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Archive for the ‘The Fillmore Philadelphia’ Category

Father John Misty (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, February 28, 2025)

Posted in Destroyer, Father John Misty, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on March 1, 2025| 1 Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 28, 2025] Father John Misty

Back in 2016, while touring his second album, Father John Misty played XPNFest.  I had been planning on going that day but for some reason couldn’t make it.  He wasn’t the only person I wanted to see, but I was interested in seeing him for sure.  And that’s the year that he had what I guess was a breakdown on stage.  As one person on reddit said

People came to see FJM and he gave them a 20 minute set without even playing a single song of his because what…it’s part of his “character”?

So I’ve been kind of against him since (I held the grudge a lot longer than WXPN did since they play his music all the time–and I know it’s stupid to hold a grudge since I wasn’t even there, but whatever).  The grudge finally ended this year with his great new album.  We enjoyed the new songs so much that we decided to see him at the Fillmore

Sadly, we arrived quite late.  Actually it wasn’t even that late–quite long before Destroyer went on.  But it was packed and we were very far back. I had no idea he would be that popular (or that the show would sell out).  The one fun thing is that I ran into an old school friend Susie and it was great seeing her and catching up with her.

After Destroyer, the crowd adjusted and damnit I was behind a tall dude for a bunch of the set.

I really liked his first two albums.  I grew a little tired of him for a while, but still enjoyed the singles that came later. (more…)

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Destroyer (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, February 28, 2025) [FATHER JOHN MISTY]

Posted in Destroyer, Father John Misty, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on February 28, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 28, 2025] Destroyer

I bought tickets for this show long before I knew who the opener was.  I was pleased that Destroyer was opening.  Destroyer was the last show I saw before the pandemic shut everything down.

Dan Bejar, who is Destroyer, is an unusual guy.  He’s got the vibe of a lunge singer, but he sings rather unusual lyrics (and has a rather unique voice).  None of which leads to a band named Destroyer of course.

Last time I saw them there were six members on stage.  This time there were only two in addition to Dan.  There was a drummer (who also played keys while drumming!) and a guitarist.  And of course, Dan was up front singing in his unusual manner–Dan’s microphone stand is set up so that the microphone was at his waist.  Basically he held onto the stand almost like a cane when he sang, and sang more or less to the floor.  And when there were instrumental sections, he would squat down so all eyes were on the other two.

He’s an unusual guy for sure.  I don’t know if he won anyone over–the Fillmore is a much bigger venue than he usually plays in Philly.  He’s also unabashedly himself, so he doesn’t really seem to care if everyone likes him, because a lot of people do.

The arrangements were stripped down to be sure, but I really enjoyed them this way.

He’s playing a headline tour in October, and I may just have to go.

 

2025 2020
The Music Lovers ♥ Crimson Tide ¿
Tinseltown Swimming in Blood ⊄ Kinda Dark ¿
It’s Gonna Take an Airplane ♥ The Raven ¿
Painter in Your Pocket ♦ Cover From the Sun ⊄
Times Square ∇ Kaputt ⊗
Cue Synthesizer ¿ Times Square ∇
It Just Doesn’t Happen ¿ Bangkok ∇
Stay Lost ⊄ It Just Doesn’t Happen ¿
Chinatown ⊗ Cue Synthesizer ¿
Poor in Love ⊗ University Hill ¿
Tinseltown Swimming in Blood ⊄
Chinatown ⊗
European Oils ♦
foolssong ¿
Bay of Pigs (detail) ⊗
encore
Poor in Love ⊗
Looters’ Follies ♦

 

¿ = Have We Met (2020)
⊄ = Ken (2017)
∇ = Poison Season (2015)
⊗ = Kaputt (2011)
♦ = Destroyer’s Rubies (2006)
♥ = Your Blues (2004)

 

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Phantogram / meija (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, February 8, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in meija, Phantogram, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on February 8, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 8, 2025] Phantogram / meija 

For reasons I don’t really understand, I thought that Phantogram was My Brightest Diamond.  The bands’ names are not similar and they don’t sound much alike.  But I was sure that I had seen Phantogram open for someone.  And I had not.

As it turns out, I’ve been vaguely down on Phantogram for a while, and yet there’s been a song on the radio recently that I really like.  And when I listened to some more of their music I realized that I like them quite a lot–they remind me of Chvrches.  And so I thought I’d grab a ticket for this show.

And then I realized that we had a commitment that night, so all of my dithering was pointless.  But I’ll definitely be listening to more of them.

meija is LA based producer and songwriter Jamie Sierota.  He makes synth-drenched, indie pop adjacent rock.  It’s a little low-key and chill for me, but it seems like a decent pairing for Phantogram.

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Guster: “We Also Have Eras Tour” (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, January 24, 2025)

Posted in Blue Merle, Guster, Philadelphia, PA, Talking Heads, The Fillmore Philadelphia on January 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: January 24, 2025] Guster

Back in March, we saw the We All Have Eras Tour and we loved it.  It seemed weird to get tickets to the same show a few months later when they announced the second wave of the tour.  But it was almost a year later!

This made my 12th time seeing Guster and every Guster show is a good time.  Although the last time we saw Guster at the Fillmore, we didn’t love the crowd so much (we were also close to the bar…boo).  But this time we landed squarely in the middle of  the floor and had a great view (for the most part) and the crowd around us was cool (for the most part).

The show was like last time, a that there would be a narrator telling us what was going on with the band.  Dave Butler (who also plays drums with Marco Benevento and has played live with Guster since 2015) was the evening’s narrator. [This also means I’ve seen Dave Butler play 13 times].

The sets and “Acts” were the same, possibly a little smoother and, as they said on Instagram–there were laughs in different spots.

They opened the show with a chalk board showing a dorm room at Tufts.  Ryan and Adam met at Tufts.  They each played in bands in high school  (Adam from outside of Morristown, NJ!).  (Ryan’s band was called The Silents, Adam’s was Royal Flush).  They didn’t have bands in common, so they wrote their own song: “Parachute.”  Then they needed a name.  How about Gus?  Sounds good.  They were all set to be the Indigo Boys, two guys with great harmonies and acoustic guitars.  Then a goofy guy, Brian, who carried bongos showed up (his early band was called Toejamb) and soon they were a trio busking in Harvard Square.

Then came two songs that were different from last time [Happy Frappy instead of Fall in Two and X-Ray Eyes (the first time we’ve seen them play it) instead of Demons].  Although I was happy to hear songs for the first time, this was also something of a greatest hist show, so of course it was great to hear Airport Song and Barrel of a Gun (again).

Their story is more interesting than just a band progressing.  They went from acoustic guitars and bongos to a full on band with drumsticks and bass.  They were approached by Steve Lillywhite to produce an album.

Then Luke Reynolds came out with a giant head of Joe Pisapia and a name tag that said JOE.  He was a multitalented multi-instrumentalist and wrote “Jesus on the Radio” (which Luke and Ryan sang together).  Then Joe joined the band for real (played by Luke). (more…)

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Aurora (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, December 9, 2024)

Posted in Aurora, Biig Piig, Norway, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on December 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: June 2, 2022] Aurora

This is my fourth time seeing Aurora.  When I saw her in 2018, she was barely known here and I thought she might never play the States again.  Well, three tours later, she has sold out one of the larger venues in Philadelphia.  Good for her, but not so great for us.

The place was packed and we arrived late enough that we were stuck way in the back.  And Aurora has a fan base that is quite…intense.  So there was lots of shrieking and such.  There was also a lot of talking off to the side–drunken idiots who needed to talk loudly despite everyone shushing them (but they also knew all the words so they were fans, wtf).

So I was annoyed when the show started, which is a shame because the show itself was pretty amazing.

She had really upped her production since the last tour, with big screens of dancers behind her.  My wife was really excited to go for some fun poppy dancing.  I joked that it was going to be an all acoustic mellow show.

And I’m surprised to say that my joke almost came true, kind of.

The show opened with the gothy, spooky Churchyard (more…)

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Biig Piig (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, December 9, 2024) [AURORA]

Posted in Aurora, Biig Piig, Norway, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on December 9, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: December 9, 2024] Biig Piig

Aurora has had some pretty interesting opening artists over the years.  I had never heard of Biig Piig, but apparently the rest of the world has.

Her name is Jessica Smyth and she’s got an interesting backstory.  She was born in Cork, Ireland, but as raised in Spain.  Spanish is actually her native language.  But she moved back to Ireland when she was 12 and then to London a few years later.  And in 2020, her singles Switch, Don’t Turn Around and Feels Right had combined streams of over 60 million. (more…)

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Fontaines D.C. / Been Stellar (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, October20, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Been Stellar, Fontaines D.C., Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on October 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 20, 2024] Fontaines D.C. / Been Stellar

I’ve seen Fontaines D.C. twice and each time I’ve found the crowd to be unpleasant.  I decided that I didn’t need to see them again.  Especially in a place like the Fillmore–a huge venue that lends itself to bad behaviour.

They released a new album, though and my wife really likes the songs she’s heard and she wondered if we should go.  Then we saw that the show was on a special day for someone in my family.

So that’s THREE shows I would have gone to on one day.  And the day in question was not cool for us.

Oof.

I’m intrigued by Been Stellar and have heard good thigs about them.  I hadn’t heard anything by them and listened to a few clips just now and I don’t really get much of a feeling from them–fuzzy alt rock.  They’re kind of a buzz band, but I’d need to hear more.

Huh, last year I said I listened to a few songs and really liked them.  Maybe I didn’t give a good enough listen this time.

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The The: Ensouled World Tour (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, October 15, 2024)

Posted in Matt Johnson, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia, The The on October 15, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 15, 2024] The The

I’ve ben a fan of The The forever.  My friend Garry got me into them with the Infected album and I’ve been a fan ever since.  When they played the US in 2018 I was willing to brave the Holland Tunnel to see them in New York.

And it was great.  The band was great, Matt sounded great and they played so many songs that I love.

I was surprised when six year later he announced that there would be a new album (!) and a World Tour.  I grabbed a ticket immediately when it was announced that they were playing Philly.  I’m not sure that I would have gone into New York again, but I was happy to go to Philly.

I found out later that they were going to play the entire new album and then play some hits. Cool.

It turned out that apparently President Biden was going to be in Philly that night so I left really early to avoid traffic snarls.  But there weren’t any and I arrived crazy early. Especially when I learned that the doors opened at 7:30 not 7.  In a nutshell, I was able to get right up on the guardrail (almost).

They played snippets from Johnson’s Radio Cineola (including a very quiet request for people to not take photos/videos) of the show.

And then they played the new album.  I’ve listened to it a few times and quite like it.  But i can’t say I knew it (especially the last few songs) very well.  (more…)

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Balance and Composure / Kevin Devine and the Goddamn Band / Milly (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, October 5, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Balance and Composure, Kevin Devine, Kevin Devine & The Goddamn Band, Kevin Devine and the Goddman Band, Milly, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia on October 5, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 5, 2024] Balance and Composure / Kevin Devine and the Godamn Band / Milly

The strange thing (to me) about this show is that I knew and liked both of the opening acts but had never even heard of the headliners.

In fact, the reason I wanted to go to this show was for Kevin Devine & the Goddamn Band.  I’ve seen Kevin three times and I love his songs and his whole vibe but it’s been five years since I’ve seen him (really bad luck of local shows being canceled or scheduled on a bad night for me).  And I really wanted to see him with the Goddamn Band because the Goddamn Band is awesome.

But they only played for 45 minutes, so I’m not terribly upset that I missed them.

I saw Milly open for Swervedriver 5 years ago.  I enjoyed them and am delighted to see that since 2019, they’ve released a bunch of stuff.

And then there’s Balance and Composure (from Doylestown, PA).  I didn’t know them but apparently everyone else was super psyched that they released a new record in 2024 (it had been 8 years since the last one).

I’ve listened to a few clips of songs and liked them. But I don’t think I would have enjoyed the show with a huge amount of big fans.

 

 

My son and I have seen Starset twice.  Each show has been pretty fantastic.

When this tour was announced, I was excited that a show was going to be at the Starland Ballroom (a venue I don’t love, but which he does).

But then it turned out to be the night before he was leaving for Europe.  There was n way we were staying out all night the night before his flight.

So, we gave this tour a miss.

Rock on Purpose has a big review of the show.

I didn’t know any of the other bands.  The above reviewer is a big fan of Red, who he says plays a “combination of cinematic, uplifting, and hardcore rock music.”

They are a Christian band, which seems an odd fit for Starset’s cryptic stances, but whatever, their songs are pretty good with interesting orchestral arrangements over the heavy guitars.

Divide the Fall are from Minnesota.  Spill, their local magazine says

their modern hard rock sound and catchy choruses with the occasional heavy breakdown.

And a review of their recent EP describes melodic harmonies and stunning, clean vocals.

Oni were a progressive heavy metal band from Canada with growling vocals and crazy technical profiiency, at least in 2016.  In 2022, they released a new album about which Drowned in Sound says

If you were anticipating another round of technical bludgeoning akin to the Ironshore era then you may be disappointed as ONI have taken an entirely different direction this time round.

Sounds like the heaviest bands went on first, although some of their new songs are pretty mellow too.  Interestimg.

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The Hives / The Mary Veils (Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, September 29, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia, The Hives, The Mary Veils on September 29, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 29, 2024] The Hives / The Mary Veils

When The Hives released their second album, I, like so many people, fell in love with the punchy songs and cool black and white look.

They did another album that I really liked and then I pretty much forgot about them.

I don’t know if everyone else did too, but in 2023 they released their first album in 11 years and like the others it features sledgehammer guitars, drums that sound like they’re being punctured as they’re being played, obtuse lyrics delivered at a steady Scandinavian scream.

I would have more seriously considered going to this show if it wasn’t the same night as Michael Kiwanuka and if it was at a smaller venue.

The Mary Veils are a Philly garage rock band that started as the solo project of songwriter Brian von Uff, and has evolved into a full band with Justin Mansor, Andrew Mann and Evan Wall.

The fuzz is good and they have the same energy.  Sounda like a fun bill.

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