Show Review: Real Friends + Knuckle Puck’s co-headling Tour Hits Boston.
written and photographed by Hunter Astrid.
more photos + rest of the gallery can be found here.
It’s a cold and rainy Sunday night in December. On the east coast. The last thing you want to do is go out…unless you’re about to see some of the best bands in the punk rock/emo scene. Needless to say, venturing out into the thick traffic center of Boston to attend this show was not even a worry in my eyes and definitely worth it. Any chance to see icon bands like Real Friends and Knuckle Puck while discovering new ones like One Step Closer and Arm’s Length.
Knuckle Puck -
Knuckle Puck is a pop punk/emo band that formed in 2010 in the suburbs of Chicago, IL. The term “knucklepuck” is an ‘almost impossible’ shot in hockey when the player flips the puck on the side and shoots it directly into the goal. The 1994 film The Mighty Ducks popularized this move. Contrary to popular belief the movie itself wasn’t direct inspiration for the band’s name, but American hardcore band Stick to Your Guns. The group had a shirt that said ‘Knuckle Puck Crew’ and in turn inspired the name of the band in question.
Knuckle Puck consists of vocalist Joe Taylor, lead guitarist Kevin Maida, drummer John Siorek, guitarist Nick Casasanto, and bassist Ryan Rumchaks. The group started off by covering songs that they liked. Their sound has been compared to The Story So Far, The Wonder Years, and more related groups. Towards the beginning of the formation of the group, they did a co-headlined tour with Canadian band Seaway in 2013 as well as releasing a split Ep with Welsh group Neck Deep titled Tour Split in the following year. They have released Eps over the years as well as four studio albums. Their first album Copacetic was released in 2015, Shapeshifter in 2017, 20/20 respectfully in 2020, and their latest released Losing What We Love that was released October 20th, 2023.
Their well known songs include “No Good” off of the Ep The Weight That You Buried (2013), “Untitled” off of Copacetic (2015), and “Double Helix” off of Shapeshifter (2017). Their cover of The 1975’s “Chocolate” was featured on Punk Goes Pop, Vol. 6 in 2014 and was extremely successful.
Knuckle Puck is one of those bands that will never leave you dissatisfied. They have extremely high energy and are always so much fun to watch perform. I don’t think there was one inch of the stage that Joe didn’t touch when on the stage. At this point, I have seen them around 4 or 5 times and each time they get better. They have a way of grabbing the audience and transforming the energy in the room and making us all feel together. They are always enthusiastic and ecstatic live. Knuckle Puck’s older songs still resinate to this day and continue to sound amazing live. Being able to see their newer songs performed as well was a great experience. You can tell how well they have mastered their sound and style over the years. I eagerly await their future project and tours.
MY FAVORITE SONG: either “Double Helix” or “Wait” off of Shapeshifter (2017)
Real Friends -
Real Friends is also a pop punk/emo band that formed in 2010 in Illinois. The band currently consists of members Kyle Fasel (bass), Dave Knox (guitar), Brain Blake (drums), Eric Haines (guitar), and Cody Muraro (vocals). The group is signed to Pure Noise Records and takes inspiration for their sounds from groups like American Football, Dashboard Confessional, and Jimmy Eat World. The group released their debut Ep This Is Honesty in 2011. At first the group struggled to find their sound; the first Ep they released didn’t feel right to them and they worked on finding a sound they all felt strong about.
Real Friends have released multiple Eps and around six studio albums over the 13 years of them being a band — Put Yourself Back Together (2013), Maybe This Place Is The Same and We’re Just Changing (2014), The Home Inside My Head (2016) and Composure in 2018. In 2020 the groups longtime frontman and singer Dan Lambton stepped away from the group and Youth Fountain singer Cody Muraro stepped in. The group has released two albums since the wonderful and successful addition of Cody; Torn in Two in 2021, and their most recent release There’s Nothing Worse Than Too Late on February 24th, 2023.
Their well known songs include “I’ve Given Up On You” off of Put Yourself Back Together (2013), “Get By” and “From the Outside” off of Composure (2018). Their most recent single was released on November 17th, 2023 and is titled “When You Were Here.”
I haven’t had the chance to see Real Friends live since 2018 and due to life events in 2020, I had accidentally stopped listening to a lot of the music I held dearly to my heart, Real Friends unfortunately being one of them. When sitting down to listen to their last album and ep, Cody’s voice instantly pulled me back in. Live, his stage presence was looming, but in an extremely powerful and positive way. His voice and delivery matches up perfectly with the songs and you can tell the whole band know how to work very well with each other. During their song “Teeth,” Cody came down into the crowd and performed the entire tear-jerking song. He was surrounded by lit up phones and the audience in a circle around him, singing in unision. It was a very beautiful scene to witness.
Real Friends is a band that has gone through many changes in their lifetime, but they have never once dipper in quality. I’m so happy I found my love for them again and I look forward to their new album that Kyle mentioned they were working on soon.
MY FAVORITE SONG: either “Teeth” off of Torn in Two (2021) or “I Don’t Have to Do That Anymore” off of There’s Nothing Worse Than Too Late (2023)
One Step Closer -
One Step Closer is a straight edge melodic hardcore group from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania that formed in 2016. They are signed to Run for Cover Records. Their sound is along the lines of indie rock with post hardcore elements paired with shoegaze. There are big similarities between the DC emo scene and youth crew* passion from the late 90s that is seen in their music. Big inspirations for them include bands like Have Heart, Bane, Turning Point, and more.
One Step Closer consists of members Ryan Savilski on vocals, Colman O’Brien on guitar, Tommy Norton on drums, Ross Thompson on guitar, and their newest member Jake (?) on bass. They have released six eps, their two eps released in 2017 titled One Step Closer and Promo were both self released. They have only released one studio length album; This Place You Know which was released in September of 2021. Their most recent release is Ep/song collection titled Songs for the Willow. It was released in January of 2023 and consists of songs “Dark Blue,” “Turn to Me,” and “T.T.S.P.”
By the time “I Feel So” (their first song of the night) was finished, One Step Closer had become one of my new favorite bands. Their sound, energy and style gripped onto me and had me waiting for more. Ryan’s sharp and tight vocals are extremely pleasing to the ears, and paired with his clean singing voice is extremely pleasant to hear. The guitar is clean and concise, the drums have heavy hitting beats and the deep and rhythmic bass is a perfect way to tie everything together. They recently released a co-headling tour with Anxious and Life’s Question, and I will most definitely be seeing them when they come to my city.
MY FAVORITE SONG: either “Chrysanthemum” off of This Place You Know (2021) or “Turn to Me” off of Songs For The Willow (2023)
*Youth Crew is a subculture of hardcore punk that was in New York in the late 80s/early 90s. It differs from other punk categories due to its optimism and moralistic outlook on life. Fans/members are predominantly straight edge, vegetarian or vegan.
Arm’s Length -
Arm’s Length is a Canadian emo/pop punk band that is from Quinte West, Ontario. They formed in 2018 and are signed to Wax Bodega. The band consists of members Allen Steinberg on vocals and guitar, Jeremy Whyte on guitar, Jeff Whyte on drums, Benjamin Greenblatt on bass. Their studio album Never Before Seen, Never Again Found was released on October 28th 2022.
Known songs from Arm’s Length consist of “Object Permanence” and “Tough Love” off of Never Before Seen, Never Again Found and single “Garamond” released in 2021. Their most recent release was “Arm’s Length” on October 19th, 2023.
Arm’s Length was such a fun and good way to start the night. Allen Steinberg’s vocals and cadence are a wonderful addition to the sound they are going for. Songs like “Tough Love” or “Loving Memory” off of Never Before Seen, Never Again Found (2022) are perfect emo/pop punk emotional ballads. Allen’s voice that’s pair with their music gives a sense of longing and want in their music, a feeling many people can find relatable. Forming in 2018, the band is still relatively new, but they are definitely on the up and up. Arm’s Length also recently announced a spring tour and will be hitting the road with Carly Cosgrove, Ben Quad and saturdays at your place in 2024, another tour that I will be eagerly anticipating.
MY FAVORITE SONG: either “Loving Memory” or “Tough Love” off of Never Before Seen, Never Again Found (2022)
