[ATTENDED: November 13, 2024] Palehound
I saw Palehound twice in three months as the band opened first for Weaves and then for Courtney Barnett.
And now it’s been six years and I’ve seen them again.
El Kemper is still the main focus of the band, and the rest of the band was great.
This show was cast under the shadow of the election and everyone was righteously pissed. The show was accepting donations for Trans Lifeline, National Network of Abortion Funds, and Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.
El was blown away by the amount of people in the room and then said that they were getting gender affirming surgery in six days. Amazing. I hope they are doing great.
For this show I felt like Kemper’s guitar prowess was less on display than in the past. Not that they weren’t great, but there were fewer opportunities for bigger than life solos–until the end.
There’s been two albums since I saw them last and I didn’t know this new one all that well. But I had listened to it a few times and El’s voice–whispery and strained-seeming but somehow still powerful is unmistakable. I love “Eye on the Bat” and was psyched that they played it (although surprised it was so early in the set).
After a half a dozen songs, El played two solo songs, including the powerful Your Boyfriend’s Gun. El was very appreciative of the audience’s respect for the song, which they said not every audience gives. I hoped it might sink in for other shows, but I doubt it.
After the solo songs, the band came back and they played mostly older songs. A few from 2019’s Black Friday and a few from Dry Food (the one I know best).
So I didn’t know a lot of the songs, but Kemper’s delivery and guitar playing (especially in the later songs like Cinnamon and Molly) were fantastic.
| 2024 Underground Arts |
2018 Union Transfer |
2018 Johnny Brenda’s |
| Good Sex © |
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Molly € |
| Independence Day © |
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Carnations ⊗ |
| Room ⊗ |
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Turning 21 ⊗ |
| Eye on the Bat © |
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Dry Food € |
| The Clutch © |
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At Night I’m Alright with You ⊗ |
| Route 22 © |
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Backseat ⊗ |
| Dry Food € |
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Feeling Fruit ⊗ |
| Company (solo) ♠ |
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YMCA Pool ¥ |
| Your Boyfriend’s Gun (solo) § |
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Cinnamon € |
| Killer ♠ |
|
Room ⊗ |
| Bullshit ♠ |
|
Pet Carrot ∏ |
| Mt Evil © |
|
If You Met Her ⊗ |
| Aaron ♠ |
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| Cinnamon € |
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| Molly € |
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§ new (2024)
© Eye on the Bat (2023)
♠ Black Friday (2019)
¥ YMCA Pool single (2018)
⊗ A Place I’ll Always Go (2017)
€ Dry Food (2015)
∏ Bent Nail EP (2013)
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This was my third time seeing Ratboys in just over a year. I would have loved to have seen them before this tour (even though I love this album), just to see what they were like before. But this show was fantastic. Not quite as long as the first time I saw them (since this was a co-headlining show), but the band were tons of fun and they threw in a few songs that I hadn’t seen them play before.
I Just Read About That... 