[ATTENDED: December 9, 2025] Chokecherry
I was scheduled to have total hip replacement surgery on the day after this show. I didn’t think I’d be able to go and then two things changed my mind. The first is that I saw that the show was fairly short–Chokecherry was playing for about an hour. The second was that my surgery wasn’t scheduled until the afternoon. I had assumed it would be early in the morning, but a later appointment meant I could sleep in. As it turned out my wife had a minor emergency after I got home that kept us up until 3AM, so it was all moot, but whatever, I’m thrilled that I got to go to this show.
I had seen Chokecherry open for Destroy Boys about a year ago and I loved them. The band seems to consist of guitarist Izzie A. Clark and bassist E. Scarlett Levinson. Their second guitarist and drummer were different from last time.
Warehouse on Watts is really small, so while Scarlett was setting up her gear (in a long faux fur coat), I chatted with her for a moment. I told her how much I liked them when they opened. And she told me that she had food poisoning that night. I never would have guessed, although in retrospect, when she said she talked a lot less than usual, it was true given how much she talked tonight.
They opened with a favorite song from their previous EP, Afterglow–slow and moody opening with crashing choruses. Scarlett commented that the new album is pretty sad, although the first song they played from it Major Threat is a blistering rocker with a catchy chorus.
I love that Izzie and Scarlett switch off on lead vocals for nearly every song.
Things quieted down a bit for Secrets, but this allowed them to really feature their harmonies. I was more or less in front of Scarlett, so I could really hear her delicate higher voice. I was a little bummed that I couldn’t see Izzie that well because I remembered that she shredded impressively. She still sounded great even if on the other side of the stage. Particularly on the delicate guitar intro of Goldmine.
I loved how much the crowd new the songs by name when they were introduced and Scarlett’s super high vocals on Pretty Things (which the crowd knew) were stellar. Second guitarists was excellent, either making the sound fuller while Izzie soloed or adding some extra flourishes. (more…)
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