This last gig brought me to
The Precinct in Somerville, MA. Local by my standards, just about an hour door to door. While I had an amazing time, I've struggled with this blog post and I've been just sitting on it for a week now. The biggest obstacle is where to start--I just have so much to say but I don't want to blather on ad nauseum. It's supposed to be about the pictures after all. I guess I'll start at the beginning.
The Precinct is cool. it used to be home to the Somerville Police Department and while they left only tidbits of the original cell integrity (a small section of the cell bars) intact, it is kind of wild to party in jail! I'm proud to say that that's the closest I've ever come to actually being in a jail cell.
I did a little research on this place before leaving and after seeing the menu I decided we'd go a little early and have dinner before the show. We arrived at 8pm. Parking is a bit of an issue but we fared ok in a free lot a block away just past the venue on the right.
This is what I like to call a "down under" bar. You've got to walk down a set of stairs, below street level, to get into this place. It gives it a speakeasy feel. You might be able to take your family there for lunch but I wouldn't. This is definitely a bar atmosphere and it's probably best kept on your adult list of things-to-do. Like I said, it's cool in there............
"Front Room"
"Back Room"
There are a couple of different rooms and you can get the full menu of dinner and drinks in both the "Front Room" and the "Back Room". The "Back Room" is behind heavy velvet drapes and it houses the stage for entertainment so we chose to eat there. We paid the $10 cover and chose a great spot up off the main floor with a perfect view of the stage. The "Back Room" was empty, but for musicians setting up and the bar personnel,when we arrived. That would change drastically as the night wore on. I could write an entire blog about this place alone and it appears that I'm headed in that direction so I'll just cut to the chase.....
MOTHER OF GOD! THE FOOD IS PHENOMENAL!
They have a great menu but a few things jumped off the page at us. Before ordering we told the bartender that this was our first time there and we wanted to sample a few things. He alerted us to the large portion sizes and I'm so thankful that he did. We ordered a cup of Clam Chowder, a Greek Salad and Steak Frites and split all three dishes between the two of us and it was more than enough food.
The Clam Chowder...........
Honestly, it was just ok. I've been cooking for 38 years, 20 of those spent in restaurant kitchens so you can comfortably take my word on this. Constructively, I just want to note what the issue was. Specifically it tasted like they used a flour slurry (as opposed to one made with cornstarch) as a thickening agent instead of a butter based roux and this resulted in an uncooked-pasty-like-flour-flavor. There is a quick and easy fix to that and based on the rest of my culinary experience there I'm going to chalk up the chowder blunder to an isolated "oops". You can't be perfect all the time and if I went there again I would give the chowder another try. I'm absolutely certain they'd pass the next taste test with flying colors!
The Greek Salad..........
I don't think this picture is doing this salad any justice at all size-wise. This is a full sized dinner plate and the salad was heaping. I could have made this a meal in and of itself and probably not finished it. It was incredibly fresh and flavorful and the cheeses and dressing were out of this world! Home run on this one Chef!!
The Steak Frites............
I don't even know if I have words for how beautiful this steak was!!! I've orderd this very same entree in Paris and
The Precinct version far exceeds the quality and flavors I experienced over the pond. The steak was perfectly seasoned, perfectly cooked, juicy and delicious!! It was served with a bleu cheese demi glace that enhanced the steak beautifully. OH!! The handcut fries!! Just like my mother used to make!! I have not stopped talking about this steak all week!! I actually dream about this steak! Grand slam Chef!!
With my tummy pleasingly full I turned my chair around to face the music. Up first were
The Rationales. Now would be the time to remind my readers that I am not a schooled music critic. I have opinions about music but I'm a much better judge of the performance piece.
The Rationales
The Rationales don't "perform". They play music and they play it well but there really isn't a performance piece. They are a self-proclaimed alternative-pop band and they definitely have their own sound. They've been around for a while, have a few cd's out there and they have a sizeable following. My comment about the performance piece is not a negative one and shouldn't be received that way because that is not the intent. It's like I've said before, you have to know what you are looking for from your musical experience before you hit the road for a night out. In my mind there are three categories of musicians:
1. Musicians that emphasize music but don't perform, it's about the music and not about the jumping around.
2. Musicians that emphasize music AND emphasize performance. Fully loaded.
3. Musicians that emphasize performance but do not emphasize music.
The Rationales fall into the first category. I enjoyed them, I liked their sound. They are different and I like that. I'd like to see them in a solo gig and really pay attention and I will seek them out for that purpose. Plus, I need to give them their own blog. I took a video and put them up on my youtube channel. Check it out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FHkuzIibdw&list=UUUo6-h5Wog4ApEapO6rViRg&index=8&feature=plcp. For more music from
The Rationales check out their band page
http://therationales.com/ .
David Mirabella, Vocals, Guitar
Mike Mirabella, Drums, Vocals
Matt Goldfield, Keyboards, Vocals
John Maloney, Bass, Vocals
Pete Zeigler, Guitar, Vocals
Watts was up next and these are the guys I came out to see. I'd seen them once before, it was the fall of 2011 when they opened for Ace Frehley (yea!! Ace Frehley!!) at The Junkyard in Nashua, NH. Before I get started let me preface all of this by saying that John Blout is one of those Rockstars that I just love to shoot!! He is totally into performing and he's a band photographer's dream. You'll see what I mean when you look at the pics.
Watts
These guys are fully loaded and they hit the ground running. You could feel the electricity travel through the room. They've got a retro-injected-britishy-rock-n-roll kind of vibe and at the same time their traditional rock inflluences shine thru. The sound is all theirs though and it's unique. These guys are a category 2 as far as musicians go--they emphasize performance AND music. You get the whole package with
Watts. They've got a huge and loyal following and they are not hard to find so you really ought to check them out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwGwFkHaWJQ&list=UUUo6-h5Wog4ApEapO6rViRg&index=7&feature=plcp. Visit their band page at
http://www.myspace.com/wattsrock .
Band members include:
Dan Kopko, Vocals, Guitar
John Blout, Guitar, Vocals
Craig Lapointe, Bass, Vocals
John Lynch, Drums, Vocals
Love these guys!!! They are total Rockstars!!!
Last up were The Gentlemen. I wasn't aware of it at the time but I was quickly informed by those in-the-know that seeing The Gentlemen perform was a real novelty. I guess they were THE BAND to see back in the day and were quite popular in and around the Boston club scene. I have no clue where they went or why but apparently they removed themselves from the radar. Tonight they just fell into my lap and, lucky me, I had a perfect view!
The Gentlemen
I don't really know much about the band so, like most people, I Googled them. To read more about
The Gentlemen click on this link and visit their band page
http://www.myspace.com/thegentlemenrock . You can also see them on my youtube channel.
All in all it was an incredible night!! Just reliving it by writing this blog has made me exhausted!! Time for my nap. See you at the next show! For now.........zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
