‘Boston’ in Somerville

Live Review

Oct 13

Boston’s Elsie Eastman celebrated a record release on Friday, 7 October. The new record is called Boston, but the party went down at The Jungle in Somerville. The folk-rocking singer-songwriter was joined by three openers, including Wallace Field, Miss Bones, and the Dead Friends Club.

A quick aside to shout out the Lifetime Membership Card at The Jungle. For $10 you buy a card that grants you $10 towards food every time you spend $10 on ticket/cover cost to see the show. That ticket cost is pretty much the going rate for affordable tickets at hole-in-the-wall clubs around town. And unless you’re super local, it’s hard to imagine going to The Jungle for any other reason than dropping $10 to hear some music.

`Lifetime Membership Card: tater tot cheat code?`

So with the purchase of the card you’ve just earned yourself $10 of free food every time you pull up to the club for the night. Are we crazy or is that a great deal? There are decent sides on the menu for less than a ten-spot. The tater tots, for example, are a cool $4. On the other hand, the drinks aren’t cheap.

Greenfield’s Wallace Field kicked off the bill as a solo act. Go Green Waves! Her winsome and weeping electric guitar spun folky progressions that alternated between the strident and serene. Shades of Buffy Sainte Marie.

There was a robust vibrato on the tail end of her vocals that animated the lyrics with astral emotion. Most of the delivery was feather-light, a la Joni Mitchell, but a few songs brought a brassier, more hard-boiled edge a la Melissa Etheridge.

Rumor has she’s got a new album coming out in spring.

Miss Bones was missing band members. The only remaining musician made it another solo affair. If HDN is correct, this is the same guitarist for Genie Santiago?

The one-person band flashed an interesting combination of clean-edged guitar, strum with the spirit of ‘50s rock n roll, serenaded with emo storytelling.

Distortion was used sparingly and to good effect, amplifying the final chorus or verse to send the song home. Extra points for the feedback screech & scrawl.

And — in what was becoming a trope of the night — the Miss Bone’s member announced a new record coming out soon.

The Dead Friends Club is a no-apologies house party band, peppered with a little funk and the occasional spoken word. Shout out to working a full, human-sized harp into the mix. It’s not the most obvious instrument to add to DFC’s sound, but the group seems like an “anything goes” outfit that’s not afraid to experiment with instrumentation. That stringed banshee is a trunk-full though.

Closer and centerpiece of the night Elsie Eastman welcomed the crowd to the Boston record release party, playing songs off the new album and a few old favorites. The vibe was folky, funky, finger-picky, and friendly fun. Have a listen to our highlighted track “Good Friends” below. You can make friends with the new record on Bandcamp and find out more at Eastman’s website.