The story
The WinterRoad Institute for Musical and Paranormal Event Coordination is back in the Soundstage for its third night at De la Luz this year. As ever, the institute investigates one question: how many bands can one Friday hold? This time the answer is five, from basements and DIY stages across New England and New Jersey.
Letters of Marque come from just down the road in Westfield and play screamo: fast, raw and shouted from the gut. Escape Durgin drive in from Lowell with a self-titled debut album that one reviewer heard as the best of '90s pop punk carrying the emotional weight of Jimmy Eat World. Plague Skater is Will Schwester's lo-fi "scuzz pop" project from New Jersey, where Stereogum heard Guided By Voices and the Thermals. Minikin and Corsica round out the bill.
It's a night for the people who still go out to find out who's next. With five bands, the music starts soon after doors.
Come early. The first band on the bill is somebody's favourite next year.