November 19 wasn’t just any “normal day” at Arts at the Armory. That night, the French Cassettes brought their West Coast “white noise” to the bustling arts hub tucked away in a quiet residential Greater Boston neighborhood.
As people escaped the cold and filled the Somerville, MA hall, Johnny Mex warmed things up with a mosh-worthy opening set before passing the mic to Layzi, who “leveled up” expectations with a retro Mario–themed video backdrop.
Before long, the audience quickly crowded the stage, eager to hear songs from the French Cassette’s three album discography. Their latest project, Benzene, borrows its name from lead vocalist Scott Huerta’s family nickname, ‘Benz.’ In an Instagram post, Huerta revealed that the album showcases “some of my favorite songs we’ve ever done,” and the excitement to share them was apparent in the energy they put into the 14-song set.
Like their music, the set was dynamic, sliding effortlessly from soul to country to indie rock and everything in between. The crowd was locked in, dancing and singing along to every word.
The band kept things light between songs, swapping stories and playful banter, including a joking declaration of their shared disdain for the Dodgers, and an enthusiastic endorsement of Boston’s rivalry with the Yankees. There was no bad blood between the Bay Area band and Boston, though; they’ve played the city often and were clearly glad to be back.
The room was still buzzing after the band closed the set with fan favorites “City Kitty” and “Utah,” but the night wasn’t over quite yet. Fans lined up to meet the band, and grab an illustrated tour poster or a sweatshirt featuring hand-drawn artwork of the band’s mascot, Sprout, an orange tabby cat.
Although the Fall tour came to a close on November 22 in Philly, you can keep up with where the band is headed next at fullfrenchy.com/tour.
