Review: Model/Actriz @ Sinclair 12/6
Photo Credit: Griffin Lotz
Review by Camille Morocco
On Dec. 6, a sub-freezing Saturday evening, Model/Actriz performed to a sold-out audience of varying ages at The Sinclair in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As Model/Actriz wraps up their Fall 2026 tour, this show marked their penultimate performance of the year and their return to Boston, the city from which they originally hailed.
Model/Actriz, which consists of Cole Haden (vocals), Jack Wetmore (guitar), Ruben Radlauer (drums), and Aaron Shapiro (bass), was originally formed with Haden, Wetmore, and Radlauer while they were attending Berklee College of Music. According to Rolling Stone, Wetmore and Radlauer saw Haden perform when they were all in Boston, and, although they don’t recall exactly where they saw him for the first time, they remember a performance with “Haden writhing on the floor in a corset, fake blood dripping down his face.” The two were “impressed with how all-in [Haden was].” Radlauer and Wetmore initially met as “childhood acquaintances through their fathers,” and they “reconnected in college and were searching for a singer to start a band with.” Haden ended up being the fit.
Though in 2017, Haden broke up the band, telling Rolling Stone, “I needed time away to come back and say the things I wanted to say.” After a two-year hiatus, the three started up Model/Actriz again, recruiting Aaron Shapiro as their bassist. Now, based in Brooklyn, the four recently released their sophomore album, called “Piroette,” in May 2025. This follows their 2023 debut album, “Dogsbody,” and the band has since “skyrocketed,” according to Slug Mag.
On Saturday, after Dirt Buyer, the band’s opener, finished their set, Model/Actriz took to the stage just after 9 p.m. Playing songs from both their albums, the band’s set lasted just under an hour and was undoubtedly one of the most interactive sets I’ve ever witnessed. Haden effortlessly commanded the crowd, constantly engaging with them by holding spectators’ hands and even walking through the pit while performing.
The entire set was incredibly theatrical–Haden had numerous costume changes, ranging from a black outfit to an ornate dress with veils. Throughout the show, it felt as though the band wanted the viewers’ experience to be less about watching and more about feeling. At one point, Haden bounced around and yelled “Jump!” to the audience, engaging everyone to let loose and join in. Toward the end of the set, Haden got down to the middle of the pit and told the audience to squat down to the floor. It was such a beautiful moment–the frontman of this post-punk, noisy band–sort of breaking the fourth wall and involving every single member of the audience. He even yelled out something like, “Even you, balcony!” when instructing us to get down. It was clear that one of the band’s goals was to create an interactive viewing experience.
It was also one of the loudest sets I’ve ever been to. There were points throughout the show where I just heard both instrumental and vocal screeching, and others where the bass was so loud it felt like my ears were echoing.
The set was also full of both sensuality and sexuality. Haden told Slug Mag that he “want[s] people to feel seen by the queer themes within [their music] because that’s something [he] did not have necessarily growing up.” Radlauer also explained that in heavy music, “oftentimes, queer people have to fit into [a] mold of aggression or nihilism,” and that “since the inception of punk, and then through post-punk and industrial, it has been based on bravado and aggression in ways that [have] limited the ability of softness to penetrate.” Radlauer continues, saying that on “Piroette,” the band focused on “bring[ing] brightness and softness into a heavier space and to have those things fighting but also collaborating.”
I am a very new listener to Model/Actriz, and, in all honesty, initially requested to cover the show because I thought the name was cool, and I liked the album cover art. Though when I began to listen to their set list for preparation, I became infatuated with the delicate and intentional combination of punk elements blended with upbeat components that feel almost like hyperpop and make you want to dance. Seeing Model/Actriz live was even more enjoyable than listening on my phone, as the interactive elements made me feel as though the band really wanted to be there and were completely present. It is my hope to watch the band again as they continue to produce new music and tour.