I can’t find the particular issue of Option (I think it was that mag? Maybe something else) but back in the early ’90s they ran a small feature on bands who sprang out of unusual circumstances. If my memory still holds up, the story about how Nick Saloman began his music career as The Bevis Frond came about when he got some insurance money from a settlement concerning a motorbike bike accident and buying a guitar and an amp.
1987 saw Inner Marshland establish a beach head against the generally indifferent record-buying public, but for those whose earholes were receptive to Saloman’s unique hybrid of Hollies pop and extended Hendrix-style guitar freak outs, it was the start of the long and successful career. Thirty studio records and some splits and live records later, he shows no signs of slowing down, either in rate or quality; there is definitely more than a passing parallel with Robert Pollard here. Into his seventh decade, Saloman’s acknowledged the difficulty of touring and while this might not be his final US tour with the full band, it’s been 25 years since the last one so make your chances count.
And sometimes those difficulties are completely external. This tour was supposed to happen last October, in support of Little Eden but the ever-present visa snafus raised its ugly head and the show was rescheduled to early 2025. In true Pollardian fashion, Saloman has since released Focus On Nature, and so the set list comprising of new material did indeed focus on that record. Which was fine with me, as “Big Black Sky” and especially the touching “Mr. Fred’s Disco” were quite strong. Before playing the latter, Nick recounted going through old photos and found one he used for a class project on youth culture, with this song written from the perspective of someone much older.
Nick tongue-in-cheek referenced his two ‘hits’ (also in similar fashion to Pollard’s ‘coulda/shoulda’ musings from stage) before playing “Lights Are Changing” and “He’d Be A Diamond,” both songs steeped in ringing ’60s guitar chords and unbelievably strong melodies and choruses. And the other side of the Frond coin was also well represented, the psych guitar freakout jams. Some songs take you on a journey. These ones don’t get out of the car and gently open the door with an outstretched arm; they open the trunk (or the boot to our UK readers,), throw you in, slam it shut and then stomp on the gas pedal. Let’s go!
“Pale Blue Blood” was the first song where Paul Simmons really showed his prowess on guitar; Nick’s playing is unquestioned but Simmons was a formidable foil and his playing and tone were immaculate. The punk-ish “Undertaker” then gave way to the epic of the night, “Superseded.” Nick swapped out his Jetsons-like guitar for another improbable guitar, some sort of electric sitar I’ve never seen before. The song began with the familiar resonating twangs of that instrument and then we buckled in for the ride. The studio version clocks in at just over eleven minutes; I’m not sure how long they played for us, but it was certainly closer to double that time, as they’ve been known to do. The brooding menace of the beginning gave way to an almost-*Grateful Dead*-like middle section with what I think was the riff to “Classical Gas,” and then came roaring back with fire that Pink Fairies would have approved of. Splendid!
Saloman was self-effacing as always, and told a few funny anecdotes about an upset German fan and buying a super rare Kaleidoscope LP that I won’t spoil for people who might hear variations on later tour dates. The band partnered the afore-mentioned Simmons, who also shared a radio show on MIT’s WMBR, longtime drummer Dave Pearce and bass player Louis Wigett from the excellent garage bangers The Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell. While Simmons was clad in a polka dot shirt that Robyn Hitchcock would approve of and Nick had a Silver Apples shirt on, Wigett went for a 70s look, sporting faintly tinted aviators, brown corduroy flares and a killer Planet of the Apes t shirt. The band was 100% on point the entire night, and though I always look forward to hearing Nick with any configuration, the four piece brought an undeniable power that an acoustic guitar just can’t do. After what is the most *Dinosaur Jr*-sounding song Nicks’ written, the final nod to the band’s deep record collecting roots ended with a scorching version of Open Mind’s “Magic Potion,” a song I first heard via fellow UK psych fiends The Sun Dial. Two hours of mind-melting music awaits some lucky people, don’t miss you chance to be one of them.
The sold-out room showed that Boston has always been a stronghold for Frond fans, and they got an extra treat via the pummeling set Oneida presented. The band takes some hints of the steam-powered chug thuggery of early Velvets and some percussive electric keyboard work that Sun Ra helped inspire. I’ve seen Oneida in various lineups since my first time, when they opened for Mission Of Burma back in 2007 but I managed to miss the entire Poppa Crazee era, and was confused when Hanoi Jane wasn’t on guitar tonight. The man with the microphone Bobby Matador said it was Crazee’s first Boston gig since 2002, and Oneida is always filled with surprises.
