From Aerosmith and the Modern Lovers in the 1970s to Passion Pit and Vampire Weekend in the 2000s, the Boston music scene has seen some major acts make it big through the years.
On Monday, rock bands and music journalists met at the Middle East Restaurant and Nightclub in hopes of discovering &- or becoming &- the big Boston breakout of the 2010s.
Journalists from publications such as The Weekly Dig, The Boston Herald, Alternative Press, The Boston Globe, Performer Magazine and others took questions from rock bands in an effort for both to form a better understanding of each other as part of a series of ongoing educational programs for Boston rockers.
The session, called "Rock Shop #7: Less Rock, More Talk," had a panel of journalists sitting in a darkened corner, answering questions from over 60 ambitious musicians and writers.
Rock Shop #7 began with the panel answering the question that was on everyone's mind: "How would a journalist like to be approached by a band?"
The musicians listened to the panelists carefully, often taking notes as the journalists shared their wisdom, which ranged from not spamming their inboxes to sending YouTube videos of all their songs.
Band members said they expected to learn a lot about how to communicate with journalists from the panel, with some saying that it's an issue that many emerging bands don't think about and have trouble with.
As the night went on, the formality of the initial introductions faded away, and the band members and journalists seemed to feel more comfortable with each other.
"Don't get the wrong idea, we love music, and we love you," said Jed Gottlieb, a writer for the Boston Herald.
Gottlieb's statement&-"we love music"&-perfectly captured the atmosphere in the room.
"I've always loved music," said Chris Oquist, drummer for the band RIBS. "When I was young, I was always banging on the plates and running around the hallways singing. My first album was Megadeth."
For the musicians who attended, Rock Shop #7 was a big deal. One band member admitted that he was even skipping a class to attend. The musician standing beside him immediately replied that Rock Shop #7 was better than any class.
Many of the musicians in attendance agreed.
"I love music. If I could do this forever, I would," said Amanda Dellevigne, singer for the band Night Fruit.
"It's nice to have your beliefs reaffirmed, and learn new things too, like how you should put all your songs on YouTube," Dellevigne said. "It was helpful... it's awkward asking people to review you."
For many of the bands that attended, Rock Shop #7 represented an opportunity to learn how to make it as an emerging band. However, Oquist insists music is not just about becoming famous.
"People don't really seem to play music for fun anymore," Oquist said. "So many people are wrapped up in the glamour of becoming a rock star, but why can't you be an investment banker and play music too?"
Steve Thio, the co-owner of Pirate Promotion in Cambridge, which has promoted some of the biggest indie acts in the country such as Dr. Dog and Tom Waits, moderated the panel. Thio said he was happy with how the night went.
"We could have had a million more questions, but it was a good turnout," Thio said.
Audience members seemed pleased as well.
"This was the best show I've seen in months," one attendee yelled out as the night came to a close.
This is an account occasionally used by the Daily Free Press editors to post archived posts from previous iterations of the site or otherwise for special circumstance publications. See authorship info on the byline at the top of the page.
