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Archive for the ‘Philadelphia, PA’ Category

Ringo Deathstarr / The Veldt / SOLD (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, May 19, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, Ringo Deathstarr, SOLD, The Veldt on May 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 19, 2024] Ringo Deathstarr

I saw Ringo Deathstarr back in 2019 and they were fantastic.  They play heavy shoegaze in all of the best ways.  I really wanted to see them again.

But this show happensto be on the same night as a show that I already had tickets for–MC Lars, who I have tried to see on many many occasions but have never been successful.  So I’m afraid Ringo Deathstarr loses out (and maybe I do too).

I hadn’t heard of The Veldt even though they’ve been around since 1986 (!)

Spotify describes them as a soul-powered rock band on the heavier end of the shoegaze spectrum, the Veldt are dream pop at their core yet just as known for driving riffs and stirring vocals. Led by Daniel and Danny Chavis, the Veldt were misunderstood from their late-’80s beginning.

I like their music but really don’t like the singer’s voice for this style of music.

SOLD is a Philly band that’s been around for a few years.  They descibe themselves as

Philly Post-Punk that’s fast and hard but then soft and lame too. Lot of bass, some spooky organs and a guitar all on top of drums. So yeah.

I listened to a few songs and they rock.  But when the cheesy synths come in, it’s quite a surprise (in a good way).

This would have been a fun show.

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Mannequin Pussy / Soul Glo (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 18, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Mannequin Pussy, Philadelphia, PA, Soul Glo, Union Transfer on May 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 19, 2024] Mannequin Pussy / Soul Glo

I’ve seen Mannequin Pussy three times.  The first time they were opening for Japandroids and Boot & Saddle.  And now they have three sold out shows at Union Transfer!

I immediately grabbed tickets for the first night–a hometown show would be amazing.

And I was especially excited that Soul Glo was opening for them. (more…)

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Joy Again (First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia, PA, May 17, 2024) [CANCELLED]

Posted in First Unitarian Church, Joy Again, Philadelphia, PA on May 17, 2024| 1 Comment »

[CANCELLED: May 17, 2024] Joy Again

I saw (some of) a Joy Again set when they opened for Chastity Belt in 2017.

My daughter loves one of their songs “Looking Out for You” (which has over 460 million listens on Spotify).  I thought it would be fun to see them.

But I don’t go to The Church, so I wouldn’t go to this show anyhow.  But then there was the bigger news.  On March 8, the band wrote:

Hi everyone-

After 10 years we’ve decided to end Joy Again. We have so much love and respect for one another and calling it quits is extremely sad for everyone involved, but it feels like an appropriate time to move on. We’ve had an incredible time together through writing and recording, to being in the studio and on the road. We’re truly going to miss it so much.

Unfortunately with this said we’ll also be cancelling the upcoming tour. We’re so sorry and truly appreciate all of you who had already bought tickets and everyone who was excited to come to one of these shows. Refunds will be issued to everyone shortly – some of you may have already gotten yours.

Our debut album Song and Dance will be released on June 28. We’re so proud of this body of work – it represents our love for each other and all the ups and downs we’ve been through in all our years together. All of this has been a long time coming and we hope you understand that this decision is best for us. We’ll always be making new music, whether together or apart you can always expect to hear something new from us and the projects we pursue in the future.

Thanks for sharing this past decade with us,

Joy Again

They’ve been out for ten years, have half a billion streams on Spotify and hadn’t put out a record yet?

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Guster: Free at Noon (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, May 17, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Free at Noon, Guster, Philadelphia, PA, World Cafe Live, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on May 17, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 17, 2024] Guster

My wife told me that she heard Guster was doing Free at Noon and we frantically tried to figure out if she could get the day off so  we could go.

As soon as I logged into the page, I saw that it was sold out!  I was so bummed.

I can’t believe that the last time I saw Guster: Free at Noon was five years ago!  I would have guessed it was two years at most.

The setlist was mostly new songs (the new album was released today).

There’s a video of the set online and, as usual, the show looks great.

  • Keep Going
  • Stay With Me Jesus
  • Witness Tree
  • Hang On
  • Keep It Together
  • Black Balloon
  • Satellite
  • This Could All Be Yours

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The Avett Brothers / City and Colour (The Mann Center for Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA, May 16, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in City and Colour, Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA, The Avett Brothers on May 16, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 16, 2024] The Avett Brothers

Three years ago I wrote:

I enjoyed them last time I saw them, but the crowd was terrible,  Nevertheless, it would take a lot to get me to go to The Mann Center to see them–it’s just too inconvenient for me.

Maybe some other tour.

Here it is three years later and they’re back at The Mann Center.  And I’m still not willing to go there to see them.

City and Colour is Dallas Green, the clean singer from Canadian band Alexisonfire.  I liked them a lot (especially his parts).  I’ve also enjoyed some of his solo stuff, which tends to be more folkie.

I’ve often thought it would be interesting to see him live.  He seems like a decent guy and I imagine his shows would be enjoyable.

Maybe I’ll get to see both of them some day.

 

 

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Amon Amarth / Cannibal Corpse / Obituary / Frozen Soul (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia PA, May 13, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Amon Amarth, Cannibal Corpse, Frozen Soul, Obituary, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on May 13, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 13, 2024] Amon Amarth / Cannibal Corpse / Obituary / Frozen Soul

When this tour was announced I had the choice of seeing them at The Wellmont in NJ or the Fillmore in Philly.

I chose the Wellmont because it is smaller and I thought it would be more fun.  I see too many shows in Philly anyway.

It worked out for the best as my wife and I were going to see Neil Young on Sunday night, so this left the rest of the week free.

I’ve really enjoyed Amon Amarth in the past and since my son and his friends enjoyed them when we saw them last year, it was a no brainer for the fur of us to see them headline.

I wasn’t to thrilled with the rest of the lineup, honestly.  I’ve seen Cannibal Corpse a few years ago and once was enough (although now that I heard what a genuinely nice guy Corpsegrinder is, I certainly like them a lot more).  It’s fascinating though that they’ve been a band since 1988 (and appeared in Ace Ventura Pet Detective!  They were an integral early band in the Tampa death metal scene.

Obituary is another super old school band from Tampa (formed in 1984, so even older).  It’s kind of weird that Amon Amarth, who is a Swedish band and not really a death metal band (they’re all about Vikings, but they do sing in a growly way) would invite two early death metal bands.

I know of them (their logo is very familiar) but I guess I never listened to anything they did.  They are heavy and fast but the singer actually does a kind of high voice when he sings (as well as some growling).  It’s a different vibe to be sure and more of what I think about with 80’s metal bands.

Frozen Soul is a death metal band from Texas.  They formed in 2018.  I had not heard of them and wasn’t really that interested in seeing them anyway.  They are heavy death metal with growling vocals.

If it weren’t for the headliners I ‘d have had n interest in this tour at all.

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Chicano Batman / Lido Pimienta (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 12, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Chicano Batman, Lido Pimienta, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer on May 12, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: May 12, 2024] Chicano Batman 

I saw Chicano Batman three years ago and really enjoyed the show and the vibe of the crowd.

I would definitely had gone to the show except for three reasons.

  1. Avatar, Oxymorrons, Conquer Divide were the same night and I would have gone to that show in a heartbeat
  2. Neil Young & Crazy Horse, a show my wife and I were over the moon to see.
  3. It was Mother’s Day.  If the other two shows hadn’t existed, I was still going to be home for Mother’s Day.

Lido Pimienta had a song that was on WXPN a few years ago that I really liked.

She is a Colombian Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter whose 2016 album, La Papessa, won the 2017 Polaris Music Prize.  She plays traditional indigenous and Afro-Colombian musical styles such as Cumbia and Bullerengue and merges it with contemporary synthpop and electronic music.

She’s quite delightful.

This would have been a really fun set.

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Cheekface / Yungatita (First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia, PA, May 11, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Cheekface, First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia, PA, Yungatita on May 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 11, 2024] Cheekface / Yungatita

I saw Cheekface a year ago and absolutely loved their set.  I was really looking forward to seeing them again, but they chose to play at The Church, which I don’t go to.  For those keeping score, The Church holds 200 more people than the Ukie Club, so good for them.  Next time they come maybe they’ll be bummed up to Union Transfer.

Yungatita is a band I hadn’t heard of (although they have a song on Spotify “7 Weeks & 3 Days” that has over 77 million plays!

The band is the brainchild of East LA’s Valentina Zapata, Yungatita — who previously released a 2020 solo EP with a groovy, low-fi, retro sound titled Over You — returns with a full band in preparation for their slacker-pop debut LP, Shoelace & a Knot.  That “7 Weeks” song is bedroomy and synthy, but their newer stuff rocks.

Album of the year says that Shoelace 

is the perfect blend between fun, sunny amateur indie rock and ambitious, angry and screamy intentions behind said cutesy indie rock, all in a very digest 35 minutes that never leaves you bored. … infectious melodies and hunger in all of the instrumentals from the surfer-rocky guitar riffs to the hella dynamic and catchy drumming to the harmonies yungatita does with herself that serve as a melodious instrument themselves. The one word I’d use to describe this project is “catchy” – every single bit of instrumentation is an instant hit.

This sounds like it would have been a really fun show (and I would have been the oldest person there by 20 years).

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Psychedelic Porn Crumpets / Spoon Benders (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, May 11, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Spoon Benders, Underground Arts on May 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 11, 2024] Psychedelic Porn Crumpets

Of all the shows I was sure I wouldn’t miss, it was this one.  I love Psychedelic Porn Crumpets and when I saw them two years ago the show blew me away.  I genuinely couldn’t wait to see them again.

So what happened?  Well, we had a house emergency and I spent most of the evening repairing a toilet.  And I had zero interest in doing anything after that.  I was also having terrible leg pain and couldn’t imagine standing for three hours–or getting in an inevitable mosh pit.

Plus, we were heading to the dreaded Freedom Mortgage Pavilion for Neil Young and Crazy Horse the next night and I didn’t want to be wiped out from this show for that one.

Sigh.  I need that crazy stamina back!

Spoon Benders are a progressive psych-rock powerhouse that has been relentlessly crisscrossing the United States, leaving a trail of newly acquired fans in their wake. Spoon Benders have become synonymous with an electrifying stage presence that can only be described as loud, controlled chaos.

When I first listened to some of their songs I wasn’t that excited, but I feel like I must not have been paying attention because their sound is very cool with lots of echoing guitars and a much-needed female voice on lead and backing vocals.

This really would have been a great show to see.  I hope PPC comes back soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2024 2022
2024 Tally-Ho ¿
2024 Lava Lamp Pisco ♠
2024 Bill’s Mandolin &
2024 Mundungus ¿
2024 Found God in a Tomato
2024 November
2024 Mr. Prism ¿
2024 Hymn for a Droid &
2024 Acid Dent ♠
2024 Marmalade March
2024 Cubensis Lenses
2024 encore
2024 Cornflake


♠ Night Gnomes (2022)
¿ SHYGA! The Sunlight Mound (2021)
& And Now for the Whatchamacallit (2019)
¶¶ High Visceral (Part 2) (2017)
¶ High Visceral (Part 1) (2016)

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Sweet Pill / Equipment / Broke Body / Have a Good Season (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 10, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Broke Body, Equipment, Have a Good Season, Philadelphia, PA, Sweet Pill, Union Transfer on May 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: May 10, 2024] Sweet Pill / Equipment / Broke Body / Have a Good Season

Sweet Pill opened for Pool Kids last year.  But I arrived too late and missed them.

The other bands raved about them so I was interested in checking them out.  I was really surprised that they had a headline spot at Union Transfer.  And they sold it out!  Very impressive.

I decided I didn’t care enough to go to a four-band show if I didn’t even know the headliners.

Philadelphia’s Sweet Pill writes eruptive emo songs that embrace the edges of pop and hardcore. The kind of band whose members are fully immersed in their local scene—through a handful of notable side projects (twentythreenineteen / Goings / Harm Assist / typopro) and the show-promoting Philly staple 4333 Collective—the quintet’s sound takes wide-spectrum influence from its environment. The result is an amalgam of complex song structures and flourishes of technical acumen, wholly unconcerned with genre, yet evoking the specific styles of touchstones such as Paramore and Circa Survive.

I personally hear a huge amount of Pool Kids in their music, without the wild guitar pyro that Pool Kids use. (more…)

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