Concerts – 2025 August

A jam-packed month filled with festivals, including both Somergloom and RPM, and a few special performances.

Starting the month with catching one of the three days of Somergloom, Greater Boston’s annual doom and gloom festival. The last day of the festival was held at the Crystal Ballroom in Somerville, Massachusetts (as the day prior), and featured headliner Sumac with Chepang in tow, additional support from Puerto Rico’s Moths, Morne, Cowardice, A Monolithic Dome, and Chainlacing.

Pathogenic set out for a few weeks with California’s The Last of Lucy with the end date of the Godform Summer Tour being a homecoming gig. And what better than a death metal floor show at an Asian fusion restaurant in Witch City with The Summoned and Gravewraith as appetizers.

One night, along a 2-3 day Connecticut excursion exploring trails, birding, and getting some of the best pizza in the country, I met up with the noisemakers in Intercourse before they opened for the mighty Crowbar and sludgelords in Eyehategod as they came through the New Haven area.

Cave In would delight a home-turf audience with a performance of their seminal album Jupiter. The band would celebrate the 25th anniversary of the album with Glacier and Twenty Seven. Cave In played the album in full, but before “New Moon,” slipped a Jake Holmes cover of “Dazed and Confused“, and ended the set with an encore of “Sing My Loves” from their 2011 album White Silence.

Once again, Widowmaker Brewing along the south shore of Boston would throw a party, this time with Kind, Duel, Birnam Wood. Kind would perform their rocking cover of Marvin Gaye’s classic “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” for the first time live. Texas rock’n’roll cowboys Duel moseyed on through and local riff dwellers Birnam Wood arose for a rare outing. The Dreg’s Liquid Lightshow provided visual stimulation for the night.

After several years of missing out (always the same weekend as Bone Up Brewing’s anniversary weekend), I was finally able to attend RPM Fest. Three days of music, complete with on-site camping, art and craft vendors, plus special events like wrestling and more. For day one, I was able to capture Conan, Royal Thunder, Midnight, Duel, Chained to the Bottom of the Ocean, and Mares of Thrace. Quite the first day.

The party kept going on day two with the likes of Ghoul, Lich King, Heavy Temple, Cöme Mierda, Spiter, Goblet, Crop, Face First, Coma Hole, and Morgued. After a late night stargazing and a slow morning (the morning dew got me, needing time to dry things out), I was able to get back onto festival grounds for day three just in time to catch Aversed’s set with Horrendous and Through the Eyes of the Dead to end the night. Thank you Four Star Farms for letting me crash by your hopyard!

Spotify Playlist:
2025 – Live Actions
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4bcRkuAftCEWUbqqgXukyu?si=12e12437297f4212

Sumac