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Archive for the ‘Asbury Park, NJ’ Category

Rx Bandits (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, March 13, 2025)

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Rx Bandits, Zeta on March 14, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 13, 2025] Rx Bandits

So I didn’t know Rx Bandits at all.  When they started this tour last year (and played Philly), I skipped it even though I wanted to see Zeta.

But in the year since, I listened to this album and found that I liked it quite a bit.  And U still wanted to see Zeta, so I grabbed a ticket and investigated Rx Bandits more.

Rx Bandits had a simple set up–two guitars (singer Matt Embree & Steve Choi), a bass (Matthew Fazzi) and drums (Christopher Tsagakis).  And for a couple of songs they even brought out some horns (trombone: Andrew Borstein & saxophone: Dennis Passley).

This was a tour for their album The Resignation, which they played straight through.  I didn’t realize that they were initially a ska band and that they had morphed into something else over the years.

The band is tight and energetic and they rocked the venue (the crowd was nuts–I was on the barrier and was fairly safe).  They brought out the horns for Prophetic (and played the slow denouement that segued into Newsstand Rock. (more…)

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Zeta (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, March 13, 2025) [RX BANDITS]

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Rx Bandits, Zeta on March 13, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: March 22, 2024] Zeta

I was not familiar with Rx Bandits when they announced this show.  Indeed the only reason I was interested in this show at all was because Zeta was announced as the opener.

I had seen Zeta once and they blew me away. I would do just about anything to see them again.  So if just going to Asbury Park is the requirement, I was there.

I bought this ticket from the box office (always fun), although I had never really heard of the RX Bandits.  I was psyched to see Zeta.

Imagine my surprise then, when they announced another show in January–this one headlining.  So I got to see them in Jan and then again in March.  And this show was very different.

Well, not very different.  But quite different.  For one thing the stage was huge.  At the Foto Club, they were crammed around the drum kit.  Here, they all had space to move around.  But the focus, as always was on drummer Chino Sandoval–front and center and a whirling maniac.  They are still touring their fantastic new album, and I’m not entirely sure what they played from it.

I’m assuming the first two songs were the same as last time, but after that, I lost track.  I feel like the set was a little different because at one point Juan Chi stepped away from the mic and literally just screamed the vocals into the crowd.  There was some chatter before that but as soon as he started singing like that everyone was silent (even though I believe he was singing in Spanish).

As always, Antonio Pereira loomed behind the drums with his awesome bass sound.

Daniel Hernandez was on the other side of the stage.  He rapped a song and I’m fairly certain he sang part of Bulls on Parade by Rage Against the Machine.  I admit that their sound was a little fuzzy (opening act problems) and they were really loud.  So I didn’t really understand a lot of what they were singing (it being mostly Spanish as well).  But the intensity is unmatched.

After every few songs, the crowd around me roared it’s approval, with a few “holy shit” moments.   This was especially true the two times that Chi hopped on the bongos and Hernandez played his own small drum kit.  It’s all percussion and bass, playing rhythmically and it’s awesome.

Sadly I’ll never know what the set list was, but it doesn’t matter.  I loved the show, Iloved that they clearly won over new fans and it was especially cool that two of the guys remembered me from January when we chatted for a little while.

 

2025 Asbury Lanes 2025 Foto Club 2023 Underground Arts
¿Por qué cargamos el peso de la melancolía del mundo entero sobre nosotros? £ ¿Por qué cargamos el peso de la melancolía del mundo entero sobre nosotros? £ La flor de la palabra @
¿Por qué sentimos la necesidad de romper con todo? £ Completar ∞
Privilege ¿ La flor del tiempo @
La flor de la palabra @ El Canto de La Victoria @
Completar ∞ Afrontar ∞
La flor del tiempo @ Sufrir ∞
Steps ¿ Magia infinita ∞
The Truth ¿
Yo el peor de todos (somos cosmos) XXV §
Shadows ¿
The Wild ¿
unknown setlist Magia infinita ∞

 

¿ Was It Medicine to You? (2025)
@ Todo Bailarlo (2022)
∞ Magia infinita (2018)/reissued 2024
£ L’Antiteoria del Todo (2016)
§ single (2013)

 

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Wax Jaw / Teen Idle / Loveseat Pete (Wonderbar, Asbury Park, NJ, January 24, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Loveseat Pete, Teen Idle, Wax Jaw, Wonder Bar on January 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: January 24, 2025] Wax Jaw / Teen Idle / Loveseat Pete

Wax Jaw continues to play really close to me but always on nights that I’m already busy.

This show was announced fairly recently but I already had tickets to see Guster AND there was a second show I really wanted to see this night, Porridge Radio.  So this show was never going to happen for me.

Teen Idle is the musical moniker of NJ-based songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Sara Abdelbarry.  Meshing the heartfelt nature of influences like Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham with the grittiness and abrasiveness of grunge and the lovelorn tendency of ’60s acts like The Ronettes, Teen Idle makes emotional rock music with a statement (and a cinematic tendency).

I had never heard of Teen Idle, and a quick listen reminds me a bit of The Weather Station (Sara has a great voice too).  But this vibe doesn’t really fit with Wax Jaw to me. (more…)

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Stars / Lydia Persaud (Stone Pony Summer Stage, Asbury Park, NJ, September 28, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Christine Bougie, Lydia Persaud, Stars, The Stone Pony Summer Stage on September 28, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 18, 2024] Stars / Lydia Persaud

I have been a fan of Stars since about 2004.  Seeing them live in 2022 was amazing.  And I couldn’t wait to see them again.

But since they were playing at Union Transfer, there was no way I was going to the Stone Pont Summer Stage to see them.  Frankly, that sounds like a terrible place to see an intimate band like Stars.

Lydia Persaud opened again.  I didn’t really like her last time.

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Built to Spill: There’s Nothing Wrong with Love 30th Anniversary Tour / Floating Witch’s Head (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, August 31, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Built to Spill, Floating Witch’s Head on August 31, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: August 31, 2024] Built to Spill / Floating Witch’s Head

I have seen Built to Spill five times and have enjoyed every show.  This tour promotes the 30th anniversary of the album There’s Nothing Wrong with Love.  I thought I knew this album pretty well, but it turns out that I really started getting into them with the album AFTER this one.

But I was still really excited to see this show.  They announced a show at Franklin Music Hall which bummed me out because I don’t really like that venue (and it was the same night that I had tickets for at least 3 other shows).  But then they announced this show at Asbury Lanes which was awesome.  I grabbed a ticket right away.

Then I found out that my son was going back to school that day.  So that would be kind of weird to drop him off and then rush off to a show.   Then it turned out he didn’t have to go until the following day, but it would have been even worse to go out on his last night at home.  SO I blew off this show.

Last time that BtS toured, they came back through the area a second time about four months later (Philly in May, Bethlehem in September), so I secretly hope that they will do that again maybe early next year?  But they played a lot of shows on this tour, so I’m not holding my breath.

I’d never heard of Floating Witch’s Head who are

a new Boise-based project concocted by Travis Ward (guitars & vocals) with Michael Mitchell (drums & percussion) and Eric Gilbert (keyboards & head shakes). RIYL: garage, psych, swamp, proto-punk, acid rock, beards, hot peppers, pickles, parties, nice people

The last few tours I’ve had a love/hate relationship with the opening bands.  Last tour I loved Blood Lemon but hated Wetface.  Floating Witch’s Head I’m feeling ambivalent about.  The description above is pretty accurate and I do tend to like this kind of music, but the song I listened to is really pretty standard fare, nothing that excited me.

 

 

 

 

 

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Pollyanna / Latewaves / Froggy (Baronet Rooftop at the Asbury Hotel, Asbury Park, NJ, August 23, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Baronet Rooftop at the Asbury Hotel, Froggy, Latewaves, Pollyanna on August 23, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: August 23, 2024] Pollyanna / Latewaves / Froggy

I was supposed to see Pollyanna open for Jhariah back in January.  They had to bail because they were touring with someone else.  I was also suppose to see them at the Ukie Club, but it didn’t happen.

So I was excited to see them at this show which was listed as being at Asbury Lanes ut actually took place on the Baronet Rooftop at the Asbury Hotel.  I have no idea if that’s a thing that happens much.  I don’t know if it ‘s a bigger, better venue or just a change of venue.

I was looking forward to experiencing this whole night.  And then we booked our vacation for that week.  So, no Pollyanna yet again.

Latewaves is a rock band from Asbury Park, NJ that is trying their best.  They do rock although in a more poppy than punky way.  They seem like they’d be fun live.

Froggy is a Philadelphia based queer punk band. The members are all quite young.  Actually that was true when I first posted about them two years ago.  I don’t know how old they are now, but I’m glad they’re still going.

Musically they are pretty tight and their musical sense is all over the place with punk noise (love it!).  Their first single 7-11 Nachos has an early Black Flag (TV Party) vibe.  But I’m not a fan of the singer’s voice.

 

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Silversun Pickups / Hello Mary (The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ, June 28, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Hello Mary, Silversun Pickups, The Stone Pony on June 28, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: June 28, 2024] Silversun Pickups / Hello Mary

I have had ample opportunity to see Silversun Pickups, a band that I like, but have never really gotten into.  When they came around last year, there were two or three shows I could have gone to.  And now they were back, playing The Stone Pony.

The thing that made this year’s show even more appealing was that Hello Mary, a band I’ve been quite interested in, was opening.

But there were two problems.

I don’t really like The Stone Pony at all.  And I would prefer not to go to shows there unless it’s the only option.  True, it was the only option, but my displeasure with the Stone Pony outweighed my desire to see either band.

Plus it was a Friday night.  I don’t like going out on Friday nights on  the best of weeks, but Asbury Park on a Friday night.  Ick.

When I finally caved and said maybe I should go, it was sold out, so I made the right choice. (more…)

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Me First & the Gimme Gimmes / The Defiant / Ultrabomb (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, April 27, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Hüsker Dü, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, The Defiant, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Ultrabomb on April 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 27, 2024] Me First & the Gimme Gimmes / The Defiant / Ultrabomb

I initially didn’t want to like Me First and the Gimme Gimmes because I didn’t like their name.  There are worse reasons to not like a band. Then I learned that they are a cover band doing punk covers of classic rock songs and I thought their name was actually pretty perfect and now I want to see them live too.

I bought a ticket for this show but learned a few weeks later that Teenage Fanclub was playing the same night.  Very different vibes, but a tough decision.

And, best of all, my family was going to be out for the night so I didn’t even have to feel guilty about going out without them!

But for whatever reason, I was really tired that night.  I wound up doing a lot of things that day and was asleep by 9:30.  I probably could have gone to the show and been awake enough to enjoy it, but I didn’t have the motivation to go to either show.

I hadn’t heard of The Defiant, but had I known about them, it probably would have swayed my decision to go to this show

Members from The Offspring, Smash Mouth, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Street Dogs and The Briggs have united to form the new band THE DEFIANT. The members of The Defiant are no strangers to success as individuals but as a group their music stands for so much more on both a personal and professional level. Together the five members create a rock ’n’ roll pedigree that culminates into a riot of melodic punk. The Defiant will release their twelve-song debut album this October with touring to follow.  The Defiant is:  Pete Parada on drums (The Offspring),  Greg Camp on guitar (Smash Mouth),  Johnny Rioux on bass (Street Dogs),  Joey LaRocca on guitar and keys (The Briggs) Dicky Barrett front and center (The Mighty Mighty Bosstones).

Mostly, I have wanted to see The Mighty Mighty Bosstones for decades (I saw them once back in the 90s) and was very sad when they broke up.  Had I known that I could have seen Dicky Barrett (who is really the one I wanted to see), I would have absolutely gone to this show. Ignorance is a bad thing.

And holy crap Ultrabomb features Hüsker Dü’s Greg Norton!  Why didn’t I read about these bands before this show?

UltraBomb, the eagerly anticipated international supergroup, have now arrived bringing together three iconic musicians from the cream of punk rock. On bass is the legend that is Greg Norton, once the driving force behind one of the most influential bands to emerge from the American punk scene, Hüsker Dü. Next up is the indefatigable singer-guitarist Finny McConnell, a name you’ll recognise from thirty years as the frontman of the Canadian Irish folk-punk sensation The Mahones. Completing the trio is the drumming powerhouse Jamie Oliver, having served well over fifteen years in the seminal British punk band UK Subs, as well as shorter stints with the likes of SNFU among others.

Oh boy, do I regret missing this show.

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Moon Hooch (Wonder Bar, Asbury Park, NJ, April 10, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Moon Hooch, Wonder Bar on April 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 10, 2024] Moon Hooch

I’ve been a casual fan of Moon Hooch for a number of years now.  I always enjoy watching their Instagram videos and I have one of their albums.

The band is a trio with two, TWO saxophones. Normally I wouldn’t enjoy two saxophones, but they do things differently.

They are known for their dance-oriented percussion-and saxophone music made by saxophonists Wenzl McGowen and Michael Wilbur and drummer Cyzon Griffin.

And yet, I just can’t bring myself to go see them live.  I fear that the crowd wouldn’t be one I’d enjoy… or something.

Perhaps I’m just getting carabby as I get older.

The show listing indicated an opening act but I haven’t been able to figure out who it is.

 

 

 

 

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Bit Brigade / Nmlstyl (Wonder Bar, Asbury Park, NJ, March 6, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Bit Brigade, Nmlstyl, Wonder Bar on March 6, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: March 6, 2024] Bit Brigade / Nmlstyl

I saw Bit Brigade in 2018 and really enjoyed the show.  The premise of their live show is terrific

The band plays the soundtrack to a video game while their resident gamer plays the game.  The band is heavy and the sound is amazing.

For this show, Bit Brigade Performs “The Legend of Zelda” + “Castlevania” but I’m going out tomorrow night so I’m going to give it a miss.  The good news is that in a few months they’re coming back and I’ve already got tickets to see them in Frenchtown. (more…)

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