🎡😲 Boston Calling’s local acts to watch

It’s Thursday, Boston.

🫵 Boston magazine needs YOUR help. The second-annual New England Travel Awards are coming up, and the mag is looking for locals to nominate their favorite hotels, attractions, and unforgettable destinations. Don’t gatekeep: Nominate your faves here.

👀 What’s on tap today:

• The Boston Legacy in … Foxborough?

• We’re on nor’easter watch

• A car collision chronicler 

Up first…

TELEPHONE TAG

Boston Calling’s best local acts

Step aside, Luke Combs. Boston Calling kicks off tomorrow, and per usual, this year will feature a stacked lineup of hometown performers alongside the weekend’s headliners. 

So for this month’s edition of telephone tag, we asked local Boston Calling performers which other local act they’re most excited to see this weekend:

🎶 sidebody wants to hear Battlemode. Somerville’s own print press/art collective/punk rock pop band loves some good performance art, which is why they’re stoked to see chiptune trio Battlemode. The band said Battlemode’s electric pop music is playful and danceable, but it’s the way their sets feel that really blew Sidebody away. “They create this very distinct world … blending Andrew Lloyd Webber with, like, Game Boy electronic music,” said vocalist Hava Horowitz. “It's unlike anything anyone's ever seen.”

🎸 Battlemode wants to hear Layzi. “I kind of view [Layzi] as like a modern day Astrud Gilberto,” said Battlemode’s David “Biff” Jubinsky, referencing the “cool, breathy, and delightful” Brazilian bossa nova singer. That’s exactly the energy Jubinsky thinks Layzi will bring to this year’s fest, which will be an especially welcome “palate cleanser” in this year’s alternative rock-heavy lineup. “I think she will offer kind of like, a second to chill out, enjoy something a little bit more mellow,” he said. 

🎤 Layzi wants to hear Simon Robert French. Considering Layzi’s mellow vibe, it’s not surprising that French, the artist she’s most excited to see, has a sound she describes as “sad acoustic folk vibes … but like, really, really, really good.” If French’s name sounds familiar, it might be because their song “robert’s place” (which has STRONG Noah Kahan energy) went viral on TikTok. Expect paired down, crying-at-the-club vibes and some gut-punching lyricism. 

🥁 Simon Robert French wants to hear PINKLIDS. Although French’s typical playlist includes folky, slower music (including “a lot of Noah Kahan,” they said), when they heard PINKLIDS’s “JUNKY GARDEN,” they were immediately drawn to the shoegaze-y rock sound. Though the band currently only has one song out, that’s part of the appeal for French: “I'm going in like completely blind, which is honestly how I like to do concerts,” they said. “I don't know what's gonna happen. I'm just gonna be there and I'm gonna enjoy it.”

👀 Need to hear it for yourself? You can find the full schedule, including all the local artists we spoke to, here.

TOGETHER WITH THE ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM 

This ISG museum is in full bloom (literally) 

🪻 🏛️ 🖼️ Mermaid exhibits. Venetian-style architecture. A courtyard of hydrangeas that are juuust hitting their peak. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is at its dreamiest this time of year — especially with Fabiola Jean-Lous’s Waters of the Abyss still on view through May 25. Come explore this hauntingly beautiful exhibition before it’s gone, and then check out Ayiti-Tomè on the façade of the museum through June 17. Kids under 17 can enter for free, so grab your tickets and frolic with the whole family. 

CITY

Quick & dirty headlines

⚽ Don’t expect any NWSL games in Boston next year. Because the controversial White Stadium renovation won’t be ready for the Boston Legacy by March 2026, leaving the pro soccer team to join the Revs at Gillette for its inaugural season. Apparently, summer 2026 is the soonest the fields could be ready for play, and a mid-season switchup was too impractical to consider. Meanwhile, Gillette was the only “local” stadium equipped for the NWSL’s many capacity, equipment, and tech regulations. Stay tuned for what we can only assume will be a firestorm of reactions.

🗳️ City Council election season starts NOW. So if you want to be a hottie, listen up! Tuesday was the last day for candidates to file nomination papers for the November election, so give or take a few signature certifications, we have a pretty good sense of the field. All sitting City Council members — minus Tania Fernandes Anderson — are running for reelection. And so far, the most competitive races are to fill Anderson’s seat and the council’s at-large seats. Here’s a list of the current contenders.

🌧️ We’re officially on nor’easter watch. If you’re reading this on Thursday morning, you likely already know that today’s nor’easter is making for a cold, wet, and windy day. As of Wednesday evening, forecasts say we can expect 2.5 inches of rain and 40 mph winds here in Boston, with the worst weather hitting us from about noon to 8 p.m. Long story short: Brace for a day of miserable weather, and even more miserable commuting. Nor’easter + Memorial Day weekend travel = lots of traffic. Keep up with the latest here.

🖼️ It’s a great day to go the MFA. And we’re not just talking about the rainy weather. Today kicks off the museum’s UNIQLO Festival of Films from Japan, which runs through June 6. During that time, we can expect to see a variety of contemporary Japanese films for just $15 a pop, starting with tonight’s comedy “Sunset, Sunrise.” Also happening today: Artist Nick Shea (the dude who draws people on the Common) is popping up at the museum in celebration of its Van Gogh exhibit to draw visitors. He’ll be back monthly through September.

QUICK QUESTION!

🌧️ Is the nor’easter disrupting your Memorial Day travel plans?

LOCAL DISCOUNT

Don't miss out on this deal!

B-Side members get 60+ discounts to some of Boston’s best experiences, including 10% off tickets at WNDR, the world of immersive art and interactive exhibits, mind-bending installations, vibrant digital art, and captivating sensory experiences. 

ONE LAST THING

A car collision chronicler 

If you think living on a busy street is annoying, imagine living near one of the state’s “top crash locations.” 

That’s what Somerville resident Ari Iaccarino has grown used to living on the intersection of Route 16 and Boston Avenue in Somerville. In two-and-a-half years, there have been 23 reported crashes, and no one seemed particularly concerned.

So, he took matters into his own hands. Iaccarino watched the intersection from his home office and took photos of every crash he saw, from Priuses to vans to sedans and Subarus, posting them on Facebook, in hopes the evidence would make for some positive change. 

And two years of photos later, it worked! A DCR rep recently confirmed the department would add “several safety improvement measures” including a left turn arrow, new cameras, and a “yield to pedestrian” sign. Sometimes, it pays to be annoying.

— Written by Gia Orsino

🚗 Thanks for reading! Nothing but respect for a man with a Facebook account and a dream.

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, for supporting local journalism and bringing culturally rich experiences to our city. 

🌭 The results are in: Unsurprisingly, 60% of B-Siders would choose Jennifer Coolidge to speak at their commencement ceremony if they could. One reader said: “Graduation? Makes me want a hot dog real bad.”

💃 Keep up with us @BostonBSide on IG, TikTok, and Twitter. Send comments and suggestions to [email protected] or [email protected].