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Sigur Rós (Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY, October 5, 2016)

Posted in New York City, Radio City Music Hall, Sigur Rós on October 6, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 5, 2016] Sigur Rós

2016-10-05-20-25-57I saw Sigur Rós play live fifteen years ago.  It was their first world tour and one of their first shows in the U.S.  And it was magical.  It is one of the most memorable shows I’ve ever seen.  For some reason I’ve never looked into seeing them again.  Until this time.  Some six tours later, Sigur Rós decided to strip down from a multi-piece band with orchestra (when I saw them they had some extra players but not a full orchestra) to just a trio: jón þór birgisson (jonsi), georg holm, and orri páll dýrason.

I never feared that the three of them wouldn’t be able to recreate the beautiful sounds, but it wasn’t until they were playing that I realized that all of that music–that expansive, enveloping sound, was coming from just those three guys–and I have no idea how they did it.

For the most part, Jonsi was on vocals and (violin bowed) guitar, Georg was on bass (and more) and Orri was on drums and keyboards.  But they shifted around, with each of them playing other things during the show.

The show was perfectly orchestrated with a spectacular light show.  It was arranged into two acts with a 15 minute intermission.  I have often complained about bands who don’t change their set list from night to night but there is no way they could change this–the precision of everything, the complexity of the lights and music–this was more of a stage show than a concert.  (more…)

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Kishi Bashi (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2016)

Posted in Guster, Kishi Bashi, Philadelphia, PA, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Tall Tall Trees, Union Transfer on October 5, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 4, 2016] Kishi Bashi

2016-10-04-22-03-10This is our third time seeing Kishi Bashi, and our second time seeing him with our friends Liz and Eleanor.  We all saw him together the first time when he opened for Rodrigo y Gabriela.  And they were hooked just like we were.  They have since seen him with his string quartet, which we didn’t.  I’ve liked him so much solo that I didn’t know if I wanted to see others playing with him.  Well, Tuesday’s show was a full band and it was phenomenal.

He is an amazing solo performer with his loops and improv and his fantastic stage presence.  But when he has other people to play off of, he completely soars.  And, since he was the headliner, he added a great light show (and confetti!).  And it also mean that even though we had heard these songs live before, in this setting they were completely reworked and different.

Kishi Bashi’s newest album is the disco-infused Sonderlust in which he more or less switches from his signature violin to keyboards.  But the music, while quite different from his earlier records is still very Kishi Bashi–that voice and those melodies are unmistakable. (more…)

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Twain (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2016) [KISHI BASHI]

Posted in Kishi Bashi, Philadelphia, PA, Twain, Union Transfer on October 5, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 4, 2016] Twain

2016-10-04-20-30-56 Kishi Bashi has been an opening act for two great bands that I’ve seen.  So I was really curious to see who his opening act would be.  I’d looked up Twain online but all I got from the brief glimpse was that it was a duo from Brooklyn.

When we got to the venue, there were some big drums and keyboards around the stage and I thought maybe they belonged to Twain.

Well, indeed, they did not, for in this show Twain was just one guy and his guitar (actually two guitars).

And his first song was very disconcerting.   Lyrically, Twain seems to come from the state-everything-I-see school of lyrics.  He mixes this with a hippy world view and a pretty big obsession with death.  And his delivery is stark and sharp and, yes, pretty unpleasant. (more…)

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The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses: Master Quest (Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA, September 25, 2016)

Posted in C., Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA, Pokémon Go, Pokemon, The Legend of Zelda on September 25, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 25, 2016] The Legend of Zelda

legendBack in the summer we took the kids to the Mann Center to see Symphonic Pokémon.  And it was pretty great.  Well, the Mann Center closed its season with a symphonic Legend of Zelda performance.  C. has been a big Zelda fan for a couple of years (he loves the soundtrack particularly), so it seemed like an obvious show to go to.

Our one regret is that it was on a Sunday night which meant we didn’t get home until 11, which is just too late for a school night (especially since earlier in the week we took the kids to see “Weird Al” and got home even later–terrible parents, yes, but pretty cool parents).  But that was the only regret we had.

The show was fantastic.  C. even wore his Zelda Halloween costume (and brought his home-made cardboard sword–which passed security thankfully).  And he was not the only one in costume–some people were very seriously dressed for this event. (more…)

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Band of Horses (The Fillmore, Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2016)

Posted in Band of Horses, Beck, J. Mascis, Neil Young, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on September 24, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 24, 2016] Band of Horses

2016-09-24-22-06-57This is our third time seeing Band of Horses in three years.  Sarah and I loved their first three albums a lot, so in 2004 when XPNFest announced they were opening for Beck, we knew it was an amazing pairing.  They were great and we decided we needed to see them as the headliners.  The following year, they came back although this time opening for Neil Young.  We were going to see Neil anyway, so it was even better that BoH was opening.  But that set was shorter than the first!  We needed the full experience.

One year later, the busiest weekend we’ve had in a long time, and BoH was squeezed right into the middle of it.

We love The Fillmore in Philly, it’s a great venue with really good sound (and nice parking).  So it was a great place to hear the soaring vocals of Ben Bridwell.and the rest of the band.

The show was an outstanding mix of songs from four of their albums (turns out that their previous album Mirage Rock has been largely dismissed by the band and they don’t play much from it anymore).  And that’s fine because the four albums are awesome. (more…)

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Restorations (The Fillmore, Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2016) [BAND OF HORSES]

Posted in Band of Horses, Philadelphia, PA, Restorations, The Fillmore Philadelphia on September 24, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 24, 2016] Restorations

2016-09-24-20-25-47Restorations opened for Band of Horses.  They’re from Philadelphia, but I didn’t know them at all.  At the end of the set the singer said that they used to practice around the corner from the venue and that it was a real trip playing here.  So that was fun.

Before the show, I looked them up and saw them described as alternative, punk and post-hardcore. I was expecting a really heavy rocking band.  But somehow, when they opened for Band of Horses, they sounded a lot more like…Band of Horses.  I’ve been listening to their stuff on the site and I’d say there’s something about the guitars of “Misprint” that reminded me of BoH.

On their studio albums, lead singer Jon Loudon has a gravelly voice, but it didn’t quite sound that way live for some reason.  And the music had the soaring quality of Band of Horses’ more rocking songs.

And it was great.  They were definitely heavier than BoH, but the overall vibe worked perfectly.

The drummer in particular played some great rhythms and really bashed the hell out of the kit.  But the whole band played well off each other.  There were quite a few guitars, occasional keys and a small horn section.

Loudon said that the trumpeter and trombonist who were on stage were playing live with them for the first time.  They added a nice touch but were not mic’d so it wasn’t always easy to hear them.  But when they came through it was good.

I don’t know any of their songs, so I can’t give a setlist, but According to some recent shows, the songs they’ve been playing are:  New Old, The Plan, Separate Songs, West River, Misprint, D, A, Let’s Blow Up the Sun, The Future, Tiny Prayers and Documents.  Confirmation of lyrics shows I have a 20 second clip of “Tiny Prayers” here.

I’ve been listening to their stuff on their tumblr site (it tickles me that their albums are called Restorations, LP2 and LP3) and it’s really good.

They were a great complement to Band of Horses (Ben Bridwell also raved about them when he came on stage) and I’m excited to hear more from them.2016-09-24-20-17-01

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“Weird Al” Yankovic (Sands Bethlehem Event Center, Bethlehem, PA, September 20, 2016)

Posted in "Weird Al" Yankovic, Bethlehem, PA, C., Eminem, Funny (ha ha), Michael Stipe, Sands Bethlehem Event Center, T. on September 20, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 20, 2016] “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC

2016-09-20-19-37-57Back on June 16, 2015, Sarah and I took the kids to this very venue to see “Weird Al” perform.  He is (amazingly) still touring the Mandatory Fun World Tour, and he made another stop in Bethlehem en route to Radio City Music Hall.  I wasn’t planning on going this time since I know that his shows from the same tour are identical.  But when I learned that my friend Matt and many members of his family were going to go, it sounded like a fun celebration.  So we bought some tickets (not 3rd row like last time, although 13th row isn’t too shabby, it turns out), and met our friends for a fun night.

The Sands is a casino, and we were going to eat in one of the fancier restaurants lining the casino.  Well, PA state law says that a security guard must accompany minors around the casino.  So we got an escort to the Chinese Food place.  Then we sat down, were shocked at the prices–seriously shocked. I mean, it’s a casino, but c’mon it’s Bethlehem, there’s no way any Chinese Food is worth $28 a plate.  So we walked out (a first for me) and got escorted back to the food court where we ate overpriced food court Chinese Food instead.

Then we went in and were pleased with our seats and our neighbors.  And then the show started. (more…)

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Ben Folds and a Piano (Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown, NJ, September 18, 2016)

Posted in Ben Folds, Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown, NJ on September 19, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 18, 2016] Ben Folds and a Piano

2016-09-18-22-37-01Back in July, we saw Ben Folds play with yMusic at Steel Stacks in Bethlehem.  We were about ten feet from the stage and it was terrific.  Before the show or perhaps just after, he announced that he’d be doing a solo tour in the fall.  And even though we were literally watching him, I decided to get us tickets for that show as well, because it was going to be just him and his piano.  What could be better?

For this show, at the lovely MayoPAC (the sound was amazing), our seats were much further away.  But unlike with yMusic, this time, he and his piano faced sideways.  And our seats were dead center, so we could watch him bang the hell out of that piano.  We could see every trill, every stomp and every riff. It was a perfect view.

Of course it being a dark theater, I was respectful of my neighbors and took only two pictures and only right after he sat down to start the second set.  Not to mention, a venue like that gives you crap photos anyway…witness the one below.

He started out playing a few rockers (watching him pound the piano keys is so cool since even when he is pounding with his fist (or his arm!), he’s always right in tune somehow).  He opened with “Annie Waits,” one of Sarah’s favorites by him, and one we’d never head before.  It was pretty great and set the tone for a fantastic set.

He complemented our ability to get the “clap” in the song solidly on time.  And because of that, he imagined we’d be up for a four-part harmony challenge.  So when he played “Bastard” he had us do the challenge–four vocals parts for people with different ranges.  It was really fun.  One thing I’ve always admired about Ben is how he really encourages his audience to sing along.  He seems to genuinely want people to sing (not just a cursory scream of the chorus), but like he’s trying to get people I who think the can’t sing to realize that maybe they can. (more…)

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The Claypool Lennon Delirium (The Fillmore, Philadelphia, August 31, 2016)

Posted in Dean Ween, Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, King Crimson, Les Claypool, Marco Benevento, Philadelphia, PA, Pink Floyd, Pokémon Go, Sean Lennon, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, The Fillmore Philadelphia, The Les Claypool Frog Brigade, Ween, Yes on September 1, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: August 31, 2016] The Claypool Lennon Delirium

2016-08-31 22.23.17I saw Primus back in 1990 or so.  I’ve been a fan ever since but I’ve never seen them live again.  In 2015, Primus was touring with Sean Lennon’s band Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger (who are really good, too) but my schedule conflicted so I couldn’t go.  When I heard that The Claypool Lennon Delirium were playing in Philly, I snapped up tickets.

During the above tour, Les Claypool and Sean Lennon got together to make a song and they enjoyed playing so much that they made a whole album.  And it’s as trippy and weird, as you might expect.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from them live.  I mean, it seemed like it would be an insane spectacle (Primus had recently toured Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory which was a real spectacle).  In comparison to what I imagined the show would be like, it was pretty subdued.  The backdrop was three (non-changing) banners, and aside from switching guitars and basses a few times, there wasn’t a lot of shenanigans.  In fact, the usually loquacious Les barely said more than a few words the whole night.  When he first came out he said Hello Philly and commented that we were all staring at him.  And that was pretty much it.

Because it was all about the music.  And the music was really freaking good.  There was a ton of jamming–with each guy showing off.  Les was Les and Sean really wailed on his guitar and effects.  From the picture you can see what appear to be tablets in front of them.  Were they for lyrics or chords or were they playing Pokémon Go?  Who knows. (more…)

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Marco Benevento (The Fillmore, Philadelphia, August 31, 2016) [THE CLAYPOOL LENNON DELIRIUM]

Posted in Dan Deacon, Karina Rykman, Marco Benevento, Philadelphia, PA, Sonic Youth, The Fall, The Fillmore Philadelphia, Ween on September 1, 2016| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: August 31, 2016] Marco Benevento

2016-08-31 20.40.39I’d never heard of Marco Benevento before this show.  I looked him up before the show and listened to one song and thought it sounded okay.  Because of a tight security force (understandable in light of recent events), I missed the opening few minutes of his set, but he played for nearly an hour, so I got a full taste of Marco’s music.

And Marco is a performer. Sitting at a modified piano in a black and white striped suit, he conducted his trio through long, groovy songs.  Andre Borger played drums.  And I was struck as soon as I walked in at how great and wild the drums were.  Many songs had a click track of some sort (I think more just electronic noises on repeat), but Borger dominated the rhythm–playing great fills and smashing the hell out of everything in sight.

But the real star of the show was bassist Karina Rykman. (more…)

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