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Archive for the ‘Wells Fargo Center’ Category

[ATTENDED: July 6, 2025] Tyler, the Creator

Lil I didn’t know all that much about Tyler, the Creator before this show.  All that I knew about him was from when he first came on the scene with odd Future and he wrote horrorcore raps that were pretty graphic and nasty.

I knew that his albums were well regarded, but I had no idea that he had changed his style and that he was massively popular!

My daughter has a few of his songs on her playlists.  He’s still pretty vulgar, but in much smaller doses.

I had no idea what to expect from this show.  So I was blown away when the show started and Tyler came out, by himself, on the massive stage that was full of green lights.

Then we realized the problem.  The seats that we had were pretty great–straight back from the stage and in rather comfy chairs.  But there was this massive piece of rigging in the rafters that literally blocked all of the giant screens behind him and almost cut off him from view.  It turns out that this rigging was all part of his stage show, so I can’t blame Wells Fargo Center.

Tyle came out and started dancing and rapping on the stage.  He was completely engaging and commanded the entire room.  He wore a mask with a wig (as on the album) for this part of the show.  Although really I couldn’t tell at all that he was wearing the mask–couldn’t see the screens and he was too far away to see his face.

He played six songs from the new album (I don’t know if they were played all the way through or were just snippets).  Which I only mention because in the middle of the set he played nothing but shortened versions of his songs.

After Judge Judy, the rigging moved down and then Tyler was on the catwalk in between the main stage and the B stage.  He marched around and danced and was a fun spectacle to watch while he was up there.

And then the B stage rose high in the air to connect to the catwalk and as it lowered back down, a series of panels surrounded the stage and made it look like a small house.  We couldn’t really see him inside and I thought, wow, we’ll never see this guy.  But after the first song, the walls lifted and the B stage was there for all to see–a couch, a few other things and in the center was a turntable.  For in one corner, he had a whole bunch of albums that he flipped through.

The camera was on him the whole time and while we still couldn’t see the screens, we could see him pretty well.  But we needed the screens to see that he was digging through his records and ultimately pulled out IGOR (and the crowd went nuts).  He brought the record to the turntable and put it on.  I’m very curious to know if IGOR’s THEME was playing from the record he put on or not.

Then he proceeded to play three songs from Igor, including a snippet of Are We Still Friends, which everyone went nuts about.  (more…)

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[ATTENDED: July 6, 2025] Lil Yachty

Lil Yachty followed about 15 minutes after Paris, Texas.  He was also on the small stage in the middle of the floor. When he came running out, the noise was loud, the lights were bright and the fog was thick.

I had listened to Lil Yachty before the show and I really liked his style.  I was intrigued by the Wikipedia blurb:

Lil Yachty has called his style “bubblegum trap.” His songs have sampled sounds from Mario Bros., Charlie Brown, the theme from Rugrats, the startup sound of a GameCube console.  Themes in his works include clouds, cotton candy, the Super Nintendo, and scenes from Pixar films. Rolling Stone described his music as “catchy, intentionally dinky-sounding tunes packed with off-color boasts delivered in a proudly amateurish singsong.”

It was exactly the kind of alternative hip hop that I like.

But his sound was overwhelmed by the venue.  Any subtlety in his music was lost and mostly it just felt like the bass was going to knock the building down.  The girls in the seats next to us were thrilled with Yachty and they screamed and sang along.  But I couldn’t hear the words and the music kind of just got melded together.  He also didn’t do very much on stage, just wandering around the stage and mostly engaging with the folks in the GA Pit, with his back to us at least 90% of the time.

He was very gracious about us being there to watch him (and not getting a hot dog or some shit).  I’m fascinated that he played 22 songs in 45 minutes.  I think this show made me realize that rappers don’t necessarily play their whole song–sometimes snippets or even a verse will suffice.  Although many of Yachty’s songs are short (many under 3 minutes, he still had to cut some parts to squeeze all of this in.

So even though I couldn’t really hear anything that was going on, his set moved pretty quickly and I enjoyed watching everyone really getting into him.

 

  1. the BLACK seminole [TAPE]
  2. Gimme da Lite (Southside & Lil Yachty song) §
  3. pRETTy
  4. SOLO STEPPIN CRETE BOY
  5. Split / Whole Time ¾
  6. Pardon Me ¾
  7. Hate Me (ian cover)
  8. Ron Artest (Babyface Ray cover) (with Babyface Ray) §
  9. Yacht Club
  10. NBAYOUNGBOAT ½
  11. Flex Up ¾
  12. Coffin ¾
  13. From the D to the A (Tee Grizzley cover) >
  14. Minnesota
  15. Broccoli (DRAM cover) ¥
  16. iSpy (KYLE cover)
  17. One Night
  18. TESLA
  19. Poland
  20. Strike (Holster)
  21. drive ME crazy!
  22. WE SAW THE SUN!
  23. A Cold Sunday π
π Something Ether EP (2024)
⇓ Let’s Start Here (2023)
⊥ TESLA EP (2023)
¶ single (2022)
¾ Lil Boat 3 (2020)
½ Lil Boat 2 (2018)
∼ Lil Boat (2016)
⊗ Nuthin’ 2 Prove (2018)
Others
¥ DRAM-Big Baby Dram (2016)
∝ KYLE-Light of Mine (2016)
> single (2017)
§ single (2023)
‰ single 2024
 

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[ATTENDED: July 6, 2025] Paris, Texas

My daughter really wanted to see Tyler, the Creator, so I grabbed us tickets.  I knew him a little (from what she had played me), but I didn’t know the other two opening bands at all.

When I read about Paris, Texas I was intrigued.  The group is a duo, featuring Louie Pastel and Felix and what I was most interested in was their description: an eclectic mix of rap & hip-hop, fused with the guitar-driven elements of alternative rock, including grunge, punk, metal, emo and new-wave.

When we arrived, we could see that the main stage was bathed in green.  But when the lights dimmed, the tiny stage in the middle of the pit suddenly lit up and Paris, Texas ran up to the small stage to perform their set.  They had a DJ with them and the three guys prowled the stage.

They also set the basic tone that everyone would have their back to us when at the center stage.  It was clear that the performers were gearing their set to the GA Pit area.   I realized pretty quickly that the people who rushed to be first at the stage were actually pretty far from the action once the band started.  (more…)

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[ATTENDED: April 4, 2025] Deftones

I liked Deftones pretty much from when they first came out (the riff for My Own Summer is so good), although like everyone else, it was White pony that really blew me away.

I was lucky enough to see them in 2016 after they released Gore (an album that I love even though many fans do not).  They played the Sands Bethlehem, not a great venue, but the band sounded great and the band was really interactive with the audience.

I knew I wanted to see them again but the pandemic had other ideas, rescheduling their shows a few times.  When the rescheduled show finally happened in 2022, I wound up going with my daughter to see Beach Bunny instead.  And my son (a Deftones fan) went in my place.  Interestingly, since then my daughter has become a big Deftones fan and wow I’m sure she wished we had gone to Deftones instead of Beach Bunny.

Indeed, when this show was announced, I grabbed four tickets for me, my son, and my daughter.  But then my daughter had a commitment she couldn’t get out of (oh no), so my son’s friend came along–he’s a big fan as well–and all was good.  Actually it wasn’t all good because my car died on the way down.  Luckily it died on the way to his school and not while we were on 95.  Okay it didn’t die exactly, but it gave me a very alarming warning beep that made me quite certain I would not be driving it anywhere except home.

So he drove us in his convertible.  And he handled the nonsense of rte 95, the bottleneck at the Wells Fargo Center and the fact that there was a baseball game at the same time next door very well.  The baseball traffic was the real killer and the reason we missed fleshwater completely.  While we were in line for the exit, a car swerved in front of us and it was one of my coworkers!  How weird.  They were going to the stupid baseball game.

But we had decent seats (straight back but not close) and after Mars Volta we waited with mounting excitement.  It was here that I realized how young (and female) much of the audience was (like my daughter).  I believe that TikTok has introduced them to a lot of new people (good for Deftones, but it means they pay arenas instead of large clubs now).

The lights went down and thier gigantic video screen behind them lit up.  The screen jumped between shots of the band playing and other random projected videos.

The show started with what I guess is their (now) biggest hit.  I believe that Be Quiet is the song that got all the younguns into them.  And it sounded great, even in the cavernous Wells Fargo.  And I was really impressed with how energetic and bouncy Chino Moreno (who is in his 50s now) was. (more…)

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[ATTENDED: April 4, 2025] Mars Volta

I liked Mars Volta when they came out, lost track of them over the years and then assumed they’d broken up for good.  But in 2022 I scored tickets to see them at The Met in Philly.  The show was great and I was really amazed at how good Omar Rodríguez-López’s guitar was and I was even more impressed by Cedric Bixler-Zavala’s voice which can still hit the incredible high notes.

So I was pretty excited that they were opening for Deftones on this arena tour.

But when they came out on stage I realized the flaw.

Mars Volta plays intricate, complicated songs with many parts and wild shifts.  Which totally got lost in this giant arena.  Plus, they were playing their brand new (not yet released) album in its entirety.

It’s fun to hear new songs for the first time live.  But it is tough to hear an entire new album for the first time in a giant arena with thousands of people around you who are only waiting for the headliner. (more…)

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[DID NOT ATTEND: September 13, 2024]  Weezer / The Flaming Lips / Dinosaur Jr.

I mean, there’s no reason I DIDN’T go to this show.  I love all three bands and have seen each of them at least 3 times.

But this show (in which Weezer played the whole Blue Album) just felt too big.  I didn’t want to go to Wells Fargo Center to see them–especially since I’ve seen all three of them in smaller venues.

As it happened, the week was busy anyhow, but I still acknowledge that this would have been an amazing show to see.

The Weezer setlist was fantastic, including a small Pinkerton section.

The Flaming Lips played for almost an hour–ten songs, most of the hits and a few songs from Yoshimi.  Great stuff.

Dinosaur Jr opened and they played six songs classics in about 25 minutes.

What a cool show.

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[ATTENDED: September 9, 2024] Pearl Jam

After Saturday’s show we were pretty psyched to do it all again on Monday.  We wound leaving almost an hour later than Saturday night, because we saw how small the GA section was.  And even if we were in the back of it we’d still be damn close.  BUt heck, I guess everyone else had the same thought on a Monday night because we arrived and not only scored the same spot, but I was able to grab this cool poster.

And our new friends Greta and Molly were there again.  So we hung out with them and enjoyed Glen Hansard and were super psyched when the lights went down for Pearl Jam.

For this show I wanted to be a little closer to Mike and I think it was a bad choice.  The group around us was really loud and really pushy.  So the crowd was less enjoyable but the band was on fire.

We have seen Pearl Jam open with a banger, but mostly they tend to open with a slow building song like tonight’s Of the Girl (which I can’t believe we hadn’t heard live before).

We were delighted to get Elderly Woman in which everyone gets to scream Hello!   And speaking of screaming, a whole room of people singing the opening of Corduroy is pretty intense.  (more…)

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[ATTENDED: September 7, 2024] Glen Hansard

I knew that I was going to enjoy Glen’s show the first night but I didn’t think I’d enjoy it as much as I did.  So I was fully prepared for Glen to blow me away this second night.

And he did.

He seemed even more energized and intense than night 1.

He sang from his knees, he got near the edge of the stage, he danced with the rest of his band.  At one point he sat on a monitor and basically just fell off backwards.

I was a little surprised that he played basically the same set both nights (since Pearl Jam is pretty well known for mixing up their setlists.  At the end of this 45 minute set he played an acoustic version of hie beautiful song This Gift.

It was also keyboardist Mia’s last night on the tour and we all wished her a fond farewell.

My friend Jonathan told me that he’s seen Glen several times and his shows are always amazing.  I agree with him 100%.  I am certain he came away from tis tour with hundreds of new fans.  Everyone around me was blown away by him.  And when he came out later to sing a song with Eddie, he was welcomed to rapturous applause.

I’d really like to see him with a full band again.

 

9/9/2024 (Wells Fargo Center Philly) 9/7/2024 (Wells Fargo Center Philly)
Didn’t He Ramble Didn’t He Ramble
Bearing Witness Bearing Witness
Dead Reckoning [new] Dead Reckoning [new]
The Feast of St. John The Feast of St. John
Down On Our Knees Down On Our Knees
Fitzcarraldo (The Frames song) £ Fitzcarraldo (The Frames song) £
Revelate (The Frames song) £ Revelate (The Frames song) £
This Gift ® Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy (The Swell Season song) (snippet)
THE FRAMES
£ Fitzcarraldo (1995)

SOLO
⇔ All That Was East Is West of Me Now (2023)
‰ A Season on the Line EP (2016)
® Rhythm and Repose (2012)

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[ATTENDED: September 17, 2024] Pearl Jam

After Glen left the stage, we didn’t dare move as the pit was now pretty crowded–although to be honest the back of the pit still had a lot of room.  People were pressed up close but there was breathing room.

So we waited a while, chatted more with Greta and Molly and soon enough the lights went down.  The band came out and it stayed mostly dark while they played Long Road.

And it was amazing.  We’ve seen Pearl Jam five times before this and each time was either from a far away spot (or behind the stage).  And this time, we were as close to the band as if they were playing Union Transfer and I got there in plenty of time to be close.

And we were right in front of Eddie.  I assumed that that would be a prime spot, but I think a lot of people preferred to be in front of Mike McCready–he has a lot of contact with the people around him.

It was a little frustrating that they were all silhouetted by light behind them, but it looked really cool.

I didn’t want to take a ton of pictures and videos but of course I did!  And the sound was SO GOOD.  I expected the arena to sound crappy, but we were right in front and we weren’t too close, it was like he was right in front of us singing.  And we could follow every motion Eddie made while singing Low Light. (more…)

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[ATTENDED: September 7, 2024] Glen Hansard

My wife and I won a ticket lottery for these tow Pearl Jam shows and scored floor seats to the Wells Fargo Center!  We arrived early (but not crazy early) and were something like 100th online.  So when we got into the venue, we were about three people from the stage! It was amazing.

We were really early of course, but the floor seating included a concession area with couches and food and drinks and a bathroom all within easy access.  We quickly made friends with two really nice women from Minnesota (Hi Greta and Molly) and we saved each others spots when we used the facilities.

They had seen Glen Hansard before but we had only seen him with Marketa Irglova (which was fantastic).

Glen Hansard created the movie Once. He is an amazing performer, a passionate musician and a hugely charismatic and funny individual. (more…)

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