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The C Note is closing. Gang Green plays the club in 2018.

Vinny Straggas gave the Boston music scene a few exciting nights in 2026 with the showings of his movie Life On The Other Planet about the scene. The sold out showing at the Regent was a scene unto itself. The high production values that Straggas brought to the film uplifted the whole project and made the story more accessible to a wider audience. The film is still in its rolling out phase.

Vinny now has started a podcast also called Life On the Other Planet, where he will have interviews with some of the primary players to increase interest. The first interview is with non-other than John Felice. John talks about his love of the city and how it was back in the 70s which was one of the films main points too. He also talks about how that affected his songwriting. John was out of his home and on his own at 15 years old and it is revealing and touching to hear him talk about how that shaped him.

John is upfront about drug use and revels that “Just Like Darts” is a song about drugs disguised as a love song. John tells the story of the first show at Cantone's. John is sharp and his answers don’t ramble. This is the first interview. In the future there will be Willie Loco Alexander, Steve Cataldo and is working on getting David Minehan. The Life On The Other Planet website.

Hold on as we tell you about some landscape changes to the scene....

The C Note in Hull is closing for good as of Saturday September 26. They are sad to stop after 10 years but urge people to still support local music. The C Note got on our radar with those series of Rat Beach Parties. The first was in 2013. It was a low key affair. Michael Weddle (RIP 2022) had drive and persistence and made it a yearly affair. Mikke Worm from the group Worm is responsible for a series of great hardcore and punk shows at the club in later years with annual Halloween shows and many involving Chris Doherty and Gang Green.

The building that houses the Somerville Theatre/Crystal Ballroom is for sale. The owner of the building also owns, and is selling, the Capitol Theatre in Arlington. Now, everyone is wondering if that means the Somerville Theatre/Crystal Ballroom could be leveled. We all know that developers are trying to put taller building in Davis Square. There’s reasons why it might not happen, but… you know. Some more info in the Cambridge Day.

Then there’s a news report that three stores on Harvard Ave, Allston with local businesses are being displaced because a big company bought the building they are housed in. The address is 149 – 175 Harvard Ave with businesses: the Pet Shop, Ritual Arts, and Regeneration Tattoo. The building was bought by Alpha Management (crap – really?). As the good business people they are, they raised the rent and everyone is vacating the premises. I guess we all know that Harvard Ave, Allston the beginning of the end has spread up the street and more changes are coming. Hi, Kenmore Square!!! Here’s your new friend Allston. This was an article on the Boston.com site.

Also on the move is Woolly Mammoth studio. It’s been quietly moving north to Apple St in Essex, MA. Sir Minehan has dropped an update report on the building schedule. Looks like lots of things are in process but he’s thinking booking bands can begin in August sometime. He also entices with legendary fried clams nearby.

One promising development is K-Bok the Korean restaurant in Union Sq Somerville. They open a few months ago (the food is awesome! BTW) and have a few karaoke and DJ nights there. (Their goth night is popular) They are working on getting a PA and stage set up so they can have local bands playing there. Follow them on Instagram for upcoming happenings.

A few years before Covid there was a few Trivia nights around for punks. Brett Milano and Erin Amar had their nights and WMBR’s Late Risers Club had a few. Now, WMBR is bringing it back with a Trivia Night at Notch Brewery in Brighton on July 30.
Prizes are promised! People are serious to win at these things – be prepared. As of this writing there is no event page and its not listed on the Notch page but it's gonna happen!

WRPS the Rockland station 88.3FM is having their third WRPS-tival on August 22 at 7pm. Acts are Screw Cart, The Wynotts and Frankie Sinn & the Confessions. DJ Rocco will be the emcee. This is happening at the Players Sports Bar & Club in Rockland

The Boston Globe had an article on the Modern Lovers Live album (released 1977). Reporter Mark Shanahan made some good points. Right off he makes the distinction that the original Modern Lovers album was proto punk. The Live album was a different animal. Like a lot of people he first thought it was ‘goofy’ but came to love it.

What is it about these songs like the “Ice Cream Man”, “I’m a Little Airplane”, “I’m a Little Dinosaur” and “Hey, There Little Insect” that is transformative? When everyone went punk, Jonathan went Jonathan. When punk got loud, Jonathan got quiet. He wanted to connect with people and putting amplified sound between him and the audience was a no no.

Mark uses the adjectives ‘simple’ and ‘sunny’. Jonathan was trying to be real. He was, and continues to this day, to glorify the quotidian, the everyday. It can be seen as a gamble, but it really was an act of courage, or he just HAD to follow his feelings. If Jonathan had continued the punk path he would be an interesting punker but being pure Jonathan has given us an historical musician whose immense influence will be all from him – not a movement.
If you can get by the paywall, the article was in the Boston Sunday Globe 7/19/26.

The Globe’s next article was on Central Square’s Cheapo Records. The store has gone through several owners since beginning as Skippy White’s in 1954. That makes the business 72 years old. We used to buy records at the Skippy White’s in the Combat Zone from Little Walter, the DJ.

According to the article the store was running on ‘vapors’ around 2015 but worked its way through. Their secret is to keep everything in stock. We hope that store never closes. Again if you can get by the paywall.

It only took 40 years but now SS Decontrol has a website - well, here it is!! They have photos, videos and media (podcasts and articles) They have photos of Al Barile’s group after SSD called Gage. It looks like they may be adding to this as time goes on.

Jennifer Finch the bassist for L7 has died. She was 59 years old and was fighting aggressive brain cancer. L7 has lots of fans in Boston. We see the band has a show at the Wilber in October. L7’s big song was “Pretend We’re Dead”. Here it is on YouTube. More about Jennifer in Paste magazine.

VIDEOS......

Local’s Fatal Flaw has such wonderful power pop songs of their own that we hate to post a cover... but this is so well done. They cover “Let’s Go” by the Cars.

This was filmed at Sinclair in February of 2025. The vocals are so close and the singer just seems like he’s singing in his normal voice. The drums have some nice moments. It seems like the guitarist is playing the Greg Hawks' synth lines.

We featured a video by Canada’s Doghouse Rose a few weeks ago. “It Gets Worse” is the second video/song from their upcoming album Born To Break Even. The band has a polished skate punk and pop mix that should have wide appeal.

We like it because the pop doesn’t come at the expense of the hard guitars. The singer has lots of personality and that makes the lyrics and video click. The video doesn’t get complicated but has a nice gloss.

We reviewed some pre-released singles from Canada’s Among Legends a few weeks ago. Now that album Lose My Grip is out and they have a video for the song “Go On”. The group has a lean punk sound and you can see that they are a trio in the video.

They are compared to the Alkaline Trio and they have some of that extra something that marks that group. The songs have a feeling that emanates from the lyrics and a close coupling with the music. You never feel like you are getting fluff or filler, this is substantial. We have the excellent album embedded below.

Yet more from Canada, this is a snotty punker. How can we let that go by. It’s raw and snarly and that voice – it’s classic punk. Wine Lips are from Toronto and on Stomp Records which we have come to know as a sign of something we're going to like. They kept the video simple. It’s a stylized performance video. It has fast cuts and that overall brown color cast which is subtle and somehow tasteful. Their album TV Diner will be out August 28. Here it is on Bandcamp.

Tom Livingston who does the Radio Warfare podcast, which we feature periodically, also is a musician. He is part of the Albany NY punk scene. Early on he was part of Albany’s first punk group the Morons from 79 -82. Later he was in The Last Conspirators. That group has a large 50 cut compilation.

This video is from the song “Fortune Teller” on that album. The song is moody and they get a lot of play out of the Fortune Teller imagery. We can hear a bit of “Kashmir” in the main riff.

RADIO......

On his 7/21 Rising show Skybar had Sal Baglio of the Amplifier Heads in the studio. Their album Super 8 just came out. We spotlight in our album reviews below. Sal played a few songs live in the studio. One, he revealed, was from the next album.

It turns out he has three albums currently in the works. One has 28 songs on it. Try to keep up with this guy. We have the interview below with some songs off Super 8 and some songs done live.

The Rising show is on WMFO 91.5 FM on Tuesday at 7 to 9pm. To listen to past shows go to the WMFO webpage and hit the show listing on Tuesday 5/19 at 7pm and then hit ‘archive’.

PODCASTS.....

Steev Riccardo has Linda Viens/Girl With a Hawk on the show on 7/6. Steev got her to list some of her favorite live shows ever. He also prompted her for memories of the early days on the scene. She was a waitress for the Inn Square Men’s Bar in 1979 and later at the Rat. Linda loved those days at the Inn Square. Seeing Robin Lane play spurred her to try it herself.

Both Steev and Linda had a lot to say about the new generation of groups. Both have ears for new music. Only then did they get to the new GWAH album Regenesis. They talked about the lyrics to “Way With Words”. You have to have a thick skin to be in the entertainment industry. Linda revels that “Shine On My Bother, There Is No Other” is about Dale Hawkins and how David Grol must have felt when he died. There was also insights into how Boston has been very provincial in relation to local group careers.

On Al Quint’s 7/13 Sonic Overload there was the usual line up of hardcore. We zeroed in on a punk set. It began with a B52s song, then into “Drive My Car” by Nasty Facts. That much played punk nugget still sounds fresh – fast and fresh.

Next, it was a 1981 song rereleased in 2007. The song was “Mommi, I’m A Misfit” by the Tragics from Albany, NY. The group was originally named The Misfits and changed the name for the obvious reason. The song sounds like an X-Ray Spex tune. Hear it on YouTube. That was followed by Tyranna (info) from Canada singing “Back of Baby” from 1979. The set ended with Wilma & the Wilbers doing “Tiger Beat” from 1981. We have The Tragics and Tyranna from the show embedded below.

You can hear the Sonic Overload past shows on the web blog. Al has logged all the shows since 2009.

The Elastic Glam Show on 7/10 proved that Marc Bolan and T Rex just keep on giving. Sethyspice played “Electric Slim and the Factory Hen” which is off TANX from 1973. It sounded fresh to us and had that Marc Bolan aura that makes his music so special.

There was the new glam songs you can’t believe are not from the 70s like: Sir Prize and the Twomorrow Knights/ “Hilltop High”, Weird Bloom/”Don’t Stop Movin’”, Julez and the Rollerz/”I Need Love” and Silver Glam/”Spark Plug”

Sethy then played some Junkshop Glam which is glam that was ignored and ended up in the bargain bins. They were Jook, Cardinal Point and Funny Thing. Then there was The Raspberries with “Overnight Sensation” because why not? This was a particularly good show. Time to check out the new glam in 2026.

On the 1/17 Elastic Glam show Sethyspice played “Beautiful Things” by Donnie Vie. Donny was the singer for Enuff Z’nuff. Donny has a solo career and the album titled Beautiful Things is soon out on Wicked Cool. There was a set of classic glam with Mud, Showaddywaddy and Hello. Then The Hollywood Stars doing the new “All the Kids On the Street” which sounded very comfortable in the set. To hear that show go to the Mixcloud website.

We were listening to the latest Summer Fun show on the 7/22 Wormtown Underground Radio show with DJ L.B. Worm. Lots of new and old summer songs in the playlist. There’s some valuable info too, like the “Don’t Eat Stuff Off The Sidewalk” warning from The Cramps.

There was a super surfy tune titled “Slingshot” by the Preston Wayne Four. L.B. Worm says it is new and on vinyl. There’s not a lot of info out there but the record is listed on Discogs. you can get it off that page. We wish there was more info on that somewhere.

NEW MUSIC/CD's ......

It’s not just a song, it’s history. “Weekends” is the very first demo that the Dogmatics recorded in 1982. The song was written by Paul O’Halloran. It’s so early the drummer is Dan Shannon, not Tom Long. The song is one of the punkiest Dogmatic’s songs too.

Right off the bat Paul’s bass comes on strong and fast. The rapid fire beat never slows down. The chord progression is very garage and the guitar solo fits nicely in the fast pace. The lyrics work out the big difference between working during the week and the weekends. This fills an important beginning to the long running group that is still making new history record by record, gig by gig.

Paper Tigers are releasing East-Coaster a new album which is their first in three years. The group started in the midst of the Covid Times. Things were hard and the group took it all on. We saw them in a video in a Midway live stream in September of 2020. The group have gone through some changes and are reconfigured. The song writing core is Michael Medlock and Bjarki Gudmundsson.

The early teaser single “Go Out” revels a more techno base to the music. It’s a busy and meaty sound and the vocal , which is familiar with Michael’s delivery, works over the top. Despite the title the song is about not going out. The repeated refrain, “No I don’t want to go out” is very catchy. It works for us. The East-Coaster album comes out on August 12. Here it is on Bandcamp.

Sal Baglio is getting plenty of attention with his Super 8 album. It is eight songs reveling in early rock ‘n roll. The two leading songs were good choices. “Rock N’ Roll Riot” had the raw sound and the subject of (innocent) riots gets the blood moving. We loved the twelve string sounds of “A Song Called Sha La La” which also displays Sal’s fluid song writing.

One genius move was aping “Louie Louie” with “A Girl Named Chop Suey”. It proves the point that you can’t deny the visceral power of primo garage rock. Points for playing the solo close to the original too. Sal isn’t just copying the old music. Every song has arrangement twists. There’s more sophistication than is usually in some of the songs he recalls. The lyrics have the benefit of hindsight along with nostalgia.

On Bandcamp there are two extra songs. One is a remix of “Hot Wax” from the album. The other is “Deuce Machine” where Sal lets it get raw and dirty.

In 1973 (just a few years from the birth of punk) American Graffiti looked back at the rock days of 1962. Now when Sal evokes the same era he’s casting his eyes 64 years into the past.

Linnea's Garden latest EP is Get Heard. Linnea Herzog definitely wants to be heard. She has lots of issues and they all make for good songs. In this EP the group gets louder and that’s working for them. “Stop Condon” is the song that sticks out not just on the EP but overall for the group. It’s loud and the group sounds unfettered. The way Linnea sings “the weight of the world” she owns the phrase by the end. It’s liberating because as much as she sings about the burden on of the weight of the world she sounds free and ready to take it on. The video is fun to watch on this.

"Grrrl on Guitar” is another amped up song. In the first verse she makes reference to The Runaways, Cindy Lauper and Wet Leg. She seems to be taking on or joinig in with the competition. She sings, “The bar is in hell when you’re a girl on guitar/I’m walking my walk/You walking your walk?” To prove her point she plays the guitar as loud as she wants. In “Her” there is reflection as the lyrics recall someone not around anymore. Still the guitar blasts its way through a few sections.

“Sell Yr Love” seems to be about using art to make a mark. Which of course what Linnea is doing very successfully on Be Heard.

A songwriter writes about what he sees. Thus lately, we see a lot of songs about ICE. Nick and the Adversaries give us “Rah Rah Rah” which is their take on ICE arrests.

The song is a mix of rock and ska. They have some Clash like chords that mark the verses. The lyrics are not that far from a news report. The group is realistic and say straight out, “Who’ll get justice or accountability?/Sadly the answer is not in this song.”

There is a lyric video for this on YouTube. The backdrop is the Immigration Detention facility in Burlington, right here in good old Mass.

Darryl Jenifer was the bassist, songwriter, and founding member of legendary hardcore band Bad Brains. He now has a new instrumental album titled The Weather Channel. It’s a bit of a shocker if you are expecting a blast of Bad Brains. This is a very quiet jazz album.

“Sacred Love II” sounds nothing like the original “Sacred Love”. It’s a cool jazz groove, at the 1:45 minute mark the melody of the song comes in and it’s pretty neat to hear it in that context. We have that embedded below.

Here’s another punk piece of art that spews out “fuck you” to someone/somebodies. Australia’s JJ Speedball does one thing different. The title of the song is actually “Far Queue”, as that’s as clever as it gets. But hey, he didn’t have to get cute (or queue-te) with us, we love the calls of F.U.

Bart and the Brats are a French group that have been together since 2021. They've put out a lot of material in that time. Their last album was a 16 cut collection of previous material. The group is actually one guy: Bart De Vraantijk. He plays all the instruments. To get a taste of the group you can listen to their latest four song EP titled Brats Being Brats. They play a Ramones style punk.

Listen to the massive bass in the song “This Is A Hold Up”. The song is shaking the walls even before the guitars come in. It’s all very simple but it works. The music just blasts out of the speakers despite this being a one man show. To get more rifle through the Bart and the Brats Bandcamp page.

Scroll If You Love the Devil was a cassette release by Heather the Jerk. Heather Sawyer is one half of the Wisconsin group The Hussy. The album is a lo fi pop punk gem. The song writing is excellent. Even though the songs are two minutes max they still feel fully developed. A few have some neat supporting background vocals.

This could be a heresy, but we think several would sound just fine with some sympathetic production. “Dumb Blonde” and “Said What I Said” would be even more amazing with advanced recording. This was put out on a cassette release. Now, they are going to have a vinyl version with four extra songs (out on August 27). One is “Write A Letter” which comes with a colorful cartoon video.

We featured Sweden’s Psychotic Youth last time in the BGN with a political song. With “Girls” they are back to more familiar territory for them which is surf, fun and girls. The group goes back to 1984 but this song style is a remake of sixties zeitgeist. It has a swirly organ high in the mix as they go ecstatic over girls on the beach. Does it still work in the 2020’s? You be the judge.

Nobro are from Quebec. The song “Doomtown” came out last November. The song’s protagonist is in an existential terror. They wonder if they get old and “remember nothing” will anyone be there. Over half the song is a panic cry of “Where’d Everybody Go?”. We think they have captured the idea here and it’s haunting.

Here's some good shows coming up ....

July 27, 2026 (Monday) Rooftops, Carissa Johnson, Duggan at The Silhouette Lounge

July 28, 2026 (Tuesday) Criminal Kids, Fool’s Gold, Freakphone, Whyte Lipstick at O'Brien's

July 31, 2026 (Friday) GANG GREEN: 40th Anniversary (18+) F.U.'s, SPECTACLE, The Promised End, Worm at The Brighton Music Hall 6PM show!! TIX!!

July 31, 2026 (Friday) Jonee Earthquake, In Shreds, BAABES, Typhoid Mary at Koto Salem

July 31, 2026 (Friday) The Swamp Roots and Wray-Ons at Husky's Pub on Park Ave in Worcester MA 8 PM to closing

July 31, 2026 (Friday) Gossip Collar, Cigarette Camp, The Chip Rockers at The Cut, Gloucester, MA 7PM show

August 1, 2026 (Saturday) Satch Kerans Band, Hotel Saturn, Roxy & the Crisis at Underbones

August 1, 2026 (Saturday) Phantom Ocean, The Love Shamans, Ugly Moon, Captain Easychord at The Midway

August 3, 2026 (Monday) Static Friction, The Sleights (CO), Goners (UK), Autumn Astronauts at The Midway

August 5, 2026 (Wednesday) Smirk, Gossip Collar, Orange Whip - Deep Cuts, Medford

August 8, 2026 (Saturday) J PROZAC, Jay Allen and the Arch Criminals, STiLL SeDAtED at The Midway for a 3PM Matinee

August 8, 2026 (Saturday) Cheater Slicks, Puke Pistols, Lupo Citta at the Middle East Up

August 8, 2026 (Saturday) Lynda Mandolyn is doing a solo show at The Village Social Club in Brookline.

August 13, 2026 (Thursday) Pearl Sugar, Plant Fight, Though Partner, Wedding Gift at O'Brien's

August 14, 2026 (Friday) Komrads, Snowbeasts, Killing Dream, Big Time Kill at O'Brien's

August 15, 2026 (Saturday) The New Frustrations, The Wynotts, Thee Associates, The Spackles at The Midway for a 3:30PM Matinee

August 15, 2026 (Saturday) White Dynomite, Bastard Leg, Black Wolf Goat at O'Brien's

August 15, 2026 (Saturday) American Ocelot, The Haymakers, Devil Love at The Square Root

August 15, 2026 (Saturday) Bootleg Dan presents The BickerSins, Dan Lilley and the Keepers, The Cynz at The Parlour, Providence

August 20, 2026 (Thursday) Makeout Palace, Evil Felipe, Coby Conrad at O'Brien's

August 21, 2026 (Friday) Doom Service, Duck & Cover, Downhauls at O'Brien's

August 22, 2026 (Saturday) Putt Putt Punk at Trombetta's Farm with Cold Hard Cash, The Stress Balls, Cheryl’s Boys, Tommy Ready, Addy: 655 Farm Rd, Marlborough, MA Show at 6PM, music at 7PM- and...your ticket gets you a full round of mini golf woven directly into the night’s mayhem. What is Putt Puitt Punk you ask??? Check it out here.

August 22, 2026 (Saturday) Big Pizza Fest Presents: Blame it on Whitman, Jerrys Got Jokes. Care For, Stop That Man at The Midway

August 23, 2026 (Sunday) Soundhound, Saltclouds, Mad Painter, Stage Light at The Midway for a 3PM matinee

August 25, 2026 (Tuesday) TV Buddha, Adult Learners, Jarsch, Stirling Taylor Band at O'Brien's

August 29, 2026 (Saturday) Kenne Highland's Air Force, STiLL SeDAtED, The Stigmatics, Hambone Skinny at The Jungle 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm TIX HERE

August 30, 2026 (Sunday) The New Frustrations, The Wynotts, The Associates, The Spackles at The Midway - 3PM Matinee!

August 30, 2026 (Sunday) The Murder Junkies, Psycho, Frenzy Of Tongs, Typhoid Mary at Alchemy in Providence TICKETS!!

September 5, 2026 (Saturday) Bootleg Dan presents The Black Souls, TBA, Haymakers at Under Bones, Davis Square

September 12, 2026 (Saturday) Big Pizza Fest Presents: Vicegrip, Aces High, Billy, Divorce Cake, Neponset Monastery at The Midway for a 3PM matinee

September 12, 2026 (Saturday) Putt Putt Punk at Starland Sportsplex & Fun Park in Hanover with The Stress Balls, Sean Griffin of the Ruffians, Junk Punk, Tommy Ready . Addy: 637 Washington St, Hanover, MA Show at 6PM, music at 7PM- and...your ticket gets you a full round of mini golf woven directly into the night’s mayhem.

September 30, 2026 (Saturday) Social Distortion, Descendents, The Chats at RoadRunner TIX

September 25, 2026 (Friday) Muck and the Mires, The Sharp Class, The Chelsea Curve, Dj Sherman at Deep Cuts Medford

September 28, 2026 (Monday) The "Sex Pistols" at The Royale

October 1, 2026 (Thursday) Bootleg Dan presents The BickerSins, Girl With A Hawk, The Glimmer Stars (from LA) at The Parlour, Providence

October 2, 2026 (Friday) Bootleg Dan presents The Glimmer Stars, Girl With A Hawk, Peppermint Kicks at The Square Root

October 2 & 3, 2026 ( Friday & Saturday) The Amazing Royal Crowns along with Boss Fuel (reunited!) and Lenny Lashley's Gang Of One at Alchemy in Providence - 5PM doors!! TIX for Friday TIX for Saturday

October 16, 2026 (Friday) The Damned at The Royale

October 17, 2026 (Saturday) Bootleg Dan presents Cold Expectations, The Cynz, Stop Calling Me Frank at Under Bones, Davis Square

November 14, 2026 (Saturday) Bootleg Dan presents Glowbox, Girl With A Hawk. TBA at Under Bones, Davis Square

December 5, 2026 (Saturday) Bootleg Dan presents Tom Springer Band, Spackles, Amanda White Band at Under Bones, Davis Square

CONTACT US AT....misslynbgn@yahoo.com

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