Impossible Dog is possible cat at Deep Cuts on Thursday, 29 February 2024.

Pregame Rituals, TIFFY, and Jude Ivy down Crispy Bois in the opening slots.

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In a late breaking development some unknown soul hastily taped numeric values above each goalpost in the mechanical entertainment contraption. To what end?

For those new to The Challenger, it’s one of those old-fashioned gizmos that you’d find in the secluded corner of a carnival in the days before video games signaled the arrival of microchip-driven arcades.

The gimmick of this particular device is motor control mastery. Your task is to trace a handheld metal loop around a rollercoaster metal rail as far as you can go without touching the loop to the rail. Presumably, there’s some slight electric current running through the device such that touching the loop to rail triggers the end to your game and the loss of your quarter.

The ultimate objective is to guide the metal loop to the end of its journey without triggering a fail. It’s not impossible, but it’s harder than you might think. The vast majority of contestants flame out before the finish.

Rather than just accepting “Mission Not Accomplished,” some overachiever taped numeric values at certain milestones along the way so that the percentages of completion could be more easily compared. Bragging rights, so to speak.

The numeric values breakdown as follows: 50, 150, 250, with 350 being the big win. Seems like you could work some common denominator mathematical magic and just roll with 5, 15, 25, and 35. The extra zeros add some juice, though. No doubt.

Four-piece rock n rollers. It’s Jude Ivy! Shades of Pavement gone emo. And the lead vocalists cracked speak-sing will always find a home in indie rock. Shout out to the video for “On Friday,” which features an impressive number of accordions. It’s not not clear if accordions feature in the song itself. Add to all this a cover of The Calling’s “Wherever You Will Go.” Now That’s What I Call An Opener, Vol. 1.

Lineup shuffle in TIFFY land. Just another day in rock n roll, people coming and people going. Except it seems like every time Hump Day News covers their live show it's not just new faces but also new instruments. Like there was a guy on synth at a Jungle gig, is that still a thing?

Maybe this observation is just a function of having covered a lot of TIFFY. The guitar-driven rock with a classical indie sound is a local staple. Fronter Tiffany Sammy, who writes the music, keeps the ship steered straight no matter what the weather.

The forecast on Thursday night was slightly stormy with a chance of glitchy guitar pedals. You know what they tell actors in school plays: just keep going if a line of dialogue gets flubbed, no one in the audience will notice. Then again at these types of shows half of the audience is playing the show and the other half is also in a band. So maybe people will notice, but they sure won’t sweat it.

Former TIFFY axe-handler Dan Sweeney was in the crowd to cheer on his old band.

Get hype for Pregame Rituals. The four-piece emo pop punkers out of Lynn write songs for rolling around in the pit. And the crowd seemed to know it, expect it, came prepared for it. Don’t spill your drink.

Impossible Dog just released their EP Specifics. Do you include the subtitle “An Extended Play By…”? Who knows? These emo rawker guys have a hoot on stage and on record, but there’s a respectable amount of pathos sprinkled in with the fun and games.

The band knows how to build up songs to a fever pitch in live performance. Walls of distortion finely balanced with jangly notes so you can still track the melody rolling over the rooftops. Extra points for stage choreography.

The album cover is sending out Avalon Emerson vibes. Check it out. Two very different musical outfits. Bet they'd dig each other though.

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