All photos and words by Wendy McCardle
Indie underdogs Rogue Wave and The Boxer Rebellion brought their double-headlining tour to a packed house at Union Transfer, slicing through the gloom of a rainy Tuesday night to provide a shelter of effervescent, ethereal dream-rock.
The evening began with a set from Yorkshire-based folk rockers Fossil Collective. Typically performing as a 5-piece, they performed a solid 8-song set stripped down to a trio. Their debut LP, Tell Where I Lie, which hit #1 on Billboard’s “New Artists” chart, has been critically lauded for its dense instrumentation. Despite the minimalist live approach, 3-part falsetto harmonies and Johnny Hooker’s instrumental multi-tasking (guitar, mandolin and melodica) created a finely woven tapestry of sound that lies somewhere between where Fleetwood Mac and Simon & Garfunkel meet Fleet Foxes and Bon Iver.
The lush cinematic soundscape carried over into The Boxer Rebellion’s set. Frontman Nathan Nicholson stands as one of the most distinctive, almost otherworldly voices in modern rock—his chill-inducing falsetto only matched in intensity by the choir of backup singers he found within the audience. The rhythm section of bassist Adam Harrison and drummer Piers Hewitt, while powerful on a bone-rattling scale, was leveled perfectly so as not to drown out the subtle intricacies of Todd Howe’s delay and reverb-soaked guitar. Their more up-tempo tracks “Spitting Fire” and “Take Me Back” cut through their sonic dreamscape before a thrashing finale of “The Gospel of Goro Adachi,” made complete with wildly flashing stage lights that filled the room with a thick haze ready for Rogue Wave to roll in.
Three years since their last appearance in Philadelphia, Rogue Wave were all smiles as they took the stage in support of their latest LP, Nightingale Floors. After a night full of wistful atmospheric delirium, the crowd seemed ready to dance. Like a powder keg, they exploded as the band launched into the gorgeously bouncy “Siren’s Song” and continued to keep the floors shaking until the pre-encore detonation of “Harmonium.”
Gregarious frontman Zach Rogue utilized every opportunity between songs to graciously interact with the crowd, continuously thanking everyone for their support throughout trials and tribulations of years past, even handing out flowers to those in the front row. When technical difficulties arose during the encore, Rogue sat at the edge of the stage without a microphone or amplifier for a solo performance of “California.” It was at this point his superior musicianship was evident, as you might imagine once a singer is stripped of his PA system, his voice emanating as clear as a bell all the way to the back of the house.
The rest of the band rejoined Rogue to end the evening with the 7 minute-long anthem, “Everyone Wants To Be You,” sending the audience literally skipping home and securing Rogue Wave’s position, alongside co-headliners The Boxer Rebellion, as two of the most steadfast, consistently excellent bands in indie rock. — Wendy McCardle
Rogue Wave @ Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA – June 18, 2013
01 Siren’s Song
02 S(a)tan
03 Nourishment Nation
04 Figured It Out
05 Love’s Lost Guarantee
06 College
07 Chicago x 12
08 Eyes
09 Lake Michigan
10 Harmonium
——encore——
11 California
12 Everyone Wants to Be You
The Boxer Rebellion @ Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA – June 18, 2013
01 Semi-Automatic
02 Runner
03 Diamonds
04 Evacuate
05 New York
06 Caught By The Light
07 Always
08 If You Run
09 Fragile
10 Spitting Fire
11 No Harm
12 Take Me Back
13 The Gospel of Goro Adachi