Just one week out from Halloween, there was already a sense of ghoulish energy brewing at Somerville’s ONCE Ballroom on October 24th. Starcrawler, Los Angeles’ latest rock and roll sensation, literally hit the stage from all four sides and proceeded to mesmerize the audience with a feverish and enchanting set that included work from their entire catalog, including their most recent release Devour You.
Austin Smith (drums), Tim Franco (bass) and Henri Cash (guitar/vocals) descended upon the stage and found their marks as Arrow de Wilde (lead vocals) forced her way through the audience from the back of the ballroom. Wasting no time whatsoever, Starcrawler relentlessly tore through their set with gusto and determination to not only entertain their fans aurally, but visually as well. Smith and Franco, kept the backbeat solid and provided perfect foils for Cash and de Wilde as their impressive showmanship drew most of the attention.
Under a “No Theatrics” clause for the evening, Arrow de Wilde’s antics did not include spitting blood. However, spewing water and strangling herself with her mic lead were a few moves that were left in play. At times, de Wilde eerily emitted subtle characteristics of vintage Alice Cooper and early Marilyn Manson (when he was actually creepy), all while singing her bloody heart out. The audience was all in and they clearly adored every minute of the set as the band rocked, rolled and writhed through, “Train”, “I Love LA”, “Pussy Tower”, “She Gets Around”, “Pet Semetary”, “No More Pennies”, the gloomy “Chicken Woman” and more!
Yet again, it was not a performance to miss, especially with de Wilde going all-out, as she gracefully fell into the crowd during the finale and allowed herself to be passed around by hand and above the heads of the audience. The performance, a memorable one, left the audience in glorious awe.
