A Thursday night in Miami’s Allapattah neighborhood might have passed without leaving any impression. Luckily, a dive bar on the outskirts of the Wynwood Art District, Las Rosas, failed to disappoint. This particular night the popular dive bar brought a fantastic lineup of four live bands.
First up to the stage were Dania Beach (FL) locals, Anyothercolor who impressed with tunes that were jammy and melodic without being too progressive to be interesting. With Chris Brown on vocals announcing song names like “Mary had a 60-foot radioactive black widow spider“, the band was as harmonious as they were alien. Accompanied by Daniel Ballarin on bass and Mike Becker on drums AOC brought songs infused with brief moments of noise and doom metal making Anyothercolor a refreshing listen. The band is hoping to release a full LP soon.
Second up came Miami locals, The Rockadictos. Unable to ever leave the stage the same way they found it, The Rockadictos shock crowds with an unexpected aggression that has become emblematic of the band at play. Led by madman Javier Arce, the band brought infectious, disruptive energy and the most impressive screams of the night. Pablo Cabo (guitar) allowed his personality to shine through via expert fingers producing danceable, pleasant melodies. On drums, Jeff Masi rejoins the band after a nearly year-long hiatus to bring precision timing, and well-studied technique to the groups live performances. The band's third album, The Rockadictos III, was recently released and is available on Spotify.
Perhaps the most fashion-forward of the night's lineup, Viceroii filled the floor with bodies. Hailing from NYC, the touring band presented with a curious lineup of musical equipment, lending the band a unique sound that makes it difficult to define. The line-up is ever-changing, including a different bassist planned for the band's next show just days away. For the night in question Sean Joseph Wouters (vocals, guitar), Danny Portal (drums), Nick Aponte (guitar) and Michelle Grand (bass) layered ambient vocals over technically-minded drums and airy strings which made for a pleasant sound that took advantage of the notes as often it did the negative space between them.
Finally, Miami-based Analog closed out the night with a double encore as demanded by the crowd. The quad is comprised of Albae Camino (lead vocals/guitar), Esteban Gomez (lead guitar/ambient vocals), Juan Manuel Gonzalez (bass) and Tekilla (drums). Although drawing from a number of influences including indie rock and a sludgy, sexy, blues sound, the foursome sometimes reminded me of the emocore gods of the mid-nineties. The band's danceable grooves pulled writhing bodies into the room making their first show of 2019, by all accounts, a clear success.
Abbie Bateman 2/10/2019
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