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Japanese Breakfast (The Met Philadelpia, Philadelphia, PA, May 15, 2025)

May 15, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 15, 2025] Japanese Breakfast

We had seen Japanese Breakfast play their last American show for a year or so on Halloween 2023.  It was a lot of fun and felt like a really special night.

When they announced their new album, For Melancholy Brunettes… I was concerned because that sounded like a bummer of an album.  And, first single Orlando in Love wasn’t especially gripping.  It was pretty, but didn’t really have a hook.

But I knew that they always put on a good show so it was definitely worth seeing.

The curtain rose on a giant clam shell, which Michelle Zauner came out and sat in and played Here is Someone and Orlando in Love.

She switched from acoustic to electric guitar and returned to the clamshell throughout the show.

The rest of the stage was cool too, with a nautical theme and billowing smoke.

They played three songs from the new albums, with Honey Water being the most upbeat.  But they didn’t stay on this vibe for the whole show because they moved on to the Soft Sounds album, playing three great songs, Road Head, Boyish and The Body is a Blade.

Then it was back to the new album for the bouncy Mega Circuit and the more chill Leda.

They only played one song from Psychopomp, and then moved up to Jubilee for the bouncy Slide Tackle.  A few more new songs were followed by Kokomo, a really fun song from Jubilee. Continue Reading »

Posted in Ginger Root, Japanese Breakfast, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

Ginger Root (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, May 15, 2025) [JAPANESE BREAKFAST]

May 15, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 15, 2025] Ginger Root

Japanese Breakfast announced a show at The Met and it sold out instantly.  But then they announced another show (for the day before) and I grabbed us a ticket.

Ginger Root opened both shows.  I didn’t know them, but they seemed to have a good following.  And the band was full of charisma.  They are an indie band from California led by Cameron Lew.  He describes the music as “aggressive elevator soul.”

And Camerom Lew is a fantastic front man.  He is also the creative force behind the visual and audio components of Ginger Root.  Indeed video may be more important that audio for the band.

Ginger Root was without a doubt the best live band I have seen for music that I didn’t really like all that much.  Not that the music was bad, it just wasn’t quite my vibe.  But the live show was so good I would 100% see them again.

As they took the stage there were two video screens that announced We are your openers for this evening.  We’ll be done in ~40 minutes.

And as soon as the band started, their on-stage cameraman began filming them and projecting it on the screens.  He used all kinds of old-school effects, giving the video and almost 80’s feel.  Especially when the screens were bordered with a white line and the legend: You’re listening to Ginger Root. Continue Reading »

Posted in Ginger Root, Japanese Breakfast, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

The Dead Milkmen (White Eagle Hall, Jersey City, NJ, May 10, 2025)

May 11, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 10, 2025] The Dead Milkmen 

It took me 35 years to see The Dead Milkmen live.  And now I’ve seen them twice in about a year.  The last show was so much fun; I was really excited when they announced more shows at Underground Arts.  But those days were booked for me.  Bummer.  But then they announced this show at White Eagle Hall (where they have played a few times recently).

I arrived late (because parking there sucks).  I almost gave up and went home, but I found a reasonable parking spot. And the usher brought me to the ADA section which was pretty cool because I had been really far back.  But the ADA section was in the balcony and I was able to get really close to the stage.  Rodney Anonymous is such a wild and inclusive front man that he gets everyone involved in every song.  And even though he never looked up at the balcony, I felt like a participant.

Last time I was on the far side and could barely see bassist Dan Stevens or drummer Dean Clean.  This time I was on Joe Jack Talcum’s side and could see the whole stage easily.  I was also able to watch Jack’s guitar playing which is surprisingly complex.

One of the fun parts of sitting where I was that I could see all of the people slam dancing–and really making their pit large (to the dismay of other around them).  And for once I was really glad that I was upstairs away from the action.

The setlist wasn’t radically different from the previous show, but the order was very different and there were a few songs thrown in that they hadn’t played last time (I was pretty thrilled to hear The Thing That Only Eats Hippies). Continue Reading »

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Miss Teen America (White Eagle Hall, Jersey City, NJ, May 10, 2025) [THE DEAD MILKMEN]

May 10, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 10, 2025] Miss Teen America

Parking around White Eagle Hall is a nightmare.  Despite arriving 25 minutes early for the show, I missed the first half of Miss Teen America.

But I did catch about half of their set and I enjoyed it quite a lot.

As I was watching I thought they had a really My Chemical Romance vibe.  But their earlier stuff.  It was very funny to me when, on my way back to the car, a young woman was talking with her friends and she said “That opening band was like what it must have been like to see My Chemical Romance when they first came out.  The singer even looked like Gerard Way.”

The band had a great look.  Their (new) bassist was awesome in fishnets and super high boots.  And their lead guitarist had a look that I couldn’t see all that well (the stage was pretty dark) but which was cool from afar.

They played four or five song while I was there including a song that they played together for the first time that night.  They describe themselves as traditional goth with “punk rock energy and a pop sensibility” and that’s pretty accurate.  I feel that the goth part is more from their look than their sound, but they definitely fall into the punkier side of goth. Continue Reading »

Posted in Jersey City, NJ, Miss Teen America, The Dead Milkmen, White Eagle Hall | 2 Comments »

Oshima Brothers (The Arrow, Allentown, PA, May 6, 2025) [KISHI BASHI]

May 7, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 6, 2025] Oshima Brothers

This was our first time going to Archer Music Hall or it’s smaller companion The Arrow.  It’s a great set up with the two venue attached and yet somehow totally independent.  Our show was a quiet folkie show and downstairs were The Melvins and Napalm Death and we couldn’t hear any of it.

I had never heard of the Oshima Brothers.  Actually, that’s not true, they played Guster’s On the Ocean Festival (which we didn’t go to), but I hadn’t head them at all.

The brothers came out and there was a joke about one of them (Sean) looking like Nick Jonas (he does).  So they are Japanese-Italian folk-pop siblings from the coast of Maine.  Sean and Jamie play keys, bass, drums, looping, dance moves, and magic.

They had a great stage presence–lots of smiling and crowd interactions.  And their musical prowess was impressive–the amount of things they could play with looping.

Their songs were gentle and sweet but kind of forgettable.  The kind of songs that work well and are enjoyable live, but when you listen to them later, they’re just sort of okay. Continue Reading »

Posted in Allentown PA, Archer Music Hall, Kishi Bashi, Oshima Brothers, Tall Tall Trees | Leave a Comment »

The BellRays (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, May 3, 2025) [THE DAMNED]

May 5, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 3, 2025] The Damned

I saw the Damned at Coney Isalnd High with my friend Garry on Feb 6 1998

The BellRays are a band from California that describes itself as an original punk, rock and soul band.  I had never heard of them and assumed they were a young band.  But they have been together since 1990.  I guess if I hadn’t heard of them in 35 years, they weren’t really on my radar.

So they came out and demanded quite a lot from the audience.  Again, I thought they were a new band, so this surprised (and annoyed) me.  Knowing that they’ve been doing this for so long, I get where the on stage banter and attitude comes from.

They rocked pretty well, but it really wasn’t my thing.  Actually, that’s not true.  If they had opened for someone else–someone soulful and almost bluesy, I would have enjoyed them more. But there’s really nothing punk about them (except their attitude, I guess).

The songs were basic, good rockers, but lyrically, they were pretty meh.

Having said that, singer Lisa Kekaula has a fantastic voice–soulful and powerful–and she and guitarist Robert Vennum, the founders of the band) have great chemistry.  I was thinking that a comparison of her voice to Tina Turner’s was lazy; however, in their blurb they say they have been described as ‘Tina Turner fronting AC/DC.”  I wouldn’t go as heavy as AC/DC for the band, but the description works.  Actually, they sound a lot more like an L.A. metal band circa late 80’s.  Although their cover of Ball of Confusion was pretty great.

If I was in the right mood for them I probably would have loved them, but I found them just okay.

The Damned toured around here in 2023 and I couldn’t go.  But Fucked Up opened for them and I sure as hell would have enjoyed THAT double bill.

  1. On Top £
  2. I Fall Down ♠
  3. Hard Drive ♠
  4. Wolf’s Sun ♠
  5. Changing Colors ‰
  6. Living a Lie £
  7. Down On My Knees ♠
  8. One More Night ♠
  9. Voodoo Train €
  10. Black Lightning £
  11. Startime €

♠ Heavy Steady Go
£ Black Lightning
€ Red White and Black
‰ Let It Blast

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, The BellRays, The Damned, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Varietourpia with Paul F. Tompkins (Theatre of Living Arts [TLA], Philadelphia, PA, May 4, 2025)

May 5, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 4, 2025] Varietourpia with Paul F. Tompkins

Paul F. Tompkins is one of my favorite comedians and I would happily see him do anything.  Although this is the first time I’ve been able to see one of his Varietopia shows.

As the name suggests, this is a Variety show like they had in the old days: comedy, music, interaction, magic.  All in one show.  He’s been doing this since 2002 (!) and it sounds like when he does the show in L.A. anyone who is funny or entertaining shows up.

For our show, we had Medusa the Gangsta Goddess and Artoun Nazareth.  Not household names by any means.

Medusa the Gangsta Goddess is an underground hip-hop legend whom I’ve never heard of.  She was fun and is referred to as the godmother of west coast hip hop.

Artoun Nazareth is a magician who I thought was really good and very funny.  I was gobsmacked by a trick in which writing appeared to move across a page and turn into something else.

Nazareth is also an actor, so it makes sense that he was such a good performer.  He did fun crowd work and was good enough that I immediately followed him on Instagram. Continue Reading »

Posted in Artoun Nazareth, Medusa the Gangsta Goddess, Paul F. Tompkins, Philadelphia, PA, Theatre of Living Arts, Varietourpia | Leave a Comment »

Devo (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, May 1, 2025)

May 1, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: May 1, 2025] DEVO

As with most people my age, Devo has been (intentionally or not) part of my life for most of my life.  Even if I didn’t know their earlist stuff, Whip It was unavoidable in the days of MTV.

I never considered seeing them.  In fact I hadn’t really thought about them at all since college.  But a few years ago we saw a Mark Mothersbaugh exhibit in a Denver Museum and I went on a really deep dive of his stuff (and obviously I know he makes all kinds of great soundtracks).

Devo has played live over the last decade, but this was their first time playing Philly since 2008.  And I had heard that the shows on this tour were great.  So I was excited to see them.

And what a show!  They’ve always been a very visual band and this continued in their live show.  And the crowd responded in kind.  There were many people dressed in yellow jump suits.  There were countless energy domes, including one that a guy custom fit the inside with duct tape and other gadgets so it fit him perfectly (he of course had on a yellow jump suit too).

It opened with a funny video showing a where are they now look at the guy who tried to make them stars in the 1970s.  (Very funny, but also quite pointed).

They opened with one of their “new” songs (from 2010) which I vaguely knew.   And the backdrop was a full scale visual assault of colors and videos.

The band were dressed in black suit jacket and pants (with Devo printed on the lapel).  Mark Mothersbaugh looks a lot like Steve Martin now which is somehow even more fun. Continue Reading »

Posted in Devo, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

Steven Page Trio (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, April 22, 2025)

April 23, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 22, 2025] Steven Page Trio

I have loved Steven Page’s voice for decades.

I’ve really enjoyed his Trio shows, too.  I think I’d like to see him with a full band to really rock out, but even in this trio format, they can still rock.

The trio includes Craig Northey (of Odds) on guitar and Kevin Fox on cello.  I saw this same trio in the same place six years ago and it was great to see them again.

Like last time, they played a mix of BNL songs and Steven solo songs.  It was fun that they opened with It’s All Been Done (Steven acoustic, Craig electric) and the crowd Whoo hoo hoo’d along with them.  They followed it with Steven’s A New Shore (Land ho!) and the on to another BNL song, Jane.

The conundrum is that I love the BNL songs as much as anyone, but I feel a little bad that he doesn’t play more of his great solo stuff.  And yet, when he satted Alternative Girlfriend–one of my all time faves, it was a glorious moment.  The fact that it segued into Odds’ Someone Who’s Cool was a wonderful touch. Continue Reading »

Posted in Art of Time Ensemble, Barenaked Ladies, Craig Northey, Kevin Fox, Philadelphia, PA, Steven Page, The Beatles, World Cafe Live | Leave a Comment »

Menno Versteeg (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, April 22, 2025) [STEVEN PAGE TRIO]

April 22, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 22, 2025] Menno Versteeg

Menno Versteeg is a Canadian musician who fronted the awesomely-named (but I’ve never heard or heard of) Hollerado.  I wasn’t aware of him until this show, and I’m not sure how “big” he is in Canada.

Menno was very funny–a lighthearted storyteller (even if the stories were kind of dark).  Sadly, we walked in during the first song (WCL can be a real pain to get to), but we didn’t miss much.

It was him and his acoustic guitar playing songs from Why We Run, his debut solo album–although he has released music under the name Mav Carlo as well.

His songs were about a rough life as a youth in Canada

We would to drink enough whatever there was
To kill a clydesdale every night
But we’d do enough drugs and punching,
To bring that same horse back to life  [from Videostore]

There was a country vibe, but like most of Canadian country music, there wasn’t that awful twang in the vocals.

I particularly enjoyed the two dog songs.  The 4o some second I Got a Dog which is (entirely):

My mother is dyslexic
Sometimes her letters switch around
She failed grade 10 like a good artist does
And passed those ğood ġenes down
She faints plowers, like she saints pun-sets
Haints her Peart when She bolds a hush
And she assured me I would rind my dog
When I wasn’t in a fush

And then Bad Dog was a funny song story about a real bad dog–but Menno loves him still. Continue Reading »

Posted in Barenaked Ladies, Craig Northey, Hollerado, Kevin Fox, Menno Versteeg, Philadelphia, PA, Steven Page, World Cafe Live | Leave a Comment »

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