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Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (The Met Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, April 26, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 26, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT AnicTTEND: April 26, 2025] Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

I saw Nick Cave back in 2017 and it was a great show an a terrible show at the same time.  Nick was great but the crowd around me was so annoying.  And a lot of things went wrong that kept me from getting there at a reasonable hour, so I was really far back.  Blah Blah Blah.

I don’t really like Nick’s newest, mellow, sad album.  I hadn’t even listened to this new one.   And since this was the tour for this album, I didn’t really plan to get tickets.  I did look at them when they were announced and they were really expensive.  So I didn’t even bother getting a ticket.

Looks like he did play songs I wanted to hear and I’m sure the crowd would have been better behaved.  But it’s totally fine that I didn’t go.

Posted in Nick Cave, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

Beach Bunny / Pool Kids (The Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, April 26, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 26, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 26, 2025] Beach Bunny / Pool Kids

I have seen Beach Bunny with my daughter three times.  Her shows are a lot off fun, so when she announced this show, I was sure my daughter would like to go to.

But as the night approached my daughter was too busy to go.  I offered the ticket to my wife, but although we had just gone to a seated show, she did not feel up to going to a GA show. So we stayed home instead.

Pool Kids are one of my favorite young bands, who I actually first saw when the opened for Beach Bunny at Pier 17.  This really was a great double bill and I’m bummed to have missed it.  But I did get tickets to see Pool Kids headline in September, and I’m sure Beach Bunny will be back soon.

 

 

Posted in Beach Bunny, Philadelphia, PA, Pool Kids, The Fillmore Philadelphia | Leave a Comment »

Orla Gartland / Fightmaster (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, April 25, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 25, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 25, 2025] Orla Gartland / Fightmaster

I’ve known about Orla Gartland for a few years.  I really liked her song You’re Not Special, Babe.  And her newer song Little Chaos is great.

She falls into the grouping of youngish women singers who I really like one or two songs by but never looked into more of their stuff.  So I want to see them but I’m not super psyched to do it.

Usually when I go see them I enjoy their show.  But if I don’t, then I think about seeing them every time they come.

I had intended to see Beach Bunny the following night with my daughter, so I stayed home because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go out two nights in a row.  And I feel like I should have gone to this one.  I should definitely go if she comes back to the US.

Fightmaster is the solo music project of nonbinary artist ER Fightmaster.

ER Fightmaster has appeared on Grey’s Anatomy (!).  I gather that they have quite following and their live sets are pretty captivating.  Maybe they’ll open up for someone else in the future.

Posted in Fightmaster, Orla Gartland, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Magic Sword / Mega Ran / Starbenders (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, April 24, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 24, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 24, 2025] Magic Sword / Mega Ran / Starbenders

I’ve seen Magic Sword twice and I love their instrumental fake-soundtrack music.  Everything about them is super fun.  I would see them any time they came around.  But at the same time they’re kind of a second tier show for me.  Like if something else came along I might go to that instead?  So Cheekface the same night was a tough call.

But I wound up staying home instead of having to decide.

Mega Ran according to Wikipedia,

Raheem Jarbo (stage names Mega Ran and Random) is an American underground nerdcore rapper, chiptune DJ, and record producer. In February 2015, he changed his stage name to Mega Ran, removing Random from any releases.

Mega Ran keeps popping up at shows around here and I’d really like to see him once.  I hope it works out.

Starbenders sound like they’re a mid 80s hair metal band.  And I think that’s the point?  They seem to be considered a glam rock band.  I almost feel like they’re a joke band but I don’t think they are. I’m probably not the right audience for them.

 

Posted in Magic Sword, Mega Ran, Philadelphia, PA, Starbenders, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Cheekface / Pacing (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, April 24, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 24, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 24, 2025] Cheekface / Pacing

I saw Cheekface two years ago and loved them.  I really wanted to see them again.  Last year they played The Church, which I don’t go to.  So when they announced this show at The Foundry I was psyched.  But I already had tickets to see Magic Sword tonight.  What’s a guy to do?

Well, having gone out a few times and having my wife at home still recovering, a guy stays home and doesn’t see either band.

I had not heard of Pacing but when I looked them up I found them delightful and hilarious.  Their bio says

Pacing is the songwriting and recording project of Katie McTigue (she/her). Various Small Flames wrote that she “follows inthe playful, tongue-in-cheek tradition of the likes of Kimya Dawson, yet always nudges the ideas further to be more than mere twee humour or sardonic fun.” Fans and new listeners alike often remark that her anxious, confessional lyrics are “a little too relatable.”

The music is kind of twee but I do love twee.  This would have been a really fun show.

Posted in Cheekface, Pacing, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry | 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 »

L.S. Dunes (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, April 21, 2025)

April 22, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 21, 2025] L.S. Dunes

My son and I saw L.S. Dunes open for Pierce the Veil back in 2023.  We knew a little about them and then the merch guy told us that we would really like them.  But, as seems  to happen at the Santander Arena, the opening bands are just lost in the acoustics of the place.

So when this show was announced I grabbed tickets assuming that we’d like them a lot more if we could actually hear them.

Perhaps the coolest thing of all was that I won a contest on Instagram which gave me two signed posters from the band (strangely enough, one of this posters is not signed by one of the members, but that’s okay).  It was definitely a cool souvenir.

We missed the opening band Night Sins entirely.  And the place was PACKED.  I felt lucky that I could squeeze into the ADA seating area because if I couldn’t we’d have been crowded even further back.  It was not the ideal location–I really assumed we’d be really close to the stage.  And I was a little bummed to be relatively far from the stage–although I think it would have been way too crowded up front.

However, the crowd was 100% into it and it was kind of fun to be behind the crowd and see all of the fun.

We knew Frank Iero the best in the band (being MCR fans).  I feel like I should have known Anthony Green and Circa Survive, but I didn’t know them at all.  We had seen drummer Tucker Rule and bassist Tim Payne from Thursday, but I didn’t really know at all. We were closest to guitarist Travis Stever who plays in Coheed and Cambria–someone I’ve wanted to see but haven’t.  His soloing was great.

I had listened to the new album once or twice but didn’t really know their music all that well.  But I knew it would be great.  I loved the way Like Magick started slowly with Anthony Green singing over strummed chords and then boom, the song took off.  Fatal Deluxe showed the dichotomy of Green’s vocals–screamed intensity and then quieter very high-pitched vocals. Continue Reading »

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, From Indian Lakes, L.S. Dunes, Night Sins | Leave a Comment »

The Linda Lindas / Pinkshift (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, April 21, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

April 21, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 21, 2025] The Linda Lindas / Pinkshift

When I saw this lineup, I assumed that The Linda Lindas were opening for Pinkshift.  But of course it makes a lot more sense that The Linda Lindas would be headlining since they are well known and opened for The Rolling Stones.

I got to see The Linda Lindas when they played The Foundry.  It was fun, they were fun, and I had a great time.  I wasn’t sure if I’d need to see them again so when they played Union Transfer (a huge jump) that was a good test for if I needed to see them again and the answer was not really.

Nothing against them and I wish them much success but I got to see it once and that was good enough for me.

I’ve seen Pinkshift three or four times now and I enjoy their energy and politics.  The last time I saw them I didn’t have quite as much fun for some reason so even they didn’t make me want to go to this show.

I’ll bet it rocked though.

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, Pinkshift, The Linda Lindas, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

From Indian Lakes (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, April 21, 2025) [L.S. DUNES]

April 21, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: August 3, 2025] From Indian Lakes

My son and I saw L.S. Dunes open for Pierce the Veil back in 2023.  We knew a little about them and then the merch guy told us that we would really like them.  But, as seems  to happen at the Santander Arena, the opening bands are just lost in the acoustics of the place.

But I was intrigued enough to want to check them out in Asbury Lanes.  My son and I went for dinner before the show and by the time we found parking, we had missed opening band Night Sins entirely.  And the place was PACKED.  I felt lucky that I could squeeze into the ADA seating area because if I couldn’t we’d have been crowded even further back.  Although I will say that it was not the ideal location–I really assumed we’d be really close to the stage.  And while we weren’t far away, it wasn’t ideal.

By the time we had fully settled in, From Indian Lakes were almost done.  I didn’t know anything about either band, but I was interested in them both and a little bummed to have missed them.

A brief bio: they released their first record since 2019 mid last year, which falls under a shoegaze, indie rock type of genre. The latest album of Head Void was a lot heavier than Dimly Lit in 2019, but compared to L.S. Dunes it’s quite tame.  They are apparently the brainchild of lead singer Joe Vann (Joey Vannucchi) and I don’t know who else was on stage with them.

Joe was totally understated as a front man, but he was also pretty funny, replying to fans shouting things and generally keeping the mood light.  He also had a very funny attitude about talking–just don’t offend anyone and it’s a win.  We saw about three songs in full and I really liked their vibe–very chill and shoegazey.  Although, live there was a harsher element than the soft shimmer of the album.

Overall I enjoyed what little I heard, and I’ve found that I enjoy their albums quite a bit too. Continue Reading »

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, From Indian Lakes, L.S. Dunes, Night Sins | Leave a Comment »

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