Boston’s Mallcops headlined a triple-stack bill in the lower depths of Davis Square at The Rockwell on Friday, 13 January 2023.

Christian Pace opened and Talk Chalk got the party started.

It’s cool to hear cool music in a cool place. The Rockwell, located thirteen floors beneath the Earth’s upper crust, is a cool place. Especially in hot and humid summers when they crank the air-conditioning.

What The Rockwell is not, however, is your standard music venue. It’s a full-service live performance black box theater with amphitheater-style seating around a main floor that does double duty, serving as an extension of the stage during live theater or SRO space for a PBR-sipping crowd during live music shows.

Arrive early enough pre-performance to observe the spatial confusion ripple through the crowd as it decides where it should and should not loiter. There are seats. Do we sit in the seats, or is this a standing thing? Are we allowed to go through the curtain stage right, or is that reserved for artists? There’s no raised stage, only a “performance zone” like the upstairs at Charlie’s Kitchen or the backroom of the Silhouette Lounge. How close is too close for the crowd? How far is too far? Don’t worry. Take a deep breath. It will be alright.

Shout out to the sound booth. Sometimes mixed-use theaters that are primarily accustomed to wiring for the stage lack either the know-how or equipment to meet the needs of musicians. All the bands on Friday night sounded crisp, clear, with electric highs and bassy lows in all the right places at just the right volume to charge up the crowd.

Christian Pace

Christian Pace performed his introspective singer-songwriter numbers as a four-piece. More than one tune came off last year’s EP Skunk, including the jangly “Tea For Two”.

On a night advertised as a celebration of Seasonal Affect Disorder (SAD), Pace was the only artist who delivered in style and content. The guitar textures were contemporary Americana with a touch of regret. “Vampire” played out like a lonesome prairie thriller.

By the way, are we crazy or is Pace’s drummer also the frontman for Champagne Charlie?

Talk Chalk

It’s a happy return to The Rockwell for the always upbeat Talk Chalk. The band played here last summer during Day 2 of Nice, A Fest.

The five-piece played lobster rock designed to shake off the SAD with mid-20th century American Band vibes. The frontwoman has the house party voice to get a room moving. Extra points for the hot dog song and the “Walk Like an Egyptian” cover.

Shout out to Steve the Guitarist, who got declared an essential worker and finally received some sort of stimulus check.

Mallcops

Boston’s Mallcops delivered the cheeky half-earnest, half-joking emo pop punk that their local fan base has come to know and love. 

Speaking of Nice, A Fest, Mallcops played Day 3 at The Rockwell as well, which shows the kind of solid track record that the venue has in terms of music productions. The only drawback? There’s no bar inside the black box theater, so you have to exit stage left to the hallway every time you want a beer, or wine, or pickle juice-based cocktail, missing out on the music. Our suggestion: hire one of those beer barkers, like at Fenway Park, to carry around a tub of crispy boys inside the theater. Problem solved.

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