Samiam, New Rising Suns, Drexel

Middle East, Cambridge, MA

I've been a huge Samiam fan since I first heard them (around Billy), but I had never seen them live before; as you can guess, I was pretty damn psyched for this show...I was almost beginning to think that I was setting myself up for a letdown.

Knowing that it was an all-ages show and thinking that it would be starting earlier because of that, I got there way too early; but it's better than missing it. Local band Drexel opened the show. Decent music — fast punk with some Helmetish grooves (minus the big riffs) mixed in. The vocals weren't always on key, but as a whole were still pretty decent (especially the drummer).

I was surprised how much I liked New Rising Suns (photo, top). They were billed as "ex-Texas is the Reason", so I had an idea how they'd sound; turns out they were a little slower than I expected. Good songs — slow and kinda long, yes, but well-played — heavy chords, good singing, and overall good musicianship. Not the most exciting band to watch, but it says a lot when I enjoy watching despite the fact that I've never heard them and aren't even really crazy about their musical style.

Samaim (left) far exceeded my expectations. They took the stage and started right off with "Full On", the first song off their latest album You Are Freaking Me Out. The sound was great (although the vocals could've been louder), and I haven't seen a band play with so much energy in a LONG time — I don't think any of them remained still except for inbetween songs. Lead guitarist Sergie Loobkoff was especially animated, losing his pick on more than one occasion (luckily he keeps a spare right on his guitar). They played mostly songs from Clumsy and their newest record, plus a couple from Billy and Soar (I don't remember them playing anything from their first album). Although the set they played was fantastic, I would've like to have heard more of the older stuff (and I wasn't alone, as many people shouted out their requests all night)...I guess it's my own fault for not catching them live until now.

Uploaded May 1998