[DID NOT ATTEND: November 10, 2023] Nation of Language / Miss Grit
I heard about this show because I follow Miss Grit. I has seen her open for someone a while back and really enjoyed her show. She had not yet even released an album, so I was curious to see how much better she was.
I thought I knew Nation of Language. I even had a generally favorable idea of them.
But when I listened to them before buying tickets for the show, I realized that I didn’t really like them all that much. They are very new wave synthy, which is fine. But it wasn’t anything I needed to see.
So I’m bummed to miss Miss Grit whose playlist was probably something like this:
Perfect Blue
Your Eyes Are Mine
Nothing’s Wrong
Lain (phone clone)
Follow the Cyborg
saibogeuleul ttalawa
Like You
Syncing
Interestingly, Nation of Language’s opening acts were all great and I would happily see a show with all three of them together: Miss Grit, Gustaf and Reggie Watts!
[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.
Back in the 1990s I really liked Tortoise. I was especially fond of Millions Now Living Wil Never Die. But as they released more instrumentals, (all of the songs are instrumentals–more or less), they veered more into a jazz and lite-jazz field. I didn’t mind it all that much at the time but I definitely listened to them a lot less.
I didn’t even realize they were still an ongoing concern (their last album came out in 2016). When this show was announced I was intrigued. I knew my friend Lar had experiences with them (good and bad), but his description of both shows was enough to make me think I should check this show out.
It turns out they haven’t been to Philly since 2016, so this seemed like a reasonable enough reason to check them out. I mean, even if the songs were jazzy, the musicianship would be excellent.
I was pretty excited to get their early enough to be on the railing. So I could see everything perfectly. Well, except that there were two drum kits right in front of the stage. Which was awesome, but did tend to block my view of the vibes.
Yes, vibes. There were actually two sets of vibes on stage. One must have been electronic (I was right in front of it and couldn’t see what it was), while the other was across the stage. (more…)
Basic is a trio comprised of Chris Forsyth and Nick Millevoi on guitars and Mikel Patrick Avery on drums.
When I found out that Chris Forsyth would be opening this show for Tortoise, it pushed me into the “I gotta go” category. I knew that whatever it sounded like, I would enjoy it.
I sat near Millevoi, who I didn’t know–he’s a Philly guitarist in Desertion Trio who has released a bunch of solo stuff as well. For the first song he was pretty quiet while Chris Forsyth soloed. But for the second song he played a lot more loudly. He seemed to be the low end–paying riffs and chords while Forsyth was the high notes.
The only problem for me was that Millevoi’s guitar was pretty loud and we were standing in front of his amp, so it made Forsyth’s solos a little hard to hear.
Avery had a tiny bass drum that he hit with a mallet. On it was a kind of woodblock, which he hit with a plastic mallet. That’s all he had. Millevoi often started a drum machine as he started playing so technically Avery didn’t have a lot to do, but seeing and hearing him add bass drum was a nice touch. Avery also played with some electronics on a table near him.
They played five songs. The first three were about ten minutes each. The fourth one was a little shorter, and when I assumed they’d be finishing up around 8:45, at 8:40 they started a new song which took them to a full fifty minutes of jazzy guitar improv.
It was pretty great. Catchy and fun and interesting to watch these three dudes jam with each other.
They didn’t introduces songs so I have no idea what they played. In fact the only words spoken their whole set were at the end when Chris said, “that was Basic.”
[DID NOT ATTEND: October 18, 2023] Bahamas / Fortunate Ones
About five years ago I watched a video of Bahamas at Massey Hall and I liked it.
Bahamas is Afie Jurvanen a Canadian folk act. I haven’t followed them much but considered that I might want to see them. But when I listened to their newer songs, I didn’t like them.
It’s very much soft rock with, and I feel that this works for the name Bahamas, a kind of summery vacationy islandy feel. It’s the kind of thing that I would enjoy hearing while I was walking around in a vacation chalet, but not someone I’d want to see live.
Fortunate Ones is a Canadian indie folk duo from St. John’s, Newfoundland, consisting of Andrew James O’Brien and Catherine Allan.
It’s nice that Bahamas invited another Canadian band along with him. But I didn’t like either of their voices (which surprises me).
[DID NOT ATTEND: October 12, 2023] Devandra Banhart / Miho Hatori
About ten years ago I was really into Devandra Banhart. I enjoyed his weirdo folkie vibe and thought that he was a good deal of fun.
And then I seemed to lose track of him altogether. I haven’t listened to him in ages. I see that he’s cut his hair but he still looks like a wild, fun hippy.
His new album was produced by Cate Le Bon, whose sensibilities are wonderfully oddball. The new album is pretty streamlined with lots of synth I think it’s too mellow for me.
Miho Hatori was in Cibo Matto and worked with Gorillaz. She has released some solo albums and I really like the bits I’ve heard from her new one. Dead Grandma Blog says
Miho Hatori herself says that the album is inspired by the two different genres of anime- Isekai (basically meaning ‘other world’) and Slice of Life. The record eases you in relatively painlessly, with the understated, downtempo opener ‘Tokyo Story‘, which while being quite comforting also has a vague creepiness to it… Hatori characteristically plays and experiments with rhythm throughout the rest of the album (without ever losing pop sensibility), and ultimately manages to create a tight 29 minute package that feels meatier than albums twice it’s length.
Interestingly, I suppose, Back in December, Miho’s Cibo Matto partner Yuka Honda (under the name Eucademix) did a solo avant garde show–she uses a laptop to create interesting sounds–some pleasant, some not so much.
[DID NOT ATTEND: September 29, 2023] Slowdive / Drab Majesty
Slowdive is one of the classic shoegaze bands. I didn’t really get into them back in the 90s as they were a little too slow for my liking (I mean, it’s in their name after all). But I have since revisited my opinion.
Then, twenty years after they broke up, they reunited and made some more music.
I missed their show back in 2017 and would have been interested to see them this time (especially since their new album is really good). But this show sold out before I even knew about it. I’m not sure how I missed the announcement but there it is.
Alas.
Drab Majesty is opening for them. I thought they might have been a band from the 90s as well, as their name sounded strangely familiar. But they actually formed in 2011
Drab Majesty is an American musical project founded by Andrew Clinco the drummer for the band Marriages. Clinco adopted the androgynous character of Deb Demure for the project. Keyboardist and vocalist Mona D (Alex Nicolaou) joined the band in 2016. Drab Majesty combine androgynous aesthetics and commanding vocals with futuristic and occult lyrics, a style Demure refers to as, “tragic wave”. To create his imposing stage presence, Demure employed costumes, makeup and props to accompany his lush, ’80s-influenced soundscapes.
They sound perfectly retro (ala early Depeche Mode or Erasure). It’s pretty tasty. This would have been a good show.
[DID NOT ATTEND: September 25, 2023] Osees / Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band
Last year, I did not go to the Osees show. And I wrote this:
I saw Osees exactly one year ago today. I summarized by saying
The show was intense, exhausting and a ton of fun. I am so glad I went.
When they announced this year’s show I wasn’t quite in the mood for seeing them again (the exhausting part being the most vivid memory of the show). But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t see them again maybe next year.
When Osees announced their new show (exactly one year and a day after last year’s show), I bought a ticket for it in February, figuring what I said last year was true.
September was turning out to be a busy concert month, when I was trying to calm down my concert going. And I figured there was always a chance I wasn’t going to go to this show.
But since I had blown off the weekend show, I figured I’d go to this one. Especially since I really like the new Osees album.
But this time the world got to me instead. I had made an appointment for a COVID booster. But I accidentally went to two of the wrong locations (first one my fault, second one a misunderstanding). What should have taken five minutes wound up taken 90, and by the time I actually got the booster, it was later than when I wanted to leave for this show. And I hadn’t even been home yet.
There’s no way I would have made much if any of Nolan Potter and by then, I was just too worn out from driving around to bother going anywhere (we’ll blame a little vaccine exhaustion too).
But since Osees love to play Philly, I’m promising myself that I’ll see them next year.
I had not heard of Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band before this show and I imagined them being loud and crazy and abrasive. But when I listened to their latest album Let It Stream, I was amazed by how much I liked it! It was like Frank Zappa with jazzy and proggy moments.
Another reviewer says of them
Awesome newish prog-psych band with an awesome vibe and a TON of flute. Lotta King Gizzard vibes from them, and if you’re a fan of Matt Berry too you might really like them.
So, yeah, I might be more bummed that I missed them than the Osees. Will definitely have to catch them in the future.
But Markit Aneight recorded the show for everyone:
[DID NOT ATTEND: September 9, 2023] Sleep Token / A.A. Williams
I had never heard of Sleep Token until about a week ago when Shevy Marie, the woman who plays all of the women in Ice Nine Kills’ live performances, announced that she would be touring with Sleep Token. I have no idea in what capacity. Ad when I looked up to see where the tour was taking this band, I found out that they were playing Union Transfer and the show was sold out. In fact, the whole tour appears to be sold out. Wow.
So, who are they? Interestingly, no one know.
Sleep Token are a British alternative metal band from London, formed in 2016. The group are an anonymous, masked collective led by a frontman using the moniker Vessel. They have been categorised under many different genres, including alternative metal, post-rock/metal, progressive metal and indie rock/pop.
There’s obviously so much for me to like about this band–masked singers, calling their shows “rituals”, toying with heavy metal, Shevy Marie. Although when I listened to a few songs I didn;t really like them all that much.
Well, it being sold out saved me the worry.
A.A. Williams is a singer from
The first thing that comes up when searching for her is a cover of Placebo’s “Without You I’m Nothing” which is even more gothy than the original. It’s good and moody. Her other stuff is similarly moody and gauzey with a healthy dose of goth. Or as Kerrang says
a stunning work of minor-chord perfection that announced its author as a genuinely exceptional talent. A perfect expression of beautiful melancholy that touched that same delicate, isolated, rainy-night nerve as Anathema, Nick Cave and Deftones at their most understated,
[DID NOT ATTEND: September 8, 2023] The Tallest Man on Earth/Andrea von Kampen
Last year, after many failed attempts, I finally got to see The Tallest Man on Earth–Kristian Matsson, a Swedish folksinger with a great guitar picking style and a deep powerful gritty voice.
It was a fun show only marred by the very vocal drunks behind me who talked during the show and then sang along really loudly to the words they knew.
I thought it would be fun to see him again–and to hopefully be in a different spot than the drunks this time. So I grabbed a ticket. Completely not realizing that I had already purchased tickets to see Beck/Phoenix tonight.
Alas.
Andrea van Kampen is an American folk singer. She has a gentle fingerpicking style and a nice voice that reaches to a powerful falsetto.
I heard about this show because I follow Miss Grit. I has seen her open for someone a while back and really enjoyed her show. She had not yet even released an album, so I was curious to see how much better she was.
I Just Read About That... 