Concerts

Concert Review: CHVRCHES, The Range, April 30, 9:30 Club

Posted on May 1, 2014 by halley in Concerts | Leave a comment

Chvrches

An artist is a master of a perspective. Agree? Disagree? Let’s pretend you agree. In that case, James Hinton, aka The Range, is reigning master of the perspective that bass music can speak your soul. The DJ lit up the 9:30 Club stage with his energetic yet hypnotic mash-ups that would have been fitting for the dance club, the soundtrack to push you through that 3 PM office slump, or (as his past reviewers have noted) the bedroom.
Hinton was remarkably unassuming on-stage, offering the audience little to no banter – just beats. He was obviously appreciated, though, as his final track was met with thunderous applause and shouts for more.

But, true to the spectacle of the 9:30 Club, the show must go on, and CHVRCHES were next to take the stage. The audience was CLEARLY pumped – the band sold out the first night of performing so quickly they were booked for a second and this, the final night, was primed for excitement. The club went dark, the lights went on… and three tiny people took the stage! Oh my goodness, I”m not sure it’s fair to comment on the sheer (lack of) size of the group members first, but it was honestly the first thing that struck me. The lead singer, Lauren Mayberry, is absolutely pint-sized and the cutest little thing you could imagine. Her trademark voice lit up the stage, though – no mistake about that. She and her two bandmates absolutely killed their set. Like the Range, they offered very little frills and banter, but just jumped into their tracks (although they did have some funny insights into the less-glamorous side of tour life… aka wearing the same socks for three days and hoping no one noticed). This was one of those shows where I realized I love a lot of CHVRCHES tracks I didn’t quite realize were theirs. “We Sink” and “Gun” both jumped out to me as new favorites.

Overall, a great show. Definitely look up The Range’s remix of We Sink:

Concert Review: Band Of Skulls, April 24, The Phoenix

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Paul in Concerts | Leave a comment

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The first time I saw Band Of Skulls, I didn’t really have much in the way of expectations. After all, when a band puts the word “skulls” in their name, one might have some preconceived notions about them.  Luckily, they didn’t turn out to be a bad Misfits tribute band. Rather, their music is basically riff rock, albeit a brand of riff rock that’s often a bit more interesting than the average tune that you might hear in the drive time slot on the local rock radio station. And as I would come to learn that night, the band puts on a solid live show.

That first time seeing them was a show at the El Mocambo back in 2009. They’ve obviously come a long way since then as evidenced by the big, fancy looking tour bus parked outside The Phoenix, as well as the sizeable and appreciative crowd inside the venue. And why wouldn’t they be appreciative? This band makes big, capital-R rock music that goes down well in big rooms while still having a totally cool, laid back demeanor onstage. Band of Skulls’ stage banter leans more towards a polite “Thank you very much” than “Scream for me Long Beach!” and frankly, it suits them.

Concert Review: The New Mendicants, April 18, Dakota Tavern

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Paul in Concerts | Leave a comment

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Although their ranks include an American and a Scotsman, I tend to think of The New Mendicants as almost a Canadian band.  After all, despite meeting years earlier when The Pernice Brothers opened for Teenage Fanclub, Joe Pernice and Norman Blake didn’t get together to work on songs until much later, in Canada, where both men had settled after marrying Canadians. Factor in drummer Mike Belitsky, an actual Canadian and member of The Sadies, and they’ve practically achieved CanCon status.

Speaking of marriage and family in general, there were kids at this show, which was a little bit of a surprise based on what Pernice had tweeted before the show:

 

Little did I know Pernice was being facetious as the children in attendance included his own son, to whom he dedicated a song during their set.  They followed that up with Blake’s “I Don’t Want Control Of You,” a song he wrote about his daughter, a fact I never knew until Pernice and Blake began performing the Teenage Fanclub song together.

In addition to their own songs, Pernice and Blake included a few covers in their set, including The Go Betweens’ “Finding You” and Sandy Denny’s “By the Time It Gets Dark,” both of which featured Blake singing the lead.  While Pernice tends to take the lead more often on the New Mendicants’ original numbers (while still leaving plenty of room for harmonizing and trading off verses with Blake), it was the Teenage Fanclub songs that Blake sang during their set that made the biggest impression on me.  I’m sure that Pernice wouldn’t be too offended by this seeing as he referred to “Everything Flows” (which closed the band’s set) as one of the top songs of the ’80s and ’90s.  High praise indeed, as Pernice is certainly no slouch in the songwriting department.

Fans of either Blake or Pernice’s past work who haven’t yet heard The New Mendicants or seen them live would certainly do well to check them out.

Concert Review: Fanfarlo, April 16, 2014, Lee’s Palace

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Ricky in Concerts | Leave a comment

fanfarlo

As a completely non music skilled person, bands like Fanfarlo astound me. In town for a the first time in a few years to promote their new (and excellent) album Let’s Go Extinct, the five piece band brought to the stage a multi-instrumental presence that was truly impressive. Among the instruments used throughout the show (besides your usual ones) include a saxophone, trumpet and musical saw. How do they learn so many instruments? Must be a right brain/left brain thing.

Fanfarlo is an interesting band because they had quite a lot of attention when they initially released their debut record Reservoir but the attention has lessened with each subsequent release despite the albums getting better. Weird how that works.

Either way, the half packed crowd at Lee’s Palace enjoyed a solid hour plus show that had a sprinkling from all three albums. The material off the new album got most of the attention and it’s quality arrangements sounded great live. Tracks like Let’s Go Extinct, Cell Song and the dancey Landlocked not only show the bands growth as musicians but also, had the crowd moving (if ever so slightly). I actually think I liked some of the newer tracks better then Luna, which before the show was probably my favorite Fanfarlo song, but the latter material just seems more rounded.

Overall, a solid show from a solid band that should get more attention.

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