The Lowell Spin

03/11/2020

We'll provide our breakdown analysis in the near future. But in the meantime, how about this lineup?? 😍

Official poster of the 2020 Rock & Roll Rumble | design by Nicole Anguish / Daykamp Creative | more at rockandrollrumble.com

03/11/2020

5 Questions For: Alyssa Vautier of The Lowell Spin

This time we turned the questions onto one of our own writers. Get to know Alyssa!

We at The Lowell Spin are very proud of the writing staff we retain and cultivate. Our's is a collective of equal parts local music hipsters, media wonks, journalism majors with exquisite taste, and the most obsessive grown up scene kids you've ever laid eyes upon, and we love them to death. Every s...

03/10/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: What is the furthest distance you have traveled to see a band?

03/09/2020

Review: oldsoul – You Were Overwhelmed

oldsoul's highly anticipated sophomore album dropped last month and it did not disappoint.

In a short two month span, 2020 has already dosed us with sonic texture like Slow Loris's latest self titled EP and Disco Volante's "Reasons To Stay At Home". This year's Lowell scene is ramped up with promise, especially upon listen to oldsoul's sophomore full length album "You Were Overwhelmed". T...

03/08/2020

Lowell Spin backs local hip hop 1000% SoloArtist / Chi Tashi

03/07/2020

Review: Floor Hockey – “hideaway”

Floor Hockey is back with a new single with a chill vibe in a chill season.

Local "juvenescent dreamrock" band Floor Hockey dropped a highly anticipated follow up single to their May 2019 album release Today's Kids. The latest single, "hideaway" shows the Lowell collective taking on a new approach. While Today's Kids showcased more lively tracks that get you out of your sea...

03/04/2020

Review: The Only Things – You Can’t Rush Genius

"The record embodies a homegrown sound I feel typifies Lowell, almost totally just by the force of The Only Things and their contributions to our fair scene."

I personally don’t come from a punk rock background. When it seemed everyone else was listening to Against Me! and The Offspring, I sought out 2005-era hipster mainstays like Cursive, and hometown early 2000's heroes Harris. If those were your influences, you might very much get on well with You C...

03/03/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s Topic: SUPER TUESDAY! What is your favorite political song? (Local or National)

03/02/2020

Mass Mix: Billie Eilish, Emily King, And Other Artists Boston Has On Heavy Rotation

This month's WGBH's Mass Mix features Lina Cooper who frequents Lowell from time to time. Be sure to check out one of her recent singles, "By Abe's".

It's time again for Mass Mix, our monthly roundup of songs we have on heavy rotation. March brings spring equinox, and songs that celebrate local music, women's history, and the spirit of moving forward. Here's what songs local music luminaries have been playing on repeat.

03/01/2020

Video Alert: Andrew Eckel – “Porcupine”

Happy March! Here's a bop we think you'll enjoy from Andrew Eckel.

Cambridge-based electronic pop artist, Andrew Eckel, released a video for his track “Porcupine,” a song which I imagine being played at either a dance party for nerds- or at a nerd party for dancing. I’m sure there’s a fine line between those two, but that can be discussed in another article...

02/28/2020

Photo of the Month – February 2020

This month’s photo features a self portrait of local musician Melissa Mills.

This month’s photo is a self-portait taken by Melissa Mills and edited by Alissa Lise Wyle. Mills used a series of colorful and unique self portraits to promote her latest single, "Lose My Cool". "Lose My Cool" is soulful, airy, sexy, and smooth synth-packed release that harkens back to the powerf...

02/26/2020

Review: Knock Over City – Dungeon Module 420

Knock Over City is back with one final release with Rick Surette on bass. Don't worry though, KOC remains active with shows planned for this winter, spring, and beyond.

The nice thing about Lowell band Knock Over City is that their music has something for everyone...provided that something is filtered through a lens of hard, plodding rock, recklessly oozing decibels. The self-proclaimed "trash rock" group's sound has run the gamut from glacial sludge metal to rauco...

02/25/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: Who are the biggest/popular (and currently active) bands from Massachusetts?

02/24/2020

Review: Analogs – DAYDREAM

"An unforgiving aura at first, the mix creates the expectation for the song to sound like a ripcord while it gently settles into place."

Check out our review of the recent release from Analogs

Lowell’s own Al Gentile is renown for his captivating and insightful writing. He’s written marvelous pieces for the likes of medium.com, Boston Hassle and *tosses hair back* The Lowell Spin. Actually, in addition to his contributions, Al has been a monumental influence on my writing since I bega...

02/21/2020

Review: Basel – Give it Time

There's a new band on the Lowell block. Check out the recent debut of Basel - band

Famed drummer Questlove once weighed in with love on the percussion of 90s hip hoppers Pharcyde. “It sounded like a drunk three-year-old programmed [their] kick drum,” he told Red Bull Music Academy in February of last year. Quest said he has applied that observation to his own music and the dev...

02/19/2020

Review: Zachary Boudrot – “Ringing”

Zachary Boudrot continues to give us a lot more to listen to than just the ringing in our ears. Check out the latest single "Ringing".

Zachary Boudrot’s “Ringing” feels cinematic. “I can taste the pollen on my tongue,” “I can feel your misty mountain blood,” Boudrot fills the song with such sensory and visual detail that you feel as if you’re standing in the middle of a forest, surrounded by the early morning cold m...

02/18/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s Topic: This one is for the drummers out there...1 rack tom or 2?

02/17/2020

Winter 2020 Playlist

New music for your cold ears featuring: oldsoul, Zachary Boudrot, Silvertongue, Phil Cambra & the Space Cadets, Slow Loris, SoloArtist, Travis Benson, Heather Millette Music, Lilac Queen, and reprieve.

Here’s our writers’ local recommendations for the winter season! This season features: oldsoul, Zachary Boudrot, Silvertongue, Phil Cambra & the Space Cadets, Slow Loris, SoloArtist, Travis Benson, Heather Millette, Lilac Queen, and Reprieve.

02/14/2020

Review: Disco Volante – Reasons To Stay At Home

Disco Volante - MA is keeping punk alive and well in Lowell.

Bursting onto the Lowell scene with the same energy as their latest release, Disco Volante’s newest offering is a proper ode to the melodic punk that came before it with a nod to some of your favorite bands to ever do it. Comprised of some familiar faces from the area, Daron (guitar/vox), Josh (ba...

02/12/2020

Review: Slow Loris – [Self-Titled] EP

Check out the latest drop from Slow Loris then spend your Valentine's Day with them later this week ❤️

The New Year rattled off with a quality release from Lowell locals Slow Loris. Self-described as an alternative group, this collective of UML students put out a self-titled release that I like to think of as bedroom jazz; “bedroom” from the EP’s easy-listening, pop character, and “jazz” fr...

02/11/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: How do you typically find out about upcoming shows?

02/10/2020

5 Questions For: Mike McMahon of :Satch: & Circus Battalion

Mike McMahon of :Satch:, Circus Battalion, and The Noise Floor answers, 5 Questions

As the booker for Lowell-based event planner the Noise Floor, Mike McMahon (known by his alter ego "John Wayne Swayze") has his fingers in many musical pies (to coin a weird metaphor). The organization has booked shows all around Lowell and the Boston area, frequently with Spin-featured artists like...

02/07/2020

Premiere: Phil Cambra & the Space Cadets – “Priorities”

We've got a brand new track from Phil Cambra & the Space Cadets which dropped today!

There’s something about being in your mid-twenties that makes a song about the existential crisis that is living so salient. In Phil Cambra & The Space Cadets’ new single Priorities, the question of what should be the driving force in your decision of what to do next with your life is tackled an...

02/05/2020

Review: Hands 3 – Alligator

If you're a fan of Corner Soul, you're definitely going to want to check out Hands 3

One of the great breakthroughs of 2019 was the rise of Corner Soul within the Lowell scene, who delivered an eccentric, multi-genre shot of glamorous pageantry directly into the veins of the ill-prepared Mill City, and earned a slot in the famed Rock N' Roll Rumble. Yet, while Corner Soul and their....

02/04/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: What open mics have you played or checked out this year? Which open mics do you plan on attending?

02/03/2020

Review: The Big Nest – “Shame”

Big Nest, Big debut, Big review

Noise rockers The Big Nest tell a number of stories in the near 80-minute runtime of their debut record Shame. For one, there’s the melodic slice of life offered on track four, “Cambridge Beach.” Similarly, there’s the mournful tale of mechanization overpowering nature on “Shame 2.” But,...

02/01/2020

Mass Mix: CHVRCHES, Oompa And Other Artists Boston Has On Heavy Rotation

Our collaboration with WGBH continues into 2020 featuring a new track from Renee Lamy

Is that love in the air? As we make our way into February, this month’s Mass Mix contributors looked to Valentine’s Day, thinking about the songs that best represented what love means to them. The good, the bad, and everything in between - here are the love songs we just can’t get out of our h...

01/31/2020

Photo of the Month – January 2020

This month's photo, captured by Zack Toto, features Brit of The Seawolves performing at The Tip.

This month’s photo, taken by Zack Toto features Brit Tsewole of The Seawolves performing at The Tip. If you have a photo you’d like us to feature, send us your best to [email protected] or tag us #lowellspin  

01/29/2020

United under one roof, Five by Two records fights age barriers in music

Get an inside look into Five By Two Records. And we mean that quite literally. We interviewed the McCarthys in the place where it all happens.

Security staff had grim predictions for local booker, music parent and owner of Five by Two Records Robert McCarthy as they got ready for an all-ages show packed with under 21 musicians late last fall. “I guarantee we’re going to have people sneaking booze into the green room,” they said. “I...

01/28/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: Boston Calling Music Festival lineup was released today. What are your thoughts? Will you go? Who would you be excited to see?

01/27/2020

Review: Fatigue’s Fatigue – Sharp, Dark, and Remarkably Human

New dark synth pop act in Lowell? Fatigue makes an introduction.

From within the Lowell music scene, there are certain genres that - to me - seem awfully distant and far away. Abstract jazz comes to mind always amid a Los Angeles or New York City backdrop. Truly enrapturing dark synth pop is almost unthinkable outside of defining bands like Depeche Mode, and the....

01/25/2020

Jim’s Sh*tty Show Review: Somewhere in Everett 12/7/19

This time, Jim takes his show reviews into new territory to see Queen Crony, Beverly Tender, Palberta, and more!

Looking for a deep analysis of music? Craving those beautifully crafted descriptions? Look elsewhere on our site for that. Jim goes to shows. He has thoughts and these are them. So okay I haven't done one of these in a while. I don't do them for shows I play or shows I'm not there the...

01/22/2020

Get Sad, Drink Your Milk: Sad Milk Collective

In an ever changing music industry that can often leave artists out to dry, the Sad Milk Collective are blazing their own path on content delivery.

Itching for more content from your favorite Lowell staples? Are you tired of waiting for Squash new LP to drop? Need to just sit down and ingest the lactose you know will inevitably destroy you? If so, get stoked & get ready to see what The Sad Milk Collective has in store for you this...

01/21/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY:

Today’s topic: Which local bands and performers are releasing new music this year? What should we be on the lookout for?

01/19/2020

Jim’s Sh*tty Show Review: UnchARTed?!?

Just when you thought we'd never post another UnchARTed show review ever again .... you thought wrong! In fact, so did we.

Looking for a deep analysis of music? Craving those beautifully crafted descriptions? Look elsewhere on our site for that. Jim goes to shows. He has thoughts and these are them. This is a review I wrote 6 months ago or something I did it on my phone instead of my computer so it got lost....

01/16/2020

As I'm sure you're aware, vast sections of Australia have been devastated by wildfires. We're happy to support and join this benefit show as a co-sponsor featuring an incredble lineup, all for a good cause featuring: StrangeColorSky, Zachary Boudrot, The Shirts And Shoes, Bullpup Band, Pregame Rituals, Rasputin, Silvertongue, Madi Williams Music, Phil Cambra & the Space Cadets, thegrigris_music, and more!

Event link in the comments.

Flyer by Asia Christina IG: @earthwurms

01/16/2020

We just hit the 1K mark on our Instagram account @thelowellspin

Thanks everyone 🙏

01/15/2020

Review: This Body is All I Have in the World – In the Quiet

It's always fun to check out a new local band's debut. This body is all i have in this world has made an impressive introduction.

This Body is All I Have in the World released their debut EP, In the Quiet in late November 2019. They give us six innovatively composed songs that are at times bittersweet, but at times also as bleak as their band name and album title would imply. The band is a two-piece based in both...

01/14/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: Seminars (Part II). We're going to bring in EXPERTS on various music scene topics for a free and open to the public Q&A discussion panel series. What do you think the best location for such an event would be?

01/12/2020

Thanks to Heather Millette, bullpup, Girlscoutcookies, Runaway After Dark, and The Worthen Attic for making our first All Ages Sunday Matinee Series show a success! 1 down, 11 to go! See you all throughout 2020.

01/10/2020

Premiere: Cassie Pearl – s/t

🚨Music Premiere Alert🚨
We've got the just released solo debut EP from Cassandra Pearl Wise

Slated for a later release, Cassie Pearl's self-titled EP tumbled it's way into our eardrums earlier than intended. Cassie Pearl has created a yummy taste of glitchy pop, using relatable lyrical content that puts you in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, post tunnel ride downstream. Trappy, crushy bea...

01/08/2020

5 Questions For: Heather Millette

Heather Millette Music is a playing this Sunday at The Worthen Attic Get to know to know her then go see a show!

Heather Millette has been a longtime mainstay of the Lowell music scene both as an observer and participant, regularly making appearances at open mic nights around the city, and as part of The Hearing Room's regular singer-songwriter showcases. With the release of her debut EP I Gotta Go to a wide a...

01/07/2020

It’s TOPIC TUESDAY!

Today’s topic: Seminars. We're going to bring in EXPERTS on various music scene topics for a free and open to the public Q&A discussion panel series. What topics do you want to learn more about?

01/06/2020

A Preview: The Lowell Spin Sunday Matinee All Ages Show Series

Keeping all ages shows alive is important so we decided to book one and by one, we mean one dozen.

For the entirety of 2020 we will be hosting an entirely new Lowell Spin series: The Lowell Spin Sunday Matinee All Ages Show Series. In an effort to include the younger crowds and all genres, this new series aims to host a variety of differing shows at different venues each month. Already on tap we....

01/05/2020

Which Lowell Band Are You?

Did the world need a Lowell scene BuzzFeed style personality quiz? Of course not. Did we go ahead and make one anyway? Let us know who you got in the comments!

LowellSpin.com