Show Review: Neck Deep’s Boston Redemption.
written and photographed by Hunter Astrid.
more photos + rest of the gallery can be found here.
A little over two years ago Neck Deep had to cut their tour short right before their Boston show due to Ben and another member having covid. I, like many other people, were devastated and eagerly awaited their return to Boston. Although they did come to Worcester in July of 2022 for Sad Summer Fest, they were finally able to have their ‘Boston redemption’ at Roadrunner on February 16th, 2024. And it did not disappoint. Getting there an hour before the music started gave me the chance to walk around the venue and just see how much the audience was buzzing for the show yet to come. With the combination of Sammy Ciaramitaro’s insane energy during DRAIN’s set and Ben Barlow’s charming banter and hyper energy, this hands down was the most energetic concert I have ever attended and I will be thinking about it for months to come.
Neck Deep -
As I’ve gotten older and truly thought about my experience with listening to Neck Deep, I’ve realized how they have been present at big milestones in my life, bad and good. I found them in 2014 when I was struggling to find myself, and their music helped ground me. They helped me through a big bad break up in high school, they were the first band I saw with another partner, their album during covid helped me keep my sanity, I saw them at Slam Dunk Festival in 2022 in the UK when I traveled alone out of the country for the first time, and it was during their set at Sad Summer Festival that I discovered I had a kidney infection. Their 2017 album The Peace And The Panic honestly altered my brain chemistry and impacted my art influences; the album art and vinyl art that came attached to it is now one of my favorite styles of art. Needless to say, this band has impacted my life and after ten years of listening to them they’re only getting better.
The set started with Ben Barlow running onto the stage, picking up the microphone laid on the floor in front of me, and immediately jumping up to the beat of “Dumbstruck Dumbf**k.” Although their newest album and that song itself had only be released roughly a month before the concert, the crowd was able to confidently scream the lyrics back to Barlow as the song unfolded. The people of Boston came prepared. Ben’s stage presence is always amazing to watch, he’s able to riff off of the crowd perfectly and even turned miscommunication due to his thick Welsh accent into a gag. If you hear a Welsh person saying ‘cheers,’ do you hear ‘jizz’ ‘cheese’ or ‘cheers?’
Although most of us had to wait almost two years to finally see them in concert, it was definitely worth the wait and I know I won’t be the only person eagerly waiting for them to come back to Beantown.
By 2024, Neck Deep has reached the status of a pop-punk household name. Forming in 2012, the group has since become an influential and important band that’s highly respected in the music world. The band currently consists of vocalist Ben Barlow, guitarists Matt West and Sam Bowden, bassist Seb Barlow, and drummer Matt Powles. Since the group formed they have released five studio albums and have gone on four with the likes of Blink-182, Knuckle Puck, Trophy Eyes and more. Their name comes from the lyrics of the Crucial Dudes’ song “Boom, Roasted”; 'Neck Deep in what you couldn't be.’
Over the years the group has won many awards from "Best Live Band" to "Best British Band" and "Best Single" for their song "In Bloom" off of their 2017 album The Peace and the Panic. Neck Deep has had two "musickits" in the first-person shooter game Counter-Strike:Global Offense for Life’s Not Out to Get You Pack in November of 2016 and The “Lowlife Pack: in 2021. Their sound is reminiscent of the Descendants, Blink-182, the Wonder Years, Green Day, and similar pop punk type bands. Two of their most popular songs are off of their 2015 album Life’s Not Out To Get You - “Kali Ma” their Indiana Jones inspired song featuring Jeremy McKinnon from A Day to Remember and their gut wrenching heartbreak song "December,” that would be rereleased later with Mark Hoppus from Blink-182.
Their most recent album named Neck Deep was released in January of 2024 and features singles “Heartbreak of the Century,” “Take Me with You” “It Won’t Be Like This Forever” and “We Need More Bricks.”
MY FAVORITE SONG: it’s so hard to pick a favorite song, but it might have to be “In Bloom” off of The Peace And The Panic (2017)
DRAIN -
Within the first 20 seconds of their first song, frontman Sammy Ciaramitaro was in the audience and singing with the crowd. He came running out onto the stage, just yelling and getting the crowd as hyped as possible. He made the lighting people turn the lights on within the venue to be able to see everyone there. It gave the feeling of an intimate and small hardcore concert when in reality it was at one of the bigger venues in the city. My smile didn’t falter once throughout their set. Having to dodge microphones being tossed from the stage to the audience, crowd surfers and even Sammy Ciaramitaro himself was some of the most fun I’ve actually had while covering a show. My friend and I kept sharing smiles throughout the first three songs behind the barricade. Ciaramitaro’s energy was honestly unmatched and I’ve never seen a frontman just so happy to be there and doing what he was doing. I eagerly await the day that they come back to Boston.
DRAIN is a four piece hardcore punk band that formed in Santa Cruz, California in 2014. Until vocalist Sammy Ciaramitaro joined in 2015, the band didn't have a set musical style. With the addition of Ciaramitaro they embraced the sound of hardcore and thrash metal. The band currently consists of vocalist Sammy Ciaramitaro, guitarist Cody Chavez, drummer Tim Flegal and bassist AJ Hoenings. Since their conception they have released two demos, three EPS and two studio albums. Their debut album California Cursed that was released on April 10th, 2020. They released their second album Living Proof in May of 2023 that features singles “Evil Finds Light," "Living Proof" and a cover of the Descendant’s song “Good Good Things."
DRAIN has cited bands like Black Flag, Slayer, Testament and the likes as influences of their sound. Connor Atkinson of Exclaim! has described the band's sound is both “old and new - the tough street grit of New York hardcore paired with the tasteful gloss of ‘80s trash metal." The juxtaposition of Sammy's "non-threatening look" and big smile plastered all over his face with the harsh surf-thrash sound of their music is a nice combination to experience. Their music is very heavy with West Coast and California influences and being from California it gives me a warm sense of nostalgia and familiarity.
MY FAVORITE SONG: “Army of One” off of California Cursed (2020)
Bearings -
Bearings is one of those types of bands that I will always walk away happy when listening to them. A good pop punk band is able to take sad lyrics and situation and make the music based around the sad story and make it upbeat and happy — Bearings is not an exception. The sound of their music is upbeat and quick, with hyper pop-esque sounds paired with melodic pop punk chords. Their set at Roadrunner was just straight up fun and instantly put me in an extremely good mood; I had a full and packed day that felt extremely rushed and filled leading up to the concert. Yet, Bearings’ set was so incredibly fun and chill that I instantly felt myself loosen up and it helped set the mood for the rest of the night.
Bearings was conceived in Algonquin College’s dorm in Ottawa back in 2014. When meeting, the group discovered they have a lot in common, specifically wanting to be in a pop punk band. The group is composed of Doug Cousins on vocals, Ryan Culligan on vocals and guitar, Collin Hanes on bass, and Connor Kington on drums. Bearings released their first EP titled Nothing Here is Permanent in 2017. Since then they have released three studio albums; Blue in the Dark in 2018, Hello, It’s You in 2020 and a deluxe version in 2022. Their most recent release was The Best Part About Being Human in August of 2023 that features songs “Scenery” and “Slip.”
Bearing's sound and music reminds me another Canadian band called Seaway. Both bands can be categorized as 'exuberant pop-punk and emo-rock" music. To me, both bands have a "feel good" -ness to their songs that bring in elements of melodic pop-punk paired with fast guitar riffs and grounding percussion. They're most definitely a band to listen to to brighten up the mood.
MY FAVORITE SONG: “Eyes Closed” off of Blue in the Dark (2018)
Higher Power -
Higher Power was a perfect way to start out the night. The riffs of the guitars and the heavy hitting of the percussion section really reminded the audience of the hardcore influences that is present in their music. Jimmy Wizard’s voice fits extremely well in the pop-punk category and layers over the hardcore base of their music, giving them a little bit more of a unique sound. His strong Yorkshire accent and banter bounced off the excited crowd and it’s very clear that frontman Jimmy is very happy and grateful for the life that he’s living and being able to experience. Their music was a good middle ground of the music later to come during the rest of the night, bringing in the different groups of people in the audience. Their set was short and fast paced, but turned up the excitement in the room that I could feel it when walking around.
Higher Power is a British hardcore punk band that formed in 2014 in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The band consists of Jimmy “J-Town” Wizard on vocals, Max Harper on guitar, Alex Wizard on drums, Ethan Wilkinson on bass, and Louis Hardy on guitar. Inspired by the sound of leeway and marauder, Alex moved from London to Leeds and started writing music with his brother Jimmy. Passing the torch of bass player to Ethan Wilkinson, Jimmy took over as vocalist when Louis Hardy and Max Harper joined the group. In 2015 the group released Space to Breathe/Demon Tracks. They have also released two studio albums over the past ten years titled Soul Structure in 2017 and 27 Miles Underwater in 2020. They have been on many festival bills as well as touring with many bands including Knocked Loose, Beartooth, Amity Affliction, Harm’s Way and more bands of the like.
Like many hardcore punk bands, it’s very hard to put them into one category. They combine elements of hardcore punk with melodic hardcore, crossover thrash and many New York hardcore influences like sludge metal, post-grunge, and even shoegaze. Metal Hammer’s Dannii Leivers' has been cited describing their sound as combing "80's metal influences, lush 90's alt and Alice In Chains sludge, doused in snotty Suicidal Tendencies attitude.” Bands like Turnstile, Deftones, Glassjaw, Linkin Park and more are bands they take influences from, which is very prevalent in their music. Their most recent release was single “Absolute Bloom” that was released on February 7th of this year.
MY FAVORITE SONG: “Fall From Grace” (2021)
