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So what happened here?

June 10, 2022 by Paul Debraski

For nearly fourteen years I was able to keep up this daily blog of books and music.

About a year ago I got a promotion and that changed everything.  I no longer had the time to post everything I wanted to.  Heck, I didn’t even seem to have the time to read all the short stories I wanted to.  Amusingly (or not), just before this new position, I had gotten a print subscription to the New Yorker.  This now means that I (like many others) have a two-foot stack of New Yorker magazines that I haven’t even looked at yet.

For a few weeks I was limiting myself to only the concerts that I went to because that was a little easier to write about.  Although back in the good old days, I used to include photo and links, and I pretty much have neither now. And I’m several shows behind as well.

So I’m still reading books and I think I may try to post some thoughts about them from time to time.  I’d also like to think I have time to write about my concerts, but even those are proving to be challenging.

So let’s consider the blog on hiatus more or less, with occasional posts about things I’ve read or listened to.

The good thing is that I like the new position and wouldn’t change it for the world. I guess I never realized how much down time my old position gave me!

Posted in Paul Debraski | 3 Comments »

Jessica Lea Mayfield / Rachel Bobbitt (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, November 11, 2026) [CANCELLED]

November 11, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[CANCELLED: November 11, 2026] Jessica Lea Mayfield / Rachel Bobbitt

I saw Jessica Lea Mayfield in 2018 and really enjoyed her set.   Since then, I have been following her on Instagram and I enjoy her social media presence.  I genuinely have no idea if she has released any new music since 2018 (when I loved her song Sorry is Gone).  Huh, since then she has put pout an EP and now has a new album:

When I was recording what would become “Miss Obliteration” with Day Wave I started to get the eerie sense that I was writing more than lyrics, but predictive themes. I was married to my second husband but could see the writing on the wall, a metaphorical tornado was about to tear through my life I denied it. The record kept getting pushed back for various reasons, and I kept thinking it was getting pushed back by a greater force, now 3 years later my life is entirely different and I am radically changed as a person. From my spiritual beliefs, to my person goals and dreams and just in general, nearly everything. I had a feeling this album wouldn’t see light until that chapter of my life complete.

But anyway, this tour was cancelled for an exciting reason (for a change)

Heya! So I’ve been keeping a secret for the past 5+ months!! I was very excited to take this little bub out on the road in utero, and get some cute rock n roll bump pictures, but unfortunately my fetal specialist thinks that such an intense schedule so close to my due date could have me giving birth in the parking lot of a Dennys truck stop, and I’ve been advised to stay home. For now the Nov/Dec tour to promote my new album is cancelled and will be rescheduled for next year. I’ve been touring my whole entire life and have done more tours than I can count. I’m very happy to take a break while @actuallyitsnathaniel and I work on what seems to be the biggest and most important project of our lives.

Rachel Bobbitt is from the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia.

“The ocean does not care about you at all,” declares Rachel Bobbitt. “That’s what makes something truly awesome—it could and will exist, with or without you.”  The ocean looms, uncaring yet vital, conceptually and actually on Bobbitt’s debut full-length LP, Swimming Towards the Sand.  Bobbitt roots herself in the memories and milestones of home more than a decade after her voice first found an audience through the lens of internet virality. Growing up in a musical household, where her mom’s side hosted kitchen fiddle parties, Bobbitt was surrounded by music from the beginning. At just 16 years old, she’d amassed a large Vine following, performing covers and originals to an audience of 400,000 strong, leading to Shorty Award nominations and being crowned by Buzzfeed as one of “13 Amazing Singers You Should Follow On Vine.” She now looks back at that time with nuance, feeling both reinforced in her abilities by the response and, at the same time, overwhelmed by the onslaught of opinions—opinions on her career, appearance, voice, image—at an age when she was still figuring out what those things meant for herself.  A dozen years later, after studying Jazz and Vocal Pedagogy at the renowned Humber College, learning the rules of the road, and navigating the music industry from her home base in Toronto, Bobbitt arrives at Swimming Towards the Sand with an unwavering sense of purpose. It’s an album that revisits her roots with the clarity of perspective, the wisdom of experience, and the lessons of resilience that can only come with time. It looks back with an eye both clear and nostalgic and reflects her memories via sharply contemporary music.

She’s a quiet singer with a lovely voice.

 

Posted in Cancelled, Jessica Lea Mayfield, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, Rachel Bobbitt | Leave a Comment »

Laura Ramoso (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, November 11, 2026) [RESCHEDULED]

November 11, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[RESCHEDULED: November 11, 2026] Laura Ramoso [moved to September 23, 2026]

Laura Ramoso is a comedian that my wife knew from Instagram who never came across my radar.  And, to make this point even funnier, when Laura came out on stage she welcomed everyone, including the husbands and boyfriends who had no idea who she was.

It’s not very often that my wife asks me to get tickets to a show–I usually drag her along.  So when she asks, I jump right on it.

This tour was announced in March and then, in April, Laura told us that she was moving the Philly show up to November.  I had assumed all of the shows were moved, but it was only the Philly show.  And, looking at the dates below, why did they schedule Philly at that original date anyhow?  Weird.

As you can see from the poster below, scheduling Philly amid a run in Western Canada was pretty nuts.  It’s also one of the few rescheduled shows I’ve been to that was rescheduled to before the original show.

 

 

Posted in Laura Ramoso, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

Beat (Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark NJ, November 9, 2026)

November 9, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 9, 2026] Beat

I have seen King Crimson five times, all in the most recent iteration of the band.  I never saw the earlier incarnations when Adrian Belew was the singer/guitarist.

Two years ago, when it was announced that Adrian was gathering troops together to play 80’s era King Crimson, I was intrigued.  The tour had the blessing of Robert Fripp AND it featured Tony Levin on bass.  So that was pretty much all it took.  I really enjoyed that set, so when they announced a follow up tour, I was excited to see them again.  I was really delighted by Steve Vai’s playing last time and was looking forward to seeing him again.

This time, instead of Tool’s Danny Carey, on drums was Terry Bozzio, which meant that there were THREE Frank Zappa alums on stage. [Belew: 1977 through 1979; Bozzio: April 1975 – February 1978; Vai: 1980-1983]

This era of King Crimson is not my favorite.  Although Discipline was the first KC album I’d ever bought, I never really got into the other two (a few songs from each, but never the whole things).  I also saw that these setlists were going to be somewhat different, so that was cool too.

Last time I was in the middle of the floor seats with a good view of everyone. This time I was in the front row of the balcony–not a good a close up view, but a great overall view.

Like last time, I wished I could see Steve Vai better–his area was darker than the others.  And I could barely see Terry Bozzio because his drum set was ENORMOUS–comically so.  And I’m pretty sure he didn’t play all of the items in the rack.

This was one of the hardest shows to focus on because everyone was doing something amazing.   Indeed, I love Tony Levin and yet I probably watched him least.  Steve Vai is flashy, sure but he also generates some really great sounds and it’s fun to watch what he’s doing.  And yet, with Steve Vai on board, it’s easy to forget that Adrian Belew is a master guitar player himself.  Vai did most of the soloing, but Belew did a huge amount as well.

This time they opened with Dinosaur, a track that’s not on any of the three 1980s albums.  It’s from 1995’s THRAK.  I was really excited to hear it and didn’t realize it wasn’t from those albums–they were branching out!.  From there, the set was somewhat similar to last time, with the next few songs being from Beat.  The wild Neurotica, the wild dual guitar fun of Neal and Jack and Me and Tony playing the Stick on Sartori in Tangier.  It’s so cool seeing him playing “guitar” lines AND bass lines, while the other two are doing their own soloing things.

I don’t really know the instrumentals all that well on these albums and I wondered if (especially) Steve is just free to do what he wants (as long as it’s in the style of the song) or if he’s sticking with Fripp’s original work.  Some of the jamming sessions make the songs seem longer than the originals, so I assume he’s doing his own thing.

After playing the lovely Three of a Perfect Pair, they returned to THRAK with the pretty Walking on Air. Continue Reading »

Posted in Adrian Belew, Beat, Count Basie Theatre, Hackensack Meridian Health Theatre, Red Bank, NJ, Set in New Jersey!, Steve Vai, Terry Bozzio, Tony Levin | Leave a Comment »

Deerhoof / Eraser / Nympho (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, November 8, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 8, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 8, 2026] Deerhoof / Eraser / Nympho

Deerhoof is one of the weirder indie bands out there.  Their songs have no real sense of standard structure or melody.  They jump from notion to notion, seemingly on a whim.

I haven’t listened to them a lot, although I always like to know they’re still making weird music.  They’re the kind of band that would be really interesting to see live.  In fact, when I found out that my friend Jae was not only going to the show but highly highly recommended them, I was about to grab a last minute ticket when I realized that we’d be flying home from Sweden that day and there was literally no way I would have been able to cope with anything like a show that night.

I saw Eraser open for Remember Sports a little while ago.  They were weird but good.  But I didn’t feel like I needed to see them again.  Their music has been described as motorik, electro-damaged meltdowns punctuated with shrill blasts of synth and tangled guitar, and flat-affect vocal commands.  Pretty accurate.

Nympho is yet another weird band from Philly.  Philly produces some of the best wacko-but-brilliant bands around.  Here’s what their label says of them

Nympho is a five-piece cherry-scented poppers punk band from Philly. Equal parts bratty and brilliant, they’re the sonic equivalent of making out behind a 7-Eleven while the world burns.  Stuck between a good time and a really good time, Nympho delivers high-energy, whip-smart punk that’s as seductive as it is unhinged. Think: trash TV raised them, and now they’re raising hell on all fours, talking shit, and sounding like “normal music, just sped up.”  Their debut Honk If You’re Horny (6 songs in 9 minutes) is loud, lusty, and unapologetically horny.   Featuring members of Empath and Perfect Pussy, Nympho is a gloriously messy cocktail of DIY pedigree and glittery chaos.

Posted in Deerhoof, Eraser, Nympho, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Geese / Gwenifer Raymond / Cold Court (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, November 7 & 8, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 7, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 7 & 8, 2026] Geese / Gwenifer Raymond / Cold Court

My wife and I saw Geese open for Vampire Weekend back in May of 2025.  It was about a month before they really blew up.  They had a couple of singles that I’d heard and I loved Cowboy Nudes.  Soon after that show they released Getting Killed and became the most popular band in America.

I missed when they played Union Transfer and wrote that I probably should have gone to that show because I’m sure the next time they play Philly it will be at a much bigger venue.  So not a HUGE venue but two night at the Fillmore is pretty impressive.  Especially two nights that sold out before I even heard about the show.

Gwenifer Raymond is a Welsh guitarist.   She recently did a Tiny Desk and it is a marvel.  She plays acoustic guitar, with a fingerpicking style that includes dramatic and fast chord playing as well.

As the Tiny Desk says,

There’s an understated charm about the Welsh guitarist’s limited banter behind the Desk, but little prepares you for what howls from her instrument. Raymond’s fingerstyle guitar drones with a haunted quality, but her flurry of bends, slides and chord clusters rip open the firmament. Steeped in pre-war blues, but picking up on the acoustic innovations of John Fahey and Jack Rose, Raymond started releasing records a little less than a decade ago. But it’s on Last Night I Heard the Dog Star Bark, one of NPR Music’s best albums of 2025, where the Cardiff-born and now Brighton-based guitarist forged an unmistakably distinct sound: a controlled recklessness that conjures spells with six strings. Exhilarating, but also terrifying. After the dizzying shred of “Jack Parsons Blues” and the scenic storytelling of “Bliws Afon Tâf,” Raymond comes up for air, suddenly aware of the audience in awe. It’s just her back there, after all, with an acoustic guitar — we’re lost in the trance, too. And then, as if on cue, she takes us to hell.

She’s an intense marvel and a perfect odd but intense choice to open for Geese.  Maybe she’ll play at McCarter next year.

I saw Cold Court open for Black Midi and they blew me away.  I can’t find much about them, but back then I wrote

How best to describe them?  I’ve never seen a band with a viola player inspire a mosh pit before.  The mosh pit was pretty much non-stop.  Not bad for an opening band.

I was not terribly upset that I couldn’t get tickets to this show, but once these opening acts were announced, I am now pretty bummed to have missed it.

Posted in Cold Court, Geese, Gwenifer Raymond, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

House of Metal (Umeå Folkets Hus, Umeå, Sweden, November 7 & 8, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 7, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 7 & 8, 2026] House of Metal

My wife and I were in Sweden visiting our son who is studying in Umeå.  While we were there, I found out that House of Metal was happening right in town.  What is it?

House of Metal is a two day indoor festival dedicated to various kinds of metal. The festival premiered at Umeå Folkets Hus in February 2007. HoM has three stages and every year 20-25 bands, Swedish and international, crowd these stages.

We had a lot going on and weren’t going to go to the Friday night show (I actually didn’t know any of the bands) and we were leaving on Saturday morning, so that was out, too.

But it was really fun seeing the city full of people excited for the show.  We walked by the venue midday on Friday and they had put up a House of Metal arch so we went in to check it out.  The folks there were super friendly and I was able to buy a T-shirt and look through the vinyl that was on sale.

Maybe next year… Continue Reading »

Posted in After Earth, Ancestor of Kaos, Blazon Stone, Deathchain, DreaD, Eridikated, Firespawn, Hardcore Superstar, House of Metal, Hypocrisy, Imminence, Left Hand of Darkness, Moloken, Nårdegaist, Old Man's Child, Skogskult, Sweden, Syndafall, The Crown, Thron, Umeå Sweden, Vomitory, Wormwood | Leave a Comment »

Icona Pop (Berns, Stockholm, Sweden, November 7, 2026)

November 7, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 7, 2026] Icona Pop

My wife and I were in Sweden visiting our son who is studying in Umeå.  I thought it might be fun to see a show in Sweden and there was actually an interesting show on our last night in Umeå, a singer name Mi Von Ahn who I hadn’t heard of but who I listened to and thought would be fun to see (she’s kind of a mellow shoegazey type of artist).  Especially since she was going on at 9 and there was an event in the same venue scheduled for ten, so I knew it wouldn’t be too long.  Well, our plans changed (for the better) and we did not get to Stage Umeå.

Den 6 november släpper Mi von Ahn sitt tredje album Delta Veins. Samma kväll firar vi releasen på Stage i Umeå, med både Mi von Ahn och albumaktuella Hök på scen!

On November 6, Mi von Ahn releases her third album, *Delta Veins*. That same evening, we’ll be celebrating the release at Stage in Umeå, featuring both Mi von Ahn and Hök—who also has a new album out—on stage!

Early on we decided that it would be less stressful to return to Stockhom on Saturday and then fly home on Sunday, rather than trying to get a connecting flight, etc.  That’s when I saw that Icona Pop were playing Stockholm on Saturday night!  And they are from Stockholm!  Crazy.

This was such a weird even to buy a ticket for.  First, it was in Swedish KR, then it was in a hotel (!) and I wasn’t entirely sure that it was a real concert.  Maybe it was some kind of “night of Icona Pop music” like we have here for other pop bands.  So I double and triple checked (it’s a hotel with multiple venues for events) and made sure (yes it’s really them).  But why didn’t this relatively small venue sell out?  No idea.

So we walked to the venue, went through the labyrinthian coat check process (I don’t have a local bank account, so I couldn’t just scan the QR code, it was a whole thing).  But it all worked out and we went upstairs into a gorgeous ballroom.  Chandeliers, balconies, art on the walls…. amazing.  And people were dressed to the nines and drinking champagne in glass flutes.  This was no US club, that’s for sure.  I was underdressed–wearing Merrell boots, I was afraid of crushing toes.  And everyone around us was chatting with their friends (mostly in Swedish). Continue Reading »

Posted in Berns, Charlie XCX, Hök, Icona Pop, Mi Von Ahn, Stage Umeå, Stockholm Sweden, Umeå Sweden | Leave a Comment »

Queen of Jeans: Free at Noon (3025 Walnut Street, Philadelphia PA, November 6, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 6, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 6, 2026] Queen of Jeans

This week’s Free at Noon was announced as Michael Hampton, but when I was at the Richard Thompson Free at Noon last week, Mike V. said that this week’s Free at Noon would be Queen of Jeans.

I was always kind of dismissive of their name (not sure why) and for some reason I thought they were scrappy and punky.  But I couldn’t have been more wrong.  Described as indie sweethearts, after listening to the album, I find that this bio is spot on

their sound has always been soft around the edges but explores feelings that are anything but. As their sound has developed, they’ve refined a signature built around dreamy guitars, adventurous instrumentation, crushing lyricism, and one of the most underrated voices in modern indie rock: vocalist/guitarist Miri Devora. With guitarist Mattie Glass and bassist Andrew Nitz, Queen of Jeans are effortlessly timeless but still of-the-times, and continue to be one of indie’s most consistently compelling bands.

This blurb is right, Miri’s voice is gorgeous!

I was just bemoaning how I had missed them last month and really wanted to see them.  I’m not sure I would have gone to a Free at Noon (such a pain) for them, but the question was moot since we would be out of the country anyhow.  But i do hope this gives them a bit more exposure,

Posted in Free at Noon, Philadelphia, PA, Queen of Jeans, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA, XPN Fest | Leave a Comment »

Deux Visages / Chemical / KulfiGirls / Charmspeak (RUBA Club, Philadelphia, PA, November 6, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 6, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 6, 2026] Deux Visages / Chemical / KulfiGirls / Charmspeak

I recently saw both Deux Visages and KulfiGirls open for The Linda Lindas.  I loved both of their sets wand would have loved to go to this album release show.

But we were in Sweden, so, not a possibility.

I hadn’t heard of Chemical, but this review from YellowGreenRed is pretty funny:

Chemical, a newly-homegrown act of whom little was publicized. Of all the contemporary band-naming conventions, I think I prefer the ungoogleable-due-to-ubiquity route to quirky misspellings or stylized alternate text. No need to be Chemi_kul, or ¢hm¢l, you know? “Chemical” is so droll and commonplace as to be functionally useless, like calling yourself Band.

Chemical’s bio on the Johnny Brenda’s site was, in its entirety, “devotional philadelphia insurgence group [sic]”, almost as meaningless as the band name, though it ensured that the few people who actually read opening-band descriptions on the club’s ticketing page could expect an aloof mystique.

Ready to accept whatever style of music this intriguing group had to offer, I found myself pulled into their vibe right off the bat. Theirs is an arty and morose post-grunge style, and alongside their stern on-stage presentation, I’m guessing that they’re fans of the Julia’s War label and its roster’s opaque, left-field interpretations of today’s prevailing shoegaze / dream-pop trends. Their opening tune bore the subdued threat of violence I hear in Her New Knife; both groups seem to reinterpret Sonic Youth’s moody discordance with an added blackened sense of doom. I would’ve been content with variations on that basic template, but Chemical clearly had a number of musical ideas at work, the guitarist chopping it up Gang Of Four style, shimmering like Billy Corgan in a silver tuxedo and meekly picking at chorus-washed strings like some petrified ’90s goth, sometimes all in the same song, his feet (white athletic socks with velcro Teva sandals) tapping at a finicky chain of pedals. He brought three guitars on stage and admirably used them all in their brief opening set. For as much as I admired his style, the drummer was noticeably cool too, tall and Ramones-y and hunched over in dark sunglasses, though the bassist (also in dark sunglasses) may have been my favorite of the three, confidently delivering her own unusual bass-lines that didn’t replicate the guitar’s melodies so much as dance around them. There was one song in particular where her bass-line was so busy that it seemed to loop beyond the 4/4 timing of the song; I hope to hear it again on their debut EP. They had CDs for sale ahead of the official Bandcamp release date, which in true Y2K-throwback fashion were packaged in clear jewel cases with the name stamped on the CD, ready to be tossed on the passenger-side floor of your boyfriend’s Honda Civic next to back issues of Transworld SKATEboarding and the remnants of last night’s Taco Bell. I’m gonna go pull up the Bandcamp now!

Very intriguing.  And their music is certainly abrasive but it is also weirdly compelling–the nearly whispered vocals draw you in.

Charmspeak draws on inspiration from the indie rock, alternative, and jazz scenes here in Philly and around the world. What began as a recording project quickly developed into a dynamic live act featuring Abbe Charernsook on vocals, Mason Kunttu on guitar, Dan Goldberg on drums, and Max Fabiszewski on bass.

They are the most mellow of the four bands and don’t exactly fit in, although they probably have a bit of tie with Deux Visages softer side.  Although I do hear a jazzy saxophone which I’m not too fond of.

Posted in Charmspeak, Chemical, Deux Visages, KulfiGirls, Philadelphia, PA, RUBA Club | Leave a Comment »

Fruit Bats / Sarah Klang (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, November 5, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 5, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 5, 2026] Fruit Bats / Sarah Klang

Back in 2022, Fruit Bats released a song at the beginning of the year and my wife really liked it.  They announced a concert right around her birthday, so I spontaneously grabbed us tickets.  We joked how we never listened to any other songs by them and wouldn’t know anything at the show.  As the show grew closer, things were kind of crazy and we ultimately decided not to go.  So we’ll never know if we like more than that one song.

They came back again a year later but we hadn’t learned anything more about them, so we didn’t go.  Now, they are sort of a joke to us, which isn’t fair as we would probably like their other songs too.  In fact, when this show was announced, I made a mental note to listen to more to see if we wanted to go see them.  But then we scheduled a trip to Sweden so it was moot.

Sarah Klang is a Swedish singer and songwriter whose full name is Sarah Linnea Nova Klang. Coincidence that we were in Sweden when she was here.  She describes her own music as pop with influences of Americana music and country, which I don’t especially like.  But her voice is quite lovely.

Posted in Fruit Bats, Philadelphia, PA, Sarah Klang, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

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