An intimate yet fierce crowd turned out Friday night for Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Toasters, Left Alone, and The Pomps. Singer Alex Stern of The Pomps opened began their set by thanking the crowd for not going to see Streetlight Manifesto at House of Blues. They played a very tight set of their new wave-inflected pop/ska. They were joined by Jr. Thomas from Minneapolis for two songs and noted they’d be backing him for a set at the Midway Cafe Saturday night (I was unable to make it to that show). Left Alone followed with a really tight set of their Rancid-inspired punk, ska, and rockabilly. The bassist alternated between an electric and upright bass which really made them stand out for the night.

I have to admit I was nervous at this point because throughout their two sets because so few people were dancing. Thankfully, once The Toasters started the crowd moved up and got their act together and didn’t stop dancing till The Toasters finished their set. The Toasters played a great mix of new and old tunes and Bucket was as snarky as ever.

The highlight of the evening was of course Voodoo Glow Skulls who proceeded to just aurally destroy everything and everyone in the room. I wasn’t aware before hand, but this tour the band was performing their legendary album Firme in it’s entirety. In the moment, I was just excited as Firme was the first record of theirs I had ever heard and know it particularly well. I’m not sure of its name, but at one point the monster depicted on the Firme album appeared almost like an apparition and I’m sure will have a long lasting effect (read: nightmares) on everyone. You can see it poking it’s head from behind the band in the photos below.

Many thanks to YouTuber AethiestPeace69 for grabbing video of just about every set from the night! The photos below are my own. If you snagged any photos or video, please link them in the comments below. Thank you to everyone who turned out and made it a great night.

Voodoo Glow Skulls – “Shoot the Moon” – 10/4/13, Middle East Downstairs

The Toasters – “House of Soul” – 10/4/13, Middle East Downstairs

Left Alone – “Sad Story” – 10/4/13, Middle East Downstairs

We haven’t yet found any video of The Pomps from Friday night. Leave a link in the comments if you know of any! Here’s a song from their most recent release.

Be sure to visit our calendar featuring Boston area ska shows.