Last year, we at Odd Blue Fruit recapped the last show Sidney Gish played in the greater Boston area in 2017 at O’Brien’s Pub in Allston. Gish had been a big DIY staple in the local music scene throughout the year, opening for the likes of Xenia Rubinos and Margaret Glaspy, releasing the stellar debut album Ed Buys Houses, and garnering some nominations from the Boston Music Awards all while studying at Northeastern.

And then, Gish’s 2018 got even bigger in an instant. After a glowing Pitchfork review of her sophomore release No Dogs Allowed from recent Boston-emigrant Nina Corcoran, Gish suddenly began blowing up in indie spheres and blogs all over the web. And though she’s come back through Boston a number of times on standalone dates as a supporting act (and even a nationwide tour with Camp Cope and Petal, along with a recent small Northeast US stint with Mitski), her latest show right at the tail-end of September marked the first headlining gig she’s had in the area since No Dogs Allowed began taking off.

And this sold-out show at Great Scott showed just how much love this music community has for Gish. The crowd huddled close to the stage, packed in together, a majority of them close in age to Sidney, signing along to some of her strongest and catchiest hooks on “Sin Triangle” and “Imposter Syndrome.” As we wrote back in December of last year, Gish has always had a strong knack for putting witty lyricism into punchy, memorable songs, and all of the No Dogs Allowed tracks she played at this show exemplified this spectacularly.

What makes Gish a must-see on top of the already-killer songs is her infectiously fun stage presence. Often building the tracks through loop pedals and harmonious riffs, Gish always seems to have just as much excitement putting each song together on stage as her audience has while watching her work her magic. (One of the most charmingly DIY elements of her set comes from her eschewing a traditional paper setlist to write her setlist on her forearm with Sharpie.) This perhaps most prominent on her live rendition of “Not But For You, Bunny,” quickly becoming one of the staples in her set, as she lays down piece after piece of the main chord progression and riffing above it before locking everything in place and letting a drum machine loop kick in. Gish also puts her all into singing as well, particularly on this song and “Persephone,” where each of the final repetitions of the chorus grow increasingly desperate, pleading.

Among the many newer tracks she played, Gish carved out some space during the set to showcase a new live arrangement for “Sophisticated Space” as well, transforming the lo-fi track into an immersive, dancey song. And Sidney didn’t ignore her debut release, including fan favorite “Presumably Dead Arm” in one of the biggest singalongs of the entire evening, a true communal experience that made the whole room come alive. Sidney Gish just keeps getting better and it’s always a joy to see her play, especially in a crowded space full of adoring fans. It’s going to be even more exciting seeing where she goes from here.

Taking the stage before Gish were two other local indie favorites: first up were art rockers Squitch. Their tight and knotty instrumentation is a delight to watch, skewing on math rock at times, the true product of a band in utter synchronicity with one another. The interweaving guitar and bass parts from vocalist Emma Spooner and Emma Unterseher is so transfixing that their complexities seem effortless and naturally graceful, all the more impressive when complemented by Denzil Leach’s equally intricate drumming patterns.

After them was “gay cello rock music” band Prior Panic, described as such for frontperson Julia Fulbright’s prominent electronic cello that serves as the basis for much of their music. The band’s work constantly rode on the grooves both Julia and guitarist Shiloh Trudeau lay down, backed by driving percussion from drummer Zachary Ellsworth. Of particular note was the band’s closing song (and also their most recent release) “Backseat Driver,” a propulsive and melodic delight that was a big highlight of the night that got the crowd even more amped than they were for the rest of the band’s set. All in all, being present at Great Scott on this night proved that the younger side of Boston’s DIY music scene is bright, and all three of these acts are sure to pave the way for a bright future.

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Sidney Gish’s latest album No Dogs Allowed was self-released on New Year’s Eve 2017. Stream the album below.