[DID NOT ATTEND: July 25 & 27, 2025] Lucy Dacus / Julien Baker & Torres / Jay Som / Hop Along // Magdalena Bay / Remi Wolf / Annie Di Russo
Like every one of these benefits shows, the first day was made for me.
I love Lucy Dacus, although I have seen her twice this year already.
I would love to have seen Julien Baker & Torres together. They cancelled all of their shows this summer and were replaced by Hop Along which was fine, but not as good as the original. Interestingly, perhaps, Hop Along was supposed to open for Japanese Breakfast last year but they were replaced at the last minute.
Jay Som is a favorite underground artist whom I love and who has been pretty quiet as of late.
Day 2 was less exciting for me.
Remi Wolf is someone I’ve h heard about but don’t really know. She appeared on American Idol so I assume she’s not someone I would like, even if she is listed as an indie artist. I saw that she opened for Lorde in 2022 (which I didn’t go to) and back then I wrote
Remi Wolf is a singer songwriter whom I do not know. The fact that she appeared on American Idol in 2014 makes me not like her. That’s unfair, but whatever.
At least I’m consistent.
Magdalena Bay is a duo (I thought it was someone’s name, oops). The duo consists of Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin, who met in high school. They play synthy pop and I really like their song “Image” although the rest is more pop than alternative. Dancy and probably a treat to listen to on a sunny summer day.
Annie DiRusso was the only person on the bill for both days whom I had never heard of. She’s an interesting young musician who veers to the noisy while writing poppy songs. She also sings about college and wrote a song called Ovid. So she appeals to that side of my musical appreciation. The Harvard Crimson (!) review says
The album is an evolution of her usual guitar-heavy rock instrumentals, experimenting with incorporating different genres while still maintaining a cohesive sound across the record.
I hope she opens for someone I’m seeing one of these days.
So why didn’t I go to Day One? Well, I didn’t really need to see Lucy again. Plus, this was in FDR Park which I know nothing about and I have really bad luck with outdoor venues in Philly. So while I fully support the cause, I just wasn’t willing to make the effort for this one. And obvsiously Day Two wasn’t my scene.
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