Welcome to the chronicle’s first run, this column will contain the recap of all events attended over the weekend. All the bands that perform and any antics that may occur, (I’m looking at you Dino-dancers!) You won’t get any fancy biographies or track referrals here, just the straight dope on what went down this weekend! Well pretty straight, It was a long weekend!
So there I was @ the 212
My weekend started at the 212 (Live @ 212 Westbrook, ME) It was a fluke evening, one of the bands wasn’t there yet or something there were no instruments on stage yet, it was little weird. Blame it on the moon, the will of the rock gods, what have you but hey, people get lost, amps go to 11 and the show goes on!
The night began, with a Dirty Rotten Winter! Based in Augusta this power trio was the first to dawn the stage and they did so fearlessly and with infectious enthusiasm! ! Fun fact their drummer George Maguire was actually a guitar player up until about 6 months ago when joining the band, so uber-kudos to him for bringing it like a boss! The vocals were shared by bassist, Joshua Currie and guitar player, Jeff York . I was thoroughly entertained by these guys and I am looking forward to seeing what they bring us in the future! You can check them out for yourself at the following links: Facebook Page Reverb Nation Page
Next to take the stage was Enlightened Strangelink. Minus their bass player these gents took the stage and you almost forget there is no low end. Vocalist/guitarist Mykal can deliver the both the quiet melodies and gravely screams, not unlike those of the 90’s grunge crooners. He’ lulls you into a soft strumming guitar line then with the help of drummer, Ron Adams, yanks you from the safety of that melody into a tortured upbeat tempo! There’s a lot going on here! Find out more check out their Facebook Page
I’m starting to sense a pattern here because up next came, yup you guessed it, a power trio! Hailing from Gardiner, Maine and slangin ’em loose and low was Hogan’s Alley These guys bring an old school punk sound that I”m sure true aficionados would really appreciate. The style is all there celebrating bands like the Sex Pistols, Black Flag, Gorilla Biscuits, with the cheekiness of the Dropkick Murphys. Drummer, George Wiegand and bassist, Tyler R. Dodge, handle the vocals in true irreverent fashion. Keeping it brutal and rhythmic, guitar player Ryan Picard, delivers slashing guitar riffs that round out the sound of the current makeup as Hogan’s Alley has existed for 2 decades with a deep roster of alumni. Wanna take a peek down the alley? Check out their Facebook Page
Egor does vocals, Erik plays Bass, Brandon’s the drummer and Dylan melts your face! Okay well it’s more like he heats it up to a pre-boiling temp and applies it with a salve of strums and picking, it’s really quite nice…but I digress. Put all that together and you have Mile 22, an acoustic driven alternative rock band based in Westbrook, Maine. These gents took the stage and delivered a heaping helping of there homespun earthy rock sounds and had an engaging presence that was punctuated by stronger rock tendencies. Again don’t take my silly words for it, you can watch their whole set on their Facebook Page!
Next up was recent, Boston Battle Of The Bands – Winners, No Hugs! Pffft there were lots of hugs, they were awesome people, I don’t get… clearly there are some follow up questions I’m going to have to ask this quartet. There was something else though…. what was it, i was thinking about, oh yeah ,OH MY GOD!!!!! These guys were amazing! The rumor was that some or all of these cats, were like Berkeley grads or something. Substantiated vehemently by their obvious talents! Singer, Narcissus A-Ngel, has some pretty clear operatic leanings in her powerfully, pitch perfect delivery. Stick man, Fernando Echeverry both contributed to backing vocals and held down his end of a fantastic rhythm section that was capped off by bass player , Achal Murthy who also sang and did other groovy things! Sprinkle on top, if you will, my friends, the … *deep breathing in…* Jazz-Rock-Blues-Classical-Reggae-Metal styling…*gasp….wheeze* …of one Mr. Amaury Altmayer. Add that up and you will have; No Hugs but you will want some, so go visit their Facebook Page and hug them with a Like!
He looks a little bit country, his boots are definitely NOT rock and roll but singer/guitarist, Nick Brann, of Brand New Day, does in fact have metal in his mortal soul! Oh and guess what kids? Another 3 piece it’s like they spawn here! This one is rounded off by bassist, Kaleb May and drummer, Seth Boucher. They brought their unique spin on classic death, fused with new metal. In these amalgamations, we are taken from fast driving riffs with demonic growls, all the way back to rich, held chords and vocal melodies showing a range of taste and abilities. Go see what they’re up to, on their Facebook Page
Capping off the night was Arta’sin. Hailing from Gardiner and parts there bouts, this 5 piece (didn’t see THAT coming, DID you? From the land of the 3 man bands ! digressing again…) Fronted by Ricco “don’t make it weird” Dustin, a man who when not fully captivating the audience with his crowd engagement skills during songs, is telling a joke in between them. Like the one I quoted above. Accept he, unlike most nervous singers looking to pass the time between songs most awkwardly, pulls it off,I think it’s the hair. I sense , from our brief encounters that he will enjoy the included reference as his descriptions of the rest of the band members was as follows, with one minor augmentation.
- Rico Dustin- vocals/lyrics (I like mine better, just sayin)
- Caleb Card-drums/herbal enthusiast*
- Sean Rice-bass/trout
- Brock Paré- rhythm guitar/feedback
- Greg Andrews-lead guitar/background screaming
These guys were a ton of fun and yes, as a matter of fact, it was pretty heavy, and funky and rockin and…. you know what!? There’s really no need to tell you another word, nope that’s it, you want more you’re going to have to head on over to their Facebook Page, click the like button and watch a video or two!
Well Rock/Metal Minions, that was my Friday night, I would wish that you had also had as good of one but that’s simply not possible. So instead I will lament for you and hope you start going to some shows of your own, why not start this weekend! Keep supporting that local/indie!
Scene In Review 
What a shitty review by a shitty reviewer! My band Enlightened Strangelink is going to take over the WORLD and I guess we can’t expect faggot bloggers to recognize it along the way.
“Vocalist/guitarist Mykal can deliver the both the quiet melodies and gravely screams, not unlike those of the 90’s grunge crooners.”
First of all, I am well beyond any of the people you’re going to try and compare me to. Grunge is dead and my band has survived it. We
“He’ lulls you into a soft strumming guitar line then with the help of drummer, Ron Adams, yanks you from the safety of that melody into a tortured upbeat tempo!”
I don’t need Ron to propel my innate genius forward you fucking asshole! Haven’t you heard me play solo at open mic nights? Jesus FUCK!
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wow someone has an extremely over-inflated view of their so called genius ROFLMAO
But fear not Mykal I will not injure yours or any other eyes wasting another word about you and your music, you clearly don’t need the help!
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Uh, this is the real Mykal Distortion, and that’s not what I said by a longshot. It’s cute that people still feel the need to post on my behalf in an attempt to make me look like an arrogant asshole. Anyone who belongs this bullshit clearly doesn’t know me at all.
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Honestly, who the fuck would rip apart a positive review of their own band?
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