Gates Brings Big Sound and Long Hair to Great Scott

David Weiner ’16 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer

Gates performed at the Great Scott Sunday night in Allston.

I checked out their stuff online, I kinda dug it. It was a lot of open sounds, heavy drums and vocal harmonies. The group has a very atmospheric feel mixed with punk rock vibes.

I couldn’t understand a word of what they sang live though; maybe it was the mixing, or maybe it was all the sweaty hair that covered the lead singer’s face. Either way, all of the lyrics muddied together each song only to be separated by the occasional punk scream.

I know there’s a technique to these screams and obviously it can’t destroy their vocal cords too badly as evidenced by their hour long sets, but damn.

At one point I actually checked my camera bag to see if I had any loose lozenges hanging out in a pocket from last week when I was sick.

I’ve covered a variety of shows and have found each audience to be quite different. I watched as the band jumped and spun their hair during their choruses. Like a worried mother I prayed that their ear gauges wouldn’t get caught on their mic stands. The bearded men, girls in Doc Martens, and everybody wearing flannel stood relatively still the whole show aside from their intermittent sporadic sways.

This is the kind of band that needs to be seen at larger venues. Their loud, open sound just gets trapped on a small stage, which leads to problems mixing and difficulty regulating dynamics.

The group is now off to Cleveland and then to Michigan, continuing on their tour.