Mclusky and Pile played the Paradise – 4/8

An all-time teamup of Welsh noise-rockers Mclusky and hometown heroes Pile rolled into the Paradise as part of their spring U.S. tour.

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When I last caught Mclusky, the current iteration of the irreverent trio were on the road marking an anniversary for their celebrated sophomore LP Mclusky Do Dallas, and while there was an EP’s worth of new music out there too, it wasn’t entirely clear how much of an active concern the band would remain. Two years, a new LP and another EP later, there’s not so much of a question. Mclusky are very much back, and they carried themselves as such during a satisfyingly rowdy show at the ‘Dise earlier this month.

On last May’s The World Is Still Here and So Are We (and this year’s I Sure Am Getting Sick of This Bowling Alley EP), frontman Andy Falkous and co. pick up exactly where Mclusky left off nearly 20 years ago with a set of acidic, funny and bitingly catchy songs. A generous chunk of them slotted seamlessly into a set packed with plenty of Do Dallas and other fan-favorites, delivered with a combination of Falkous’ straight-faced bark and bassist Damien Sayell’s wild-eye intensity (with drummer Jack Egglestone keeping methodical time at their center).

At one point in the night when Falkous paused to thank venue staff and tourmates Pile, he remarked that dedicating Mclusky songs to anyone posed a challenge “because they sound like death threats,” which sort of gets right to the heart of the band’s serrated appeal. I’m glad they’re sticking around to brandish more of them in our direction.

Any follower of Boston favorites Pile will know there’s a lot more to that band than bruising post-hardcore bangers, but for the purposes of a time-constrained set directly preceding Mclusky, it’s no surprise that the band were in heavy-hitter mode. “Texas” and “The World is Your Motel” kicked the door down for a ripper of a set that’s presumably gained the band plenty of new fans among the unfamiliar in other cities. In Boston, naturally, the Venn diagram of Mclusky and Pile fanbases is essentially a circle, so there were plenty of heads in attendance. I remain no big fan of the Paradise, but seeing a hometown favorite band play what is, begrudgingly, a historic stage on a tour like this is still pretty cool.

Scroll below for photos from both sets.