As candles were spread around the floor of Strange Matter, the crowd that had been dispersed began to surround Boney Loner and the Sacred Teachers, who quickly and rapidly strike a chord with their audience. With a penchant for loud, gaudy rock, Boney Loner finds a way to match the chaotic intensity of Joshua Driver’s antics with a larger than life rising tidal wave of sound from his backing band. It should come as no surprise for anyone who was around to see Driver participate with accompanying vocals and tambourines in The Nervous Ticks. Frenzy comes naturally to him, and the sound of Boney Loner and The Sacred Teachers is the greater for it.
Each of their shows is highlighted by a cataclysm building with each ruckus chord struck, and this particular evening was no different. With only two songs left, after Driver’s body had sprawled across every spot in the room, a seemingly harmless wine bottle came into play. Only, once it was cracked open, everyone in the vicinity witnessed the blood spilling from the inside, all over Driver. The floor was a mess, and the crowd was eating it up as the band played on. By the end of the night, there were murmurs regarding whether the blood spectacle was authentic. Thankfully, Driver wasn't harmed during the tail end of their set. As far as the impact left on the crowd, that’s still up for debate.
It’s exciting to find a band composed of so many talented individuals that are not only in it to deliver a heart-pounding set of gut-wrenching rock, but to make it an experience for all. During one of the first Boney Loner sets I caught, Driver ended up hanging from the ceiling of the Nile by one arm, with a microphone dangling in the other hand. This energetic dynamic, which Boney Loner and The Sacred Teachers are able to display set after set, is a rare and valuable thing. Their spastic, inspired performances show no signs of letting up in the near future, and if you’re in the mood for something truly special, Boney Loner and The Sacred Teachers should be your next destination.
