I Just Read About That…

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 1, 2023] Strawberry Moon / Wax Jaw / Hot Seat / Wallace, Tonight

I have recently discovered the Philly band Wax Jaw and I am mildly obsessed with them.  I have yet to see them live, but I really want to.  When I saw this show at Ortlieb’s, I thought it might be a great time to see them.

But there were a couple of problems.

The big one is that my son was moving to college the next day.  Yea, there was no way I was not going to be home to help him (and we were up until almost midnight getting everything together).  The second, obviously minor thing is that Wax Jaw was not the headliner.

Strawberry Moon was the headliner.  I hadn’t heard of them, but imagined they would be kind of a psychedelic band.  And nothing could be further from the truth.  Their bandcamp summary says:

rock and roll with big ole vocals and dancey riffs

And that’s pretty spot on.  There’s some great rocking riffs and lead singer Katie Bowles has a powerful voice that never turns into screaming.  The rest of the band is Liam McElroy – guitar ; Gray Stephenson – bass ; TJ Meade – drums.  The poster says “Introducing Christian” which I assume means another member of the band, but who knows.

They are  a classic sounding band who probably put on a killer live show.

Wax Jaw I only know from a show I didn’t see (which had video online afterward).  There’s something wonderfully primal about them–kinda surfy but with a real punk rock feel.  Or as, this review in Before Tomorrow says

With a blend of surf rock, new wave, and popost-punk influences; Wax Jaw can only be described as something akin to the love child of The Cure, Siouxsie and The Banshees, and The Dictators all wrapped up into one package of sound that you may have expected to hear leaking from the doors of The Hot Club in the late 1970s. In the seemingly brief time they have been together, Wax Jaw has already garnered an extensive roster of sold out shows across the Philadelphia area and after our experience, it is undeniable that this streak will continue.

The review also goes on to say that it sounds like they stole the show.

They have only released three songs (on Spotify/bandcamp) although their set has more songs.  But there’s something about their energy and fun that makes them really dynamic live.

Hot Seat is a Philly band that I hadn’t heard of.  Their blurb says

Punchy guitar and bass riffs, fast as hell drums , and witty vocals make up this Philadelphia four piece punk band. Inspired by The The Distillers, The Muffs, Lunachicks and L7, Hot Seat wants everyone to SCREAM.

And I’d say that’s pretty accurate. They are, without a doubt, a fun live band.

Wallace, Tonight has this as their blurb

We’re Wallace, Tonight! We like to turn our brains off, get a little weird, and let the music do it’s thing.

The fact that they used the wrong it’s does not bode well, although they did say they would turn their brains off.  The band is Paul Mangan (vocals/guitar) Graham Moritz (bass) Grace Allen (drums) John Duesler (vocals/guitar) James Duesler (keys) and they are also from Philly.  This band is quite different than the others with a kind of upbeat jazzy rock feel (in the one video I saw they’re all wearing suits).

Since the article above included Wax Jaw’s Setlist I’ll include it too.  And since the other two shows are on video, I’m adding them too.  All without actually having seen the band yet