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Metz (Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ, October 11, 2017) [MODEST MOUSE]

Posted in Canadian Music, Metz, Modest Mouse, Nirvana, Sayreville, NJ, Set in New Jersey!, Starland Ballroom on October 11, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 11, 2017] Metz

2017-10-11-20-23-18-e1508356087344 (1)I knew of Metz from NPR, which is kind of funny given the kind of in your face pummeling metal noise that this three-piece from Canada makes.

I was pretty psyched that they were opening for Modest Mouse (not exactly the most logical fit).  But I should have learned from the last time I saw Modest Mouse at Starland Ballroom that there would be a huge line outside–I missed a lot of Mimicking Bird’s set last time.  This time I missed the opening minute or so of Metz’ set.  But it was loud enough that I could hear it from where I was standing.

And when I got onto the floor itself it was plenty loud enough. (more…)

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Katy Perry (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, October 8, 2017)

Posted in "Weird Al" Yankovic, Beetlejuice, Dark Crystal, Duran Duran, Katy Perry, Newark, NJ, Noah Cyrus, Prudential Center, Set in New Jersey! on October 8, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 8, 2017] Katy Perry

For Tabby’s birthday, I bought her (and us) tickets to see Katy Perry.  She’s a pretty big fan and we thought this would be a fun “big” concert (bigger than “Weird Al”, anyhow).  I’m not a Top 40 person (no duh), but I like a few of her songs (“Firework” and “Roar” are wonderfully catchy uplifting anthems).

I had heard that her shows put the spectacle in spectacular.  And I love spectacle.  I wish we had been able to get a little closer (but I wasn’t paying $500 a ticket), but hey for a first concert it wasn’t too bad. (more…)

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Noah Cyrus (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, October 8, 2017) [KATY PERRY]

Posted in Katy Perry, Newark, NJ, Noah Cyrus, Ponyo, Prudential Center, Set in New Jersey! on October 8, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 8, 2017] Noah Cyrus

When I looked up to see if Katy Perry would have an opening act, I was mildly disappointed to see that Noah Cyrus wa opening.  I had never head of him, but I assumed he was part of the Cyrus clan. Well, I was right and wrong.

Noah Cyrus is part of the Cyrus clan, but Noah Cyrus is a girl–younger sister of Miley.

When I looked her up to see if I might know her songs, I learned a far more interesting fact: she was the voice of our beloved Ponyo in the English language version of the movie!

We were told she would go on at 8:00 but by 8:10 there was still no sign of the opening act–and the ladies behind us were so drunk and so obnoxious–that we decided to go buy some merch. As we came back from that insanity, Noah was just going on stage.

She sang six or seven songs to a largely empty front of the stage.  She had a lot of energy and her first song was pretty catchy. (more…)

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Alvvays (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 6, 2017)

Posted in Altered Images, Alvvays, Happy Birthday, Philadelphia, PA, The Motorcycle Boy, Union Transfer on October 6, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 6, 2017] Alvvays

Sarah and I were really excited to see Alvvays.

But holy cow were we surprised that they sold out!  (And good for them).

I had no idea that people even knew that much about them.  But the sold out crowd were huge fans as people were singing along left and right.

I joked with Sarah that between their two albums, they had a total of 60 minutes of music, so their set couldn’t be all that long.   I had imagined that they would play all nineteen of their released songs, but that was not to be (they left out one slow song from the new album and three songs from their debut).

I was also pretty excited that Nap Eyes fans seemed to be quite short.  But by the time Alvvays came on, some of the taller fans pushed forward.  This didn’t hinder us too much, but it was still a little disappointing to have to weave around them. (more…)

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Nap Eyes (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 6, 2017) [ALVVAYS]

Posted in Alvvays, Canadian Music, Morrissey, Nap Eyes, Philadelphia, PA, The Velvet Underground, Union Transfer on October 6, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 6, 2017] Nap Eyes

Sarah and I were excited to see Alvvays again.  We saw them open for The Decemberists and it is always great to see a band as a headliner–especially when you can get up nice and close.

We hadn’t heard of Nap Eyes but we wanted to make sure we arrived early to get a good spot.  And I’m so glad we did.  Nap Eyes is a four piece from Halifax, Nova Scotia consisting of vocalist Nigel Chapman, guitarist Brad Loughead, bassist Josh Salter and drummer Seamus Dalton.

Between the tone of the band and Chapman’s vocal delivery, there was a distinct Velvet Underground vibe.   But II joked it was like they had given up the heroin.  Because the songs had a faster tempo, a number of time changes, and some rocking guitar solos. (more…)

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Tash Sultana (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 5, 2017)

Posted in Australia, Philadelphia, PA, Prince, Tash Sultana, Tiny Desk Concert, Union Transfer, World Cafe Live, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on October 5, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 5, 2017] Tash Sultana

WXPN starting playing Tash Sultana’s “Jungle” gosh… over a year ago.  I liked the song fine, but it was as I learned more about her–that she plays the entire song–every single sound–herself and she does it live using looping pedals that I became really interested in her.

I was totally blown away when I saw her Tiny Desk Concert and realized that she was an amazing guitarist and so much more.

I decided then that it would be very cool to see her live.  So when I ordered my ticket for her show back in June, I had no idea that anyone else had ever heard of her.  Much less that she would sell out the venue within a week.  Realize at this point she has only released one official EP (and has released dozens of YouTube videos–which is where her fanbase is).

Tash came out and started playing guitar.  She played two songs that she built step by step.  First playing some chords that she looped and then adding some solos which may or may not get looped in.  Then a riff or drums or various other percussive sounds (including beatboxing) and within a couple of minutes she had a complete backing track (usually very danceable) to sing over. (more…)

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Pierce Brothers (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 5, 2017) [TASH SULTANA]

Posted in Didgeridoo, Mumford & Sons, Mumford and Sons, Philadelphia, PA, Pierce Brothers, Rock duo, Tash Sultana, The Lumineers, Union Transfer on October 5, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 5, 2017] Pierce Brothers

This new construction on the way to Philly is really cramping my style.

I got to Union Transfer about 15 minutes late (unavoidable this time).  And that delay meant I missed some of the best supporting act that I’d never heard of before.

Pierce Brothers are Australian twins Jack and Patrick Pierce (that’s Jack on the left).  I saw three or four songs–walking in during a rollicking “Genevieve” that had the crowd going utterly nuts.

I don’t know what the crowd (which was quite large when I arrived) was like when the guys first started, but we were eating out of their hands by the time of this song.

During “Genevieve,” Jack was on electric guitar while Patrick played acoustic and sang lead.  Jack was jumping around and inciting us all to sing along and have a great time. (more…)

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Pearl Jam: Let’s Play Two (Reading Cinemas, Manville, NJ, October 3, 2017)

Posted in Chicago Cubs, Chicago, IL, Manville, NJ, Pearl Jam, Reading Cinemas, The Beatles, Wrigley Field on October 3, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 3, 2017] “Let’s Play Two”

When S. and I went to the screening of Let’s Play Two, we never would have imagined that one year later we’d be seeing Pearl Jam in Wrigley Field as well.

This film is a few things, but primarily it is an exploration of Eddie Vedder’s passions.  It is a showcase for Pearl Jam’s music.  It is also a showcase for the Chicago Cubs.

This is not a concert film exactly.  There are plenty of songs in the film, but they are interspersed with footage of the Cubs and of fans of locals and of Eddie touring Wrigley.

I don’t follow baseball, but I did when I was younger, and Wrigley is iconic.  It was very cool to see all of the insider footage inside Wrigley when Eddie and the band are given a tour of the facility.  I liked that it was cut with footage of a young Eddie talking about Wrigley and being a huge Cubs fan (in 1992, he took a piece of turf that was lying outside the stadium).

This film lovingly looks at Eddie’s obsession with the Cubs.  The fact that Pearl Jam played Wrigley on August 20 and 22, just a few months before the Cubs won the World Series (November 3) is a wonderful dramatic tie in.  [The fact that the giddiness of the win was shut down by the horrors of the 2016 election is very unfortunate]. (more…)

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Red Baraat (Deer Path Park, Flemington, NJ, October 1, 2017)

Posted in Deer Path Park, Flemington, NJ, Red Baraat, World Music Day on October 1, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 1, 2017] Red Baraat

Sarah sent me a link to “World Music Day” a free festival at a park just 15 minutes from our house.  I love multicultural events, so I was of course interested.  And then I discovered that the headlining band was Red Baraat, a band whose Tiny Desk Concert was amazing and who I wanted to see live, although who knew when that would happen.  Well, here they were at a free show right around the corner from me!

Tabby had a field hockey game earlier that day and we made it to the park with plenty of time to eat empanadas from the empanada truck and get a great seat right up front.

It took a few minutes for the band to get set up (and the sign they had taped to the wall fell on the poor drummer), but once the band got started, they sounded fantastic. (more…)

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Torres (Boot & Saddle, Philadelphia PA, September 28, 2017)

Posted in Boot & Saddle, Frightened Rabbit, Philadelphia, PA, Torres on September 28, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 28, 2017] Torres

I saw Torres play Union Transfer about four months ago.  She opened for Frightened Rabbit and I really enjoyed her set.  So I was pretty excited to see her at Boot & Saddle, where she was headlining.

I didn’t realize it was the first night of the tour for her new album Three Futures–she claimed to be very nervous.

It was quite a different show and Torres herself, Mackenzie Scott, was quite different.  At Union Transfer, she seemed kind of distant and aloof.  And it was a really effective persona–she really wowed the crowd who may not have been there to see her.  But at this show some of that veneer dropped away–there were some jokes and some smiles.

Torres’ previous album, Sprinter has some great noisy guitar stuff.  The new one has more synth and a much more spare, but interesting, guitar. (more…)

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