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The first Boston Rising show was a madhouse, with wall-to-wall humanity, but it didn't conflict with a Red Sox world series game. This one is more sparsely attended, but there are already enough people here at 9:00 that the room doesn't feel empty. Emergency Music start off, and while they solicit frequent game updates between songs, they also take care of business when necessary. They play a kind of '50s-inflected jangle-pop, with a fairly obvious rhythm section and a lot of guitar strumming. The lead guitar is mixed way low, so while it looks like there's more going on in there, I can't really hear it. I don't really like the lead singer's voice, but the lead guitarist's harmony singing is very pretty. The songs are warm and winning, if maybe a little too gentle and pleasant for my tastes.
Eyes Like Knives bring a much edgier sound, with lots more feedback and creative dissonance. This band is all sum-of-its-parts stuff for me: the two guitars together make up a really deep, compelling sound; the two vocalists play off one another beautifully, alternating dark harmonies with call-and-response structures; and my attention ping-pongs between all that and the excellent rhythm section. Their My Bloody Valentine cover fits so well into their set that I wouldn't have known it wasn't theirs if they hadn't told us.
Raymond are next, and are the first band to seem genuinely uninterested in what's going on on TV. (Despite the singer having "GO SOCKS" scrawled on his arm.) Their set is very noisy and rambunctious, so it's a bit surprising to occasionally realize that these songs are secretly catchy and melodic. But those elements are there, and occasionally peek through the noise, for a really nice effect. I'm not crazy about their drummer; he's completely solid, but he tends to settle into some simple patterns that give it an almost drum machine-like sound, which is accentuated by the synth and starts to set off my dance music detector. The other problem I have with their set is not their fault at all; there are some weird rowdy friends of theirs right in front of me, who seem to want the show to be about them, as they jump and vogue in their suits and sunglasses. They are annoying and distracting. On the plus side, they get an occasional smile out of the chronically disaffected lead singer.
I've been told that Ellie Vee is feeling a bit under the weather today. If I hadn't been told that, there's no way in hell I could have known it, because she is a blazing ball of rock energy onstage. The Charms have a new bassist, and he's very solid but stays very much in the background. In the foreground, the vocals are raucous and fiery, the mix is really good, and there are new songs, so I can be amazed anew at Joe's instinct for the perfect tight little guitar solo. They're blazing and audacious, but they never take up an extra second of the song. Overall, the new songs sound much like the old ones: basic, satisfying rock and roll barn-burners. They close with "Addiction," which has become my favorite Charms song for the way it spotlights Ellie's emotive range and overwhelming presence.
