Free Rock Trio and Rusty Mullet at Dud’s Dungeon

Photos by Will Ingman, Words by Lily Hartenstein

As sleet turned to snow on the evening of Fri., March 12, Will and I made the journey to Weymouth, Massachusetts to see Free Rock Trio and Rusty Mullet at Dud’s Dungeon. John Quinlan (he/him), one of the organizers of the DIY space, remarked that the weather always sucks whenever they throw a show. Everyone who entered the warm, wood-paneled room was greeted like an old friend; most of them were. Quinlan let us know this was the first show they’d put on that was open to the public since COVID first started. Since then, they’d mostly been playing live music for their friends.

Free Rock Trio

The Free Rock Trio was first up and after performing “Slow Emotion,” which I later learned was their first live performance of the song, I excitedly texted my Deadhead parents while they seamlessly transitioned into the next track. After spending years watching bands in basements around Boston, here was the music that sounded like the jam bands I grew up seeing perform. Consisting of cousins Justin Siegel (he/him) on drums and James Siegel (he/him) on bass with Jacob Keplinger (he/him) on guitar and vocals, the trio layered funky bass lines with trippy riffs, all held up by Keplinger’s dad-grunge voice. They closed out with a cover of “Franklin’s Tower” by, of course, the Grateful Dead. 

Rusty Mullet

Finally, Rusty Mullet took the stage. I’ve been following them online for awhile and was beyond excited to see frontwoman Dirt’s (she/her) insane guitar playing up close in the cozy confines of the Dungeon. Equipped with pink cowboy hat earrings and a bandana she quickly shed in favor of headbanging, Dirt exuded an effortless coolness that gave way to chaotic frenzy once she started playing. After starting with some psychedelic riffs ripped right out of the 60’s, Dirt leaned over to the mic to say “Everyone else was being super jammy so we figured we’d do it too,” before launching into the next song. That in-the-moment drive was shown throughout the set, as Dirt, bassist John Frechette (he/him) and drummer Sunny (she/her) decided what directions to go as members of the crowd called for more, electrified by the energy on stage. Dirt, swinging her hair as she played with such energy that the fan on the ceiling was spinning with her, is balanced in her helter-skelter style perfectly by the relaxed calm of John on bass, who casually sat down on an amp while playing during one of the final songs. I can’t wait to see Rusty Mullet again.