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Archive for the ‘La Luz’ Category

Portugal. The Man (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, December 4, 2025)

Posted in La Luz, Philadelphia, PA, Portugal The Man, Snacktime, Union Transfer on December 5, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: December 4, 2025] Portugal. The Man

I saw Portugal. The Man last year in Asbury Park.  It was an overcrowded show and I found it pretty unpleasant to be there (not a fan of The Stone Pony).  Although the band was so much fun and played great songs, I came away from the show not knowing if I’d want to see them again.  But a year passed and I realized the problem was the crowd not the band.  So when they announced this show at Union Transfer, I decided to get a ticket.  And an ADA seat.

The seat was a good choice because I had lots of room, but I feel like I missed out on some interesting on stage interactions because I was pretty far back.

In the past, the band has had a Native speaker introduce the band.  They would talk about the land we were on and, in Asbury, they did a traditional song.  I expected the same tonight, but instead, they played a short film that was very powerful.  It was about The Living Fire–people, detatched from nature and the evil spirits are coming in.  Avoid the dark forces of anti-reality.

Then the band came out–something between seven and ten people (I wasn’t that close and some people seemed to come and go).

Denali a really heavy song with a classic heavy metal sound in the guitars, although the vocals are pure PTM.  Pittman is pure hardcore, with screamed vocals. The singer was David Marion (from the band Fear Before) whose intense screams set this song apart.  I’m not even sure if he did anything else–he was very tall and seemed to come out of nowhere.  The thing about the visuals was that they projected images on a screen behind them which mean they were in shadow or silhouette most of the night. (more…)

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La Luz (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, December 4, 2025) [PORTUGAL. THE MAN]

Posted in La Luz, Philadelphia, PA, Portugal The Man, Union Transfer on December 4, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: January 28, 2026] La Luz

I grabbed tickets to the Portugal. The Man show and was really excited that La Luz was opening for them.

I know La Luz from a live Levitation recording that I really dig.  I don’t know a lot more about the band aside from the basic bio.  They are from Seattle and are known for their “surf noir” style, with layered vocal harmonies.  The blurb says their “energetic live shows often include Soul Train-inspired dance contests and crowd surfing.”

As and opening band it’s unlikely that you’ll elicit that kind of response, but the crowd did really enjoy them.

I had an ADA seat so I wasn’t worried about trying to get too close to the stage.  And since I had a few minutes I checked out the booths that PTM had in the lobby. There were some great causes including their own book publishing label.  I saw some excellent bandanas for sale with the money going to good causes, so I bought two.  But the guy selling them to me was so slow!  It felt like he needed to tell me the origin of each one and where the money was going to and, I don’t know, the serial number.  And while he was doing this La Luz started.  So I missed the beginning and some of I Wanna Be Alone.  I could hear through the doors, but boy was I annoyed.

So La Luz has been around since 2012.  They were founded by Shana Cleveland who sings and plays guitar.  She is a great front woman, clearly having a great deal of fun.  She does play a kind of surf guitar, but that is mostly due to the vibrato.  Some songs are clearly not surfy at all, like Poppies.  But the guitar has that classic vibrato sound.

Anyhow, I got to my seat as that first song was ending and they moved right on to Call Me in the Day, a slower statelier song with lots of keys from Maryam Qudus.  For even though there is kind of a punky edge to the band, they are all about harmonies and cool sounds.  Plus, during the keyboard solo, Shana and bass Lee Johnson did a spinning dance routine. (more…)

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La Luz / Mia Joy (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, October 8, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Johnny Brenda's, La Luz, Mia Joy, Philadelphia, PA on October 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 8, 2024] La Luz / Mia Joy

It fascinates me when multiple shows that I want to see wind up on the same night.  It’s a bummer, of course, but weird, like why were there FOUR shows I would have gone to on October 8?

I know La Luz from a live Levitation recording that I really dig.  I don’t know a lot more about the band aside from the basic bio.  They are from Seattle and are known for their “surf noir” style, with layered vocal harmonies.  I didn’t know that their “energetic live shows often include Soul Train-inspired dance contests and crowd surfing.”  Which sounds really fun and makes me want to see them even more.

But again, this was the fourth show tonight and the band I knew the least, so I wasn’t going to go to this one.

Mia Joy Rocha, is an American indie rock musician from Oak Park, Illinois.  I haven’t heard of her but her music is described as ethereal indie pop that envelops the listener in a shroud of gentle, personal hymns that are both intimate & warmly inviting.

Listening to her stuff, that description seems very apt.

This would have been a delightful show.

 

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