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James “Murr” Murray (Helium Comedy Club, Philadelphia, PA, May 22 & 23, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Helium Comedy Club, James "Murr" Murray, Philadelphia, PA on May 23, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 22 & 23, 2026] James “Murr” Murray

Both of my kids like Impractical Jokers.  And, of course they both like Murr.  A couple of years ago, Murr took out a billboard for his wife in an intersection near my house.  If you took a photo of yourself fin front of the billboard, he’d send you an autograph.  My kids did and he sent one.  So that’s cool.

We have no idea what his stand up would be like.  Neither of my kids wanted to go (I’m no even sure if you can go into Helium if you’re under 21).

But once again I marvel at Helium getting a big (ish?) name star to do two nights there.

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The Feelies (White Eagle Hall, Jersey City, NJ, May 22 & 23, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Jersey City, NJ, The Feelies, The Velvet Underground, White Eagle Hall on May 22, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 22 & 23, 2026] The Feelies

The Feelies are a band from a town pretty close to where I grew up.  Of course, I didn’t know that at the time. I liked their Crazy Rhythms album and discovered Only Life while in college.   But I never got into them more than that.

I feel like I should have known them better and liked them more–local pride and all.  But I just never did.

They play sporadically and, really, if there were an opportunity to see them, this would be it.  They played two nights at White Eagle Hall–a venue I used to love but now find to be more of a pain in the ass than anything else (parking is a disaster there).  The first night, the were playing The Good Earth, an album I don’t think I know at all and then second night was Crazy Rhythms, which would have been more fun.

But I didn’t really feel like going out either night. So I missed out.  But thta’s ok.

Listening to them now, they really do sound a lot like the Velvet Underground, huh?

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L.A. Witch (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 21, 2026) [THE BLACK ANGELS]

Posted in L. A. Witch, Philadelphia, PA, The Black Angels, Union Transfer on May 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 21, 2026] L.A. Witch

I hadn’t heard of L.A. Witch before this show, but the name sounded promising.  I’m not sue what I expecting, but this band did not bring that.  There was nothing witchy–comical or otherwise) about their songs, which were kind of slow and surfy.

I guess if I had just looked at Wikipedia I would have seen that that is exactly what they sound like:

the band’s sound has been described as a “mix of forlorn psych folk, lethargic lo-fi blues and boozy garage rock drones steeped in moody, drugged-out surf reverb.”

Sade Sanchez (vocals, guitar) plays a hollow bodied electric guitar with lots of reverb.  A couple of songs picked up the pace with Irita Pai’s bass propelling Drive Your Car, but Sanchez’ voice just didn’t do anything for me.  Drummer Ellie English was solid, but with the simple music, there wasn’t too much excitement there.  But, I guess that’s the deal with garage rock, right? (more…)

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Mint Field (PhilaMOCA, Philadelphia, PA, May 19, 2026)

Posted in Knotfall, Mexico, Mint Field, Philadelphia, PA, PhilaMOCA, Sherrie on May 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 19, 2026] Mint Field

I found out about Mint Field during the pandemic from their outstanding Levitation Sessions record.  They headlined at Silk City back in September and I was really surprised to see them back again so soon.

I couldn’t make their previous show but I was sure to grab a ticket to this one.

Mint Field is from Tijuana.  The band is Estrella Snachez (vocals and guitar) and Sebastian Neyra (bass). The laziest description of them is shoegaze, but they incorporate other elements as well–dream pop, ambient and occasionally loud feedback.  I’m not sure who their drummer was for this show, but she was really good.

They opened with the quiet Horizonte, a gentle guitar melody and soft bassline.  The funny thing about this song is that as soon as you start to really get into it, it’s over.  It’s just under 2 minutes long.   But it’s a great introduction to Estrella’s floating vocals and their overall vibe.  “Recuerdo de los dias” has a more pronounced bass line and a simple but bouncy drum beat.

El mar me veia was the first song that really showed off Estrella’s cool guitar techniques–she makes interesting sounds by sliding her pick up and down the strings–using various pedals and looping, it created a cool visual.

Delicadeza is one of many songs where Sebastian’s bassline is wonderful–he doesn’t simply follow the guitars, he plays high notes and lets the music really revolve around what he’s doing.

While most of the opening was dreamy and trippy, Sensibilidad showed that they can get loud with both guitar and bass building the intensity before pulling back into a very quiet middle section.  And Susiro sailed back off into the dreamy skies again.

Sueño Despierto (with a cool bass line) and Infinito are slow and dreamy (Infinito is a newer song) but Contingencia adds a real pace to the set. It’s fuzzy and rocking and a lot of fun.  As the set reached the end, they got a lot more noisy with Ve hacia la ventana bringing out some fuzzy guitars in between quiet parts.  But no one could expect the explosive ending!  Un flro sin interior starts like many of their songs–fairly mellow and dreamy.  But mid song, the full band kicks in loudly with a big riff that the band jammed for several minutes.  Estrella stood by her amp generating lots of feedback and looping it around while Sebastian and their drummer were going nuts–it was the loudest and craziest the drummer had been all night–like catharsis after being so chill.  (On record the song is 2 minutes total, but live, they stretched it out wonderfully).  It felt like a set-ending but of noise and chaos, but they brought it back in and finished the song with one more verse and that was that.

I was a little bummed that they didn’t play the songs that I really fell in love with like Jardin De La Paz and Sentimental Mundial, but there were two tracks from that session that they did play (Delicadeza and Contingencia) so that’s cool.  I was glad to finally see them, although now I kind of wish I had seen them play at Union Transfer during that shoegaze festival–to get fully surrounded by their songs.

I got the impression, or maybe they just said, that they wouldn’t be touring the U.S. for quite a while.  So I’m even more happy that I got to see them.

  • Horizonte ∇
  • Recuerdo de los días €
  • El mar me veía €
  • Delicadeza ∅
  • Sensibilidad dormida €
  • El Suspiro Cambia Todo ∇
  • Sueño Despierto ∇
  • Infinito §
  • Contingencia ∅
  • Aterrizar ∅
  • Ve hacia la ventana €
  • Una flor sin interior €

§ single (2025)
€  Aprender a Ser: Extended (2024)
∇ Aprender a Ser (2023)
∅ Sentimendto Mundial (2020)

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Oranssi Pazuzu / Wayfarer (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, May 21, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Oranssi Pazuzu, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts, Wayfarer on May 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 21, 2026] Oranssi Pazuzu / Wayfarer

I had not heard of Oranssi Pazuzu until about a week ago.  I’m not even sure what made me look into a band with a name like this.  But as soon as I saw that they were a Finnish psychedelic black metal band I had to see what they were all about.

And they are an interesting proposition.  The music definitely gets heavy, but there are lots of gentle samples (flute perhaps?) through some of the quieter more psychedelic moments.  My only complaint is the black metal component because the singer more or less growls quietly (presumably in Finnish) over the music.   Musically, though, I’m really intrigued by them.  Because I didn’t know enough about them, and because I already had tickets to see Black Angels, I didn’t really look into them very closely.  But having sat with them a bit and listened to them a but more, I think this would have been the better choice, especially since they haven’t toured the US in 7 years and presumably won’t be back for a long while, if ever.

Wayfarer is Denver’s gothic country-infused black metal band.  They have an interesting aesthetic (black metal, with sludge, with death metal, heated to a boil on the scorching stones of the Rockies) and I like their musical components, but once again the singer is a deep cookie monster type singer–yes, black metal, I know–but as a person who likes lyrics, it’s hard to get into a song when you just can’t understand what the singer is doing.  This is another band I think I’d probably enjoy live more because I could focus on the music rather than the words.

I enjoyed the Black Angels show, but yea, this might have been the better choice.

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The Black Angels (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 21, 2026)

Posted in L. A. Witch, Philadelphia, PA, The Black Angels, Union Transfer on May 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 21, 2026] The Black Angels

The Black Angels are a psychedelic band from Austin, Texas.  I’ve known about them for about ten years.  Their music sounds pretty similar from album to album–fuzzy guitars, catchy riffs and Alex Maas’ recognizable haunting voice.  I saw them in 2022 and really enjoyed their set, although I remember being surprised at how minimal everything was.  It was also pretty dark on stage–so it was hard to see everyone clearly.

And that proved to be if not the same, then similar for this show.

This was a tour of their debut album Passover.  This album isn’t my favorite of theirs, but I do enjoy a full album show. I got into The Black Angels with their second album and my favorite one is Indigo Meadows, but as they played the album in full I realized just how much I do like it.

I also had  to laugh because there’s a guy who my wife and I saw at the MMJ concert who we called Jim James.  We saw him again at Band of Horses, then I saw him at Pallbearer and now at this one.  He’s a nice guy, a real headbanger.  He and his friends were having a great time at all of these shows, so I figured I was in for a good time.

Before the band came on, their logo was projected on the stage, spinning like the inside of a record.  Then the band came out and most of the lighting on stage was provided by the projections behind them.  This cast the band in eerie lights–sometimes moving shapes, sometimes stripes, visuals that obscured more than they illuminated.  And, connecting to the cover of Passover, it was all black and white.

The opening song, Young Men Dead, featured big fuzzy guitars in a simple riff that introduced Alex Maas’ vocals.  They have a new bassist since 2024, Misti Hamrick who also plays keys.   She and guitarist Jake Garcia switched off on bass (his bass was loud and ponderous on The First Vietnam War).   Although Christian Bland is the primary lead guitarist, Garcia does his fair share as well, playing the intro riff on The Sniper at the Gates of Heaven. (more…)

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Sleep Token / Empire State Bastard (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, May 20, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Empire State Bastard, Philadelphia, PA, Sleep Token, The Met Philadelphia on May 20, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 20, 2024] Sleep Token / Empire State Bastard

I had not heard of Sleep Token when this show was announced. I soon found out that they are huge and sold this show out in like a second.

Sleep Token are a masked, anonymous band (which I love).  So it immediately intrigued me when I heard they were coming.

Their music is heavy, but the verses and singing sound very soft alt rock.  It’s kind of a weird mishmash of styles.

And while they have a huge following, there are also plenty of haters, saying things like

  • They’re gothic-flavored pop music with heavy music dispersed throughout. Very generic production that rides all the current trends.
  • “wow, this is like Katatonia but bad”
  • I literally physically cringed listening to one of their songs because of how processed the vocals were. Sounded so overproduced and synthetic. They seem like a band that will succeed with their merchandise and image of something alternative for those unexposed to metal.
  • Admittedly I’ve only listened to their cover of Hey Ya, but it’s the kinda song that makes you never want to hear another song from the artist ever again.  —  I Just listened to it and it is terrible.
  • They are quite unique in all the different genres they blend into their songs but each different style they attempt just sounds very generic and not done well in my opinion.  There is also a weird effect on the singers voice which gets annoying very quickly for me.

Of course, that’s just a few naysayers but I tend to agree with that vibe.  I asked my son about them and he dismissed them.

The whole reason I was interested in this show was for Empire State Bastard.

Empire State Bastard are a Biffy Clyro’s singer guitarist Simon Neil and touring guitarist Mike Vennart (of Cardiacs and formerly of Oceansize).  The album and tour featured Dave fucking Lombardo on drums.  Simon Neil is a lunatic and while he has a great voice, he also loves to shred his vocal chords.  And  this whole album is him shredding his vocal chords.  This is heavy heavy metal.

And this was the only Philly date for this band.  I’m annoyed that people who didn’t care about them got to see them and I didn’t.  Maybe I could have asked The Met for a ticket just for the openers.

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Knotfall (PhilaMOCA, Philadelphia, PA, May 19, 2026) [MINT FIELD]

Posted in Knotfall, Mexico, Mint Field, Philadelphia, PA, PhilaMOCA, Sherrie on May 20, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 19, 2026] Knotfall

Knotfall is another band from Philly. I’m guessing that the band is the project of singer/guitarist (and for one song, drummer) Sami Rahman.  Because there have been different people on the different releases.

They totally threw me for a loop when I listened to them because I thought that they were basically a shoegaze band (since Mint Field is).  August in the Water starts their album and this set.  It has quiet guitars and soft vocals.  It’s quite lovely and I could see how they fit with Mint Field.  The song built to a louder sound, but still rather shoegazey (actually I found that his voice sounded a bit like Grandson and sometimes like Pavement).   But as the song reached the end, he started screaming in an intense, voice cracking sort of way.  And then the song dropped down to quieter moments again.  It was surprising on record but it was even better live.

Beyond Memory had an early Cure feel with lots of fuzz and I loved when the song broke and the two guitars played a really cool and clear riff–that blasted through the fuzz.  But the bigger surprise came at the end of the song when it shifted gears into a really heavy sound and really dark almost doom metal riff.  It was great and really intense–I would have happily let that riff continue for several more minutes, but it stopped after just a few runs through.

Sami told us that five of the six songs they were playing were from their recently released debut album.  Surprisingly they didn’t have any for sale and their shirts (which were really cool) were only Small-Large. (more…)

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Sherrie (PhilaMOCA, Philadelphia, PA, May 19, 2026) [MINT FIELD]

Posted in Knotfall, Mexico, Mint Field, Philadelphia, PA, PhilaMOCA, Sherrie on May 19, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 19, 2026] Sherrie

I like going to PhiaMOCA, it’s so casual and it’s such a great space to meet and chat with a band.  For whatever reason, I was early for this show.  When I walked in (probably at 7:30) Sherrie was still doing a sound check.  It was pretty weird and slightly awkward.  But it was hot out and cool inside, so I did some NY Times puzzles and listened to the band get ready for the show.

Sherrie is a band from Philadelphia.  When I saw that they were opening for Mint Field, I went to their bandcamp site and saw that they had three songs out.  I hadn’t realized until writing this that each of these songs came out at a rate of one a year, and that none of the songs were released in the last five years.

I can’t find out much about the band.  The lead singer is Rae and there’s a guy who has been with Sherrie since the beginning, whose name is Drew.  Their Instagram page has a few things up before COVID and then nothing until 2024.  Ah, and then I see that their first gig was at Ortlieb’s in March 2024–they were a two piece.  Then they played Johnny Brenda’s in April of this year as a five piece.  For this show they were a four piece.

Sherrie describes their music as dream pop, but it feels more like bedroom pop to me–remarkably spare, although it is sweet.  There’s not a lot of movement from the band–except for the last song when the Rae walked over to the keyboard that someone else was playing and pushed a button to change the sound of the keys.  She stayed for a bit and then turned it off again. (more…)

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An evening with They Might Be Giants (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 15, 16 & 17, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, They Might Be Giants, Union Transfer on May 17, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 15, 16 & 17, 2026] They Might Be Giants [rescheduled from March 13, 2020, September 8, 2020, April 15, 2021 and March 22, 2022 moved to January 12, 2023]

Back in 2022, my wife and I saw They Might Be Giants at Union Transfer in a very sold out room.  It was a fun night celebrating the anniversary of Flood.  Here they were, four years later playing THREE nights at Union Transfer.  With this simple promise

➡️Three Nights with @tmbgofficial
👉The Bigger Show Tour. Only 2026 area appearances!
👉3 very different shows. 2 “Evening with” performances. 8-piece band.
3 horns. 2 sets. 0 openers. Starts early. Gets loud.

This was basically something you wanted to get tickets to al three nights and I just didn’t think I had it in me to do it.  I also assumed that something else would come up that would make it impossible to see all three nights.  Amazingly nothing did.  But as I said, I just didn’t think I could do it.

I’m sure it was a lot of fun though.  Here’s some details

Night 1 focused on Factory Showroom [29 songs]
Night 2 focused on John Henry [30 songs]
Night 3 focused on Lincoln [34 songs]

Clearly night 3 was the one to go to.  I probably should have grabbed a ticket for that one at least.  Alas.

 

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