The Sheila Divine played The Sinclair – 1/4

Long-running local alt-rockers The Sheila Divine headlined Sinclair last Friday night with support from Bethlehem Steel and Mint Green. 

The first Friday of 2019 presented a somewhat uncommon bill for me, in a veteran Boston band and two buzzy up-and-comers – one local, one Brooklyn-based – who I’d yet to see. Not a bad way to start off the year.

The Sheila Divine, an on-again off-again concern since 1997, specialize in an anthemic style fusing threads of post-punk, emo and melodic alt-rock that’s earned them a dedicated cult fanbase. A song like the sweeping and instantly memorable “Automatic Buffalo” from their debut New Parade –celebrating a 20th anniversary this year – make it easy to see why. That cut was regrettably absent from Friday’s set, but the band had plenty of other gems on hand, including some new songs and a pair of Echo & the Bunnymen and Oasis covers. Sure, “Champagne Supernova” is an easy target, but who’s immune to smiling at that ridiculous, beautiful song?

Boston’s Mint Green opened the show with an exuberant set of hook-y indie rock followed up by NYC’s Bethlehem Steel, whose omnivorous experimental art-punk produced the most purely arresting set of the night.

Check out an extended gallery of the whole evening below.