The gorgeous weekend rolled on in Boston, with a lineup that's a little different than your average day at Boston Calling. Tyler Childers will close out the night, making him the first country music artist to ever headline Boston Calling. But before we get to that…
The crowd seemed to roll in a little bit slower as the afternoon started. The first band I caught was Bad Rabbits over on the Red Stage. This Boston-based band blends together rock, funk, rap, and just about any other style of music you can think of, for a unique style of their own. Being from the area, Bad Rabbits have a huge local following and were excited to make their return to Boston Calling after playing the inaugural festival back in 2013. Frontman Fredua Boakye is a powerhouse performer and is backed up by an incredible band with Santiago Araujo on guitar, Sheel Davé on drums, Mike Landry on bass, and Gavin Castleton on keyboards.
You will find all sorts of music around Boston Calling, like the indie-folk stylings of Motherfolk, the alternative/R&B musings of d4vd (pronounced “David”), and the punk rock sounds of Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls. After his second song, Frank’s guitar tech handed him an acoustic guitar, and he said, “If you haven’t seen me before, this is an acoustic guitar. Yes, this is a punk rock show. Do not be alarmed.” Frank recently set records by playing shows in all 50 states in 50 days, as well as playing 15 shows in 15 different cities in the UK in less than 24 hours. It’s easy to see how his sound has such a wide appeal.
On the Orange Stage, I caught a local country rock band, Ward Hayden and the Outliers. The band has a devoted following in the area, and I think many of the fans in cowboy boots who came today for Tyler Childers’ set found enjoyment in their performance.
Next up, I caught a band I was not familiar with, and honestly, I’m still not sure how to pronounce their name. Khruangbin was a band I heard people talk about all weekend, so I made sure not to miss their set. With an elaborate stage setup with risers and big archways in the back, this three-piece band has a unique vibe. Their performance is mostly instrumental, with bassist Laura Lee Ochoa and guitarist Mark Speer occasionally whispering chants into the microphone but never really singing any lyrics. Laura Lee had a bright orange dress with matching orange pants on, and she and Mark made very calculated, funky moves with their bodies as they jammed around the stage. I don’t know what I was expecting from the way everyone was talking about them, but this was not it. The crowd absolutely loved vibing out to their set, and the reaction to them was huge.
As soon as Khruangbin finished, a different type of vibe was about to jam over on the Red Stage, with Trey Anastasio and Classic TAB. With a 90-minute set, many bands would have a dozen or more songs in their performance. Trey managed to play nine songs, primarily from the Phish catalog. The jam band crowd was very happy to see this icon on stage. Anastasio, along with drummer Russ Lawton, keyboardist Ray Paczkowski, and bassist Dezron Douglas, kept the jams flowing constantly, with their set ending a few minutes late as Trey carried on a guitar solo. Ray and Dezron both had their own solos featured in the set as well.
Closing out the Blue Stage for the night was Jessie Murph, a pop country singer with a little bit of a gangsta style. A friend mentioned that she had collaborated on a song with Jelly Roll, and that makes perfect sense. She showed off her vocal talents on songs like “If I Died Last Night,” and she even included a cover of Rihanna’s “S&M” in her set.
The night then ended with the aforementioned Tyler Childers. The stage was dressed like a vintage living room, with furniture straight out of the '70s. An old TV played black-and-white videos on it throughout his performance. The eight-piece band is led by Tyler and features a pedal steel guitarist, a stand-up bass player, two piano players, and “The Professor” Jesse Wells, who switched between guitar and violin as needed. The band was well polished. I am by no means a country music fan, but throughout their performance, I kept coming back to that word: polished. The band was incredibly tight, which is no easy feat when you have that many members. Devoted fans sang along to the 20-song set, a historic performance to wrap up the second night of Boston Calling.
