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Archive for the ‘Philadelphia, PA’ Category

Pinkshift / Jhariah / Pollyanna (Ukie Club, Philadelphia, PA, October 14, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Jhariah, Philadelphia, PA, Pinkshift, Pollyanna, The Ukie Club on October 14, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 14, 2023] Pinkshift / Jhariah / Pollyanna 

I wanted to go to this show more than the one at House of Independents because I love the Ukie Club.  But I already had tickets to Algernon Cadwallader for this night.  The fact that my son was home from college and I didn’t go to anything this night is totally fine.   And now I’ve found out that the HOI show was rescheduled, so all is good.

I have seen Pinkshift three times and they are amazing.  They get better with each show, but I have yet to see them headline.  So I would have really liked to get to this show.

Jhariah plays musical theater.  But on the heavy end, like when My Chemical Romance goes theatrical.  He throws in all kinds of cool and interesting sounds.  This is wacky and fun and he clearly relishes the theatricality.  I would love to see him live.

Pollyanna are from New Jersey and they absolutely rock: Lead singer and guitarist Jill Beckett, drummer Daniel McCool, bassist Brandon Bolton, and guitarist Jack Rose.  They mix

power-pop, loud rock, bubble grunge, and punk influences.  Their name directly derives from the dictionary definition, “to be unreasonably or illogically optimistic” – perfectly describing front-person Jill Beckett’s ‘stuck in 2017’ incredibly optimistic attitude. After meeting in the first grade, Dan and Jill started the band at just 13 years old, eager to create and play music that would reach audiences beyond the confines of Jill’s open garage doors. Brandon made them a trio in early 2019, bringing 90’s femme punk influence to the group. At the start of 2021, Jack completed the bands’ lineup, adding his elemental stabby guitars and love for shoegaze and metal into the mix. After completing almost 5 tours around the east coast and the midwest, Pollyanna has won over a following in the New Jersey music scene along with cities in the tri-state and beyond. They plan on growing as far as possible and leaving a unique mark in the music industry.

Their album Slime is great–snotty and brash with great sounds and Beckett’s excellent vocals.  So, yes, I hope to see them some time.

Sorry about the flooding (it was really terrible), but I’m glad I get to see the show next year.

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Algernon Cadwallader / Knifeplay / Church Girls / Huey, the Cosmonaut (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, October 14, 2023) Philly Music Fest Day 6 [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Algernon Cadwallader, Church Girls, Huey the Cosmonaut, Knifeplay, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts on October 14, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 14, 2023] Algernon Cadwallader / Knifeplay / Church Girls / Huey, the Cosmonaut

Algernon Cadawallader announced two shows at Union Transfer last year.  I bought tickets to one and then couldn’t go.   I hadn’t even heard of them before the show, but I had since listened to them and thought they sounded pretty great.  My show sold out and the second night did so eventually as well, I believe.

When this night of Philly Music Fest was announced, I immediately grabbed a ticket assuming this would easily sell out.  But as of the night of the show there were still tickets left.  That seems very weird to me.

I was pretty psyched for this show mostly for the opening acts, but then my son came home from college and I stayed home to hang out with him and the fam.

Of course this means I didn’t go to any Philly Music Fest shows this year.

Knifeplay plays a kind of moody acoustic music.  The guitars feel acoustic but the songs are layered in washes of synths and feedback. There’s a  cool shoegaze feel and the vocals sound almost like he’s singing made up words (ala the Cocteau Twins) although he isn’t.

Knifeplay is a band that eludes definition, existing somewhere between the nihilistic detachment of shoegaze and the emotional honesty of folk songwriting. Originally a solo bedroom recording project of Tj Strohmer’s.

The whole vibe of the album is great.  I’d have liked to see them.

Church Girls play indie punk right in my sweet spot.

Church Girls write propulsive melodies and achingly vulnerable lyrics wrapped in the throbbing anxiety of post-punk and joyous aggression of pop-punk. Formed in 2014 by Mariel Beaumont.

The record sounds big and full with too many guitars and too many big vocals and it is glorious.  I absolutely wanted to see them.

Huey, the Cosmonaut plays in a variety of genres.  The first song of his that I heard I didn’t like. But the others I did.

I’d like to think that my music exists in the space between emo, R&B, bedroom pop, lofi hip hop and jazz. Some of the themes in my music include a focus on loneliness, traveling, nostalgia, melancholy, everyday sensations, black history, renewal, growth, cartoons, comic books, the cosmos and imaginary worlds. I feel that I’m constantly caught between different worlds in my personal life and musical aspirations.​ Through my music, I seek to unite some of those things. All of my music is produced from the bedroom. I’ve been playing with a band recently though.

Knowing that he plays with a band makes me want to see him more than if he was by himself.

Bummer that I missed the show but it was great seeing the college kid.

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The Lemon Twigs / Joanna Sternberg (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, October 14, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, The Lemon Twigs on October 14, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 14, 2023] The Lemon Twigs / Joanna Sternberg

The Lemon Twigs played just last year at two locations and I missed them entirely.  I didn’t even know about this show because I don’t do shows at the Church anymore.

But it turns out that my son has made a friend at school who loves The Lemon Twigs and was at this show.  So I thought I ‘d throw it here.

I really liked The Lemon Twigs’ Do Hollywood album and their follow up EPs showed even more development.  Since then they have put out a few albums, and I have enjoyed them.

Their new album is very retro with a serious 60’s vibe.  At first I liked it but I soon found it a little too derivative so I wasn’t that interested in going.  But after my son’s friend said how much he liked the show I did actually want to go.

But it turns out that this is the same night as the one Philly Music Fest show that I was going to.  Why do things always happen on the same day?  I mean, look how many shows I wanted to go to this weekend.

Joanna Sternberg played at World Cafe Live a while back and here’s what I said

Joanna Sternberg is a kind of anti-folk singer.  They have a high almost child-like voice.  And they sings pointed lyrics.  I have since listened to one of their songs from Non-COMM and quite liked it.  I wouldn’t buy their music, but I would enjoy seeing them as an opening act.

And here they are as an opening act. Shame I missed it, but I’m not going to the Church.

 

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This is the Kit / Gruff Rhys (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, October 13, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Gruff Rhys, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, This is the Kit on October 13, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 13, 2023] This is the Kit / Gruff Rhys

This is the Kit is a band I know from NPR Music.  I haven’t thought of them in a while.  I recall liking their music but that there was something unusual about it.

I enjoyed this blurb about them from bandcamp:

This Is The Kit is the musical project of Kate Stables and whoever joins her. You thought you didn’t like the banjo but you were wrong pal. Listen as Kate rips forward with her hypnotic twang pattern and a voice of rare, unaffected beauty.

Kate has a very British delivery.  Reading my review of their Tiny Desk Concert, I really liked them more than I remembered.

I do rather wish I was going to this show, but with a show tomorrow night I needed to cut back something.

The reason I was interested in this show in the first place was because Gruff Rhys from Super Furry Animals was opening.  I saw him headline here a few years ago and I would have loved to see him again.

Well, maybe someday I’ll see both of them again.

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Devandra Banhart / Miho Hatori (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 12, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Cibo Matto, Devandra Banhart, Miho Hatori, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer on October 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 12, 2023] Devandra Banhart / Miho Hatori

About ten years ago I was really into Devandra Banhart.  I enjoyed his weirdo folkie vibe and thought that he was a good deal of fun.

And then I seemed to lose track of him altogether.  I haven’t listened to him in ages.  I see that he’s cut his hair but he still looks like a wild, fun hippy.

His new album was produced by Cate Le Bon, whose sensibilities are wonderfully oddball.  The new album is pretty streamlined with lots of synth  I think it’s too mellow for me.

Miho Hatori was in Cibo Matto and worked with Gorillaz.  She has released some solo albums and I really like the bits I’ve heard from her new one.   Dead Grandma Blog says

Miho Hatori herself says that the album is inspired by the two different genres of anime- Isekai (basically meaning ‘other world’) and Slice of Life. The record eases you in relatively painlessly, with the understated, downtempo opener ‘Tokyo Story‘, which while being quite comforting also has a vague creepiness to it… Hatori characteristically plays and experiments with rhythm throughout the rest of the album (without ever losing pop sensibility), and ultimately manages to create a tight 29 minute package that feels meatier than albums twice it’s length.

Interestingly, I suppose, Back in December, Miho’s Cibo Matto partner Yuka Honda (under the name Eucademix) did a solo avant garde show–she uses a laptop to create interesting sounds–some pleasant, some not so much.

I’d really like to see Miho Hatori.

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Tigers Jaw / Yowler / Gladie (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA October 12, 2023) Philly Music Fest Day 4 [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Gladie, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, Tigers Jaw, Yowler on October 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 12, 2023] Tigers Jaw / Yowler / Gladie

There’s a lot of great shows at Philly Music Fest this year.  Here’s the third of four nights that I would have loved to have gone to.  But I have a lot of shows that I’m going to and I can only get to Philly so often.

Plus, I’ve seen Tigers Jaw twice and both shows were great.  I really like their catchy emo pop punk, but I’m not sure I need to see them again.  But man if I was a die hard fan, here’s three days in a row of really close concerts I could go to.

And yet…  Here’s what they say about these two shows (they love playing Crossroads)

Mystery Setlists? We’re pulling out all the stops for Garwood this weekend. We’ll be playing two very distinctive sets for people who might want to come to both shows.
One of the shows setlists will concentrate on two worlds + spin, and the other will be charmer + I won’t care heavy. (Not full album plays, just most of both records, plus both sets will have some self titled oldies and newer Ep songs.)
We’re not saying which night is which combo. 🤔
So many songs. Maybe a fun cover.

Yowler, is Maryn Jones, a Philly based musician and the guitarist and lead vocalist of the band All Dogs and formerly a member of the band Saintseneca.  For Yowler her songs are kind of spare and sad, but there’s some pretty heavy elements thrown in which kind of blow you away after being lulled into mellowness.

I saw Gladie open for Otoboke Beaver late last year and really enjoyed their set a lot.  I would happily see them again, although this is the second time since that show that I’ve had to miss them.  They were supposed to open for Charly Bliss, but cancelled at the last minute.  They also played a Free at Noon recently but I didn’t go to that one.  I’m sure that with each show they just get better so when I finally get to see them again, they’ll be fantastic.

 

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CHAI (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, October 11, 2023)

Posted in CHAI, Font, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA on October 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 11, 2023] CHAI

I saw CHAI about a year and a half ago and it was one of the more memorable shows I’ve been to.  The four members of the band are funny, silly, coordinated (sartorially) and play sweet pop music.

Here’s a brief history of the band

Chai was formed in 2012 in Nagoya, by twin sisters Mana and Kana.  Mana, Kana, and Yuna were in the same class at high school.  Yuna introduced the other band members to Japanese music that did not easily fit into the traditional definition of “J-Pop”, such as the band Cero or Kimyō Reitaro. After the members went to university, Mana became friends with Yuuki (originally from Gifu Prefecture, who had moved to Nagoya), and asked the four friends to form a band.  The band’s name comes from Russian tea (known as chai). Kana drank the tea with jam with her Russian literature professor at a Russian restaurant, which she thought was cute.

They have just released their fourth album, Chai. (more…)

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Font (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, October 11, 2023) [CHAI]

Posted in CHAI, Font, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA on October 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 11, 2023] Font

Before this show I looked up Font on bandcamp and they had …  one song.

And it was great.

But who are they?

Font is an Austin-based band made up of Thom Waddill, Jack Owens, Anthony Lawrence, Roman Parnell, and Logan Wagner. Font began playing shows regularly in the beginning of 2022.

The Austin Chronicle has described their music as “relentless post-punk with New Wave keyboards and arty, personality-driven singing.”

I don’t know what “personality-driven singing” means, but the rest is pretty accurate.  They make noisy, unexpected songs with catchy parts and decided uncatchy parts.  The songs tend to have something–a piano note, a guitar riff–that recurs enough to call it a hook.

The bass wanders all over the place–in a great New Wave sorta way.  And, as it turns out the percussionist is a major component of the band.  From where I was I couldn’t really see the drummer (there was so much STUFF on stage), but I could clearly see the percussionist who had cowbells, blocks, cymbals (which he moved around to make different sound) and some bongos.  He must have been exhausted. (more…)

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Rainbow Kitten Surprise / Indigo de Souza (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, October 10, 2023) [CANCELLED]

Posted in Indigo De Souza, Philadelphia, PA, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, The Met Philadelphia on October 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[CANCELLED: October 10, 2023] Rainbow Kitten Surprise / Indigo de Souza

I really liked the couple of Rainbow Kitten Surpirse songs I’ve heard.  I actually thought they might be even weirder than they were with a name like that.  I’m not sure if I wanted to see them live or not, but I kept this on my radar. Especially since Indigo de Souza was announced as the opener.

I have been trying to see Indigo de Souza for what seems like years.   My first attempt was in Jan 2022.  But there were several cancelled shows (including one opening slot that I couldn’t make).  And then finally, her major headlining show in the area and I was unavailable that night.

So, that might have made me want to go to this show.  But that’s irrelevant because on May 23rd, they cancelled the entire Fall tour.

The band announced Tuesday night in a Twitter thread that the tour will be canceled due to a medical crisis, saying they will “turn off the lights for now.”

“We do not make this decision lightly, and we know that it will result in a lot of disappointment and concern, but we are a family, and we know that the most important thing we can do right now is to help get everyone healthy,” the thread said.

While the band did not put a timeline on its return, they did say they will make their comeback when their friend and fellow bandmate is in good health. The band said it hopes to return in full glory and pick up where it left off.

No word on how anyone is, but at the time, they stated

“One of our members is in a medical crisis. To make sure they have the time to get the proper treatment, we have decided to take down the entire year of shows.”

Hope the person is okay.

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Aunty Donna: The Magical Dead Cat Tour (Perelman Theater, Kimmel Cultural Campus, Philadelphia, PA, October 7, 2023)

Posted in Aunty Donna, Australia, Broden Kelly, Funny (ha ha), Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Mark Bonanno, Perelman Theater, Philadelphia, PA, Religion, Zachary Ruane on October 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 7, 2023] Aunty Donna

I don’t recall what made me check out Aunty Donna one night.  But the opening skit of the first episode had me cracking up.  I’ve been a fan ever since.

The only “problem” with them is that their jokes are so vulgar, so over the top rude, that it’s hard to share them.  Especially with the kids.  I mean, even their merch–which includes a hat that says Morning Brown is hard to explain without going a bit red in the face.

So what was this show going to entail?

Well, the promo told us this

Dear Human Beings,

Hello, I am a Magical Dead Cat, the titular Magical Dead Cat from the very title of this very show. I write to you today because I have discovered the most wondrous sketch show on the popular streaming service Netflix – Aunty Donna’s Big Ol’ House of Fun. I was so impressed with said show that I issued Aunty Donna this challenge: entertain me with a 2 hour live show, one that features all new sketches, but also a few fan favourites. It MUST include a short interval, and based on availability / budget, possibly an opening act. If Aunty Donna succeeds in pleasing me with a rip-roarin’ show, I have promised to surprise them with a special, web slinging, mystery guest!
Come, sweet humans, and see if Broden, Zach and Mark are up for the task!

With loving grace,
The Magical Dead Cat.

The show also came with a warning that there would be occasional coarse kanguage.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  It was filled front to back with nothing BUT coarse language.

They opened the show by having an announcer introduce each of the three comedians.  And as each one’s name was announced they came to the front of the stage and did a high-stepping dance.  But the announcer continued to re-introduce Broden and Mark, as Zach’s face fell and the other two grew exhausted from all of their dancing. (more…)

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