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Archive for the ‘Music’ Category

Blood Vulture (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, March 6, 2026) [BARONESS]

Posted in Baroness, Blood Vulture, Commitment, John Baizley, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts on March 6, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 6, 2026] Blood Vulture

I had not heard of Blood Vulture before this show was announced.  I listened to their record and was kind of surprised at just how much they sounded like Alice in Chains.  Singer Jordan Olds sounded quite a lot like Layne Staley, almost shockingly so.  It’s possible that it was a combination of his voice and the backing vocalist(s) who really made this comparison, but it was unavoidable.  They are a bit heavier and groovier on record.  And live, the Alice in Chains delivery is pretty much gone.  But the energy remained.

I didn’t know anything about Blood Vulture or Jordan Olds who is also known as Gwarsenio Hall from his popular YouTube series, ‘Two Minutes to Late Night.”  During the Baroness set, John Baizley said that they had been on Jordan’s show a number of times.

I was initially turned off by Jordan because he did that thing where opening bands demand that people dance (and circle pit) to their music.  I’m not convinced that anyone can insist on a pit–they should form organically.  Anyhow, I didn’t love his attitude, but I quickly learned that he’s pretty funny and whatever these songs are about, he told us that each song was “about sucking blood!”

Their drummer was fantastic, and indeed, everyone in the band was great.  I loved the sound of the bass.  The lead guitarist played some great solos and they keyboardist sang great backing vocals too.  Although the recording was all done by Jordan, so there was no introduction of the band members. (more…)

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Jesse Welles / S.G. Goodman (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, March 4, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Jesse Welles, Philadelphia, PA, S.G. Goodman, The Fillmore Philadelphia on March 4, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: March 4, 2026] Jesse Welles / S.G. Goodman

I started following Jesse Welles online because he made videos of himself singing songs in a field that were political and timely.  Something stupid would happen and he would have a decent song about it within a day.

I had no idea that he was  the same guy they were playing on WXPN. I really liked the song Horses and now they play Wheel all the time (possibly too much).

I’m not really sure what his set would be like–I assume it’s just him.  He seems like he’d be a really good performer–personable and easily improvised.  But this show was sold out pretty quickly, so I didn’t bother investigating more.

During the pandemic, S.G. Goodman was supposed to open for Nada Surf.  So back in 2021 I wrote

S.G. Goodman is a singer-songwriter from Western Kentucky known for her rootsy sound and raw, honest lyricism. Her debut album came out in March.  I’ve listened to “The Way I Talk” and wow, what a cool song.  A simple repetitive beat with Goodman’s raw voice.  She doesn’t sing like a country singer (so that’s good), she tells a song story that ends with some amazing guitar feedback.  I’d love to see her live.

Since then she has gotten a ton of airplay on WXPN/  I like most of her songs although she is a bit overplayed now too.

This was probably a fun, upbeat folkie night.

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Peaches / Model/Actriz (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, March 1, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Model/Actriz, Peaches, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer on March 1, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: March 1, 2026] Peaches / Model/Actriz

I was really surprised when I saw that Peaches announced a show at Union Transfer.  Although I see she did play there in 2022.

I don’t know very much about Peaches.  I know enough to know that she is sex positive and very very explicit.  I did think that this would be a fun show to experience once (like Gwar, but with very different fluids) but I already had tickets to see comedian Ed Gamble who I was really excited to see live.

Maybe if Peaches comes back in four more years I’ll try to see her.  I’ve seen some clips from the show online and it looks pretty wild.

I saw Model/Actriz four years ago and really want to see them again.  In fact, I found out about this show first because they were announced as the opening act.  I think they were pretty much brand new when I saw them and I’m glad that they’ve been getting more popular.  I do hope to see them again and it looks like they tour a lot more often than Peaches, so I’ll assume they’ll be back soon.

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Mitski (Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ, February 28, 2026)

Posted in Her New Knife, Mitski, Sayreville, NJ, Starland Ballroom on March 1, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 28, 2026] Mitski

I saw Mitski in 2018 at Union Transfer.  Then in 2022, my kids wanted to see Mitski and I scored tickets to Franklin Music Hall.  We couldn’t get tickets to her 2024 show and when she announced her 2026, I knew we weren’t going to go.  Why?  Because she had decided on a residency at The Shed in New York City, somewhere I didn’t know and didn’t want to go to.

And then, out of the blue, four days ago Mitski announced that she was going to do an album release party at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville.  What? Why there? Was this real?  And would I be able to get tickets?

Well, the answer to the final question was yes, yes I could.  I had asked my kids and neither one of them wanted to go.  I didn’t ask why, but I grabbed two tickets, just in case one of them changed their mind.  But neither one did so my wife and I went to see her.  Which means that I have now taken everyone in y family to see Mitski.

We arrived what I thought was pretty early but boy was I wrong.  I used the ADA entrance to avoid the massive line and we managed to get a great spot in the center near the front of the elevated area behind the soundboard.  Obviously I would prefer the floor but it was PACKED!  And this location was much better than being on the floor in the back.

At 8:30, Mitski’s band came out on stage.  The set was remarkably bare.  As in, there was nothing on stage except the instruments and a black curtain. (more…)

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Arkona (Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ, February 25, 2026)

Posted in Ametropia, Arkona, Clifton NJ, Dingbatz, Аркона, Malphas, Mindrazer on February 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 25, 2026] Arkona

I saw Arkona (Аркона) open for Korpiklanni back in 2018.  I liked everything about them–their look, their sound and their lead singer, band creator, and primary songwriter Masha Scream (Maria Arkhipova).  The band were dressed in burlap robes, and they all had long hair.  There was a hand drum and skulls and all manner of arcana.  I assumed that they were huge (and I think they are in Europe).

So when they announced a show in Clifton, I just had to go–their first time in the States (otherthan NYC) since 2018.  It was my first time going to Dingbatz, a (mostly) heavy metal club. The place is really small (200 people) and the show was not sold out (yikes).  I felt bad for the band who I know has played festivals with thousands of screaming fans.  And here we were, about 75 people.  Yikes.  I hope they didn’t lose money.

The roadies came out and hung up the Arkona banner (I think at other shows they’ve projected images behind the band, but there was no room for that here).  It was pretty funny seeing them hang the banner while standing on chairs–again a whole battle of the bands feel.  (more…)

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Her New Knife (Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ, February 28, 2026) [MITSKI]

Posted in Her New Knife, Mitski, Sayreville, NJ, Starland Ballroom on February 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 28, 2026] Her New Knife

Mitski announced a series of shows in New York City.  Then four days before this show, she announced this show. I couldn’t believe I was able to get tickets.  The way it was displayed it looked like Her New Knife was the name of the tour.  I didn’t realize they were a band until I looked them up.

So Her New Knife is a band from Philadelphia.  They are categorized as shoegaze although I don’t really hear it.  They’re more of a noise band.  At least they were live.

The guitarist/singer was making lots of interesting scratchy sounds with the guitar.  The drummer was hitting lots of splashing cymbals.  And the singer was whisper/mumbling. (more…)

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Malphas (Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ, February 25, 2026) [ARKONA]

Posted in Ametropia, Arkona, Clifton NJ, Dingbatz, Malphas, Mindrazer on February 27, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 25, 2026] Malphas 

When I looked up Malphas, I learned that they were a Swedish death metal band.  But when the guys in the band took the stage, I thought, these guys aren’t from Sweden.  They look like they’re from New Jersey.  Turns out they are from Philly.  They’ve been around since 2012 and have an album and an EP out.

LIke the other two bands, there was a theatrical component to them.  The two guitarists and the bassist turned their backs to us and started a kind of creepy horror movie soundtrack.  But there was some kind of technical difficulty.  I think it had something to do with their drummer not being able to hear the clicktrack. After several minutes of trying to fix things, they gave up and their bassist said they were going to raw dog it.

So, like Spinal Tap, instead of doing a theatrical opening, they all just turned around and started playing.

But they wee really good as well.  The singer played some really good solos.  But once again, the mix was weird–the bass drums were really loud and overpowered the rest of the band.

The bass player was the joker of the group asking if we were sick of the snow.  He said too bad we’ve brought more and then said a song title that I didn’t get.

I always like it when growly singers talkin a normal voice.  And this singer did.  He sounded just like a guy from Philly–thanking the other bands and dedicating songs to them.

The vocals were mostly growly but they were largely understandable, which was good.

Malphas is the main opening band for this Arkona tour, with the other bands changing depending on the venue.  So I guess Arkona must like them.  I did.  Listening to their record, they have a lot more going on in the songs (choirs and keys) which I think i would have liked even more if they included it.

But like the other two bands it felt really … amatuerish?  And by the end of the set I worried that I made a bad call coming to this show–was it going to be just like a show where the audience is all the band members’ friends?

Thankfully, Arkona stepped up.

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Mindrazer (Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ, February 25, 2026) [ARKONA]

Posted in Ametropia, Arkona, Clifton NJ, Dingbatz, Malphas, Mayhem, Mindrazer on February 26, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 25, 2026] Mindrazer

I saw Arkona open for Korpiklanni back in 2018.  When they announced a show in Clifton,I just had to go. It was my first time going to Dingbatz, a (mostly) heavy metal club. The place is really small (200 people) and the show was not sold out (yikes).

I was wondering how come I never went to Dingbatz if it was 20 minutes from where I grew up.  I found out it opened in 2004, the year I moved away from the area.  How about that.

So the secondband up was from Hackettstown (which the singer pointed out was only known for making M&Ms (it’s the headquarters of Mars candy).

Unlike the rest of the lineup, Mindrazer plays mostly thrash metal–clean vocals (soaring vocals like the guy from Helloween).  Both guitarists played excellent solos–some serious skills on stage there.

But as with the first band, I felt like they were demanding a lot from the audience since no one knew them. The singer insisted that everyone there get on the floor and row.  I’m not exactly sure when or where this trend started–I assume with Amon Amarth, bit I could be wrong.  I’m all for it because I think it’s hilarious and is probably a lot of fun.

A song or two later, the singer jumped onto the floor and tried to get a circle pit started while he played and soloed.  No one was really into it, I think everyone was more intrigued that he was on the floor.  I know someone took a really close up video of him shredding which was pretty cool.

Again, demanding a lot for a band no one’s heard of.  I found them a little hard to take seriously because they looked really young and earnest.  There was a part where he told us they were taking us on a journey through the history of horror and the horror of history.  But they were a lot of fun and captured the sound of 80s/90s thrash really well.

After a couple of songs he asked if the crowd thought they were a thrash band.  Weird, but yes.  Did we think they could do death metal too?  Who knows, we’ve only hard three songs by you.  Anyhow, the bassist then stepped up and did growling vocals as they did a cover of the Mayhem song Freezing Moon.

The best part was when they played Crusader.  They had someone dressed like a crusader, complete with sword and skull mask (with snakes dangling from its mouth).  He wandered the stage threatening the band and then he jumped down onto the floor and started a circle pit.  This was easily my favorite circle pit ever–a guy with a sword as the central focus of the pit.

It was nice to have a different style of music since the other three were pretty much all death metal.

SETLIST
1453 (Doom of the Eastern Crown)
Seeker
Unnatural Rebirth
Freezing Moon (Mayhem cover)
Crusader ♠

♠ A Thing of Nightmares (2023)

 

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Foxy Shazam / Descartes a Kant / Moondough (House of Independents, Asbury Park, NJ, February 26, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Asbury Park, NJ, Descartes a Kant, Foxy Shazam, House of Independents on February 26, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 26, 2026] Foxy Shazam / Descartes a Kant / Moondough

I found out about this show when Descartes a Kant posted that they were playing in Asbury Park!  I loved their show so much I swore I’d see them any time they came around.

I was surprised they were headlining a fairly large sized venue.  And then I fond out that they were not.

I had not heard of Foxy Shazam, but apparently I should have.  They’ve been around since 2004 and have been putting on wild live shows for twenty years.  Well, that’s not true, they broke up in 2014 and got back together in 2020.

Rock DNA Magazine reviewed the tour dates in Nashville

Saying of Foxy Shazam they carved out a lane that blends glam rock excess, soulful swagger, punk urgency, and theatrical flair. Their live shows have long been the stuff of legend, whispered about in the same breath as the great unhinged performers of rock history.  Eric Nally hit the stage like he had been launched, not introduced. His voice carries an elastic force, swinging from gritty snarl to operatic wail in seconds. There is a bravado there that feels almost classic rock in scale but twisted into something far more unpredictable.

What separates Foxy Shazam from lesser shock merchants is intent. The stunt didn’t feel tacked on. It felt like an extension of their commitment to pushing every moment to its edge. No half measures. Nothing safe.  The set never sagged. No filler. No polite breather. Even quieter passages hummed with tension. You never felt entirely comfortable, and that was the point. This was never background music. This was confrontation in the form of performance.

They also wrote about MoonDough

MoonDough opened the night with a set that felt deceptively loose. There was a warmth to it, groove-heavy and confident without trying too hard to dominate the room. Their singer commanded attention in a way that was more sly than explosive. He let the crowd lean in rather than forcing them back.

So who is Moondough? His bio says Ken Raymundo is a talented Multi-Instrumental, Singer/Song Writer from Southern California, that goes by ‘Moondough’. Possessing a unique range of musical influences, he has created a signature sound that highlights his soulful melodies, smooth guitar progressions, and funky bass lines. Ken takes the essence of a bedroom recording and transforms it into what he calls, ‘Bedroom Soul/Funk/Jazz.’

I opted to stay home from this show even though it sounded like Foxy Shazam was amazing. I had gone out last night and had two more events that weekend.  DAK only played for 30 minutes, so it’s okay that I missed them, but this sounds like a wild and fun show.

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Ametropia (Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ, February 25, 2026) [ARKONA]

Posted in Ametropia, Arkona, Clifton NJ, Dingbatz, Malphas, Mindrazer on February 25, 2026| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 25, 2026] Ametropia

I saw Arkona open for Korpiklanni back in 2018.  When they announced a show in Clifton,I just had to go. It was my first time going to Dingbatz, a (mostly) heavy metal club. The place is really small (200 people) and the show was not sold out (yikes).

So if Arkona was the headliner and not many people knew of them, you can imagine how unknown the openers were.

Heavy metal is a great genre if you want to learn about obscure words.  Like Ametropia which is a general medical term for refractive errors—including myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism—where the eye cannot properly focus light directly onto the retina, resulting in blurred or distorted vision.

How about that.

The band Ametropia is a trio from south central PA.  They released an album last year.  When they came out on stage, the lead guitarist/singer was wearing a read hooded robe.  They played heavy and fast and the singer was a standard growling evil death metal type of voice.

I thought the sound was pretty bad–couldn’t really hear the bass.  I’m not sure how clearly he sings the growly vocals, but I couldn’t hear them clearly. Mostly it was snare drum and low rumble.  One of the songs was a big middle finger to the Catholic church and the pedophiles that are in it (it was creepy, for sure).

It makes me laugh when opening bands insist that people act like they’re the headliners.  There were about 30 people in the room when Ametropia went on and they were insisting on a circle pit.  When it started there were about 9 people in it.

I though the robe was an effective way to present the band because as soon as he dropped the hood and you could see his face, he was just a dude growling.

I liked them more than I thought I would–they had some real grooving parts and some nice time changes.  But it almost felt like a battle of the bands show.  For all three opening bands, actually.

But there were some teenagers there and they loved it–full bodied headbanging and first entrants into the pit.

I’m not sure what their setlist consisted of, but they were pretty fun even if the sound wasn’t great.

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