To view the complete photo gallery of Friday Nights @ Toast, click here.

by Amber N. Johns

The hottest indie orchestral pop band in the Boston music scene played at Toast Lounge in Union Square June 18 to open the Somerville News Friday Night @ Toast series.

“It was great to be part of the inaugural event of the Somerville News Friday Night @ Toast series,” said Paula A. Kelley, of the Paula Kelley Orchestra.

The audience included long-time fans and first-time listeners. “The crowd was really hip and good looking. We’re by no means a young, hip band, so I think it was people who really want to listen to the music,” said Kelley.

“I think people were excited to have a cocktail hour event in a plush venue,” said Courtney H. Naliboff, the night’s host.

Chiemi, a solo singer and songwriter who opened for the Paula Kelley Orchestra, was excited about the night’s turnout. “The musicians brought their community, and there were also a lot of regulars. If you bring the two worlds together, it’s a really good thing.”

Chiemi played a half-hour set of original songs and closed with an intimate cover of “Zoot Suit Riot” by the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies. “It’s a festive song, and I do it so differently than the original that I have a lot of fun with it,” she said.

The Paula Kelley Orchestra’s lively set embraced the sounds of 1960’s pop music with its elaborate instrumentation. “Her music has the same sensibility as sixties orchestral music, but with a modern female twist,” said Naliboff.

The lineup included Kelley’s husband, Aaron P. Tap, on guitar; Christopher U. Barrett and Donald D. Anderson on trumpets; James G. Collins on bass; Angela I. Shyr on violin; and Jeffery C. Norcross on drums. In addition to singing, Kelley alternated between the guitar and
keyboard.

Kelley’s first switch from the keyboard to guitar on the song “You Gonna Make It?”—which Kelley said was the signature song on their album “Nothing/Everything”—was one of the highlights of the set.

The PKO’s set was not without its surprises. During “My Finest Hour,” off their “The Trouble With Success Or How You Fit into the World” album, the band brought audience member Matthew A. Girdharry to join them with an egg shaker he brought to the show. “I loved that. It was totally random,” said Kelley.

“Part of playing live is the surprises that come up,” she said.

Shyr, the violinist for the band, said that she had a great time. “I thought the event was glorious.”

Shyr said she feels that Union Square and Toast need to make themselves known as legitimate music scenes. “This place, which has been hidden, has really catapulted out of the water,” she said.

Sean Sullivan, the manager of Toast, said, “Somerville has been established as a music scene, but not really Union Square. You need an event like this to let people know it’s here.”

Daniel S. Ring, a PKO fan and resident of the city, said he was impressed with the event. “I’ve been to Toast six or seven times before, just because it was convenient. If they keep this up, I’ll be glad to come back.

“An eight o’clock show with a great band and no cover is going to make this place great,” he said.

Sullivan said that he thinks the series will take Toast to the
next level. “It is a good element to come in. It brings in new faces.”

Kelley said she loved the Toast vibe. “I have never been to this place. The space is really cool. It looks like a swanky medieval dungeon.”

The evening’s performance was the last for the band’s “Trouble for Success” tour. They are going to Los Angeles to record their new album in the fall. Kelley said she was happy the band got a chance to play Toast as their farewell show.

“It’s a classy place and a classy event,” she said.

The owner of Toast, Kenneth K. Kelly, said he is looking forward to the Somerville News Friday Night @ Toast series. “We mostly have DJ’s here, but this is a great change of pace.”

(The Somerville News Friday Night @ Toast series alternates among music, comedy and poetry. Doors open at 7 p.m.; show starts at 8 p.m. No cover. Toast Lounge is located at 70 Union Square.)