Upcoming/Recent Shows

[Rip_City]

Went out to Portland to see yeule, one of my most anticipated shows. The concert was enjoyable, but felt slightly disappointed by the end.

Michele Yue

Michele offered some ethereal vocals alongside rather straightforward 00s house/electronic production. Her set was ~35min in length, though it seemed much longer. She was joined with a DJ/producer/vocalist that added in an energized drum pad performance and autotuned vocals. It seemed that he was aiming for a hyperpop edge during different parts of the set.
Overall, a decent opener. Probably will forget it by next month.




After a 25min intermission, this lit up in the background:



yeule

They took the stage alone with nothing other than a guitar + stand to the side, which allowed for them to dance gracefully and maximize the rather small size of Holocene's stage during songs. yeule had their back faced away from the audience with some subtle choreography to a 3 minute ambient opener not present on either of the two albums released thus far. After, they performed lovely "Pixel Affection" from Serotonin II to kick off the set. Five more songs were performed that spread across both records, then they picked up the guitar, retuned, and performed both "Eva" and the lead single "Don't be so Hard on Your Own Beauty" from this year's Glitch Princess. Closed out with "Bites on My Neck," and the crowd went bananas as expected...still one of my favorite singles of the year.
The set went for only 50min, a slightly disappointing length.




Continuous video of yeule's guitar portion of the set, with "Eva" and "Don't be so Hard on Your Own Beauty," a highlight from the concert that showcases yeule's beautiful approach to ambient pop, along with some lighthearted chatter:



Post-show

The crowd was very much desiring an encore but after three minutes of chanting, we were met with stage and room lights returning to normal luminescence. Took about another five minutes for the stage room to clear and free up the doors leading to the bar/lower area. Merch was absurdly priced (no media for sale, $27 for a signed small poster, $41 for t-shirts, $18 for a small four sticker pak, and a few others), so I skipped out on that. Waited around for yeule to appear from behind the curtains but they did not reappear. Gave up hope trying to get my Serotonin II and Glitch Princess records signed after 30min of waiting around, so I went home.

 

[avecigrec]

Crosspost from the hip hop thread.

If you're in any of these areas I can't recommend these guys enough. Outstanding Indigenous hip hop from (colonially known as) Canada. Some of the most important and inspiring music outta my neck of the woods these days, and then put on an absolute ripper of a show!




Presale code: SINKORSWIM

 

[Mack37]

Down in Nashville for a short trip. Lucked out and had some people I wanted to see have shows pop up last minute. Only took a couple pictures.

Lady Couch was amazing, but didn’t get to play very long.



Then Lilly Haitt at Acme Feed & Seed, which is the only place I really dig on Broadway.






Then also had to check out what was on the Purple Building.

 

[Tillman]

saw Mitski last night at Radio City Music Hall, and she and her band were truly amazing, relying very little in terms of stage design, media, lights, etc... that said, I was surprised a bit by the crowd. I don't mean this in any negative way, but I don't normally go to shows surrounded by screaming teenage fans...and they reacted to every single gesture, dance, pose, etc...

that said, it was very sweet, endearing, and positive... just different than I was expecting..ha ha.

 

[My Neighbor Brotoro]

that said, I was surprised a bit by the crowd. I don't mean this in any negative way, but I don't normally go to shows surrounded by screaming teenage fans...and they reacted to every single gesture, dance, pose, etc...

Welcome to the era of pandemic teens who curated their musical tastes through TikTok and are now attending their first live shows.

 

[Matt M]

Had a good 3 days of music last weekend. Caught Kevn Kinney in a basement pub during his 3 day stint there, then raced over to another venue to finish the night of worth Alejandro Escovedo.

The next two nights were at the Wild Hare Festival. Some highlights were Morgan Wade, Vincent Neil Emerson, Zach Bryan, Sarah Shook, Lucero, TK and the Holy Know Nothings, and Marcus King. Nice little fest a little out of town, crowds were a nice size as we were able to wander around and get near the front for everyone except Zach Bryan. Apparently that guy is blowing up and must be in country radio, all of a sudden the place was packed and all the young kids were singing along.

Lots of Country and Americana made for a nice time, and the lady was happy which is really what it's all about. And hey, overpriced beers and white claws too!

 

[Tillman]

Welcome to the era of pandemic teens who curated their musical tastes through TikTok and are now attending their first live shows.

for sure! I didn't realize how she was blowing up on TikTok until my wife told me.

I feel like the last time the Venn diagram of me and screaming teens overlapped was seeing Mac DeMarco a few years back, which again I didn't expect.

it doesn't happen often so when it does it catches me off guard

 

[tvham]

for sure! I didn't realize how she was blowing up on TikTok until my wife told me.

I feel like the last time the Venn diagram of me and screaming teens overlapped was seeing Mac DeMarco a few years back, which again I didn't expect.

it doesn't happen often so when it does it catches me off guard

Not tik tok related but when I saw the 1975 on their headline tour after they opened for Taylor Swift it felt pretty similar.

 

[waruv]

Mitski also got our local venue's "don't you dare camp outside the venue" warning. First since Olivia Rodrigo.

Anyway, Newport Folk Fest observations. I won't go too painfully into details as it would be way too long and my brain is still fried from the heat of the weekend. Some highlights though of people I wanted to point out. Of note it was completely sweltering for most of the two days and miserable to be outside in the sun, so this may be addled

Goose - Third darn time I've written on them this year, but my GF is hunting shows now. They were all over the fest. We didn't go to NFF Friday, but we did get off the waitlist for their aftershow in a tiny Newport Venue (400ish people crammed in). The logistics stunk (this is a theme of the weekend) - they had lines in three different directions with no guidance on which line was valid. The severely overworked doorman pretty much went in a circle which really screwed over those waiting in the assumed line. I didn't really care that much but lots of grumbles. They opened 30 minutes later and started 30 minutes later. With that said, it was a really great set given they had to be stationary on the stage to not knock a ton of equipment over. Taylor Goldsmith from Dawes joined in (he was everywhere this weekend too) for covers of Atlantic City and Don't Do It, and they had some real runs in there. The crowd was your standard mixed bag - some conflicts around recording (someone had a stream going and people were talking near it so they clashed), the upstairs crew just listening was much more chills. They're firing on all cylinders right now. The band also popped into a lot of other sets through the fest.



Ballroom Thieves - They're a band I thought I was out on - I had a pretty big Ballroom Thieves phase a few years back and then lost touch. I may be back in on them. They were the first main stage act on Saturday when it was already 80+ in direct sun with major humidity and brought a ton of positive energy and a great live sound.

Adia Victoria - This may have been the best set of the day I saw that didn't prominently star someone else. She was moved from their smallest stage when Durand Jones had to drop out due to a death in the family to their main stage and...holy crap did she own that stage. There has been a huge influx of incredibly talented women of color in the larger Southern/Americana sphere - many of whom were at this year's NFF. I won't do a write up on Valerie June whose vocals sounded great on Sunday or Joy Oladokun who has an exceptional vocal range and stage charisma (and did a sick Nirvana cover this weekend) and Yasmin Williams who is as technically brilliant as always. I did want to highlight Adia. She is an absolute presence who occupies a unique bluesy, gothic, area of this revival. Her vocals and more mysterious style really cut through the casual atmosphere and I'm really looking forward to seeing her own show at some point



Bleachers - This was a really divisive set. I thoroughly enjoyed it and that Jack Antonoff was willing to try stripped down versions of his song, interesting covers, different guest spots. Others couldn't stand it.

Nathaniel Rateliff's American Tune Revue - I've really never been the biggest Nathaniel Rateliff fan per se. I saw him live at Boston Calling and wasn't hugely impressed, and after the explosive debut, none of the newer stuff really hit. With that said, the man is an exceptional ambassador. This set was a Paul Simon cover set with a wide variety of high quality and appropriate musicians tuned in. The band was on point the entire time and Rateliff knew exactly when to step back and step in. Of course, the big news is that they brought out Paul Simon and that was absolutely magical - to get four songs by Paul Simon after his retirement was more than could be asked for. They were plagued with some technical issues but it still left most everyone feeing good. Watch it all if you get a shot but the highlight from the set for me was one Paul Simon...played guitar on. Rhiannon Giddens blew us all away.



The Linda Lindas - It's borderline offensive that these four, ranging in age from 11-17, are this good at what they do Like, I think early on much of the appeal was that it was four pre-teens or teenage girls swinging riot grrl punk rock but you watch them and they have a GREAT stage presence, really strong playing skills, and even some crowd work chops. The crowd loved them, they got the kiddos to the front to watch, I was thoroughly entertained.

Taylor Goldsmith - I didn't see the full set but I saw two songs stuck in a line, he was inviting fans on stage to be his band (and Goose and Blake Mills in spots), teaching them in real time what to do, and then playing a legitimately entertaining set of Dawes and cover songs. Like...dude, hugely impressive.

The Roots - Their set wasn't really different than their normal set I don't think...it was still one of the 3-4 best things I saw this weekend. The guitar solos, the song mixing, the overall flow, it had the entire quad of AARP members and heat drenched mildly buzzed millennials jumping and dancing. Pardon the lack of focus but man...



Brandi Carlile / Joni Jam -This was one of the Top 3-5 musical moments of my entire life. The weather had turned into an eerie gray haze blocking out the beating sun of the weekend. Brandi Carlile, one of the single most composed and steady musicians in the game, was a nervous excited wreck. She wasn't doing crowd work, she left 30 minutes early from her set which had already been split in half the day - rumors of Joni were flying but the bravest folks got were to suggest a singalong or a tribute set she watched. Brandi led off with a five minute speech on the political environment, folk music, with rambling nerves, she led into how this came to be. It appears for the last half decade Joni Mitchell had been inviting musicians into her home to play, write songs, spend time together, drink, commiserate, and pretty much anything else. The circle had continued to grow and eventually evolved into what happened at the show (or has been happening that they brought to Newport). It was Joni covers but it was different - everyone on comfy seats in a circle. people jumping in, Joni singing along or taking a few words, it was magical and beautiful and enough. Celisse shredded Help Me, Marcus Mumford made people cry leading A Case of You, Joni was adding in her spots - the low ending on Big Yellow Taxi was a cheer and a highlight. Then Joni broke out the ax and did a fantastic solo of of Just Like This Train and it felt like that was the special moment. She prepped it, killed it, and had the crowd enraptured. Back to the covers. To some extent this was planned, but I'm also convinced the show was prepared for her not to do it - it was originally a two hour Brandi and Friends set that changed to a Brandi and Friends / Coyote Jam Split...and then Brandi and Friends lost half its time to the Coyote Jam.

And then Joni took the mic.

But man, no one off of that stage expected in their right mind for Joni to actually take the lead and do songs. She broke into Summertime and an entirely different vibe hit - the exceedingly rare kind of shock you just don't get in life usually without a lot of accompanying trauma or fallout. I won't lie and say it was silent - I was near a four year old eating ice out of the dirt, parents entertaining their children, I walked away from some people who were just a little too inebriated (there's something oddly beautiful to say about the power of parenthood in that but I don't have those words). But the crowd was just there for it, the entire crowd which has been notoriously out of it all weekend (because of the heat mostly) was there, eating out of her hand. A woman who had not performed like this for an audience in nearly a quarter of a century.

And here's the thing. She was good. Like, legitimately good. It's not to say she couldn't use the help and the support didn't make it possible (it did), but like...if you told me there was a Joni Mitchell show at her age and I got these performances I'd be quite happy. With the how we got here, it was pure magic. She still has that late career husk in her voice, that delivery, where you're seeing a musical poet. I feel like you can get that as well from the videos as being there and I implore you to take some time and watch them.



Joni Mitchell “Summertime “Live at Newport Folk Festival, Sunday, July 24, 2022

 

[folsom_lives]

Trying to figure out if I want to drag my wife to a Snarky Puppy show...

 

[Djxfactor511]

Tonight was my son's first concert (not loud), seeing John Moreland on Fountain Square in Cincinnati. As you can see, he thoroughly enjoyed himself and even stayed awake for most of it!

I also enjoyed getting my records signed by John.

 

[Tillman]

saw Frankie And The Witch Fingers the last two nights, and my goodness does that band bring it live.. if you love an energetic good time check them out!

Night 1 - July 28. Queens, NY: they played this small club, TV Eye, which I'd never heard of before, but I grew up not far from the place so really wanted to check it out and it was great for where and what it is. being a Thursday night in Queens with them also having a Friday night show in NYC, the place was maybe half full and it's already a small venue, but those who were there were treated to probably the better of the two shows, with some extra antics from the band as well as an encore.


Night 2: July 29. NYC. Friday night in NYC, at a slightly bigger club, Mercury Lounge. being Friday night in NYC the show was packed (I noticed many faces from the night before) and the crowd was far more of a presence this show. I was close to the stage for about half the show and then moved closer to the back, where it was far more calm, to meet up with a friend who never heard of them before and left loving what he saw. the show's ending was a bit anti-climactic though, as they finished their last song, left the stage, and the bassist returned shortly after with the crowd expecting the rest of the band to also hit the stage for an encore... but it just didn't happen. she waved and walked off, lights up. show over.

 

[tvham]

David Gray - Greek Theatre, Berkeley
White Ladder 20th Anniversary Tour (originally scheduled for 2020, twice postponed)

Such a great show, my first time seeing David Gray and I had no idea he was such a showman. The set started off with 10 tracks spanking his career, then a short break before playing White Ladder front to back, followed by a 3 song encore of covers. I highly recommend catching this show if it makes it to your town.

 

[sahomerrocks]

saw Mitski last night at Radio City Music Hall, and she and her band were truly amazing, relying very little in terms of stage design, media, lights, etc... that said, I was surprised a bit by the crowd. I don't mean this in any negative way, but I don't normally go to shows surrounded by screaming teenage fans...and they reacted to every single gesture, dance, pose, etc...

that said, it was very sweet, endearing, and positive... just different than I was expecting..ha ha.

I've seen Mitski over a dozen times and while she deserves all the success she's receiving, I gotta say I miss the days right after Bury Me... seeing her open for a band playing a bowling alley. I wasn't even able to get tickets to my least favorite venue in the city for this tour.

The backup band is miles better now though.

 

[Djxfactor511]

First ever Phish show was fun. I'm not really familiar with any of their catalog at all, but good jams are good jams, man.

 

[My Neighbor Brotoro]

Stuff I've seen around New York in the past month:

Regina Spektor at Carnegie Hall

Courtney Barnett at Radio City Music Hall

Maren Morris at Radio City Music Hall

Chvrches at Brooklyn Mirage

 

[Russ I]

Mitski also got our local venue's "don't you dare camp outside the venue" warning. First since Olivia Rodrigo.

Anyway, Newport Folk Fest observations. I won't go too painfully into details as it would be way too long and my brain is still fried from the heat of the weekend. Some highlights though of people I wanted to point out. Of note it was completely sweltering for most of the two days and miserable to be outside in the sun, so this may be addled

Goose - Third darn time I've written on them this year, but my GF is hunting shows now. They were all over the fest. We didn't go to NFF Friday, but we did get off the waitlist for their aftershow in a tiny Newport Venue (400ish people crammed in). The logistics stunk (this is a theme of the weekend) - they had lines in three different directions with no guidance on which line was valid. The severely overworked doorman pretty much went in a circle which really screwed over those waiting in the assumed line. I didn't really care that much but lots of grumbles. They opened 30 minutes later and started 30 minutes later. With that said, it was a really great set given they had to be stationary on the stage to not knock a ton of equipment over. Taylor Goldsmith from Dawes joined in (he was everywhere this weekend too) for covers of Atlantic City and Don't Do It, and they had some real runs in there. The crowd was your standard mixed bag - some conflicts around recording (someone had a stream going and people were talking near it so they clashed), the upstairs crew just listening was much more chills. They're firing on all cylinders right now. The band also popped into a lot of other sets through the fest.



Ballroom Thieves - They're a band I thought I was out on - I had a pretty big Ballroom Thieves phase a few years back and then lost touch. I may be back in on them. They were the first main stage act on Saturday when it was already 80+ in direct sun with major humidity and brought a ton of positive energy and a great live sound.

Adia Victoria - This may have been the best set of the day I saw that didn't prominently star someone else. She was moved from their smallest stage when Durand Jones had to drop out due to a death in the family to their main stage and...holy crap did she own that stage. There has been a huge influx of incredibly talented women of color in the larger Southern/Americana sphere - many of whom were at this year's NFF. I won't do a write up on Valerie June whose vocals sounded great on Sunday or Joy Oladokun who has an exceptional vocal range and stage charisma (and did a sick Nirvana cover this weekend) and Yasmin Williams who is as technically brilliant as always. I did want to highlight Adia. She is an absolute presence who occupies a unique bluesy, gothic, area of this revival. Her vocals and more mysterious style really cut through the casual atmosphere and I'm really looking forward to seeing her own show at some point



Bleachers - This was a really divisive set. I thoroughly enjoyed it and that Jack Antonoff was willing to try stripped down versions of his song, interesting covers, different guest spots. Others couldn't stand it.

Nathaniel Rateliff's American Tune Revue - I've really never been the biggest Nathaniel Rateliff fan per se. I saw him live at Boston Calling and wasn't hugely impressed, and after the explosive debut, none of the newer stuff really hit. With that said, the man is an exceptional ambassador. This set was a Paul Simon cover set with a wide variety of high quality and appropriate musicians tuned in. The band was on point the entire time and Rateliff knew exactly when to step back and step in. Of course, the big news is that they brought out Paul Simon and that was absolutely magical - to get four songs by Paul Simon after his retirement was more than could be asked for. They were plagued with some technical issues but it still left most everyone feeing good. Watch it all if you get a shot but the highlight from the set for me was one Paul Simon...played guitar on. Rhiannon Giddens blew us all away.



The Linda Lindas - It's borderline offensive that these four, ranging in age from 11-17, are this good at what they do Like, I think early on much of the appeal was that it was four pre-teens or teenage girls swinging riot grrl punk rock but you watch them and they have a GREAT stage presence, really strong playing skills, and even some crowd work chops. The crowd loved them, they got the kiddos to the front to watch, I was thoroughly entertained.

Taylor Goldsmith - I didn't see the full set but I saw two songs stuck in a line, he was inviting fans on stage to be his band (and Goose and Blake Mills in spots), teaching them in real time what to do, and then playing a legitimately entertaining set of Dawes and cover songs. Like...dude, hugely impressive.

The Roots - Their set wasn't really different than their normal set I don't think...it was still one of the 3-4 best things I saw this weekend. The guitar solos, the song mixing, the overall flow, it had the entire quad of AARP members and heat drenched mildly buzzed millennials jumping and dancing. Pardon the lack of focus but man...



Brandi Carlile / Joni Jam -This was one of the Top 3-5 musical moments of my entire life. The weather had turned into an eerie gray haze blocking out the beating sun of the weekend. Brandi Carlile, one of the single most composed and steady musicians in the game, was a nervous excited wreck. She wasn't doing crowd work, she left 30 minutes early from her set which had already been split in half the day - rumors of Joni were flying but the bravest folks got were to suggest a singalong or a tribute set she watched. Brandi led off with a five minute speech on the political environment, folk music, with rambling nerves, she led into how this came to be. It appears for the last half decade Joni Mitchell had been inviting musicians into her home to play, write songs, spend time together, drink, commiserate, and pretty much anything else. The circle had continued to grow and eventually evolved into what happened at the show (or has been happening that they brought to Newport). It was Joni covers but it was different - everyone on comfy seats in a circle. people jumping in, Joni singing along or taking a few words, it was magical and beautiful and enough. Celisse shredded Help Me, Marcus Mumford made people cry leading A Case of You, Joni was adding in her spots - the low ending on Big Yellow Taxi was a cheer and a highlight. Then Joni broke out the ax and did a fantastic solo of of Just Like This Train and it felt like that was the special moment. She prepped it, killed it, and had the crowd enraptured. Back to the covers. To some extent this was planned, but I'm also convinced the show was prepared for her not to do it - it was originally a two hour Brandi and Friends set that changed to a Brandi and Friends / Coyote Jam Split...and then Brandi and Friends lost half its time to the Coyote Jam.

And then Joni took the mic.

But man, no one off of that stage expected in their right mind for Joni to actually take the lead and do songs. She broke into Summertime and an entirely different vibe hit - the exceedingly rare kind of shock you just don't get in life usually without a lot of accompanying trauma or fallout. I won't lie and say it was silent - I was near a four year old eating ice out of the dirt, parents entertaining their children, I walked away from some people who were just a little too inebriated (there's something oddly beautiful to say about the power of parenthood in that but I don't have those words). But the crowd was just there for it, the entire crowd which has been notoriously out of it all weekend (because of the heat mostly) was there, eating out of her hand. A woman who had not performed like this for an audience in nearly a quarter of a century.

And here's the thing. She was good. Like, legitimately good. It's not to say she couldn't use the help and the support didn't make it possible (it did), but like...if you told me there was a Joni Mitchell show at her age and I got these performances I'd be quite happy. With the how we got here, it was pure magic. She still has that late career husk in her voice, that delivery, where you're seeing a musical poet. I feel like you can get that as well from the videos as being there and I implore you to take some time and watch them.



Joni Mitchell “Summertime “Live at Newport Folk Festival, Sunday, July 24, 2022

Really appreciate your write-up of what it was like to be there for Joni. I was beside myself watching the videos. Tears and complete disbelief. What an incredibly special happening.

 

[Djxfactor511]

Radio station got me in the soundcheck for Courtney Barnett's show in Cleveland yesterday. Got to hear 3 or so songs, pose for a nice group picture, and get some records signed. Briefly met Lucy Dacus outside the venue after Courtney's soundcheck and felt like an ass for forgetting my mask in my car so I kind of kept my distance a bit why my buddy got his record signed. She was very nice and was taking protocols pretty seriously - even made an announcement before her set for folks to please mask up.





Actual show was good. I think the crowd was largest for Lucy Dacus, who opened the show. They were definitely singing loudest for her.



Courtney was more mellow than the last two times I saw her, but so is the new album so not a big surprise.

 

[My Neighbor Brotoro]

Blessed be Gaga

 

[Skacel]

Saw the Jesus and Mary Chain on Friday at the Kelvingrove Bandstand. Very cool set up. Will definitely be checking out other artists there next year!