Leaves are falling, evenings are finally cool and crisp, pumpkin-spice is omnipresent, and Boston is churning out music. Here’s our summary of the week that was.
Darlingside Featured on NPR’s World Cafe: Next
Last week Darlingside, the Cambridge-based band and darlings of Williams College, were covered on NPR’s World Cafe, which played the title track of their new album Birds Say. The album is the band’s first release since their drummer left the band two years ago. Darlingside features an eclectic mix of instruments- guitars, both acoustic and electric, mandolin, electric bass, violin, and cello- and the voices of each of the members of their quartet. Darlingside is one of those frustratingly impressive groups that can play any instrument but also bust out four-part vocal harmonies. The echoic vocals combine with a lush instrumental layer and a pulsating bass to create a unique soundscape. The new album has received high praise, with The Huffington Post calling it “one of the great albums released this year.” The band is currently on tour as an opener for Patty Griffin.
 10th Anniversary of HONK! Festival
The HONK! brass band festival took to the streets of Somerville once again this weekend. Featuring a lantern-lit opening on Friday, 8 straight hours of free music on Saturday, and a parade from Davis to Harvard on Sunday, the festival brought together over fifteen brass bands from across the country, not to mention a group from Paris. The amplification-free groups (they really don’t need it) filled the streets of Davis Square as crowds gathered ’round to dance and cheer, milling through the square while checking out the different performance spots.
Local Acts to Play at CMJ Music Marathon
The 35th edition of the CMJ Music Marathon will be in New York City this week, and a few Boston bands will be in attendance (or rather, on stage). Our old friends, indie-rock band Oh, Malô, will take to the stage on Tuesday the 13th and Friday the 16th. Over the past year the band has released three color-themed EP’s (Red, Blue, and Orange) that will comprise half of their soon-to-be-released debut LP. They will be joined by fellow local acts like Lili N, Covey, mar | co, Honeysuckle, You Bred Raptors?, Eternals, and Vundabar!
Grey Season Releases Video of New Song “Madam Geneva”
Last Thursday, Boston-based rock-folk band Grey Season released a video of the song “Madam Geneva,” which was recorded on a crisp, overcast autumn afternoon– a day fitting of the band’s name. The video is part of Fitz Ross Productions‘ Spare Room Sessions, though there’s no room to be seen: it’s filmed on the dirt and gravel between two houses. This upbeat rocker’s antsy drums, vigorously strummed guitar, and furiously picked banjo brings the music of long dusty roads in Alabama to the streets of Boston. The video captures the eclecticism of the group, its members adorned with a hodge-podge of flannels, leather jackets, and denim vests. The song breaks down into a slowly swung three in the middle, punctuated by yells and yodels, before racing ahead once more. We recently caught Grey Season’s performance at Boston Calling at the end of September– you can check out that coverage here.
Hard In The Paint Releases Their Quarterly Recap
Hard In the Paint is a Boston-based blog that covers local hip-hop, R&B, and alternative music and the newest member to Boston Scene Party, a community of independent local music blogs. HITP recently released their quarterly recap of the best albums, songs, and videos from the Boston hip hop scene. Topping the lists were Merk’s album The6YS, Jefe Replay’s song “Sips Tea,” and Dutch Rebelle’s music video for “Air It Out.”
L.E. Purpose Releases Preview Of New Album
Amherst’s hip hop emcee L.E. Purpose released six of the twelve tracks from his new album Master of Ceremonies last week. His self-described “purpose music” can be found on SoundCloud.
Vote For Local Act Vapors of Morphine to Play At Bonnaroo
Hard cider brand Angry Orchard is putting together a series of five concerts in different locations across the country, with one local group at each location performing for the opportunity to play on the main stage at Bonnaroo 2016. The five shows will be in Philadelphia, Chicago, Seattle, Raleigh, and Boston. Boston’s show will be October 30th at The Middle East Downstairs and will feature Vapors of Morphine. You can vote for Vapors of Morphine here, and voting gives you the chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo 2016, which will be from June 9th to 12th in Manchester, Tennessee.