Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Union Transfer’ Category

Team Dresch (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 3, 2019)

Posted in Family Outing, LGBTQ, Philadelphia, PA, Queer, Screaming Females, Sleater-Kinney, Team Dresch, The Butchies, Union Transfer on October 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 3, 2019] Team Dresch

Back in the mid 90s (when things were pretty great), as I was exploring more and more indie music, I was drawn to the Pacific Northwest scene.  There were a lot of great bands fronted by or comprised entirely of women–it was like discovering a gold mine of new sounds and voices.

This led to discoveries like Sleater-Kinney and Team Dresch.

This also led to exploring the Candy Ass record label (run by Team Dresch singer/bassist Jody Bleyle) and the amazing Free to Fight compilation.  As well as the Chainsaw records label (run by Donna Dresch).  They shared a lot of bands.

Team Dresch is one of the great queercore bands and they opened my eyes to a lot of avenues of queer culture that I didn’t know about.  I’ve become a huge LGBTQ+ advocate over the years and I attribute much of that to discovering Team Dresch and all that they stand for. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Screaming Females (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 3, 2019) [TEAM DRESCH]

Posted in Des Ark, Monty Hall, Philadelphia, PA, Screaming Females, Team Dresch, Union Transfer on October 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 3, 2019] Screaming Females

I was surprised and excited to hear the Team Dresch were doing a tour of our area.  They were playing at Monty Hall (a venue I love) as well as Union Transfer (a much bigger venue that I love).  It was a little hard to parse that they would play a venue with a capacity of 200 followed by a capacity of 1,200, but there ya go.

I would, of course, prefer the show at Monty Hall; however, for some reason, the Union Transfer show was also featuring Screaming Females.  So there was no way I could miss a chance to see this great band one more time.

Before Des Ark, I was looking at Screaming Females’ merch and actually wound up buying a CD directly from King Mike, which is pretty cool.

After Des Ark ended, Screaming Females came out.  They set up their own gear quickly and efficiently and then started playing. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Des Ark (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 3, 2019) [TEAM DRESCH]

Posted in Des Ark, Pg. 99, Philadelphia, PA, Pinkwash, Screaming Females, Team Dresch, Union Transfer, Waxahatchee, WXDU 88.7 FM--Durham North Carolina on October 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 3, 2019] Des Ark

I had never heard of Des Ark.  This show was a double bill of Screaming Females and Team Dresch and I had kind of forgotten there was another opening act.  So I didn’t look into them at all.

I was amused when the drummer came out and was texting on his phone before their set began.

Turns out that drummer is Ashley Arnwine who I had seen play with Waxahatchee (that band was fantastic, too).  He is also in the band Pinkwash.

The other two guys in the band were brothers Chris Taylor and Mike Taylor who were both in Pg. 99.

But these three guys are just with the band for this short (5 day) tour.

Des Ark is really the creation of singer/guitarist Aimee Argote.  Des Ark has three albums out Loose Lips Sink Ships (2005), Battle of the Beards (2007) and Don’t Rock the Boat, Sink the Fucker (2011).   In between these she released three live albums from Durham, North Carolina radio station WXDU: WXDU v. 1 (2006); WXDU v.2 (2007) and Live at WXDU Vol. 3 (2013).  On these she plays new songs which may or may not make the next record.

Note the dates. That last WXDU record was from 2013.  And, it turns out that Des Ark hasn’t played live (despite being amazing) for over three years.  Why is that?

 because main member Aimee Argote quit music for the past three years. She posted a lengthy statement explaining on her hiatus on Instagram, which reads in part: “I left music because I felt unsafe, exhausted, unsupported, poor as shit, and my body was super, SUPER fucking broken. I had no plan, no health insurance (w/ chronic health issues), no stability, and I knew I would never have consistency in my life or in my relationships if I was going to keep touring as much as it would take for me to make a [pretty shitty] living.” She also later added, “Being talented isn’t enough. It simply isn’t enough to keep me or others safe in an industry that tries to destroy women, POC, and queers at every turn.”

But I didn’t know anything about this when Aimee came out on stage and started playing and singing. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Stereolab (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, September 26, 2019)

Posted in Full show video, Philadelphia, PA, Scranton, PA, Stereolab, Union Transfer on September 26, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 26, 2019] Stereolab

I can still remember going into Ralph’s Record City (R.I.P.) in Scranton and buying a used copy of Transient Random Noise Bursts with Announcements based on a friend’s recommendation.  I remember thinking that the title made it sound a lot like a stereo test record.  I also remember not understanding the image on the cover as a phonograph needle for quite a while.

I also remember really liking it.

And that started my long time appreciation of Stereolab.   My friend Lar was always updating me about the latest release or re-release or re-issue (which even happened recently with the new reissues of the band’s back catalog).

I started to drift away from them a bit with their last couple of records, and then they more or less broke up.

Nevertheless, it was pretty exciting to hear that they were reuniting for a new tour (and returning to Philadelphia 11 years after their last show in the city.

I really had no idea what to expect, but I grabbed tickets immediately and they quickly sold out. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Bitchin Bajas (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, September 26, 2019) [STEREOLAB]

Posted in Bitchin Bajas, Cave, Philadelphia, PA, Stereolab, Sun Ra, Sun Ra Arkestra, Union Transfer on September 26, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 26, 2019] Bitchin Bajas

I was super excited to see that Stereolab was touring again for the first time in over a decade.  I wondered who they would have open for them.

I never imagined it would be a band called Bitchin Bajas, of whom I had never heard.

The band is a three-piece and is a side-project of Cooper Crane from the band Cave (who I also don’t know).

With a name like Bitchin Bajas, I assumed they’d be a kind of desert punk band, but boy was I wrong about that.

When I walked in, the stage was set with three keyboards.  The band came out rather quietly with little fanfare and sat down. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Pinegrove (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, September 25, 2019)

Posted in House of Independents, Montclair, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, Pinegrove, Union Transfer on September 25, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 25, 2019] Pinegrove

This is the third time I have seen Pinegrove.  I saw them in 2017 and had plans to see them two more times by the end of the year.  But they cancelled their shows and took a hiatus.  They came back this year and I was lucky enough to catch one of their first shows back down in Asbury Park.

Despite having seen them just a few months earlier, I felt somewhat unsatisfied about that HoI show.  Not sure what it was–maybe because I was off to the side too far, or what.  I mean the band sounded great that night.  But I felt like I needed one more show from them, and tonight’s show scratched that itch.

Even though they played pretty much the same set, something about this show felt complete.

Maybe it was that they upgraded from a curtain with their logo of two boxes on it to neon lights in the shape of two boxes.

Or maybe it was that there six people on stage instead of five? (more…)

Read Full Post »

Boyscott (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, September 25, 2019) [PINEGROVE]

Posted in Boyscott, Montclair, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, Pinegrove, Slumbers, Super Low, Union Transfer on September 25, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 25, 2019] Boyscott

I hadn’t heard of Boyscott before this tour either.

It turns out that the Scott of Boyscott [Scott Hermo Jr] grew up on the same street in Montclair as Evan Stephens Hall (they’re about six years apart).  I don’t know if that’s why they were chosen to play these local dates, but whatever the reason, it was great to have them open for Pinegrove.

It’s surprisingly hard to find out who was on stage with them.  The live band was a five piece, although their album was recorded by a three-piece.  Names associated with the band include: Emma Willer of Slumbers on guitar, John Lewandowski of Super Low on drums, Ellen McGirk (keys and vocals who I am pretty sure was not there), and bassist Noah Miller.  There was also someone with one name on a second guitar and percussion.

They played same light indie-pop.  What I really liked about the band was that none of the songs were simple verse chorus verse. Each one had some interesting middle part or new section or even just an unexpected stop mid-song.

By the second or third song I was really enjoying their set. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Derek Ted (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, September 25, 2019) [PINEGROVE]

Posted in Boyscott, Derek Ted, Philadelphia, PA, Pinegrove, Union Transfer on September 25, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 25, 2019] Derek Ted

I had never heard of Derek Ted when it was announced that he was opening for Pinegrove (along with Boyscott).

I arrived plenty early to get to Pinegrove because the show started at 7:30 and a lot of people didn’t show up until 8.  So I was right up font when Derek Ted started.  He came out and it was just him and his guitar.

He played the first song and it was fine.  I didn’t love his voice but I thought the melody and lyrics were really nice.

After that first song, the rest of the band came out–another guitar, drums and bass.  I can’t find any band member names online, but they added some amazing components to the music as you can hear in “Waves on the Lake.”

The drums were minimal and yet relatively complex–unexpected time changes and a bunch of song that ended abruptly with a smacking snare drum. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Death Valley Girls / The Distillers (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, August 14, 2019) [POSTPONED AGAIN]

Posted in Death Valley Girls, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Starcrawler, The Distillers, Union Transfer on August 14, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[NOT ATTENDED: August 14, 2019] Death Valley Girls/The Distillers [rescheduled from June 1, moved to October 7]

On June 1, I drove to Union Transfer to see Starcrawler and The Distillers only to learn:

“Brody has a herniated disc and can not stand. She’s at the hospital getting treatment now.”

So I went home with the knowledge that the show was going to be rescheduled for August 14.

Then on August 3rd, I received this email

Hello Distillers fans,

Unfortunately another member of The Distillers was recently injured and they have to postpone their Philly date again. They are dedicated to make it back to Philly and play for you!!! So all tickets will be honored. Including tickets originally purchased for the original June 1st date.

(more…)

Read Full Post »

Dido (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, June 21, 2019)

Posted in Dido, Jody Linscot, Philadelphia, PA, Roswell, Union Transfer on June 21, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: June 21, 2019] Dido

I bought these tickets back in November thinking “Dido is playing Union Transfer?” and then, “What happened to Dido?”  I didn’t realize that she had released some albums in the intervening years. I was vaguely aware of her 2008 release but missed the 2013 release entirely.   I also see that she hasn’t toured the states in FIFTEEN years.  In 2004 she played the Tower Theatre but in 2001 she headlined the Tweeter Center.  Remember Tweeter?

So that explains the small venue.  It also explains why it sold out.

Almost all of my familiarity with Dido comes from S.  When we first started dating she played No Angel a lot and I found I rather enjoyed it–a relaxing soundtrack on a summer day.  When I received the tickets for this show, it came wit a copy of her new CD.  We listened to it and I found it pleasant but somewhat unremarkable.  I assumed the show would be the same–an enjoyable, chill evening.

Boy howdy was I wrong.  It’s as if everything on the CD was made for chilling out, but the show was made for dancing.  She had a five piece band behind her and they were fantastic.  With much appreciation to the percussionist Jody Linscott who was freaking amazing and Adam Falkner on drums who played really loud and hard and kept the songs really moving.

The other amazing thing was Dido’s herself.  She has a lovely voice–always has.  On record it’s quite subdued.  But live, she belted out notes, sang passionately and was totally engaging as a performer.  She walked around the stage.  She sat down right in front of us for a song (shame we were behind the two tallest people there), she smiled all the time–a genuine smile that showed how much she appreciated us coming out to see her.  And she was quite funny, too. (more…)

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »