It was a loud, but simple flyer that read: “Compound is going to be fucking sick!” And that it was. Hosted at Great Scott in Allston, this night bridged the gap between live bands and DJs and the crowd loved every minute of it. I personally woke up this morning and had a moment where I thought I might puke, which is a rare moment for me that made me realize just how prophetic the flyer was.
The thing I loved most about the night was the crowd that came out. Upon walking through the doors, aside from the grumpy door men, there was not one hint of arrogance in the air. I don’t know about anyone else, but I would like to go on record and say that Boston needs way more nights like this! The point of going out is to dance, drink, and hold your girlfriends hair while she pukes at home. I’m going to guess the majority of people who came to Compound touched on at least two of those points.
Now on to the music… The night started with a group by the name of REUP. They were quite simply, amazing. They had a blend of jazz, hip hop, and turntablism combined into one melodic sound, while the singers voice added a scratchy, sexy tone to the mix. Not to play Ebert & Roeper on you, but they get two thumbs up from me, and I recommend checking them out if you hear of them playing anywhere in your area.
Next up to the stage was The Blue Pages. I had the opportunity to chat with them a bit throughout the night and these kids are the most down to earth, chill people. I had to mention that because I think it’s rare you meet kids in bands who don’t think they are the shit. So back to their review: Another great performance! These kids reminded me a lot of Incubus, with a little bit of old-school 311 thrown in at times. It was clean rock and roll served straight up in a frosty glass, and I think the audience chugged that shit down. If you want to see a band that plays good music, has GREAT stage presence, and keeps your head bobbing then check out The Blue Pages.
As a side note, before I get to the next band, I would just like to say that it isn’t easy to impress me. I don’t want readers to get the idea that I’m some mushy writer who will just dole out good reviews. I’m an honest person and if I think something sucks, y’all will be the first people to hear about it. That being said, lets move on to the next band, All These Kings. I have to admit, by the time they came on I was about six PBR’s in, so the night starts to get a little spotty around this time. I do know that the lead singer Aaron is the dude who puts Compound together, and the one memo I put down about All These Kings goes a little something like this: “Aaron. All These Kings. Great Scott. Great times.” Don’t you just love a good drunken note to yourself? Until I started writing this, while looking over my notes, I thought “what the fuck does that mean???” Anyway, I remember enjoying their set, but I can’t wholeheartedly give out a stellar review if I was half in the bag at the time.
And then of course you had my buddies DJ Michael Savant and DJ Melee throwing it down on the one’s and two’s. These kids don’t need a review from me because their awesomeness precedes them. They kept the crowd moving until the early hours of the morning and added a little bit of bass to the night.
To put it simply, Compound was the most fun I’ve had in a while. My jaded, skinny ass needed a night like this to let me know there is hope for Boston nightlife yet.
