[DID NOT ATTEND: September 9, 2026] Babymetal / Halestorm / Violent Vira
My wife and I went to see Babymetal last year and really enjoyed it. So much so that when I jokingly said we could go see them again this year–and at PNC in Holmdel, she was definitely interested, but probably not enough to go. I had a ticket to see Aldous Harding that night, so I didn’t really look into the Babymetal show. But as the day grew closer and I realized I didn’t want to see Aldous, I did consider this show. But I wasn’t that excited by the opening acts–mostly because I thought I knew them, but actually didn’t.
In retrospect it was probably a pretty fun show.
When I saw that I probably could have gotten decent seats for a reasonable price, it did rekindle my interest. But this time of year is always really busy for us. So I didn’t end up getting a ticket at all. I rather assumed it would be the same exact show, but I see that they mixed it up quite a lot.
I’ve known about Halestorm for awhile, although I thought they were Swedish. Turns out they are from Red Lion, Pennsylvania, named for singer Lzzy Hale. They remind me of metal bands from the 80s. And it’s all high, powerful vocals–not lower register here–just soaring sounds. Not really my thing, but they have great energy
Violent Vira is a Mexican-American singer and songwriter. She began releasing music independently in 2021. She had a lovely singing voice which can tri into. a terrific scream–not guttural or cookie monster, but just a great angry scream. Okay, hearing another song, there is a cookie monster level, too! I’m going to keep an eye out for her. (more…)
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