trunk stubs

Artist: Fastball

City Attended: Uncasville, CT

Venue: Wolf Den (Mohegan Sun: Casino & Resort)

Concert Date: 02-10-20

The Reason We Went: One of the most underrated bands of the late ‘90’s alternative scene, the Austin, Texas natives’ album All the Pain Money Can Buy was a gem in the rock radio rough, which at the time, was mostly dominated by deep-throated “modern rockers” like Creed and Days of the New. Consisting of duel frontmen Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga, they were clearly a band of songwriters first and foremost, who, as proven with All the Pain Money Can Buy, knew how to write full, front-to-back albums that you consumed without ever hitting the shuffle button.

What We Thought: Although it’s going on 22 years since the band hit it big with the mega-single “The Way,” they have not skipped a single beat, sounding as tight and as sharp as they did when MTV played actual music videos. And while many of those in attendance were understandably on hand to hear songs like “Fire Escape” and “Out of My Head” meant to tickle the nostalgic parts of the brain, it was Fastball’s most recent material from their 2019 release The Help Machine that proved their lasting appeal. Tracks like “White Collar,” the hands-down highlight of the night, reminded everyone why they left their mark on pop culture in the first place.

Artist: The Brother Brothers

City Attended: Waltham, MA

Venue: Charles River Museum

Concert Date: 12-13-20

The Reason We Went: The harmonies that identical twin brothers Adam and David Moss displayed on their 2018 full-length debut, Some People I Know, were a mesmerizing window that peered into the duo’s potential as artists and songwriters. Getting to see them in the intimate setting of an industrial museum, surrounded by items from our collective pasts – including old cars, bikes, steam-powered contraptions and various equipment that helped to shape our present – was an opportunity too good to pass up.

What We Thought: Although getting out of the cold New England air and into the venue proved to be a difficult task (watch the instructional video on the Charles River Museum’s website so you don’t make the same mistakes we did!!!!), the music that The Brother Brothers offered up to the audience was so warm and welcoming that it melted the Boston-area chill. The magical, historical feel of the space combined with Adam and David’s almost-whimsical way of engaging an audience through song made this a very special night. Those in attendance familiar with Some People I Know relished in live takes of “Mary Ann,” “Frankie,” and “Colorado,” while it was an acoustic rendition of Peter Rowan’s “Angel Island” to close out the night that served as the perfect exclamation point on an exceptional evening on the Charles.

Bonus Takeaway: If the new tracks shared by Adam and David are any indication, The Brother Brother’s upcoming follow-up to Some People I Know will be an even more noteworthy collection of songs than their debut. Stay tuned for that one in 2020!

Title: Zombieland: Double Tap

Rated: R

Genre: Horror, Comedy, Action

Release Date: October 18, 2019

Run Time: 1 hour 39 minutes

Directed By: Ruben Fleischer

Starring: Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg, Rosario Dawson, Abigail Breslin, Zoey Deutch

Reason We’re Watching It: Like so many others, we loved the first “Zombieland” and we’ve been wanting a sequel the way Tallahassee wanted a Twinkie in the first movie. The long wait is finally over and the original cast is back in action 10 years later.

What It’s All About: Tallahassee, Columbus, Wichita and Little Rock are all living in apocalyptic harmony until Little Rock decides to hit the road in search of a companion more her age. With the emergence of a new breed of zombie, dubbed the T-800, the group fears for Little Rock’s well-being and go after her to make sure she is safe and sound.

Whoah! Rewind That!: As with the first “Zombieland,” there are a lot of “Rewind that!” moments, but our favorite involved Rosario Dawson’s character, Nevada, behind the wheel of a monster truck in a pit of zombies. The results are exactly what you would expect.

Watercooler-Worthy Tidbit: Bill Murray may have been double-tapped in the first film, but stay for the end credits to see how the zombie apocalypse all began while Bill Murray was doing a press junket for “Garfield 3.”

And that’s why we’re giving it…

Title: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Rated: PG-13

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Mystery

Release Date: August 9, 2019

Run Time: 1 hour 51 minutes

Directed By: André Øvredal

Written By: Alvin Schwartz (novel), Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Guillermo del Toro (screenplay), Marcus Dunstan (story by), Patrick Melton (story by)

Starring: Zoe Margaret, Michael Garza, Gabriel Rush

Reason We’re Watching It: If you didn’t grow up reading “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” a novel by Alvin Schwartz, then you heard about it on the news. It is one of the most banned books at school libraries… because it terrifies children. Our staff is a little coocoo for horror, so when we heard Guillermo del Toro was bringing these stories to visual life, we had to see our childhood nightmares play out on the silver screen.

What It’s All About: One of the things that surprised us about this movie was how well the story and narrative weaved all of the scary stories together. It’s always a challenge to take a handful of separate stories and try to blend those together into one cohesive film, and it was done masterfully here. There is even what we believe to be some social and political commentary going on, as this is set during the Nixon era but parallels some of the issues that we see happening today.

Whoah! Rewind That!: There were so many great visual moments in the movie, but when the “Me Tie Dought-y Walker” (Troy James) shows up, let’s just say he knows how to make an entrance! And it was during this scene that we whispered to others in the theater, “Are you sure this is PG-13?”

Watercooler-Worthy Tidbit: James, the actor who plays the “Me Tie Dough-ty Walker,” also played the “Baba Yaga” witch in the recent “Hellboy” reboot starring David Harbour as the lovable red demon. James first showcased his contortionist skills on the hit TV show “America’s Got Talent,” and of course, played Rag Doll in “The Flash.”

And that’s why we’re giving it…

Title: The Boys

Rated: TV-MA

Genre: Action, Superhero, Dark Comedy, Drama

Release Date: July 26, 2019

Run Time: Approximately 60 minutes per episode. (8 Episodes/Season 1)

Starring: Karl Urban, Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, Jack Quaid, Anthony Starr, Elisabeth Shue, Jennifer Esposito, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capon, Nathan Mitchell, Karen Fukuhara

Reason We’re Watching It: Not only are there superheroes in the show, “The Boys” has a team of creative superheroes behind the scenes comprised of Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Eric Kripke. After seeing how Rogen and Goldberg handled bringing “Preacher” to the small screen, “The Boys” had us at, “Hello.”

What It’s All About: A team of vigilantes band together to try and take down a corrupt group of superheroes. This isn’t your kiddos Marvel movie so unless your children are over 30, we would recommend they sit this one out. You will soon find yourself rooting against the so-called heroes of the show and questioning what would life really be like if superheroes flew among us.

Whoah! Rewind That!: You’ll find yourself rewinding several moments in each episode and rubbing your eyeballs in a cartoon-like manner, asking yourself, “Did I just see that?!” But to avoid some spoilers we’ll go with the scene you can view in the final trailer for “The Boys.” Hughie Campbell (Quaid) is sharing a tender moment with his girlfriend near the street when A-Train (Usher) literally runs right through her, splattering Hughie with viscera and leaving him still holding his girlfriend’s hands, the only thing left of her.

Watercooler-Worthy Tidbit: “The Boys” is based on a real comic book series of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Ennis also wrote and created “Preacher,” the last TV series that Rogen and Goldberg worked on for AMC.

And that’s why we’re giving it…

Event: WWE SmackDown LIVE

City Attended: Providence, RI

Venue: Dunkin’ Donuts Center

Concert Date: 05-22-19

The Reason We Went: As children of the 1980s, we grew up with the understanding that if we trained, ate our vitamins, said our prayers and believed in ourselves that we could grow up as strong and raspy-voiced as Hulk Hogan. We idolized The Rockers, snapped into Slim Jims because Randy “Macho Man” Savage suggested it and loved to hate heel managers like Bobby “The Brain” Heenan. And now, 30+ years later, our kids are enjoying the same experience as they pour themselves into every pulled punch of current roster stars like The New Day, Becky “The Man” Lynch and Braun Strowman. It’s a shared experience that we can have with our kids that transcends generations, and in a world that is moving at the speed of light, it’s nice to have something that, while much different than the WWF that we enjoyed at their age, is essentially operating under the same set of rules.

What We Thought: With a big focus on character returns, including The New Day’s Big E and newly-formed heel Dolph Ziggler, the night offered a lot of surprises for those who don’t follow Internet spoilers. There was plenty of foreshadowing, including a main event between Roman Reigns and Elias, that further set the table for Reigns versus Shane McMahon at the upcoming WWE SuperShowdown on Friday June 7. Becky Lynch induced the most raucous pop from the crowd as the Rhode Islanders in attendance went nuts for the charismatic bad girl with good intentions. All in all, it was a night that both the young (our kids) and the old (us) could enjoy.

Bonus Takeaway: Live WWE events are a blast, but it can be jarring to watch the matches without the color commentary, which in our opinion, always enhances the action by way of propelling the narrative forward or injecting a dose of humor. Why not stream that commentary through the stadium speakers or at least offer up a way for those in attendance to listen live from their mobile devices? Hell, if we willingly paid $6.00 for a bottle of water, we’d be happy to pay for a chance to further enhance the experience.

And that’s why we’re giving this show…

Title: John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum

Rated: R

Genre: Action/Thriller

Release Date: May 17, 2019

Run Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, Mark Dacascos, Asia Kate Dillon

Director: Chad Stahelski

Writers: Derek Kolstad (Story and Screenplay), Shay Hatten (Screenplay), Chris Collins (Screenplay), Marc Abrams (Screenplay)

Reason We’re Watching It: The first two installments of “John Wick” were nothing short of cinematic action masterpieces. It’s a simple plot, but it’s done so well and with such a likeable cast of characters that you can’t help but overlook their murderous ways and root for them like they’re your hometown team. So, with that in mind, you can bet that we will be it the front row of every “John Wick” installment ready to root, root, root for the Mr. Wick team. Some of our group have even gone the extra mile, getting their spare pencils and John Wick licensed replica airsoft Pistol orders ready for beforehand!

What It’s All About: “Parabellum” picks up immediately where “John Wick 2” left off. Mr. Wick has become excommunicado with a $14 million bounty on his head as a result of killing a member of The High Table in The Continental hotel. There are plenty of twists and turns along the way that weave a narrative tapestry, as well as amazing fight sequences and even glimpses into John Wick’s upbringing and training.

Whoah! Rewind That!: There were so many great fight scenes it’s hard to pick one moment, but it was pretty great to see Charon (Lance Reddick) offer up his concierge services in ways we have not seen before in the “John Wick” films.

Watercooler-Worthy Tidbit: Ian McShane will inform you of this in the film, but “Parabellum” is from the Latin phrase: “Si vis pacem, para bellum,” which means, “If you want peace, prepare for war.” It is also another name for the 9mm handgun cartridge.

And that’s why we’re giving it…

Title: The Dirt

Rated: R

Genre: Biopic/Drama

Release Date: March 22, 2019

Directed By: Jeff Tremaine

Starring: Machine Gun Kelly, Douglas Booth, Daniel Webber, Iwan Rheon, Levan Rambin, Pete Davidson, Tony Cavalero, David Costabile, Rebekah Graf

Reason We’re Watching It: This one’s easy. We grew up in the ‘80s. Mötley Crüe is part of the soundtrack to our impressionable pop culture-inspired lives, so naturally we’d be interested in learning more about how that soundtrack came to fruition.

What It’s All About: From humble (and dysfunctional) beginnings to superstardom, this Netflix biopic is the feature film adaptation of the best-selling Mötley Crüe biography of the same name. While it shows the ups of rock ‘n’ roll fame, mostly it focuses on the downs, which plagued the band member’s personal lives. From addiction to loss, no one inside the band was immune, and while they have since retired from the stage, the four musical misfits found a family among themselves and will forever be a part of the mainstream musical tapestry.

One big area where the filmmakers missed an opportunity was including more of the band’s iconic songs throughout the course of the film. Unlike “Bohemian Rhapsody” which made the tunes a marquee-sharing costar, many of the Crüe’s hits were left on the editing room floor. You can’t get pumped when there’s no track to pump your first to.

Whoah! Rewind That!: The urban legends surrounding Ozzy Osbourne seem limitless, but seeing him onscreen – or at least Tony Cavelero portraying him – sniffing live ants off of concrete is worth a second “Oh no he didn’t” viewing.

Watercooler-Worthy Tidbit: “Game of Thrones” fans will recognize the actor who plays Mick Mars as Iwan Rheon, otherwise known as the most evil onscreen SOB ever to be eaten by a pack of hungry dogs, Ramsay Bolton.

And that’s why we’re giving it…

Artist: Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds

City Attended: Fall River, MA

Venue: The Narrows Center

Concert Date: 01-25-19

The Reason We Went: With a mesmerizing, grandiose voice that can transport you into any song, original or cover, Sister Sparrow, aka Arleigh Kincheloe, has wowed us with her studio recordings – including 2018’s Gold – so we made it our mission to observe her in the wild, uncaged and set free to fly above an audience.

What We Thought: Those Dirty Birds can chirp! While Kincheloe is clearly a star who effortlessly commands your attention, the band that surrounds her is flocking fantastic. Each member of the seven-piece musical ensemble had their individual moments to shine, including a rousing trumpet solo by Phil Rodriguez that brought the crowd to its collective feet. Keyboardist Nat Osborn also oozes star quality, which shined through as he handled partial vocals on a cover of Toto’s “Rosanna” while remaining an enchanting focal point throughout the set. Kincheloe meanwhile didn’t disappoint, moving us with her wide-ranging vocals and entertaining us with her natural stage presence. One thing was made clear by the end of the night… see this band live because they will exceed every single expectation.

Bonus Takeaway: The venue was fantastic for soaking in the sound of a live performance, including the opening act, Boston-based GA-20, who played a spirited blues set that inspired us to listen to some Buddy Guy on the ride home following the show.

And that’s why we’re giving this show…

Check out our interview with Kincheloe here.

The featured photo is not from the actual show. Courtesy of the Sister Sparrow Twitter page @SisterSparrowDB.

Artist: 98º

Tour: 98º at Christmas 2018

City Attended: Medford, MA

Venue: Chevalier Theater

Concert Date: 12-08-18

The Reason We Went: Discovering fun holiday-related things to do throughout the month of December always gives a shot to the arm of the ye olde spirit meter. The childhood-like nostalgia of hearing harmonized vocal renditions of Christmas classics is about as good as it gets in that regard, an audible tree topper on the entire season.

What We Thought: At their peak in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, 98º was a chart-topping, platinum-producing, hit-making machine. Lumped into the boy band craze of that particular time period, they were often compared to the Backstreet Boys, yet always considered themselves more Boyz II Men. Like its four members, the fans who adored 98º two decades ago have since grown up, but apparently absence has made their harmony-loving hearts grow fonder. Screams permeated the theater as the quartet delivered a two hour set of both holiday favorites and some of the biggest hits from their own catalog of music, which the mostly middle-aged crowd of women excitedly unwrapped like presents on Christmas morning.

Show Highlight: We’re suckers for the classics, especially the off-beat ones. The group’s rendition of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” was extremely entertaining, highlighting the fun that they themselves are having reconnecting with old favorites, both songs and fans alike.

For upcoming dates, click here.
To read our interview with 98º member Jeff Timmons, click here.

And that’s why we’re giving it…