Welcome to the last in a series of posts previewing the 2016 Rock And Roll Rumble, our city's annual throw down that doubles as a monthlong local music festival unlike any other. This year's Rumble goes down April 3 to April 22 at ONCE Ballroom and Lounge in Somerville, is organized and presented by Boston Emissions with Anngelle Wood, with the Verb Hotel and Vanyaland on board as official sponsors. For our full Rumble coverage, click here; for tickets and venue information, click here.
What You Need To Know:
Rock And Roll Rumble Preliminary Night 6
Saturday, April 9 at ONCE Ballroom, 156 Highland Ave. in Somerville MA
With Courage Cloak, the Knock Ups, The Devil’s Twins, usLights
Doors at 8:30 p.m., 21 to drink, $10 in advance and $15 at the door
Advance tickets, Facebook event page
How The Night Stacks Up:
It's the last night of the week-long preliminary round, and any bit of Rumble fatigue should be cast away right as the first band takes the stage. It's no secret that we love the "randomness" of the Rumble lineups, and the Saturday night party delivers a bill that's oddly cohesive and batshit bonkers at the same time. This is the lineup of some hotshot's birthday party, the type of guy or gal who loves everyone and thinks they all love him or her back, and shows off some gall by booking disparate styles all together under one show: the intelligent rock band (Courage Cloak), the balls-out guitar punks (The Knock Ups), the throwback noir-punk trio (The Devil's Twins) and the electronic project (usLights). Things will probably get silly. Things probably already are.
Get To Know The Bands:
11:45 p.m.: usLights
HOMETOWN: Boston, Massachusetts
SONG YOU NEED TO HEAR: Their cover of M83’s “Teen Angst”.
BIO: The members of dream rock trio usLights have had more than enough experience in the Boston scene over the past few years. Upon their hiatus from synth rock outfit HERRA TERRA, Gregg and Shawn teamed up with Matt to branch off into something a bit different. Their mood runs impassioned with dreamy, often cinematic overtones lighting the way. Cavernous guitars dive in and out of the playful, yet systematic rhythm section – while acrobatic vocals sail through droves of washed out pads and pianos. Despite the short amount of time that the band has been together, usLights have built a sound all their own, with endless room to expand.
VIDEO YOU NEED TO WATCH: This teaser clip for standout single “God Save The Queen”
WHY THEY CAN WIN: Not just because Herra Terra still has some undelivered glory to fulfill, but because usLights have possibly the most distinct sound of all 24 Rumble bands. An intriguing electronic project that tumbles along through synth mountains and never gets never too ambient or chillwave for its own good, it’s really just a matter of how the electronics will carry over to a live set. But we’re pretty interested to find out, and there’s nothing like a completely different audial look to close out preliminary week.
TWITTER: Follow UsLights on Twitter @usLightsmusic
