Q&A WITH JP MUSIC FEST’S SHAMUS MOYNIHAN On Sept. 12th The JP Music Festival returns for its 14th year on the banks of Jamaica Pond. BCN's own Distro Marco caught up with Shamus Moynihan, one of the fest's organizers, to check in on what keeps the fest truckin'... DISTRO MARCO: You’ve been involved with the festival from the beginning, correct? What inspires you and your team to keep going, organizing year after year? SHAMUS MOYNIHAN: Yup! Back in 2010 Rick Berlin and I ran into each other at the laundromat we both frequented. He had played a show the night before in Cambridge with a few other JP based bands. One of the performers asked "why isn't there a JP music festival?" A lightbulb went off and we immediately started working on it. The love for the community and the music keeps us going year after year. It's a completely volunteer-run festival, a labor of love. It became bigger than any of us individually. After the first one was over, our treasurer Ferris Mueller said., "it's amazing what you can accomplish when no one cares about taking the credit." DM: What’s something you learned along the way you wish you’d known or implemented at the beginning? PAGE LAYOUTS: Adrian Alvarez: p. 6, 8 Kelsey Deemer: p. 1, 4, 5, 7 Madison Dudley: p. 2, 3
SM: One of the biggest things I've learned is how much pride people have in their community. People took a chance on us. Eddie from The Galway House called me and said he had a check for me. It was for more than we had raised all together at that point. He said, "I know you guys are gonna do something great. Just put my logo on the banner." DM: What's the vibe this year? Are there any artists on the bill you’re particularly excited about presenting to fest-goers? SM: We had to cut it a bit early last year due to rain. The bands we had to cut, Hallelujah the Hills and Parlour Bells were actually some of the ones I was looking forward to the most. So we gave those bands first dibs on playing this year. There are also some amazing first time bands like Troll 2 and Man v. Ghost. This is one of the best lineups we've had (although I probably say that every year). DM: Jah Hills! Love those guys... do you have a favorite performer from past years? SM: I'm always amazed at the amount of talent we have living here. It's impossible to pick favorites. There are definitely some bands that aren't together anymore that I wish we could have back. Tallahassee, Streight Angular, Coyote Kolb, The Upper Crust... some of the top highlights rom our early years. DM: How do you go about curating the artists? SM: We do an open application
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process, it's the best way to get a variety of acts that might not be on our radar. The selection process is easily the hardest part. We usually get over 150 applicants. Originally, the rule was that members of the band had to live in JP. Years later we've loosened it a bit. So many artists and musicians have been priced out of the neighborhood and it's not fair to exclude them. Now we go with "a connection to the JP community." Rick and I lock ourselves in a room multiple times over the course of a few weeks, to the point where we're sick of each other. We listen to every application and go through different stages of selections until we're left with the final 20 or so. We do our best to have a good variety and deal with our time constraints. DM: Same question for the vendors, are the food trucks all local companies? How do you go about selecting the fine assortment of sights, sounds, and tastes for the fest? SM: All of our food vendors are based in Boston. We have a few that have been with us for many years and always a couple of new ones. The first year we only had one food truck. They made smoothies in a blender that was powered by pedaling a bike. They 86'd smoothies about 3 hours in. From the very beginning, we decided to keep it simple. We have food vendors, Jaymz Purtle trucks up all the buckets and drumsticks from Spontaneous' basement and runs a kids music area, and we set up a merch tent. We sell tshirts and the crew from Tres Gatos runs the band
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table where the bands can drop off their merch to be sold (they get 100% of their sales). That's it. We never have any other vendors or tables. We've all been to events with tons of vendors and petitions and solar panel salesmen. We really wanted to run an event where people could just show up, enjoy the music, and have a great day. DM: Have the goals of the festival changed over the years? 14 years in, what's the mission of JP Music Fest? SM: I think we've been pretty consistent throughout the years. If it ain't broke... We're incredibly lucky to be able to do this every year. It costs a small fortune to put this on and all of the money comes from the community. We can only pull it off because the community makes it happen. None of the organizers get paid, all of the bands do. I'd say our only goal is to keep doing what we're doing. DM: Final question, what's your favorite candy bar? This is a journalism standard interview question I am forced to ask. SM: I was always a Reese's guy. But private equity ruins everything.
Visit jpmusicfestival.com for directions, times, and all the juicy details! Oh and bring some Reese's for Shamus so he doesn't have to sully his hands giving money to the corporate overlords.
—––– DISTRO MARCO
BOSTONCOMPASSNEWSPAPER.COM
MASSACHUSETTS MINUTE:
BEATRIZ AMELIA
SKUNKZ GOES 6 GOR 6
ON ART, BELONGING AND COLLECTIVE HEALING
The blog era was an unrivaled period Seconds into the project’s first song for hip-hop music. Lasting from about “BELT,” Skunkz reminds listeners why 2007 to 2012, it marked a he’s one of the most capable MCs decentralized peak for online rap coming out of Massachusetts by culture, where unsigned artists, stating, “Okay the belt around my independent web-based publications, waist cuz I’m the fucking champ.” A and a new generation of digital powerful reintroduction, the project gatekeepers flipped the traditional continues down a sprawling list of music-industry hierarchy on its head. tracks that oscillate between airy The artists who rose from the cracks braggadocio and introspective, during this time all had one thing in sample-heavy songs that ultimately common – an insatiable thirst to put form a pleasurable listen. This project their talents, communities, and sounds was soon followed by a similarly on a pedestal for a new generation of equipped, five-song EP titled rap fans to experience. “MOTION” in May.
When I walked through Boston I think it's really cool when we let go of Common on an afternoon with all these stereotypes that art has to multidisciplinary artist Beatriz Amelia, a look or feel a specific way. current resident at the Boston Center for the Arts, she reflected on LB: What advice would you give to sentimental moments in her creative those feeling boxed within their process where acts of creation creativity? depicted emotions that often feel difficult to vocalize through visuals. BA: When I'm struggling with that feeling, I find it really helpful to put To her, “releasing your emotions can myself in a new environment. Going be a safe space for yourself. I always down a different road than the one know I can express them through my you've been on before can really help art.” you and take your mind out of that stuck feeling. Her work often imagines portals— visual and conceptual thresholds that LB: Why is being a BIPOC artist invite viewers into dreamlike spaces significant right now? where past, present, and future coexist. According to her, drawing from BA: Navigating the professional art experiences growing up outside of industry can be challenging, but Puerto Rico has allowed her to explore finding other artists and creatives and themes of cultural inheritance, building community with them makes displacement, and collective resilience. a huge difference. We find ways to In our conversation, we discussed the support and inspire each other, and importance of finding belonging in the knowing that our practices are running creative arts scene. parallel has helped me to feel more at ease in professional settings; it Latina Bohemian: What is it about reminds me that I belong there. inclusivity that sets a tone in your artistic journey? LB: Why should creatives not lose faith in their artistry? Beatriz Amelia: I think it's powerful to see other people representing BA: I’m thankful to my parents themselves and their stories, as it because they cultivated a purpose of inspires me to be able to do the same creativity in me, and I’ve always felt without caring about any guilt or that I wanted to be an artist. Exploring shame for the different experiences themes of cultural inheritance, that we have. Because you never know displacement, and collective resilience if someone’s experiencing the same gives me optimism in my current thing. environment to cultivate my own roots and help them grow stronger. Being LB: How can one find freedom in their able to express oneself through art is a creative expression? blessing and gift, and I would encourage anyone to keep having BA: I think giving yourself permission faith in their art practice as a way to to express whatever you need to is the find their own strength. ultimate freedom. You know, I get to create a world that I wish that I could LB: What are two words you want see, and being able to see myself or others to remember you as? my community and other artists' work too is such a freeing moment. It's very BA: Peaceful and comfortable. People self-proclaimed. feel comfortable around me; I'd like people to think of me in that way. LB: How do you view the current state of art?
With newfound platforms like DatPiff, “AURA FARMING” and “NO LiveMixtapes, and 2DopeBoyz offering POLITICS” were the next two projects artists the opportunity to share their to follow, with both steering closer music on a global stage, some rappers toward the style of rap that put Skunkz – including Lil B, Curren$y, Wiz Khalifa, on the map in the first place. Of all the Meek Mill, and Kendrick Lamar – took projects to have arrived during their sonic output to a new level. While Skunkz’s spree this year, these two are most of today’s artists tend to do the certainly standouts. opposite by taking months and sometimes several years off between “AURA FARMING” is a fully furnished bodies of work, there are still few who album with 17 songs. It’s here that have carried the torch of independent, listeners grow accustomed to Skunkz’s high-volume music-making from the seemingly never-ending capability to blog era into our modern age. One rap. “ONETWOFIVE,” “Clientele” such artist is Boston’s Skunkz. featuring Last Days, and “SILVER SPOON” are personal favorites, capturING the essence of what makes the Dorchester rapper great. “NO POLITICS” is six songs, but it makes up for its runtime with quality. Skunkz is at his best on this project. Untethering stanzas about defeating egoism, overcoming adversity, and celebrating the lives of those no longer with us over melancholy, highIn 2026, few rappers have been as texture production, “NO POLITICS” is unrelenting as Skunkz. Since early an EP that listeners can return to time March, the Dorchester native has and time again. released a total of six projects, each of which offers a different glimpse of his “Forward Thinking” and “Break Point” artistic wordplay, innate talent for beat are the final projects to round out selection, and transversal style of rap. Skunkz's recent run. Produced entirely After a four-year break from releasing by Brainorchestra and ewonee, new music, Skunkz has emerged from respectively, each project reinforces hibernation with a revitalized approach the sentiments described above. that is quickly leaving a lasting mark Skunkz has re-entered our atmosphere on his discography and attracting a with the force of a thousand meteors. new subset of fans. Whether you’ve been familiar with Skunkz or you’re just hearing about Everything began in March with Skunkz for the first time, there’s never “HOUSEMUSIC VOL1” – a six-song EP been a better time than now to get that quickly reinstates Skunkz as a familiar. Give any one of the above force to be reckoned with. projects a listen to get to know one of the most exciting rap acts you’ll find in Massachusetts right now.
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–––––––– SHAMUS HILL
–––LATINA BOHEMAIN
BA: I’ve been inspired by mixing different materials and trying to explore and pursue different pathways. Just because you start as a painter doesn't mean you only have to paint. For me, I like to incorporate sculpture and animation and a mix of distinctive materials in my work.
Bad Bunny big money to play MGM Music Hall on Friday night, you don’t want him playing another show at Fenway Park for another promoter on Saturday night. An artist like Bad Bunny can go to the next city to find an audience and collect a payout.
THE PRICE OF NICE The fifth edition of Nice, a Fest set up camp in Davis Square last month, reaching a milestone that’s a cause for celebration, as well as reflection.
until you reflect on the years of time, effort, and expense invested in getting on that stage. One reason musicians are willing to make these trade-offs is the notion that in supporting Nice, they are supporting their own local music scene. Behind the scenes, however, some artists have expressed reservations about some of the less scene-friendly aspects of Nice, including the extent of the radius clauses.
In 2026 the event featured more than 80 local artists, multiple light shows, a vendor market, a pre-fest industry mixer with panel discussions, an expanded merch line, an exclusive “Nice, a Comp” vinyl release, and a panoply of sponsors, ranging from major beverage corporations to small independent businesses. To give an example, in a contract obtained from 2024, the radius clause By many metrics, it’s a boon for local distance was 90 miles and included a music. But as the festival chews up an 30 day show ban before Nice and 60 increasingly large chunk of the summer day show and advertising ban after festival calendar, there’s been Nice. In 2026, the distance shrunk to a grumbling about a particular feature of 60 mile radius while the timeframe the Nice artist contract: the radius grew to 60 days before and 60 days clause. after the festival. Per the 2024 contract, exceptions can be made to A “radius clause” is a non-compete these rules with written permission feature of some concert contracts. It from Nice. establishes a rule that prevents a performer from playing other shows Whether the radius clause stipulates within a set distance and time frame. 60 or 90 miles, it’s a lot. 90 miles This protects ticket sales for the covers the most populous portions of concert promoter. Massachusetts, past Worcester, all the west to Chicopee. It covers the If the artist violates the radius clause, populous southern parts of Maine and they break the contract, which can New Hampshire. It covers all of Rhode mean they forfeit whatever Island. compensation they were promised and suffer whatever additional Nice, a Fest founder Alex Pickert consequences might have been written defended the radius clause, calling it into the contract. “pretty standard” for the live music industry. Of all the partnerships that have contributed to make Nice, a Fest “For us, it's about protecting an event possible, none is more powerful than that takes a full year to build and the contribution that the musicians making sure artists playing NICE are themselves make. To state the obvious, part of something that feels EXTRA a music festival is nothing without the NICE and more of a big deal than your musicians. standard local show during that weekend.” The artists fill these stages for relatively little financial compensation. Is Pickert correct that radius clauses According to an artist contract from a are “pretty standard”? recent Nice, a Fest, the festival paid out $400 to a four-piece band with an Yes and no. Radius clauses are established local following. $100 for 30- standard in the corporate byways of minutes onstage sounds pretty good, the music industry. If you’re paying
argued that the sacrifice was necessary to support the “local scene,” “I think supporting the local scene also means building sustainable events that artists can rely on year after year. If we can't protect the festival at all [by not imposing a radius clause], it becomes much harder to invest in paying over 80 artists each summer along with production, marketing, venue and fest expenses which makes the long term a lot harder.”
On the other hand, local artists are local for a reason. They’re not selling out Boston and traveling the next day to another sellout Philadelphia. They scrap and claw just to build a big enough fanbase to fill a local club. If they sign a contract that precludes A certain trepidation remains. One them from performing locally, they’re Nice artist we interviewed, who declined to be named in this article, not performing at all. called the festival “too Nice to fail.” Pickert sees a silver lining here: “I also have noticed that the radius It’s a joking reference, of course, to inadvertently encourages bands to go the “too big to fail” line associated beyond Boston and the [New England] with the 2008 financial crisis, when the states and play shows further from public was put on the hook to bail out home and go on tour! I think that is big banks that made bad investments NICE!” on the theory that these enormous businesses were too integral to the Other local bookers and concert economy to be allowed to bust, organizers do not necessarily agree because we’d all bust with them. that a contract barring a local artist from playing elsewhere in town for an Joking or not, there’s an analogy to entire summer is “nice.” draw here. Whether or not Nice, a Fest provides a net benefit to the local Heather Timmons of Tiny Oak Booking music scene, once artists have signed generally relies on a “two week rule” on the dotted line, they have to act for shows she books at Midway Cafe like it does. In for a penny, in for a and The Jungle. She considers longer pound. And in the back of their minds, than two weeks to be “unreasonable” do these artists also consider what and notes the negative impact that impact not playing Nice might have on over-sized radius clauses can have on their opportunities for getting booked the live music ecosystem, year round by the prolific booking outfit Get To The Gig Boston, also “Big festival clauses definitely make it founded by Alex Pickert? more difficult for the smaller local venues to find bands to fill all their For Nice, a Fest, whether or not a shows, especially during the slower performing artist signs away certain summer months when colleges are out rights and freedoms is all about of session and lots of folks are choice. Says Pickert, traveling so scheduling is more difficult in general.” “We really want what is best for the artists, and if they choose to play our Lexi Howard of Rat******* echoed the fest, they will have a NICE time and a sentiment about big festival clauses, NICE crowd because of it.” But you have to wonder, what structural and “Festival season is in the summer, and systemic conditions are in place that I think it's a shame to force local artists would make local performers agree to to sign off on something that's going not perform locally for months on end, to prevent them from doing summer for sub-minimum wages, for a handful shows outside of the month of your of minutes on a local stage, and call fest.” it… nice? Two other show promoters who operate in the local, community, and DIY scene, Matthew Smith (Club Passim, Boston Celtic Music Festival) and Jason Trefts (Illegally Blind, Fuzzstival), did not describe any specific clause related to booking local artists, but couched the notion of radius restrictions in terms of mutual “respect.” Says Smith, “For the theater headliner acts we do ask that they be respectful and don’t book anything too close around the festival. Nothing specific as far as mileage or time… For BCMFest, the [local artists] are asked to be mindful, but no hardline rules.” Says Trefts, “[I]f bands ask me about a radius clause, I tell them that they should do what they think is best for the band, with respect for the show they have already agreed to play and the bands on that one. All of the money made goes to bands so that is something to consider. It’s really up to them. I don’t have any radius clauses around shows, normal ones or Fuzzstival.” When asked to consider radius clauses from the artist’s perspective, Pickert
Last year there was no Nice, a Fest. The festival took the year off to retool. It’s a reminder not to take gems in the local arts and cultural landscape for granted. What is built with hard effort one day can disappear the next. Radius clauses are a tool that festival owners can use to protect their property. There’s added accountability for festivals, though, that claim the banner of supporting the local music scene. If participating artists start grumbling about “pretty standard” contractual asks that other local bookers in the music don’t recognize as pretty standard, something is starting to feel off. Nice, a Fest has delivered good music and good times each year it’s landed. We shouldn’t forget, though, that along with all the benefits there’s a cost to the local music scene. There’s a price to Nice. And there’s always the possibility that one day that price grows too steep.
––MICHAEL GUTIERREZ
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literary art 9/8 Beyoncé—One Of One Join author Antonia Jade King for an exploration of the affirmations and historical lessons of Beyoncé’s work @ Just Book-ish 6pm-7:30pm All Ages FREE 9/29 N.K. Jemisin on Revolutionary Ideas in Fantasy Fiction Join awardwinning author for talk about her 20+ year career inspired by resistance and oppression, loneliness and belonging @ Boston Public Library (BPL) 6pm7:30pm All Ages FREE
9/18 Cuck 3rd Anniversary Show Makeout Palace, Ordinary People, 9/30 Don't Say Palestine Book Coby Conrad, and more @ 382 Walnut release event with author Assal Rad St, Brookline, MA 5:30pm 18+ $15 discussing how the "free press" became a vital part of the machinery 9/2 Transgender Emergency Fund 9/19 Roslindale Porch Fest Porches that enabled the genocide in Palestine Of Massachusetts Charity Show: and yards across Roslindale become @ United Parish in Brookline 7pm All JVK, Nicoteens, Fracture Type, stages for live music of all genres 1pm- Ages $24 Wallower @ Middle East Upstairs 7pm 6pm All Ages FREE All Ages $15 adv, $20 dos
music
9/3 Beats On The Boat Sunset cruise with hip-hop and house music from Rilla Force and LDER @ Rowes Wharf 6pm-7:30pm FREE
9/19 The Kylam Retirement Party with Nice Guys, Andy California, The Swettes, and more @ Lou Ann David Park 1pm-6pm All Ages FREE
9/19 Perennial Release Show for 9/3 LUCE Charity Show: Notadog, their record Modernism with Sinaloa Battlemode, Hot Slander, Artwork @ and Miracle Blood @ Deep Cuts 7pm O'Briens Pub 7pm 21+ $15 18+ $20 adv, $24 dos
9/3 Ohm Foam "Suds" Album 9/19 Baabes Album Release Show Release with Quantum Moon @ Lizard with Today Junior & Dr. Vet and the Lounge 8pm 21+ $15 Dead Pets @ O'Briens Pub 8pm 21+ $13 adv, $15 dos 9/4 Warm Up Boston Charity Fest: Modern Ego, Good And You?, Intac, 9/20 Sunday Jazz: Sonny Rollins Minikin @ Warehouse XI 7pm-11pm Jam @ The Square Root Cafe 7pmAll Ages $15 10pm 21+ FREE 9/4 Zola Simone Release Show with 9/20 Divorce Cake, The Outs, Alfred Shallow Pools and TWAM @ Deep Cuts Be Loud, Bag Lady @ O'Briens Pub 7pm 18+ $15 adv, $20 dos 8pm 21+ $10 adv, $12 dos 9/4 Paper Lady Single Release Show 9/24 Keep For Cheap & Latchkey for their single cellsword with Main Era Kids @ Lilypad 7:30pm-9:30pm All and special guest @ Tourist Trap 8pm Ages $15 adv, $18 dos $10-$15 9/5 The Specific Heats & Adult Learners Everything We Never Were (but Always Wanted to Be) release party and Boston homecoming @ Lilypad 4pm-7pm All Ages $12 9/6 Both Kinds Country AND Western DJ Groanman returns, playing vinyls every first Sunday @ State Park Bar 8pm 21+ FREE
9/26 Patrick Mongeau & JankyTeeth, Jeff Remis & Brian White, Nicole Dobberpuhl @ The Jungle 4pm-7pm 21+ $10 adv, $15 dos 9/28 KNOBS Beat night with Dot Dev @ State Park Bar 8pm 21+ FREE
visual art 9/8 Visible Mending: Personalize your Denim Join Mariko Sugimori to patch holes, cover up stains, and add embroidery flair. Materials provided @ Faneuil Branch of the Boston Public Library 6pm-7:30pm FREE 9/11 Synth-tember: Opening 49 local artists exhibit interactive works at the intersection of art and science. Performances by This Bliss, Battlemode, and LAVAGXRL @ New Alliance Gallery 7pm-11pm All Ages FREE 9/12 Chinese Brush Painting For Adults: Horses Learn the techniques of traditional brush painting with Xiaoyong Liu @ PAO Arts Center 2pm3:30pm $30 9/17 Catalyst Conversations: Matters Of Light Artist Marsha Wilcox and astrophysicist Sara Seager discuss light in both art and science @ GBH Studio at the Boston Public Library 6:30pm-8pm All Ages FREE 9/19 The Install Portrait gallery exploring wigs, identity, and the women who wear them in honor of Alopecia Awareness Month @ Civic Pavilion 2pm-6pm All Ages FREE
9/29 Dark Dazey God Is A Frog Tour with Fortuna 500 and Key Found @ 9/26 Stone Maps (Ruttiers For The Lilypad 7:30pm-9:45pm All Ages $15 Dispossed) Opening Reception 9/9 Breakout From Oppression, 22 adv, $18 dos Celebrate Kiyan Williams’s public Grief, Ashamed, Far Too Late All installation with live music, poetry, proceeds to LUCE Immigrant Justice dinner, and dance @ Copp's Hill Network @ O'Briens Pub 7pm 18+ $12 Terrace 4pm-8:30pm FREE adv, $15 dos
performance
9/9 Rozzie Old Time Music & Belgian Beer Night @ The Square Root Cafe 7pm-10pm 21+ FREE 9/11 Stick Shift, Aardvark, Pagodas @ The Jungle 8pm 21+ $10 adv, $15 dos 9/11 Riddim House & Friends: The City's Ultimate Night Out Highenergy night of Afrobeats, Dancehall, Hip-Hop with Adelaide, PartywithRami, DJ Wonka, and more 10pm 21+ $20 adv, $25 dos
9/4 Yes & Everything: Sports! Grab your jerseys, jockstraps, and boots for this sporty warehouse cabaret @ The Loov 8pm $20
film 9/4-9/10 Spirited Away Special 25th
Anniversary Engagement! Both 9/5 Les Vedettes: Las Exóticas Historic all-Latine burlesque and drag subbed and dubbed screenings show with live band @ Crystal Ballroom available @ Brattle Theatre All Ages $15.50 8pm 18+ $33 9/8 Topical Popsicle: Improv Comedy Show Take a bite of JP's improv @ Midway Cafe 6:30pm 21+ $10
9/17 Seminar: The Jerk Exploring Steve Martin's evolution from stand-up to screen followed by a screening of The Jerk @ Coolidge Corner Theatre 6:15pm $30
9/12 JP Music Festival Over 20 bands 9/11 Puppetviolence II Music by Troll 9/23 Love, Joy, And Power: Tools and artists, food trucks, kids activities, Milk, Roblox Tycoon Band, & and more @ Pinebank Baseball Field Trepidation. Drag performances by Vin For Liberation Screening Documentary on Black Voters Matter 12pm-7pm All Ages FREE U Endo & ET Barnum @ Tourist Trap followed by community conversation @ 7:30pm $15, $10 with puppet Massachusetts College of Art and 9/12 Chunk!, Katie Rugg and the Design 6:30pm-9pm All Ages FREE Kites, Mod Rockr @ The Jungle 4pm- 9/12 Arias Aloft Circus Show with 7pm 21+ $10 adv, $15 dos vocal acrobatics from Opera Untapped and physical virtuosity from Circus 617 9/24 A Cell Phone Movie A micro9/12 Sound in Air IV Electronic @ Allstonway 2pm-4pm All Ages FREE budget, meta-comedy screening with live intro and post-film talk @ Arts at music, dance, and live visual projection with Violet Nox, Noell Dorsey, Embee, 9/17 Roslindale Comedy Comedians the Armory 7pm-9:30pm and more @ First Church Cambridge from all over Boston ready to make you 7pm-10pm $20 laugh @ The Square Root Cafe 7pm10m 21+ $10 suggested donation 9/13 Seth Hanson, C.J. Red Mouth, Andrew Eckel & Jonah Sacks, TC and 9/23 After Hours At The Market 9/2 Wax & Stacks Bring your own the Friends, Parker Ousley @ Basket Drag & burlesque show vinyl and pick up the latest BCN hot off Midway Cafe 3pm All Ages $10 themed after New England's favorite the press @ Midway Cafe 9pm-11pm grocery store with a raffle and food 21+ FREE 9/15 Truck Violence, Deathless drive @ Jacques' Cabaret 8pm 21+ Forever, Trophy Hunt @ Deep Cuts $15 9/3, 9/10, 9/17, 9/24 Queeraoke Deli 7pm 18+ $15 adv, $20 dos Critically acclaimed karaoke and one of 9/29 Total Recall: Solarpunk Drag the longest running queer nights in and burlesque themed around New England, every Thursday @ environmentalism, technology, and Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $8 hope @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+
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community
9/4 Junkyard Plaza Music, artwork, vendors, line dancing, and the giveaway of a gigantic cowboy hat @ New Edgerly Plaza 2pm-8pm All Ages FREE 9/5 Physical Media Night Vinyl, VHS, DVD, and video game pop-up shop with an all-cassette DJ set by Cassetti Spaghetti and VHS screening of High Fidelity @ Deep Cuts 6pm 18+ FREE 9/6 Rethread Boston Clothing swap, silk screen printing, food, clothing repair workshops, and more @ City Hall Plaza 12pm-7pm All Ages FREE
9/26 West End Community Clean-up Meet neighbors and spend the afternoon beautifying the neighborhood @ West End Museum 1pm-4pm All Ages FREE
9/7, 9/14, 9/21, 9/28 Drag Bingo Weekly drag bingo with performances, 9/26 Cambridge Cat Tour Walking guests, and prizes hosted by Mizery tour of Cambridge's most established 7pm-10pm 21+ FREE cats, followed by Meowfest @ Dana Park 2pm-6pm All Ages FREE 9/9 Talkback: In Us We Trust with Donna Biven and Justin Merrick 9/27 FensFest Celebration of the Conversation on wealth, relationships, community & gardening season with interiority, and trust @ The Coop Social live music, games, and activities @ Club 6pm-7:15pm All Ages FREE Fenway Victory Gardens 11:30am-3pm All Ages FREE 9/9 Sewcial Club Monthly fiber arts co-working and social night. All skill 9/27 Rags to Drag Social coworking levels welcome @ Artisans Asylum space open to all drag, theatre, 7pm-9pm All Ages FREE cosplay, and anyone working on costume pieces @ Artisans Asylum 9/10 Salsa At The Loov Salsa night for 4pm-7pm All Ages FREE all levels featuring Los Mambiseros @ The Loov 6:30pm-10pm $20 9/28 Table Top Game Night Start off the week with your favorite table top 9/12 Open Streets Mattapan Familygames @ The Square Root Cafe 8pmfriendly, car-free event with music, 11pm 21+ FREE food trucks, and activities @ Blue Hill Avenue 10:30am-3pm All Ages FREE
opportunities
9/12 The Urban Agriculture and Climate Fair Harvest competition, cooking demos, local vendors, free Harvard Radcliffe Fellowship food, and a live DJ @ Roxbury Heritage Yearlong, fully funded fellowship for State Park 11am-3pm All Ages FREE creative artists including housing and travel stipends The deadline to apply is 9/12 Salsa & Bachata Glow In The 9/10 Dark Party Beginner Bachata lesson, social dancing, glow props & photo Brattle 25th Anniversary Poster booth @ Dante Alighieri Society of Contest Winning poster will be Massachusetts 9pm 21+ $20 adapted into Anniversary t-shirt and a 9/13 Made In Boston Festival Curated AAPI market with 35 artists, crafters, food vendors, & local businesses @ Arts at the Armory 10am4pm All Ages FREE
printed copy of the poster will be displayed at the theatre. Winner to receive $150 stipend, $250 Brattle gift card, and t-shirt featuring poster design The deadline to apply is 9/15
Call for Artists Show your art 9/13 East Boston Latin Music & alongside the Arts Collaborative Dance Festival Annual festival with live Medford studio artists at their Fall performances, music, and art @ East Open Studios The deadline to apply is Boston Memorial Park 1pm-8pm All 9/15 Ages FREE 9/13 Spark The Block Live DJs, performances, art installations, food, drinks & vendors powered by Spark FM @ 1195 Blue Hill Ave, Mattapan, MA 3pm-8pm All Ages FREE with RSVP 9/14 Somerville Stitch Club Stitch with neighbors in a hidden garden @ Somerville Community Growing Center 6:30pm-8:30pm All Ages FREE 9/15 Movie Trivia Assemble your team and test your movie knowledge for prizes @ Crystal Ballroom 7pm All Ages FREE
2026 Boston Artadia Awards Artadia to award $15,000 to visual artists who have lived and worked within Bristol, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, and Suffolk Counties for the last two consecutive years The deadline to apply is 9/15 Open Call: Activate Residency 2027 Boston Center for the Arts seven-day site-responsive artist residency. Working and travel stipend offered The deadline to apply is 9/16
Call For Artists Artist Group of Charlestown is seeking painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, 9/16 Playing Games Board, card, sculpture and more for Boston video, trivia, and wine pong games Uncommon The deadline to apply is night @ location TBA 6pm-10:30pm All 9/16 Ages FREE
Art In the Antilles Artist Residency 6 9/19 Bean & Barter Market A month artist residency for Boston mutual-aid space to connect with the based Afro Caribbean artists. Includes community and acquire resources from access to studio and co-working local artisans @ Cambridge spaces, mentorship, and a solo exhibit. Community Center 12:30pm-4:30pm $1,500 stipend offered The deadline All Ages FREE to apply is 9/18 9/19 What The Fluff? Festival celebrating the invention of marshmallow fluff with music, games, and food @ Union Square Plaza Building 1pm-5pm FREE 9/19 MassArt Night Market Handmade goods and live workshops by MassArt artisans @ Downtown Crossing 5pm-9pm All Ages FREE 9/26 Experience Chinatown 2026 Murals, live performances, and creative activities celebrating Asian American culture @ PAO Arts Center 9:30am4:30pm All Ages FREE 9/26 Poetry Workshop Join Latina Bohemian for an interactive poetry workshop kicking off Hispanic Heritage Month @ Lynn Museum & Arts Center 12pm-2pm All Ages FREE
9/19 Mass Music & Arts Summit Curated workshops, networking opportunities, and panel discussions with music, art, and entertainment professionals @ Aloft Hotel 11am-7pm $25
activism 9/8 Shaping The Cultural Trust A working session on the Municipal Cultural Trust's structure and participation in Somerville @ Somerville Music Spaces Performance Room 6pm-7:30pm All Ages FREE 9/16 Eviction Defense Training Learn how to defend against evictions in your community @ Zoom 7pm-8pm All Ages FREE
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COMPASS CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1 Assail 7 "Despicable Me" antihero 10 Breakfast chain that recently closed their longstanding Harvard Square location 14 Manatee, by another name 15 Highest-grossing concert series in history 17 The oldest building in downtown Boston, constructed in the late 1600s 19 "Progressive" pitchwoman 20 5 pm, on a memo 21 Building dubbed the "Cradle of Liberty" for the revolutionary speeches given there 28 Charged particle
ANSWER KEY! –––– BEN TOLKIN
SCAN OR VISIT WWW. BOSTONCOMPASS NEWSPAPER.COM/ CROSSWORD-ANSWER
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31 Many Sam Adams products 32 Article in a French newspaper? 33 Part of "A.D." 34 The oldest commissioned warship afloat, dubbed "Old Ironsides" 39 Word of negation 40 "Go ahead!" 41 Hero's end? 42 Red brick path through historic sites in Boston... and through this puzzle 47 Thick Japanese noodles 48 Makers of Oreos and Fig Newtons 49 Terra Firma 50 Island-filled sea between Greece and Turkey
DOWN
1 Venomous viper 2 Drink tossed into Boston Harbor in 1773 3 19th letter of the Greek alphabet 4 Often-injured part of the knee 5 Island in the Ionian 6 "Get By" rapper Talib 7 "Boy howdy!" 8 2022 Telugu epic about Indian freedom fighters 9 Dubai's country 10 Langston Hughes poem expressing complicated patriotism 11 Magician who once jumped off the Harvard Bridge while bound in chains 12 Villain's end? 13 Post's opposite 16 "Where the Sidewalk Ends" poet Silverstein 18 Knob on a radio, for short
21 Mythological goat-like creature 22 "And..." 23 A few eggs, maybe 24 Button sometimes pressed in a panic 25 "Leverage" actor Timothy 26 "Not A Pretty Girl" singer DiFranco 27 Final Beatles album 29 Artist Yoko sometimes (unjustly!) blamed for the dissolution of the Beatles 30 Prefix of negation 33 "Relax!" in the military 35 Ancient Greek theater 36 What an infinite loop has 37 "Vicious" punk rocker 38 Strip the sails from a ship 43 Fig. on nutritional facts 44 Sheepish sound? 45 Modern museum in the Seaport 46 Early horror star Chaney
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SEASON 11
Alien Romance by GS Silva
patreon.com/alienromance Ask A.L.I.C.E by Blujay Buckley
@blu_jay_bird_
Deliberative by Francis Bordeleau
@bordraws Former Friends, Current Acquaintances by Ellie Erhart
@erhartscribbles Nature and Nurture by Samantha Schneider
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@sunnipop98
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MEET THE ARTIST Francis Bordeleau (He/Him, They/Them) is a freelance illustrator and cartoonist based in Boston. He holds a BFA in illustration from Lesley University and an MFA in Visual Narrative from Boston University. His work includes comics, storyboards, literary illustration, book covers, concept art, character design, graphic design, and more. He has previously worked on comics distributed by the Boston Globe, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the Vermont Folklife Center.
FAN EXPO BOSTON
Venom, MR. Worldwide brought to life Fan Expo might best be understood as a mall with an entry fee. Wandering between countless rows of Funko pops, LED lightsabers, and mostly-tasteful softcore smut are people who wear pop culture on their sleeves – literally.
Outside of illustration, he has worked for years in the performing arts as a technician, set designer, painter, and lighting designer. Bordeleau most enjoys exploring topics and genres like history, philosophy, dreams, surrealism, science, social justice, and science fiction. He has a lifelong passion for storytelling and is currently working on a debut science fiction graphic novel. He is also excited to have a monthly strip in the Boston Compass this season.
With a speaker in the pocket of his suit jacket, he roams the convention floor blasting “Fireball.” Though it takes people a second to recognize him, Pace said the act brightens people's day.
“Usually people will hear the music, and Cosplay is the main event of Fan Expo then I'll hear, ‘oh, that's Pitbull,’” he said. Boston, with attendees from all over New “It'll happen dozens of times throughout England spotted roaming Boston despite a the convention.” heat advisory and temperatures exceeding 90°. With the Thomas M. Menino Conven- Pace called his baldness a unifying thread tion Center’s AC cranked, attendees en- between the characters he embodies, with joyed a weekend celebrating all things Emperor Palpatine, Major Ocelot of “Metal Gear” and “Alvin and the Chipmunks” annerdy. tagonist Ian Hawke costumes populating Hailing from New York, veteran cosplayer his closet. Joe Gadson said his Marvel Comics’ Venom costume has gotten more elabo- “A lot of the characters are bald. I am also rate every year. With a homemade muscle bald. It makes my life a little bit easier to suit and 3D-printed mask, he tries to add work with characters like that,” he said. new pieces every year. Still, Pace strives to challenge himself as a Gadson said he fell in love with cosplay at cosplayer by taking on more elaborate age 10 and has attended multiple cons a characters. This summer he DIY’d a cosyear ever since. He said he looks forward tume of “Resident Evil’s” Albert Wesker, to meeting interesting people and sharing complete with a working radio and his first tips on improving his craft. With the shared foray into the world of wigs. knowledge of the cosplay space and on- He said the project took about a month line resources like YouTube, he picks up and a half to piece together, with some new skills to improve his Venom and swap help from his mom on the sewing. Pace out older pieces. added that the time and effort cosplayers Not all costumes are entirely homemade, put into their costumes shows their dedicahowever. Alex Lopes ordered his Marvel tion to cosplay as a kind of craft and sharComics’ Gambit costume from ProCosplay ing their passion for characters. with only light modifications and the addi- Pace recommended that new cosplayers tion of an LED strip into the character’s hold off on their dream costume until they iconic bo-staff. have built up the skills to make it and reThough he said the trench coat was a bit ports his best times on the convention hot for August in Boston, Lopes notes the floor have been in low-maintenance coscrowd enduring the weather speaks to tumes he has put together on the day. their dedication to bring these characters “It doesn't matter if it’s rough or the costo life. tume comes from AliExpress. We have Tewksbury native Nick Pace said his cos- such a wonderful community here; people play journey began in high school. During will be supportive no matter what,” he a Sunday convention he had not planned said. to attend, an offhand comment about his resemblance to the Latin pop sensation inspired his most frequent cosplay: Mr. Worldwide himself, Pitbull.
JACOB DOWNEY
TRASH IS TRAGIC Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪ !
Black swallow wort - sing that to the tune Many ecologists suggest building of “Pink Pony Club.” relationships with "invasive" species instead. Kudzu vine, the famous Southern Now that you've caught my earworm, let scourge that makes trees look like me introduce the plant. Chappell Roan's ex in the music video for Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪ is a climbing vine "The Subway," is edible! The fresh shoots with tiny, five-petaled purple flowers and of Japanese knotweed are too, as are glossy green leaves. Around Boston it's an mugwort leaves. Additionally, removing an "invasive" species that smothers native "invasive" species all at once can vegetation and harms the endangered imbalance a habitat. It's better to observe monarch butterfly. Monarchs lay their eggs it, get to know it. on the Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪ because When I first learned about Black ♪ Swallow they confuse it for milkweed, their only ♬ Wort ♪ I was scared and felt protective of food source. When the eggs hatch, the monarch butterflies and milkweed. I spent caterpillars can't eat the leaves and they a LOT of time noticing and removing starve. BSW, time I could have Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪ was brought to this continent in the 1800s by wealthy landowners in Concord. Like Chappell Roan's music, BSW is resilient, grows rapidly, and originated much further east than the place it ended up. (It's "invasive" in California now too, so it may even grow in West ♪ Hollywood ♬ ♪ ) It's also hard to get out of your head or neighborhood once it's taken root. People try: Pulling the song up by the roots. Challenges: BSW snaps easily and its rhizomes grow new shoots. Clipping the seedpods to reduce spread. Challenges: The seeds have puffy, silky tufts that carry them on the wind. If you disturb mature seedpods you could send tunes flying. Trim back new songsprouts every spring. The plants will eventually die. Challenges: You need to be thorough and consistent for years, and if you wait too long you might spread infectious tunes even further. It turns out going to war on an invasive species is rarely effective. Recent scientific reports suggest that killing spotted lantern flies does nothing to stop their spread. It sure gets people riled up, though, so riled we forget that capitalism and extractive industry are the main causes of biodiversity loss.
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FRANCIS BORDELEAU
spent protesting overdevelopment in my neighborhood.
Me: Ooooohhhh, look what it's done! It's Black Swallow Wort! It kills local bugs! BSW: But Amelia Iiiiiiiiiiiiii'm just trying to live, on this fence by the road, it's where I belong cause I'm a Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪! Maybe it's a little extreme to compare fear of "invasive” species to the queerphobia and internalized misogyny of the mom in Pink Pony Club... but is it? Environmental author Clare Follman writes about how large industries use "invasives" as scapegoats to mask their own, MASSIVE environmental harms. That sounds pretty damn familiar. You can't eat Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪, but there might be other uses for it. Milkweed tufts have been gathered for pillow fill and flotation devices - could BSW's do the same? And its vines snap easily, but are also very long, even, and pliable - baskets? Does it have any traditional uses? I don't know yet, but Iiiiiiiii'm gonna keep on thinking bout that Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪! Iiiiiiiiii'm gonna do some crafting with its vines and its pods! Iiiiiiiiii'm gonna keep on learning bout that Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪! Black ♪ Swallow ♬ Wort ♪. We're both just trying to live here.
AMELIA YOUNG