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Archive for the ‘Marnie Stern’ Category

Quasi (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, June 27, 2024) [QUASI]

Posted in Marnie Stern, Philadelphia, PA, Quasi, World Cafe Live, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on June 28, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: June 27, 2024] Quasi

I was a middling fan of Quasi back in the 90s.  I liked some of their stuff but never really  thought al that much about them.  After Janet “left” Sleater-Kinney and got into a car accident, I was much more interested in supporting her, so I got back into Quasi and was pretty excited to see they were touring last year.

When they played Johnny Brenda’s last year it was just Sam Coomes (on keys–wow, somehow only on keys) and Janet Weiss (killing it on drums).  I really enjoyed the show a lot and was so glad to have seen them.

When they announced a new tour, of the album Featuring “Birds” (the first album I (and apparently everyone else) loved from them.  I knew I’d like to see them again.  I wasn’t keen on going to World Cafe Live because it’s kind of awkward to get to for me.  But this was my second time there in a month and the paring was awesome once again.

And, the best part is that when I got downstairs, Sam and Janet were right there selling their own merch!  I got to chat with both of them and they signed my vinyl.  It was very cool.

When they came on stage, I noticed that there were a lot of guitars up there–there were none last time.  There was also someone else walking around the stage.  This turned out to be Joanna Bolme, on bass and occasional guitar or keyboard.  Bolme played regularly with Quasi for well over a decade, and was around for Birds, as an executive producer.  She didn’t say anything (although she did help o untangle some cords for Sam).  But she really held the show together, especially when Sam switched to guitar–the low end would have been notably absent without her on those song. (more…)

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Marnie Stern (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, June 27, 2024) [QUASI]

Posted in Marnie Stern, Philadelphia, PA, Quasi, World Cafe Live, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on June 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: June 27, 2024] Marnie Stern

I knew of Marnie Stern mostly from Late Night with Seth Meyers.  I had heard of her before the show as a notable guitar player (she was on Kill Rock Stars, so she was clearly iconoclastic).  So I was surprised that she was going to be on the show as, essentially a rhythm guitar player.  She was fine on the show, but she never really got to shine in any way (but I assume it was a reliable, steady gig).

When she put a new album out last year, I assumed it would be full of guitar wizardry, but I was surprised at just how weird it was.

But here’s a review of the album from treblezine which sums up her career briefly but nicely

Stern is a straight-up shredder whose playing style errs closer to the joyous fireworks of someone like Eddie Van Halen than she does any knotty, noisy experimentalists. That she happened to run in underground circles is by-the-by—there was always a great pop song buried within the chaos of her music. This is more visible than ever on The Comeback Kid. With her fifth and (you guessed it) comeback album, Stern has continued to chip away some of the raw spikiness of her early releases in service of a dozen stellar math pop tracks that might be (:whispers:) her strongest body of work yet.

I really enjoyed being right in front of Marnie, watching her tap away on her complex melodies with such ease. She also smiled and laughed through the whole set as she sang her complicated, sometimes perplexing, always exhilarating songs.

The rest of her band (whose names I didn’t catch) were also great.  Her drummer was incredible (I think it’s Jeremy Gara from Arcade Fire).  He smashed the hell out of the drums and really excelled at the crazy time signatures of the songs. (more…)

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Blonde Redhead / Marnie Stern (Union Transfer, Jersey City, NJ, November 9, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Blonde Redhead, Marnie Stern, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer on November 9, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 9, 2023] Blonde Redhead / Marnie Stern

When Blonde Redhead announced that they were playing Union Transfer I was pretty excited.  I hadn’t listened to them in a long time, but I remember really liking them.  I assumed that they’d been broken up and had reunited for this tour. But it turns out that they’ve either never broken up or have gotten back together after a hiatus in 2014. Or something.

I listened to the new record.  And then I listened to the old records and I realized that I didn’t know them very well at all. I must have been really into them for a very short time.

Since there’s already a ton of bands that I want to see, I didn’t want to spend a night out on a band I THOUGHT I liked.

So I stayed home.

Marnie Stern is guitar god.  I had heard about her shredding skills, but wasn’t really aware of her music.  Then she got a gig playing guitar as part of the Late Night with Seth Meyers band.  She literally never did anything interesting on the show.  Which is not to say she was bad–she was a fine part of the band, but I couldn’t believe that she was the person everyone raved about because she was so still and quiet.

Now she’s back with a new album.   It’s pretty out there.  I wonder what she’s like live.

 

 

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