Rock Music Menu headed a few hours north over Memorial Day weekend to the annual Boston Calling Music Festival, which took place across three days at the Harvard Athletic Complex on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The lineup, featuring headliners and sub-headliners Luke Combs, Dave Matthews Band, T-Pain, Vampire Weekend, Fall Out Boy, Avril Lavigne and Public Enemy, was diverse as it was divisive.
Getting off to a rocky start Friday with the last-minute cancellation of ’90s outfit TLC, who provided no explanation for the absence other than attributing it to a “medical circumstance,” Boston Calling was dealt a wet hand by the weather gods, too.
Temperatures were in the 50s, with rain wavering between steady and annoying, as TLC bookends Sheryl Crow and Max McNown were left to fill the R&B trio-now-duo’s void.
The country vibe of some of the crowd who came to see that night’s headliner, Combs, came off as a bit bro-ey and roughneck with all the cowboy boots on the soaked ground, but there was salvation to be found throughout the day on the three stages.
Boston electropop trio Battlemode were one of the undeniable bright spots on the day, kicking off the proceedings with a spirited set on the Orange Stage, which features up-and-coming homegrown talent.
This year also marked the return of the Arena to Boston Calling, which in the past was utilized for comedy, film screenings, and an overall respite from the weather, be it the heat or the rain.
Making a comeback after six years away, the spot served as a weekend-long destination to check out afternoon and early evening sets from jazz musicians enrolled in the Berklee College of Music.
Over on the Allianz Blue Stage, Auto-Tune-embracing rapper T-Pain filled what is technically a space for midtier artists, but throughout the weekend would make a case for being on par with the headliner Green Stage.
Speaking of, it was on the latter where Nashville-based Megan Moroney warmed up the 10-gallon hat camp for Combs to wind down the day.
The weather was a bit more accommodating on Saturday, though still bringing a healthy drizzle here and there.
Lineup-wise, it was easily the most cohesive, especially in terms of pop punk, which made for legions riding the rail all day at the Green Stage for The Maine, All Time Low, Avril Lavigne, and that night’s headliner, Fall Out Boy.
Not exactly out of place, but still standing out among that grouping, was Cage the Elephant. If you saw the Kentucky alt-rock band in September at The Mann, it’s hard to forget not just that singer Matt Schultz was using a scooter to get around onstage due to a broken foot, but that it barely slowed him down.
As one of the most enigmatic frontmen in music today, he’s now back to 100 percent, flying all around the stage, following his older brother — and Cage guitarist — Brad into the crowd, and converting anyone unfamiliar with the group.
The Blue Stage had its own solid run going on Saturday, with indie pop four-piece Lucius invoking the White Stripes with a red and white color scheme, followed by English troubadour James Bay making the ladies swoon and scream as he lyrically poured his heart out with a knowing wink that said, “I love you as much as you love me.”
But it was The Black Crowes who stole the day, as frontman Chris Robinson declared the Southern rockers to be the only rock ‘n’ roll representation at the whole festival, with a bit of colorful language added for emphasis.
Powering through a 10-song set that began with “No Speak No Slave” and closed with “Remedy,” it’s downright amazing to see how rejuvenated Robinson and his guitarist brother Rich are since returning under the Crowes name in 2019.
Even with the omission of so-called “signature songs” like “She Talks to Angels” and “Jealous Again,” it felt like a full set given the energy from the pair and solid backing musicians.
The final day of Boston Calling saw two Philly bands open up the Green Stage with the funk/alternative stylings of Snacktime, followed by the indie rock ruckus by Mo Lowda & The Humble.
Ambling back over to the Orange Stage after that double-shot, Nate Perry & Ragged Company caught the attention of passersby with a rootsy Americana that one couldn’t help but be drawn to with its working-class incantations.
It remained chilly but with the occasional bright spots, most notably during the Green Stage afternoon set of Sublime.
Moments after frontman Jakob Nowell was talking about how difficult the day was, as it marked the 29th anniversary of the death of his father, Bradley, whose role at the mic he inherited, the sun poignantly broke through the clouds.
At the same time, Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello was over on the Blue Stage, ripping through heaps of riffs from his now-defunct rap-rocking unit, and bringing out Public Enemy frontman Chuck D for a mini-Prophets of Rage reunion.
Public Enemy followed the guitarist, with D and hype man for the ages, Flavor Flav, laying waste to the audience as they tore through hits like “Shut ‘Em Down,” “Welcome to the Terrordome,” “Don’t Believe the Hype,” “Bring the Noise,” and more.
The pair played up to the crowd early by revealing matching Jayson Tatum Celtics jerseys, putting aside their New York Knicks fandom temporarily to wish the Boston power forward well as he recovers from a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Dave Matthews Band closed out Sunday — and the festival — with an expectedly hits-heavy set tinted with covers like Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” and Cameo’s “Word Up!”
Vinyl of the Week
Keep an eye on this spot as each week we’ll be looking at new or soon-to-be-released vinyl from a variety of artists. It might be a repressing of a landmark recording, special edition, or new collection from a legendary act.
This week, it’s a 1979 live record from a band that captured a group at the peak of their commercial powers.
Supertramp: “Live in Paris ’79”
There’s little argument that in 1979, Supertramp was one of the biggest bands in the world, following the release and extensive accompanying tour for the album “Breakfast in America,” which came out that March.
Now, a show from that tour with the UK outfit at the peak of their popularity is getting a proper release.
The complete set “Live in Paris ’79,” at the 8,000-seat Pavillon de Paris, on the third of four sold-out nights, is now available on three-LP and two-CD sets.
Recorded on Dec. 1 and 2, 1979, the classic lineup of members singer/keyboardist Rick Davies and singer/guitarist/keyboardist Roger Hodgson with John Helliwell on sax, woodwinds, vocals and keyboards and a rhythm section made up of bassist DougieThomson and drummer Bob Siebenberg captures Supertramp at quite possibly the apex of its career.
Unlike the previously released 1980 “Paris” live album, featuring selections from earlier shows of this Paris run, the triple LP and double CD features the complete Supertramp show from the tour, compiled from recordings during the two December shows.
It features performances of classics like “Bloody Well Right,” “The Logical Song,” “Breakfast in America,” “Goodbye Stranger,” “Give A Little Bit,” “Dreamer” and “Take the Long Way Home.”
“Those Paris shows were a definite high point for us because you could feel the audience reaction,” saxophonist Helliwell said in a statement. “You can actually hear the volatility in the French crowd. They sound a little mad!”
The concerts came at the tail end of the band being on the road for almost 10 months throughout America, Canada and Europe in support of “Breakfast in America,” one of 1979’s top-selling albums, which moved more than 20 million copies.
Not only did the record produce several hit singles, but it also went on to win two Grammy awards: Best Recording Package and Best Engineered Album (Non-Classical).
Success was a long time coming for the London-based band that started in 1969 and, with a new lineup, reached stardom in 1974 with the release of its third album “Crime of the Century.”
Five years after that, they had a record that was No. 1 on charts around the world and one of the hottest tours of 1979.
Supertramp “Live in Paris 1979” can be found online and from all respectable retailers who carry vinyl.
To contact music columnist Michael Christopher, send an email to rockmusicmenu@gmail.com. Also, check out his website at thechroniclesofmc.com.
Source: Berkshire mont