By their own admission, Drug Rug are still figuring things out. On Paint the Fence Invisible, Allen and Cronin — who, lest I forget to mention, won for Local Female Vocalist in our recent Best Music Poll — share vocal duties on nearly every song. They'll be looking to mix that up in the future.
"We're realizing now that you've gotta pick and choose those ones," says Allen. "Things are getting easier for us and more complicated. We're learning more as musicians, I guess — how to write a song with different parts in it."
For a band who've done so well for themselves right out of the gate — creating an identifiable sound and songs as breezy and catchy as they are studied and smart — it's hard to believe that making it this far was never part of the plan. It's as if we were storming into their house to make them famous. "We would just play and sing for fun," acknowledges Allen, who has found that the best thing to jettison on an upward ascent like theirs is any extraneous modesty. "I think at first we were really, really surprised by it. But now we're like, 'Fuck that — we're awesome.' "
DRUG RUG + MEAN CREEK + THE NEW BLACK MAGIC RAINBOW QUARTET + THE NEEDY VISIONS | Middle East downstairs, 480 Mass Ave, Cambridge | August 8 @ 9 pm | $12 | 617.864.EAST or www.mideastclub.com
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Following a lively opening set of Americana-infused indie rock from South Shore five-piece War Presidents, Dream Hits breezed through their show with the infectiously simple "Bummer" and the sweet melodrama of "Meat," a song that sounded so warm and familiar that even the most intoxicated coeds were bouncing and swaying in all the right places.
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