Like the Los Angeles installment of the series, D.I.Y.: Mass. Ave: The Boston Scene (1979-83) isn't as engaging as its predecessors because the music it covers simply isn't as diverse, energetic, or interesting as the music from New York and England. Boston did have some great bands, however, as evidenced by the paranoid punk of Mission of Burma ("That's When I Reach for My Revolver"), the garage rock of the Lyres ("I Want to Help You Ann"), the rootsy Del Fuegos ("I Always Call Her Back"), and the Cars' raw demo of "You're ...
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Like the Los Angeles installment of the series, D.I.Y.: Mass. Ave: The Boston Scene (1979-83) isn't as engaging as its predecessors because the music it covers simply isn't as diverse, energetic, or interesting as the music from New York and England. Boston did have some great bands, however, as evidenced by the paranoid punk of Mission of Burma ("That's When I Reach for My Revolver"), the garage rock of the Lyres ("I Want to Help You Ann"), the rootsy Del Fuegos ("I Always Call Her Back"), and the Cars' raw demo of "You're All I've Got Tonight." While some of the second-string cuts are a little undistinguished, there are some cool obscurities, such as Willie Alexander's "Mass. Ave," Nervous Eaters' "Loretta," Unnatural Axe's "They Saved Hitlers Brain," Neighborhood Threat's "No Place Like Home," and the Neats' "Six," which make Mass. Ave worthwhile for punk and new wave fetishists. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
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