The
Outlets, Boys Life, Boys Life Tribute, The DeNiros at T.T. the Bear's Place
By Brian Westbye
Old Boston bands never die; they just reunite every other decade. And so it was on the eve of Thanksgiving overindulgence, Peabody and Sherman set the T.T.'s wayback machine to 1981. The DeNiros kicked off the evening with an eclectic set of mood pop. John Surette wrangles a lot of tone our of a '72 Telecaster, nicely counterbalancing the Les Paul/Marshall shrapnel of their lead guitarist Tom Higgins. The band covers a broad range of stylistic territory, from twang to shuffle, balls to mellow. Sounds like a great set, right? Should've been better. Alas, a poor house mix skunked The DeNiros. Lead guitar was a bit too loud, Surette vocals were murky and harmonies with bassist Melissa Wells were a miasma of sludge. The mix improved, but gradually. Sometimes you've got to make the most of it, and The DeNiros hung tough. Like their namesake. Surette fronted another Boston band in the late '70s and early '80s called Boys Life. Like Mission of Burma and The Neighborhoods, Boys Life enjoyed a loyal following, and left a trail of bands influenced by their melodic alterna-pop. A few old friends were on hand tonight for a Boys Life tribute. Again the mix was a bit murky, especially on the sax, but the energy level was high. A few Boys Life tunes and…wait a sec., the actual Boys Life reunite for the evening! And the years have had no adverse affect on the band. Surette reminds me of an active Bob Mould; eyes rolled back, snarling delivery, commanding intensity. Their sax player blows some serious shit! Echo drenched altissimo, gutteral lows; the guy does it all. And the band played on, drawing from their 1981 release "Boys Life v/s Outlets" and beyond. Maybe one drink ticket too many were used up, but that's fine for a raucous cover of "Hang on Sloopy." Not a bad way to end, in fact.