Events

[ALT ROCK] The Maine gained a sizable following back in 2008 with tongue-in-cheek tracks like “Everything I Ask For.” Their subsequent albums, Black and White (2010), and Pioneer (2011), maintained a consistent pop-rock swag, but Forever Halloween (2013) veered off the beaten path, marking an abrupt shift to alternative rock territory and prompting criticisms of inauthenticity to pandering. But American Candy, released in March of this year, flips the proverbial bird at these accusations, while simultaneously rewarding devoted fans with a mature pop-rock sugar-rush fueled by sticky hooks on tracks like “English Girls” and revitalized sounds (“Am I Pretty?”). Catch the Maine at The Waiting Room on Friday, May 1 with Real Friends, the Technicolors, and Knuckle Puck.

Knuckle Puck is here to remind us that punk-pop is alive and well, and still spawning uber-young bands (these guys are, like, 20 years-old) that create an impressive racket. Hailing from Chicago, the writing has that clever, self-deprecating edge that made emo what it was (and what it remains), and while there’s something generic about Knuckle Puck’s wall-of-crunch-meets-tuned-vocals, it’s hard to resist a good hook. After all, there’s supposed to be some pop in that punk, right?