements", which was a personal highlight of last year's IFFBoston.

Tickets for the "What Did You Expect?" / "Color Me Obsessed" double feature are available here. Individual tickets for CMO are here, and for WDYE go here. Gorman will be in town for the screenings to hold Q&A sessions after each film.

And now, the personal touch...


Like most of their fans, I never thought I'd get to see the Archers of Loaf play again. I'd only caught them once in their early-90s heyday, and yeah, it was pretty much mind-blowing. I felt like I'd seen some kind of light... they combined the best of straightforward indie-rock guitar-centric awesomeness with a dash of skewed mathy skronk, throwing in seemingly random chords and outta-left-field changes that just somehow worked, against the odds. Two ace, unconventional guitarists, one a tall, lanky frontman whose voice could go from a low growl to a fierce howl on a dime. A killer rhythm section with probably the most so-totally-into-it bassist I'd ever seen. A four-piece offering up the perfect balance of raw emotion and calculated oddness that got me good... and then they were gone.

Until they came back. Out of nowhere, literally, they magically reappeared in January of 2011 with a surprise show at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, North Carolina. With no fanfare, minimal advanced whisper, and despite the ongoing (and artistically successful) musical concern of frontman Eric Bachmann's Crooked Fingers, The Loaf returned. From all reports, they unsurprisingly blew the damn doors off.

In the wake of that unexpected reunion came the announcement of Merge Records album reissues and, thankfully, more shows. With fingers crossed, I waited for a Boston date, only to be left wanting. 2011 ended with no area show... but an emailed promise of something to come. That something would be in late April 2012, and jeez, was the wait ever worth it. Two weekend nights, a packed house for both, a band on fire, and a setlist that touched every button. I was there for the Friday show, on April 27th, and they were everything I remembered and more. The band, and the songs, hadn't aged a bit.

Only the band knows how long these weekend-only tour stops will continue, but lucky for those who have seen them, and luckier for those who haven't: Their two night stand at the Cat's Cradle last August was caputured by longtime Archers fan, director Gorman Bechard, and six cameras. "What Did You Expect? Archers of Loaf Live at Cat's Cradle" premiered last month in Toronto, and it hits the Boston area this coming Wednesday along with Gorman's Replacements documentary, showing for the first time since last year's Independent Film Festival Boston. For the simple reason that I couldn't wait to see it, I helped set this screening up, and turned down the kind offer to get a preview copy for this write-up... because I want to see it in a theatre packed with fans, on a big ol' screen, with big ol' speakers. So let's fill the Brattle up on Wednesday.

Pick up your tickets. Here's a little tease...





featured mp3 download
neil halstead
live in cambridge, ma
on november 14th, 2008
previously: joy formidable - boston 2011




recent posts on the 'nac...


on the nightstand


boston-area music bloggers


boston music media


I Buy Music




This page is powered by Blogger Pro.