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Five Finger Death Punch / Ice Nine Kills / I Prevail / Papa Roach (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, May 6, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Five Finger Death Punch, I Prevail, Ice Nine Kills, Newark, NJ, Papa Roach, Postponed, Prudential Center on May 6, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 6, 2020] Five Finger Death Punch / Ice Nine Kills / I Prevail / Papa Roach [moved to October 28]

indexMy son and his friends were going to go to this show primarily for Ice Nine Kills.

He and I saw Ice Nine Kills last summer and thought they were amazing.  So good in fact that I offered to be the chaperone of this show (rather than his friend’s dad).  It might still happen.

I feel like disappointment is inevitable since INK are opening, not headlining.  And they wont be on as long or be able to do as much (I assume), but even a little INK is better than none.

I actually don’t know Five Finger Death Punch, although I’ve certainly heard of them.  I had no idea they were [according to Wikipedia] one of the most successful heavy metal bands of the decade.  The few songs I’ve heard were alternately catchy or really vulgar.

I don’t know I Prevail, but they are a metalcore band, like so many other bands these days.  Catchy with some screamo vocals.

I’ve known of Papa Roach for a long time but have never heard them.  I feel like I dismissed them early on because they were part of the nu metal scene.

Papa Roach has been described as alternative metal, alternative rock,hard rock,nu metal,rap metal.  Allmusic has compared the band’s recent work to 1980s glam metal-a knowing update of an ’80s Sunset Strip sleaze rock outfit with new elements of djent.

I listened to one song (from 2005) and found it catchy and another song (from 2015) and heard the djent influences.

I think this entire show would have been exhausting.

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KT Tunstall / Dina Hall (Sellersville Theater, Sellersville, PA, May 5, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Coronavirus, Dina Hall, KT Tunstall, Postponed, Quarantine, Sellersville Theater, Sellersville, PA on May 5, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 5, 2020] KT Tunstall / Dina Hall [moved to June 28]

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I had forgotten about KT Tunstall.  I had her first record and then didn’t realize that she had had a couple of other (big) hits since “Suddenly I See.”

I wasn’t planning on going to this show and then I saw that KT Tunstall headlined a show at World Cafe Live last year.  I listened to it recently and found her enjoyable.

Since all shows have been postponed in some way, I’m not sure why this show was postponed from May to June (was that seriously wishful thinking?).  I see now that she had planned a short Spring equinox tour and Sellersville was the final date of the tour.

I wasn’t going to go to this, but her name has been popping up all over the place.  She’s touring with Hall and Oates this summer and she seems to be doing a lot of local shows as a headliner.  All of this repetition has me thinking I might go see her.  But mostly I’m intrigued by how much her name is going to show up in these posts soon.

Dina Hall is a folksinger from Bethlehem–originally from Sayreville NJ. When she’s with her full band she rocks out a bit more. I’m not sure if this was a solo or a band show.]

seller

 

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Pottery / P.E. (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, May 4, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Coronavirus, Fontaines D.C., Johnny Brenda's, P.E., Philadelphia, PA, Pill, Postponed, Pottery, Quarantine on May 4, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 4, 2020] Pottery / P.E.

indexI saw Pottery open for Fontaines D.C. and was really impressed by them (I actually enjoyed them more than Fontaines because the Fontaines crowd were jerks).

Pottery were weird and cockeyed and really fun. They have an EP out that is only online. They have a full length coming out soon.

I didn’t know they were touring until recently and I probably wouldn’t have gone to this show because I’d have had a show the two nights in a row before it.  But I’m pleased to know that they were coming and that they are going to come back when things settle down.

P.E. is a band formed out of the band Pill (who I’ve not heard of but who were a skronky and intense DIY art-punk band).  Three members of Pill have gone on to form P.E.  The song I heard “Top Ticket” was a propulsive thump, strung along by drill whirs and Torres’ snotty deliver: “I want the top ticket/ Nothing average, nothing contrived/ None of that consumer-grade shit.”   Noisy and weird, a pretty good fit for Pottery.

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Acid Mothers Temple / ST 37 (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, May 3, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Acid Mothers Temple, Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O., Cancelled, Coronavirus, Philadelphia, PA, Quarantine, ST 37, Underground Arts on May 3, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 3, 2020] Acid Mothers Temple / ST 37 [moved to March 8, 2021]

indexI have seen Japanese psych rockers Acid Mothers Temple twice and each show was a whirlwind of fun and insanity.

I promised myself I would see them any time they came to town.  So I was very excited to see them again.

Acid Mothers Temple pretty much tour all the time and they come our way every year or so, but because their tours are planned out ages in advance , it means that their rescheduled date isn’t until next year!  Bu that’s okay, I’ll still be there.

ST 37 is from Texas.  Their bandcamp blurb:

Quite simply, we rule. And we have been ruling for over 30 years. So there.

They play a noisy experimental kind of rock and have nine people listed in their “past members” category.  Wikipedia gives these two quotes about them: mind-altering space-punk whose live shows are drowning in a haze of guitar and reverb that can drift through cosmically shifting layers of aggressive punk riffs, fuzzed noise, and scalding jams.

Sounds fun.

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Chicano Batman / Le Butcherettes (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 3, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Acid Mothers Temple, Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O., Chicano Batman, Coronavirus, Le Butcherettes, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine, Union Transfer on May 3, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 3, 2020] Chicano Batman / Le Butcherettes [moved to June 16, 2021]

index

I know of Chicano Batman through some songs on WXPN and through a cool Tiny Desk Concert.  They play a groovy psychedelia that is laced with soul and funk and indie rock.

There’s always a great bass sound that underpins Bardo Martinez’s soft vocals.

They also have a great name.

The more I hear them the more I think they’d be fun to see live.  Last time they came to town, they were opening for someone.  But this tour they are headlining.

Le Butcherettes I also know from a Tiny Desk Concert.  Teri Gender Bender is a great punk front woman. She channels different vocal styles and can rock with the best of them.  She is also unafraid to stare at the audience.  I imagine she’d be an intense experience.

I was unable to see them in May (that was Acid Mothers Temple night), but I’m free on the new date.

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Crash Test Dummies / Elizabeth Moen (City Winery Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, May 2, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Brad Roberts, City Winery Philadelphia, Coronavirus, Crash Test Dummies, Elizabeth Moen, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine on May 2, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 2, 2020] Crash Test Dummies / Elizabeth Moen [moved to March 14, 2022]

indexI saw Brad Roberts solo a few years ago and I really enjoyed him.  I have remained a Crash Test Dummies fan since the early days, even with their weirder Brad Roberts-only solo stuff.

This tour was going to be a full band anniversary tour and I was really interested in seeing them all.

However, two things were standing in the way.  The cost: City Winery is SO EXPENSIVE! (especially for a band like CTD) and the date: Conflicting with King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, who I was not prepared to miss.

So this postponement might actually allow me to see them.

Elizabeth Moen is described as a bluesy folk singer.  That seems fairly accurate for the one song I listened to.

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King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard / Leah Senior (Franklin Music Hall, Philadelphia, PA, May 2, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Australia, Coronavirus, Franklin Music Hall, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine on May 2, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 2, 2020] King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard / Leah Senior [moved to October 22]

indexI have become a huge fan of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard (are there any other kinds of fans of them?) since I first heard about them a few years ago.

I’m sad that I missed them on the tour just before the first time I saw them (at a smaller venue when newbies like me hadn’t heard of them yet), but I have seen them twice since.

In both cases, the band overcame somewhat unpleasant (to me) situations (obnoxious capacity crowds and unreasonable heat) to change my mind from swearing I’d never bother seeing them again (before the show), to hoping they’d come back really soon (after the show).

I’m not at all surprised that this show was postponed and they have already rescheduled the new date.  So we’re all good.  I just hope the damned air-conditioner works next time.

The last time I saw KGATLW, the two opening bands were kind of doom/psychedelic–perfect matches for KGATLW’s more recent sound.  This year’s opener is a singer named Leah Senior.

Leah Senior did the narration on KGATLW’s Murder of the Universe album.  But her music is a completely other thing.  She sings gentle folk songs with delicate guitar playing and her beautiful soft voice.

I can;t imagine how well she would go over with a rowdy KGATLW crowd and I also wonder if that means that KGATLW would play their more mellow stuff?  Nah.

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Andy Shauf / Faye Webster (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 1, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in Andy Shauf, Asbury Park, NJ, Faye Webster, House of Independents, Margaret Glaspy, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Union Transfer on May 1, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 1, 2020] Andy Shauf / Faye Webster [moved to December 17, 2020]

indexAndy Shauf is a Canadian singer songwriter.  He sings quiet, introspective songs.  He was playing at Union Transfer at the beginning of Mat and then in New Jersey in the middle of May.

I was introduced to his music from a Tiny Desk Concert in which he never really moves.  He has very long hair which also never moves.  His songs are really very pretty and well constructed.

It’s his voice that I find utterly fascinating.  He enunciates in such an unusual way.  The way he emphasizes certain vowels defies his Saskatchewan upbringing.  He sings not unlike Margaret Glaspy and other newer sings who stress their vowels in an unusual to me way.

I really enjoyed his Tiny Desk and I enjoyed reading about the album The Party which sounds like the worst party ever.

Since then he has cut all of his hair and looks totally different–I wasn’t even sure it was the same guy.

Faye Webster is a singer from Georgia who actually has a similar singing style to Andy, which is fascinating.  She sings low key torchy ballads and would be a perfect opening act for him.  I’m going to have to listen to a bit more from her.

He’s the kind of musician that I would think about going to but probably wouldn’t, and then I’d wish I had.  Well, now I have two more chances.

His initial itinerary fascinated me:

Boston, Brooklyn, Philly, D.C., North Carolina, Atlanta, New Orleans, Alabama, Indiana, Pittsburgh, New Jersey, upstate New York.

The rescheduled shows keep the same basic set up except that now Philly is the day before NJ–I wonder what changed that plan.

shuaf

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Sparta / Emily Davis and The Murder Police (Boot & Saddle, Philadelphia, PA, May 1 & 2, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, At The Drive-In, Boot & Saddle, Coronavirus, Emily Davis and The Murder Police, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine, Sparta, The Mars Volta on May 1, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 1 & 2, 2020] Sparta / Emily Davis and The Murder Police [moved to July 18 & 19]

indexWhen At the Drive-In broke up, they split into two bands: The Mars Volta and Sparta.  The Mars Volta went in a wild, psychedelic/prog metal direction and Sparta maintained a more tradition heavy rock sound.

I enjoyed the first Sparta albums but I hadn’t heard anything recently.  I considered going to this show because I’d heard they were really good live.

Emily Davis and The Murder Police [EDMP] are an alt-folk-punk band living in the desert southwest with an affinity for writing aggressive, introspective music.  I’ve listened to a few songs and I like what I heard–I feel they are a bit more folk-leaning, but there is a punk edge.

I had tickets to see …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead on the 1st and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard on the second, so the postponement worked out nicely.

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…And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead / Warish / Greenbeard (Voltage Lounge, Philadelphia, PA, May 1, 2020) [POSTPONED]

Posted in ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, Coronavirus, Greenbeard, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine, Voltage Lounge, Warish on May 1, 2020| Leave a Comment »

[POSTPONED: May 1, 2020] …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead / Warish / Greenbeard [moved to July 13]

indexI really enjoyed …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead’s first few albums back in the late 90s and early 2000s.  Then I lost touch with them.  I feel like they changed style, but I’m not sure that’s true.

The one thing that was always true was that a Trail of Dead show was a can’t miss, combustible experience.

It’s about fifteen years and six albums later and when I saw they were playing nearby, I thought it would be fun to finally see them.  I read a review of a recent show in which the reviewer said that they weren’t as intense live as in the old days (without major label support, they could no longer afford to smash up guitars), but that they (meaning Conrad Keely and Jason Reece, the only two original guys) still impress with their intensity.

I’d never heard of Warish, but how’s this for a bio blurb:

Imagine if Incesticide era Nirvana were crossed with Static Age era Misfits. You’d have sinister low budget horror rock with a visceral, twisted weirdness and bludgeoning riffs. Some might call it nightmarish, we call it Warish.

I listened to a track on bandcamp and their music is great, but their singer is a little too much like Marilyn Manson.  I’ll bet they’d be fun live though.

Greenbeard sounds like a little more fun

Desert rock from the sun stricken soil of Austin, TX. Greenbeard brings prolific vibrations to the universe via drums, bass, and guitar.

The fact that they have an album called Lödarödböl makes me like them immediately.  They have a good stoner vibe too.

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