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Archive for the ‘Philadelphia, PA’ Category

Mike Polizze [Purling Hiss] (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, February 12, 2025) [J. MASCIS]

Posted in J. Mascis, Kurt Vile, Mike Polizze, Philadelphia, PA, Pink Mountaintops, Purling Hiss, Underground Arts on February 12, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 12, 2025] Mike Polizze [rescheduled from November 21, 2024]

When this show was first announced I didn’t know if I wanted to go, plus it turned out to be on the same night as the Babymetal show that my son and I were going to.

Initially Pink Mountaintops were supposed to open for this show.  Then a few days ago I saw that it was going to be Purling Hiss.  I was really excited to see Pink Mountaintops (who I haven’t seen before).  There was no notice or explanation of their departure from these shows.  But they were replaced by, as many of the posters say Purling Hiss (Solo).

Purling Hiss is Mike Polizze.  He was the only person on the first few records and the latter records add a drummer and maybe someone else.  But it’s not wrong to say this is Purling Hiss solo.

Polizze had opened for Kurt Vile recently and I enjoyed listening to his set.  And it proved to be quiet similar to this set opening for J Masics.

Mike had an acoustic guitar and a bunch of pedals–mostly a looping pedal, a distortion pedal and a wah wah.

And wow, was he loud.  I anticipated J would be loud, but I think that Mike may have been louder–or his equipment wasn’t mic’d as nicely so it sounded harsher.

Mike looped his guitar chords and then played solos using varying degrees of distortion and volume.  I really enjoyed the amount of looping he did and I was close enough to watch him using the looping pedal–tapping the pedal to add a solo section to loop with the chords, etc. (more…)

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Phantogram / meija (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, February 8, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in meija, Phantogram, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on February 8, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 8, 2025] Phantogram / meija 

For reasons I don’t really understand, I thought that Phantogram was My Brightest Diamond.  The bands’ names are not similar and they don’t sound much alike.  But I was sure that I had seen Phantogram open for someone.  And I had not.

As it turns out, I’ve been vaguely down on Phantogram for a while, and yet there’s been a song on the radio recently that I really like.  And when I listened to some more of their music I realized that I like them quite a lot–they remind me of Chvrches.  And so I thought I’d grab a ticket for this show.

And then I realized that we had a commitment that night, so all of my dithering was pointless.  But I’ll definitely be listening to more of them.

meija is LA based producer and songwriter Jamie Sierota.  He makes synth-drenched, indie pop adjacent rock.  It’s a little low-key and chill for me, but it seems like a decent pairing for Phantogram.

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Wax Jaw: video shoot and dance party / DJ PTFERRIS96 (Ortlieb’s, Philadelphia, PA, February 7, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in DJ PTFERRIS96, Ortlieb's, Philadelphia, PA, Wax Jaw on February 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 7, 2025] Wax Jaw / DJ PTFERRIS96

Yet again, Wax Jaw eludes me.

This show sounds amazing–a rocking show with an opportunity to watch the band make a video.  How cool would that be?

The blurb says

This will be a Wax Jaw banger to end all Wax Jaw bangers, and all attendees will get to:
⭐️ star in a wax jaw music video
💀 thrash to a fresh wax jaw set
🪩 dance all night with @ptferris96

~BLACK AND PINK ATTIRE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED~

And, yea, I don’t want to be in a Wax Jaw video.  And they don’t want me in a Wax Jaw video.

 

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Dream Theater: 40th Anniversary Tour (The Met Philadelphia, PA, February 7, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Dream Theater, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia on February 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 7, 2025] Dream Theater: 40th Anniversary

When Dream Theater came out forty years ago (really??) I loved their debut album.  But I have never really gotten into any of their follow ups.  I know that they are a band I should love–technically amazing, prog metal epics.  They are made for me.  And yet I just can’t get into them.  I do still love that debut album, but it’s the only one that real fans don’t like (I actually like the original singer better as well).

My friend Joe and I saw them live back in 2002 and I remember enjoying the show quite a lot–it is pretty fun to see these guys do these things up close.  But I’ve been up close on a lot of other amazing musicians and I don’t feel the need to go to this one.

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Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory: Free at Noon (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, February 7, 2025)

Posted in Free at Noon, Philadelphia, PA, Sharon Van Etten, Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory, World Cafe Live, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on February 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 7, 2025] Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory

I saw Sharon Van Etten live back in 2019.  I really enjoyed her set more than I thought I would.  And yet since then I haven’t really been that interested in her music as much.

She’s had a few songs (like this year’s Afterlife) that I’ve really liked, but when she announced a show at Union Transfer in April I was pretty meh about it.

Then it was announced that she and her new band were doing a Free at Noon, and I though that that was the best way to check her out.  And I’m so glad I went because her band (and the whole set) was fantastic.

I’m not sure how long these musicians have been playing with her, but word is that she solidified them as a band with this album and they record the album as a band rather than as a SVE project with backing musicians.  The Attachment Theory is Teeny Lieberson on keys, Shanna Polley on guitar, Jorge Balbi on drums, and bassist Devra Hoff.   When I saw her last time I didn’t know any of her band except for singer Heather Woods Broderick whose voice is amazing.  But Teeny Lieberson’s backing vocals suited Sharon’s perfectly, creating that hauntingly beautiful sound that Sharon does so well.

I was right in front of Devra, whose bass work was great (there was a some cool stuff on a fretless as well as a fretted bass).  The bass was a little loud in the mix for me since I was right in front of the speaker, but the opening bassline of Trouble was fantastic and I loved watching Devra play it. (more…)

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Jessica Lea Mayfield / MARGAUX / lowercase roses (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, January 28, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Jessica Lea Mayfield, Johnny Brenda's, lowercase roses, Margaux, Philadelphia, PA on January 28, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: January 28, 2025] Jessica Lea Mayfield / MARGAUX / lowercase roses

I saw Jessica Lea Mayfield in 2018 and really enjoyed her set.   Since then, I have been following her on Instagram and I enjoy her social media presence.  I genuinely have no idea if she has released any new music since 2018 (when I loved her song Sorry is Gone).  Huh, in fact she has not put out any new music since then, although she does have an EP coming out soon.

Looking at her setlist, she played almost the same set as when I saw her in 2018.  With songs mostly from Sorry is Gone and few more songs from her album Make My Head Sing.  I’m sure I would have enjoyed this show, but I wasn’t all that interested in going.

Margaux is yet another new singer going by a mononym.  Margaux Bouchegnies is a singer-songwriter based in Brooklyn, NY.  She is inspired by Motown, Pixies, and Dirty Projectors. (more…)

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Soccer Mommy (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, January 25, 2025)

Posted in L'Rain, Philadelphia, PA, Soccer Mommy, Union Transfer on January 26, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: January 25, 2025] Soccer Mommy

I saw Soccer Mommy back in 2021 and was surprised that it sold out.  And this show, four years later, also sold out.

After seeing her last time I knew what was to expect.  The only bad part was that I didn’t know her new album that well.

Sophie Allison (who is Soccer Mommy) plays guitar and sings.  She has a standard four piece behind her–Rollum Haas: drums, Nick Widener: bass, Julian Powell: guitar and Rodrigo Avendano: guitar/keys.

As I said last time, the band is really good and they bring these songs to life live in a more powerful way than on the album.

The thing that most surprised me last time and surprised me this time is that she played her big hits pretty early in the set.  Last time, Circle the Drain was her big single and she played it second!  Well, she played it second this time as well.

And her song Driver, which is one of my favorite songs of 2024 she played third!  It sounded amazing–her voice is fantastic live.

Then after playing one more new song she played the other big song that she had out recently, Shotgun.  So that was the three biggest songs I know by her all done within the first five songs.

After that she played a bunch of songs from the new album. I didn’t know them very well, but they sounded great.  However, the show slowed down quite a bit during these songs as each one was more chill than the previous.

At some point Eagles fans started a chant (there are Eagles fans at Soccer Mommy shows?)  Sophie asked what that was all about and then said I don’t really care about football, which led to a huge cheer.  (more…)

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Third Annual Abortion Access Benefit: Control Top / Dark Thoughts / Mopar Stars / Money Nicca / Nina Ryser / Noun / Pinkwash / (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, January 25, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Control Top, Dark Thoughts, Johnny Brenda's, Mopar Stars, Nina Ryser, Noun, Palberta, Philadelphia, PA, Pinkwash, Rachel Fogletto, Screaming Females, Third Annual Abortion Access Benefit on January 25, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: January 25, 2025] Control Top / Dark Thoughts / Mopar Stars / Money Nicca / Nina Ryser / Noun / Pinkwash

I bought a ticket to this show primarily for Control Top.  And I added an extra donation because I felt the cause was really important.  And then I grabbed tickets to Soccer Mommy which was a show that was easier for me to get to.

Ground Control Touring’s 3rd Annual Abortion Access Benefit Series takes place in NYC, LA, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, DC, Austin, and Raleigh on January 25, 2025! Visit their website to see the variety of bands at each show and specific event details! 100% of proceeds from all shows are donated directly to NOISE FOR NOW who will allocate the funds raised to local abortion funds in need. You can also text GCT to 53-555 if you can’t make it out but would still like to donate.

Proceeds support: Abortion Liberation Fund of PA, Access Reproductive Care – Southeast, ACCESS Reproductive Justice, The Afiya Center’s SYS Fund, Baby2Baby’s Disaster Relief and Emergency Response, Carolina Abortion Fund, DC Abortion Fund, Feminist Women’s Health Center, Lilith Fund, Midwest Access Coalition, New York Abortion Access Fund, Northwest Abortion Access Fund, and independent abortion clinics in California, DC, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, the Pacific Northwest and Pennsylvania via Keep Our Clinics.

And here’s the blurb from Johnny Brenda’s

Ground Control Touring is thrilled to announce they’re teaming up for the third year with NOISE FOR NOW, a non-profit specializing in reproductive justice, to take action and bring awareness with its third annual Abortion Access Benefit Series. The series has expanded to take over EIGHT cities, coinciding on Saturday, January 25th, 2025 – Los Angeles at Lodge Room, New York City at Bowery Ballroom, Chicago at Sleeping Village, Atlanta at The Masquerade (Purgatory), Philadelphia at Johnny Brenda’s, Austin at Hotel Vegas, DC at Songbyrd, and Raleigh at Kings. Since its inception in 2023, the Abortion Access Benefit Series has raised over $110,000 via eight completely sold out nationwide events, with performances by nearly 100 artists and silent auction bundles provided by dozens of community sponsors and local businesses.
Each benefit show will feature a special night of music and festivities in support of abortion funds, community, and bodily autonomy. 100% of proceeds will go to NOISE FOR NOW who will then allocate the funds raised to local independent abortion clinics and abortion funds in each region.
More about NOISE FOR NOW: NOISE FOR NOW is a national initiative that enables artists and entertainers to connect with and financially support grassroots organizations that work in the field of Reproductive Justice, including abortion access. Reproductive health care services, including access to legal abortion, are under attack. By organizing benefit events and campaigns, NOISE FOR NOW provides opportunities for artists and entertainers to use their talent to raise money and send a clear message that Reproductive Rights are human rights. Since their inaugural benefit concert in 2017, NOISE FOR NOW has worked with over 450 artists and entertainers to raise $1.36M for 54 partner organizations. In 2023, NOISE FOR NOW established a record label and has released 3 benefit compilations, 2 of which are streaming on all digital platforms.

(more…)

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Wunderhorse / Deux Visages (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, January 25, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Deux Visages, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts, Wunderhorse on January 25, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: January 25, 2025] Wunderhorse / Deux Visages

Wunderhorse was the Artist to Watch on WXPN and they were playing two of their songs a lot.  I didn’t respond well to the first one but the second one was pretty catchy.

I might have considered this show, but I had tickets to Soccer Mommy AND a Control Top show this evening, so this was low on my list. (more…)

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L’Rain (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, January 25, 2025) [SOCCER MOMMY]

Posted in L'Rain, Philadelphia, PA, Soccer Mommy, Union Transfer on January 25, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: January 25, 2025] L’Rain

I saw L’Rain open for Animal Collective without knowing anything about them.  I was blown away.. I really liked the

extended jams that were full of everything–wild, weird guitars, drums that went from simple and gentle to thrash-worthy, and a saxophone that didn’t sound anything like a saxophone.   And Cheek’s voice.  Which she sampled in various ways, pitch shifting it, looping it on top of itself and creating an astonishing array of sounds.

But this show was a littkle different.

She started out with her first song (that comes from a soundtrack) and it was pretty quiet.  Cheek manipulated her voice and much, but it was mostly atmospheric.

The second song featured her on guitar playing an interesting rotating melody.  But it was also pretty quiet.  The keyboardist played some swirling saxophone solos.  I feel like both songs pushed the 6 minute mark.

The band took up about half of the stage and I was right in front of the drummer (no names were given).  During some of the songs, he went crazy, playing loud and fast while the rest of the band jammed and improvised.  He was my favorite player tonight.

The previous time, I was mesmerized by their guitarist because he was doing all kinds of interesting things [strange chords, or non-chords, making squeaking feedbacking sounds] but I didn’t really feel like he did that tonight.

Knead Bee and Uncertainty Principle showed that L’Rain largely plays an R&B base to her songs.  The songs were pretty chill and I was really missing the excitement of the previous show, although, again, I really like the way she manipulates sounds live.

And then she played a melody that was really familiar.  And once I realized that it was Portishead’s The Rip, I was ecstatic.  I’ve never seen Portishead live and although Beth Gibbons is coming to Philly, her solo stuff doesn’t interest me all that much.  But this version of The Rip was fantastic!  The guitar was perfect, the electronics kicked in exactly the right way and Cheek sang in the best Beth Gibbons style.  Hoy cow it was awesome.

So I was still in a good mood for the final song Two Face, a song she played last time that featured a little more of the chaos that I appreciated last time.

I actually had to wonder if L’Rain was crazier last time because they were opening for Animal Collective and contained themselves more for a less experimental headliner like Soccer Mommy.

 

2025 2022
Green Π Which Fork £
5 to 8 Hours a Day (WWwaG) ⊗ A Toes (Shelf Inside Your Head) £
Knead Bee ⊗ Find It €
Uncertainty Principle ⊗ Round Sun €
The Rip [Portishead cover] Kill Self €
Two Face € Blame Me €
Two Face €
Take Two €

£ L’Rain (2017)
€ Fatigue (2021)
⊗ I Killed Your Dog (2023)
Π I Saw the TV Glow soundtrack (2024)

 

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