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Kælan Mikla (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, February 20, 2025) [ALCEST]

February 20, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: February 20, 2025] Kælan Mikla

I had never heard of Kælan Mikla before this show was announced.  And, since I love music from afar  Was instantly intrigued by this is Icelandic band whose name means (according to Google) The Great Chill or (according to Wikipedia) Lady of the Cold.

They are a trio of Laufey Soffía on lead vocals, Margrét Rósa Dóru-Harrýsdóttir on bass and Sólveig Matthildur Kristjánsdóttir. on keys and more (although only keys for this show).

They came out on stage in dark and spooky lighting (later when I saw them at the merch table, I saw that they had interesting cracked and cobwebby makeup under their eyes.  And Soffia was dressed in an all black gown (seemingly made of toile) with super long fingernails.  It was like a goth flashback and I loved it.

So I guess this music is darkwave, a genre I don’t really know.  I feel like the few darkwave songs I’ve heard I didn’t like.  But maybe seeing it live is a different story, because the whole gothy presentation was fantastic.  I couldn’t really hear Soffia’s vocals (in part because they were in Icelandic, but mostly because of where I was standing), but she sang in variants of quiet, almost whispery singing and screams.  But it combined perfectly to generate a really retro spooky feel with cool modern feminist trappings.  Continue Reading »

Posted in Alcest, Kaelan Mikla, Kælan Mikla, Mono, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Victoria Grace Elliott–Please Be My Star (2024)

February 19, 2025 by Paul Debraski

 SOUNDTRACK: hiatus

[READ: February 19, 2025 ] Please Be My Star

My daughter brought this book home from the library and said that she liked it, but it was kind of weird, and that I should read it.

So I did.

I loved the art style.  It’s a style that I can’t really do, but which I find very appealing.  I liked that it had a manga feel but wasn’t manga.  I also really liked that there was a fair amount of Spanish in it.

The story is fairly simple.  Erika moved to a new high school.  She was kind of a loner in her previous school.  Having been rejected by friends and potential boyfriends at the old school means she is full of self-doubt.  This self doubt takes the form of a ghostly version of herself who criticizes her in speech bubbles that are black with white text.  And the ghostly version of herself is nasty!

Erika joins the drama club, but they are told that they are not going to be doing a school play this year.  Instead, whoever wants to, can enter a one act play in a local performance.  The writer/director will do everything from casting to set building to everything.

Erika has a massive crush on Christian, a hot boy in class.  His family is Mexican which is where the Spanish comes in.  I love that they go to his house and Erika is given a brief tutorial on how to behave in a Mexican household–and she gets to eat delicious homemade enchiladas de Potosí.  Erika decides to write a play specifically for Christina to star in.

He agrees and the bulk of the book is about them prepping for the play, getting sets and dialogue ready and Erika wondering and worrying about whether Christian likes her back (and why would he, since he is so hot and all).  There’s some minor friction with Paola, a girl who has known Christian forever and who is very possessive of him.  But that storyline is quickly dismissed. Continue Reading »

Posted in Café Tacvba, Elvis Costello, Graphic Novel, Play (Drama), Radiohead, Romance, Sonic Youth, They Might Be Giants, YA Books | Leave a Comment »

Lauren Mayberry (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, February 17, 2025)

February 18, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: February 17, 2025] Lauren Mayberry

I was a fan of Chvrches when their first album came out.  Then I kind of lost track of them.  But in that time my wife became a fan.  We missed their last tour in Philly (back in 2021 (!)).  When Lauren Mayberry released a solo album, we both loved the single “Something in the Air” and  thought it would be neat to see her live.

The show didn’t sell very well, which was surprising I thought, since Chvrches has sold out Franklin Music Hall, a much bigger venue.  But it meant that we had a really intimate show, which was awesome.

Overall I liked most of the album Vicious Creature, although there were a few songs that I wasn’t that excited by.  But wow, these songs were fantastic live!  

She had two band members on stage and, I think, a guy on the side with a bank of Apple laptops (I joked that it looked like an Apple store–there were about five!).  The two members on stage were Marian Li-Pino on drums and Heather Nation doing guitar or bass depending on the song.  Later in the set, Heather played piano and Marian played guitar for a song, too.

Heather Nation was ferocious on guitar–generating great sounds.  And Marian Li-Pino was a beast on the drums.  They had a cool cymbal that was bent and made a great metallic, non-cymbal sound.  And Lauren Mayberry was an excellent front woman–she knows how to perform a show.   And what a voice!  I mean, it was amazing.

She played the entire album.  The bangers were amazing–bigger and louder than I expected.  The quieter songs were pretty, a little too mellow for my enjoyment, but hey, you need to vary the mood.  Continue Reading »

Posted in Chvrches, Cult of Venus, Lauren Mayberry, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Cult of Venus (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, February 17, 2025) [LAUREN MAYBERRY]

February 17, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: February 17, 2025] Cult of Venus

It was a cold windy night when we headed out to this show.  Luckily, we managed to get really close parking (Monday night shows are good for that).  Which meant we were plenty early to see the opening act, Cult of Venus.

Cult of Venus has had a lot of mystery surrounding her.  I’m sure her identity is known (I didn’t look too hard to find it), but the two main articles I saw gave this info:

Forgoing any photos to remain completely anonymous and undefined, Cult of Venus have given themself the perfect platform from which to build and long and exciting career. ][They make] music that illustrates and illuminates the dystopian world today, challenging the patriarchy and resonating with the “divine feminine.” Her on-the-ground activist work includes support for incarcerated women and environmental protest movements. Her mysterious presentation is often shrouded in darkness, with her identity and face in the shadows. Her secretive appearance aligns her poetic soundscape in a way that not only drives more curiosity to her audience but is calming in a world so focused on desperate self-promotion.  With shows in all-female prisons and detention centres in the books already, as well as a show as part of New York City’s Women’s March, Cult of Venus have a big year planned while being rooted in reform.

They opened the show with a prerecorded message about strength in the face of oppression.  And then she came out, picked up her guitar and stood in front of the keyboard.  

The only problem to me was the fairly lengthy (I mean, it was probably less than a minute, but it was SO QUIET) pause before the first song started.  I feel like she could have timed that a little more smoothly.  But whatever.

She generated some beats and some synths and proved to have a fantastic voice.  When she played guitar, she clearly had it patched into an effects box because it didn’t sound like a guitar–it was very cool. Continue Reading »

Posted in Chvrches, Cult of Venus, Lauren Mayberry, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Emo Nite featuring MC Lars (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, February 14, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

February 14, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 14, 2025] Emo Nite featuring MC Lars

I have wanted to see MC Lars for a few years now.  But this wasn’t the way for me to see him.

I didn’t know what Emo Nite was.  I assumed it was just a night of emo music.  Which it is, but apparently, Emo Nite is a THING, an entity that tours.  As their blurb says

We are not a band. We are not DJ’s. We throw parties for the music we love.

Their website goes into detail about how they started and what they play.  Basically they love emo and play a night of emo with guest artists.  If I were younger and liked going out, this is the kind of thing I’d enjoy.  But I don’t want to go to a room to listen to records.

Posted in Emo Nite, MC Lars, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

The Get Up Kids: 25 Years of Something to Write Home About / The Anniversary (Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ, February 14, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

February 14, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 14, 2025] The Get Up Kids / The Anniversary

So, once again I missed The Get Up Kids.  They played back in September for this tour and I couldn’t make it.  I hoped  they’d swing around again and they did.  But on Valentine’s Day?

I’m sure many people would find seeing them on Valentine’s Day to be a perfect night.  But, well, not in our house.

I recalled loving The Anniversary‘s album Designing a Nervous Breakdown and being kind of obsessed with them.  And yet, listening to it again now, 25 years later, I don’t really remember it.  But I like it.  I think it would have been fun to see this pairing.  Shame the date was really bad.

I won’t even hope that this tour comes back around, because they are heading to Europe and surely won’t play it again when they come back.

Posted in Sayreville, NJ, Starland Ballroom, The Anniversary, The Get Up Kids | Leave a Comment »

J. Mascis (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, February 12, 2025)

February 13, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: February 12, 2025] J. Mascis

When this show was first announced it turned out to be on the same night as the Babymetal show that my son and I were going to.  But then it was postponed and I grabbed a ticket for the new date.

I couldn’t really imagine J. Mascis in a small club or playing quietly.  Well, this is the same place I saw Thurston Moore a number of years ago.  Amazingly neither legend sold out for a solo show (Thurston wasn’t solo, but it was his solo music).  J was by himself, but I needn’t have worried about being quiet, as he had a massive amp setup on stage.

I don’t know why it took him so long to get on stage (he showed up at 10:10 even though no work had to be done on stage).  His roadie also put like 5 different drinks on his stool, and I don’t think he had any of it.

He came out with a beat up acoustic guitar and proceeded to jam through almost 20 songs.

Before he started, some meathead started the E-A-G-L-E-S chant and J. smiled and then said, I’m impressed you guys can spell.

And then he got to business. Continue Reading »

Posted in J. Mascis, Kurt Vile, Mike Polizze, Philadelphia, PA, Pink Mountaintops, Purling Hiss, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Molchat Doma / Sextile (Franklin Music Hall, Philadelphia, PA, February 12, 2025) [DID NOT ATTEND]

February 12, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: February 12, 2025] Molchat Doma / Sextile

I’m so very intrigued by Molchat Doma.  I first heard about them a couple of years ago, and their bio shows them to be right up my street:

Founded in 2017 in Minsk, Belarus, and now residing in Los Angeles, MOLCHAT DOMA stands at the intersection of post punk, new wave and synth pop.

I love the idea of a band from Belarus singing in Belarusian becoming successful in the States.  Indeed, when they played Philly llast year I believe they sold out Union Transfer.  At least according to this blurb from 2022

Fans who missed their sold-out tour earlier this year will have a chance at redemption as the trio play larger venues, fitting for their growth.

In 2022, they played Underground Arts, in 023 they played Union Transfer and this year they are playing Franklin Music Hall–steady growth indeed.

And here’s what Underground Arts said back in 2022 Continue Reading »

Posted in Franklin Music Hall, Molchat Doma, Philadelphia, PA, Sextile | Leave a Comment »

Mike Polizze [Purling Hiss] (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, February 12, 2025) [J. MASCIS]

February 12, 2025 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: February 12, 2025] Mike Polizze [rescheduled from November 21, 2024]

When this show was first announced I didn’t know if I wanted to go, plus it turned out to be on the same night as the Babymetal show that my son and I were going to.

Initially Pink Mountaintops were supposed to open for this show.  Then a few days ago I saw that it was going to be Purling Hiss.  I was really excited to see Pink Mountaintops (who I haven’t seen before).  There was no notice or explanation of their departure from these shows.  But they were replaced by, as many of the posters say Purling Hiss (Solo).

Purling Hiss is Mike Polizze.  He was the only person on the first few records and the latter records add a drummer and maybe someone else.  But it’s not wrong to say this is Purling Hiss solo.

Polizze had opened for Kurt Vile recently and I enjoyed listening to his set.  And it proved to be quiet similar to this set opening for J Masics.

Mike had an acoustic guitar and a bunch of pedals–mostly a looping pedal, a distortion pedal and a wah wah.

And wow, was he loud.  I anticipated J would be loud, but I think that Mike may have been louder–or his equipment wasn’t mic’d as nicely so it sounded harsher.

Mike looped his guitar chords and then played solos using varying degrees of distortion and volume.  I really enjoyed the amount of looping he did and I was close enough to watch him using the looping pedal–tapping the pedal to add a solo section to loop with the chords, etc. Continue Reading »

Posted in J. Mascis, Kurt Vile, Mike Polizze, Philadelphia, PA, Pink Mountaintops, Purling Hiss, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Dan Santat–The Aquanaut (2022)

February 11, 2025 by Paul Debraski

 SOUNDTRACK:

[READ: February 2, 2025] The Aquanaut

I like Dan Santat (his instagram is fun) and I like his drawing style.  I’ve read a lot of books that he has illustrated but I don’t know that I’ve read all that many books written by him.

This book was pretty weird, but the story was a lot of fun.

The story opens with a man getting killed at sea (yea, pretty shocking).  The man turns out to be the father of the main character, Sophia.

Sophia’s father and her uncle had created a marine theme park called Aqualand.  They were scientists and they wanted to bring the world of the sea to everyone.  But there’s not a lot of money in that so investors kept insisting that they add more excitement to Aqualand.  And soon it was a far cry from what they’d envisioned.

But then one day, an Aquanaut walks out of the sea.  The aquanaut is in a diving suit–the one that her father had used!–It causes quite a stir, obviously, but it has one goal: to find Aqualand.  It’s especially funny when you realize that the suit is being “driven” by three sea creatures.

I enjoyed the story well enough but it did leave a lot of questions, mostly to do with the plot.  There’s no real explanation or even introduction to the sea creatures. And after reading the afterword where Santat talks about how personal the story was to him, I wanted to like it more.  But instead I mostly enjoyed the illustrations and the overall environmental themes and vibe of the book.

Posted in Animals, Dan Santat, Death, Graphic Novel, Huh?, Ocean | Leave a Comment »

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