Rogue wave

Live at The Sinclair
Cambridge, MA
May 16th, 2026

by KM North

Fresh off the huge successful Sing Us Home Festival in Manayunk, PA comes Dave Hause & The Mermaid. Making a first full band tour behind the latest record “…And The Mermaid”. The Sinclair saw a band firing on all cylinders that was full pedal to the metal from the time they took the stage. Dave commands the stage like no other and the band rose to the challenge to make sure everyone at The Sinclair knew that on any given night, they just might be the tightest, best rock band in the game. For an hour and a half {including a two song encore} the smile not once left Dave’s face, and that was matched by the crowd. As someone who has been fortunate enough to have seen Dave a handful of times in the last six months, I left the show saying to myself, and anyone willing to listen, that Dave Hause is my generations Springsteen and The Mermaid are every bit equal to the E Street Band. Playing a great mix of new cuts from the latest album “…And The Mermaid” to older cuts like “Autism Vaccine Blues” and a few choice cuts off “Bury Me In Philly”.

Opening up the show was From the Rooftops, who are from Boston, Mass. Playing a passionate set of folk punk that got the crowd right into it from the get go. In times like these we need all the protest songs we can get. A definite lively set that set the tone for the night to come. If you’re in Boston then I cannot recommend checking them out enough. Great tunes and a super nice and rad guy as well.

Next up was Apes Of State. Another Sing Us Home Fest alumni, who, because of my own fault I missed the first few songs of their set a few weeks ago at Sing Us Home, but thankfully not tonight. They had quite a following at the show and they made their voices well known singing along to seemingly every song which was very cool to see. They hit the ground running and didn’t let up. The band played with such energy it was infectious. Having seen them just a few weeks prior they made it known that their set and energy wasn’t a fluke. They brought it. And by the end everyone was singing along.            

Overall, you couldn’t ask for a better show and everyone at The Sinclair was fully committed to enjoying the whole evening singing along to their favorite songs. Dave Hause & The Mermaid might not be the household name they should be, they might not ever have the reach that other bands and artists do, but as someone who has spent the majority of his life playing and going to shows, I challenge everyone and anyone to find a better rock band at this very moment.