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Footings / The Phroeggs / Musical Chairs / Prune

Four bands at 10 Forward; doors are at 7pm, $10-20 sliding scale!

This on Footings from Byron Coley:

"Footings is the long-running/rocking outgrowth of Peterborough NH's great ruralist duo, Redwing Blackbird. Initially formed as a trio in 2012 by Eric Gagne on guitar and vocals, Footings' sound embraces a sort of inner light derived from folk music, but surrounds it with a variety of rockist tropes. This rock action can take many forms, especially on this new album, which features their most expanded/expansive line-up yet.

Original trio member Elisabeth Fuchsia (frequent Pile collaborator) is on viola and long-time collusionist Candace Clement provides guitar, synth and vocals. Jordan Holtz (from Rick Rude) supplies vocals. Ben Rogers (Eric's bandmate from Death to Tyrants) adds drums where needed. Will Killingsworth (Ampere/Bucket Full of Teeth) adds pedals and tambourine as required. The latter pair were also responsible for engineering the album, but their musical additions are sonically notable.

Gagne's songs and deep vocals, often the core of the band's operation, combine the literary qualities of a heavy reader with the observational data of a poet. In this, Footings might occasionally be mistaken for one of Will Oldham's multifarious projects. But the band has a distinct way of scrambling their eggs, and that was never clearer than it is here. Full songs are interspersed with fragmentary shards in a way that reminds me of how Michael Hurley faded out “Rat Face” after its intro, on Hi Fi Snock Uptown. I mean, “Sleeping” sounds tantalizingly close to a Neil Young penned out-take from Deja Vu for the 35 seconds it runs. But that's all there is!

This outré editing process works quite well. By allowing themselves to create slivers of textural similarity to Sonic Youth (“Ordinary Night”), Crazy Horse (“Sleeping”), and even Heldon (“Wouldn't It Be Something”), Footins display wide possibilities while maintaining their primary focus on creating a kind of avant garde American roots music with the brash complexity of Yo La Tengo and the stately depth of Wilco.

Annihilation is the best Footings record to hit the planet yet. And that is saying something."

- Byron Coley


Musical Chairs:

Elliot Hartman-Russell is a man who wears many hats and sits in many chairs. His far ranging musical output includes Sweat Enzo, Rock N' Roll Porch, Heartman & Russell, and Jumpy. He also comprises 1/3 of the Valley's beloved Thee Arcadians. The Musical Chairs is Elliot's newest brainchild, and distills his signature brand of heart-on-the-sleeve power pop into a collection of effortless-sounding earworms.

Comprised of Mike Parham (Mibble, Gold Setter), Aaron Noble (The Noble One, Gold Setter), and Chris Wardlaw (Whirl, Chris Wardlaw), the Musical Chairs is the most fully realized live iteration of Elliot's multi-shaded musical visions to date. For a sampling of Elliot's music check out Requested Records on bandcamp.

Prune: FKA Melatonin

The Phroeggs:

After years of incubation, Phrӧeggs hatched in a swamp in Easthampton, Massachusetts in 2019. Born out of psychedelic dreams in their heads and toad venom in their veins, Kevin, Sara & Steve knew forming Phrӧeggs was the only way to fill the fuzz shaped hole in their hearts. Making their way through the muck and mire they have emerged by summoning sonic spirits to conjure cosmic chords that bring temporal tranquility to all that hear them.