I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: October 17, 2023] The Home Team / Ryan Oakes / The Color 8

I wasn’t entirely sure if I was going to this show.  I was sort of off going, but since I’d missed the Saturday shows, I figured I wouldn’t blow off this one.  Even if I wasn’t that excited about the opening bands.

I left later than I normally do, since the listing said that the show started at 7:30.  I figured if I got there around 8, I’d miss Ryan Oakes.  If I got there around 8:30, I’d miss some of The Home Team, and that would be grand.

Traffic was really light and, shockingly, South Street parking was widely available.  AND, because the Phillies are in the playoffs (I assume that’s why), parking was free.  I parked 500 feet from TLA.  Nice.

The show was sold out (which surprised me, but good for them) and I walked in to hear… Ryan Oakes.  He was finishing up two songs or so.  And the places was PACKED.

So it turned out there was ANOTHER opening band called The Color 8.  Okay, so if you read that poster carefully, it appears that The Color 8 are playing all the shows, and only Ryan Oakes and Skyler Accord are rotating shows.

I’ve never heard of them, although I see that they (along with everyone else on this bill) did a remix of a Don Broco song “Birthday Party.”

Suffice it to say that I missed them entirely.  The Home Team raved about them saying that The Color 8 plays the same instruments that they do, but they do incredible things with them.  I’ve listened to a few songs and I’m on the fence.  I hate the saxophone, although I do applaud them for including it on some of these metal rap songs just for a change of pace.

There is no genre that they are afraid to use, although I’d say they comfortably sit in a metal/rap vein.

Every bio I’ve seen of Ryan Oakes is filled with hyeperbole:

Originality gestates in the space between extremes. Ryan Oakes siphons a signature style from the nexus of hip-hop and hard rock uplifted by surges of electronic experimentation and unassuming pop appeal. The Virginia-born and Los Angeles-based vocalist, rapper, multi-instrumentalist, and artist carves out his own hyper-charged hypnotic hybrid with no shortage of energy and attitude. His commitment to independence and integrity has yielded nearly half-a-billion streams and a devout fan base. However, he perfects this vision like never before on his 2023 full-length debut album, Wake Up.

Ryan Oakes is a phenomenon. The self-made artist is a true testament to what hard work, great songs and undeniable talent can build. Over the past ten years and across over 250 tracks, Ryan has built an empire entirely by himself.

This instantly made me not like him.  Especially when I listened to his songs and hated his rapping style and found his rocking songs to be really derivative.  The Home Team said that he has more charisma than any front man should have.  I listened to one song as I pushed my way out of the front hall and didn’t like it.  I listened to another song as I was getting pushed around and didn’t like it either.

But I’m glad I didn’t get there any later as the show was really awkwardly packed.

I didn’t especially want to see The Home Team.  I listened to them before the show and felt they were a very slick and highly produced heavy pop band.  Instantly catchy and instantly annoying at the same time.

The songs were heavy, but there was so much effect on the vocals that it really seemed to ruin the vibe for me.

So when they came on stage, I was disinclined to like them.  But what I found was that live, the band are just really heavy and most of the slickness is wiped away.  On record, Brian Butcher’s voice is, what, processed and full of pop delivery inflections.  But live, his power shows through.  He didn’t do all the little weird things he does on record (although there was a lot of harmonizing, and I don’t think anyone else in the band was singing with him).  But his voice was really powerful and he could hit some really good high notes.  On record, his delivery reminds me of Dadi Freyr, who I really like, but who doesn’t use that delivery in heavy music.

The crowd was 100% into it, and a circle pity formed pretty early on.  This was weird to me–there were at least two people shining their phone light on the pit while it was going on. Is this something people do now?  There were also a few people crowd surfing.  And, what cracked me up is that two of them were little kids. (Don Broco brought them on stage and the older of the two kids was 10–fun!).

The Home team told us a little about their trajectory over the years–how they opened for Don Broco a few years ago when no one else wanted them to open.  And how the last time they played Philly they were in a much smaller venue.  I was surprised how big a fan base they had since TLA was the largest venue they’d played in Philly so far.

I enjoyed their set quite a lot–the songs were catchy and suitably heavy.  Butcher was really good at getting the crowd moving and screaming.  But it was weird to enjoy a band and really have no retention of their music at all.  Even though the songs were catchy, they were not sticky.

The one really fascinating thing was that bassist Ryne Olson sang the occasional unclean vocal–really growly and loud–although most of them were just “yeahs” at key points.  He also sang a brief lead part at the end of Grievance Pay, while Butcher played bass (all for about 20 seconds).

Guitarist John Baran had on a guitar strap with giant spike on it.  It was amusing, but it looked so much like trying too hard.  I never really saw drummer Daniel Matson at all.

Listening to them again after the show, I think I like their previous record more than this new one, which is more slick to be sure.  And of all the songs, I disliked their not yet released song “LOUD” more than any other–it was even more slick and weirdly poppy.

Some things did stick with me like the “would you do the right thing” part of “Grievance Pay.”  And “Watching All Your friends Get Rich” was super catchy with a great melody.

I was keeping track of the number of songs they played (12 at other shows), but when they finished their final song they said that had been asked if they could play “Danger.”  Which they did and it was my favorite song of their set.  It had a great riff and some killer drums.

1. Slow Bloom §
2. Right Through Me §
3. Move It or Lose It §
4. Eat You Up §
5. She’s Quiet ß
6. Grievance Pay §
7. Scary Movies §
8. LOUD *
9. FOMO (Bored of You) §
10. Fashion Forward ß
11. On §
12. Watching All Your Friends Get Rich §
13.  Danger §

* new song (2023)
§ Slow Bloom (2022)
ß Better Off (2018)

Turns out they played all of Slow Bloom except for Another Night Alone with You, Who Do You Know Here and Sails.