Gig Watch: October 2023
Shows not to miss in and around Boston for the month of October.
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Ah, “Rocktober,” as they say. September has already knocked me flat with a nonstop barrage of gigs, but Fall is just getting started. Here are this month’s spookiest standouts.
10/1 – Explosions in the Sky @ Roadrunner
Austin post-rock vets EITS are back this year with new LP End, and they’ll bring their sweeping instrumental bliss to the Roadrunner stage with some fun local support from Pet Fox.
10/1 – Final Gasp @ ManRay
Across town, deathrockers Final Gasp celebrate Mourning Moon – their new release and first for Relapse Records – at the reincarnated Cambridge goth club ManRay.
10/2 – Soul Glo / Zulu @ The Sinclair
Philly punks Soul Glo continue riding high on last year’s excellent Diaspora Problems, and headline a big Sinclair gig with help from powerviolence rippers Zulu.
10/5 – Yves Tumor at Roadrunner
Sean Bowie’s collision of art-rock/post-punk/glam-psych under the Yves Tumor moniker is best experienced in the form of their wild live show, which takes over Roadrunner this month.
0/6 – Wolves in the Throne Room @ Big Night Live
Yes, it’s inevitably a major vibes mismatch when black metal rolls into the domain of DJ Pauly D, but the atmospheric majesty of Olympia, WA’s Wolves in the Throne Room can overpower just about any such weirdness.
10/8 – Love in Exile @ ICA
Jazz trio Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer and Shahzad Ismaily released the gorgeous Love in Exile in March, and are taking their explorations on the road under that name this Fall with a stop at the ICA.
10/10 – Nick Cave @ Boch Center Wang Theatre
We continue the wait for the stateside live return of the full Bad Seeds outfit, but in the meantime Nick Cave returns with what’s reportedly a freewheeling, far-reaching solo tour, joined by Radiohead’s Colin Greenwood on bass.
10/14 – The Walkmen @ Roadrunner
Beloved, reunited indie rockers The Walkmen will finally bring a proper headlining gig to town this month as part of their “Revenge Tour,” following an excellent Boston Calling appearance back in May.
10/17 – The Chats @ House of Blues
Raucous Australians The Chats head to HoB in support of their charmingly-titled 2022 record Get Fucked, heading a bill that also includes fellow Aussie punk vets Cosmic Psychos, San Diego’s Schizophonics and Providence’s Gymshorts.
10/18 – Palehound @ The Sinclair
Once-local singer/songwriter El Kemper brings their Palehound project back to town for a Sinclair show supporting July’s Eye on the Bat, joined by Philly psych-noise-punk greats Empath.
10/19 – Genesis Owusu @ The Sinclair
Another recent Boston Calling alum – who put on one of that weekend’s most arresting performances – brings his theatrical, genre-omnivorous show back to town at Sinclair (and presumably won’t be playing venues of that size for much longer).
10/23 – Pile @ The Sinclair
Local heroes Pile headline another hometown show on their victory lap for this year’s great All Fiction, and if you’ve ever read this blog before you know I’ll always recommend the Pile show.
10/26 – Bell Witch @ Sonia
With two more LPs of gargantuan heaviness under their belt since their last Boston date pre-pandemic, funeral doom duo Bell Witch have plenty of fresh dark paths to explore at Sonia.
10/30 – Halloween @ Silhouette Lounge
It’s a classic local Halloween covers gig at the Sil, as Something Sneaky take on Blink-182, Today Junior play The Ramones and Parachute Club tackle Black Flag.
10/31 – Depeche Mode @ TD Garden
End the month on an appropriately goth note as synthpop/darkwave lifers Depeche Mode take over the Garden on Halloween.