Show Reviews

The first time I ingested a certain party-enhancing substance in a live music setting happened to be at a Lotus show. It was a late night festival set and at that moment the band’s deep instrumental grooves sounded sweeter than anything I’d ever heard. Like many first time experiences, it felt transformative. That was almost […]

As Boston endured the fifth blizzard in four weeks the seven feet of snow was no deterrent as Chris Robinson Brotherhood’s (CRB) “Freak flag continued to fly in the face of winter’s onslaught.” Deciding to play just one set instead of the usual two the band took the unadorned stage shortly after nine. Before a […]

Buster Poindexter sang his heart out during a pre-Valentine’s Day set at the Café Carlyle on Tuesday, reviving R&B, doo-wop, and soul covers on the first night of a two-week residency at the New York supper club. The performance marked David Johansen’s latest return as the slick, smarmy lounge-singer character he created in the ’80s, […]

Forget about the sports bars, born-again Christians, golf and Arizona, Alice Cooper is still a tried and true rock and roller. In Austin on Thursday Cooper exorcised his demons through a 90-minute set that encapsulated why he is one of the most influential performers to ever hit the stage. Sure, the set was a romp […]

Unseasonably warm weather and the promise of a really big rock show made Umphrey’s McGee’s first ever arena headlining date one to remember. The band is no stranger to large crowds, having sold out Red Rocks and stormed the main stage at Bonnaroo last year, but their first big indoor spectacle hadn’t fully manifested until […]

On a frigid night in snow-blanketed Allston Village Damien Jurado confidently held court at Brighton Music Hall, quietly taking charge and transmuting the brick walled room into the haze of a warm, intimate folk club. Drawing from an extensive song catalog, Mr. Jurado delivered a lengthy set packed with crowd pleasers, peppered with semi obscure […]

An arctic blast and bitter wind chill may have contributed to the quiet pre-show atmosphere when two British trios, headliner London Grammar and opening band Until The Ribbon Breaks, hit the iconic Philadelphia music venue, The Electric Factory on January 30. A small crowd had gathered to stake their claim to spots in front of […]

Jack White is one of the few rock stars doing it right these days and on a freezing Friday night in the heart of the Big Apple he displayed his chops but also paid homage to New York City Hip Hop. It started with the opening act, as Run The Jewels were asked to perform […]

Oxford, Mississippi holds a special place in the history of Umphrey’s McGee. As it was revealed last week, the band gets its name from a distant cousin of guitarist and lead singer Brendan Bayliss, a lawyer from Oxford named Humphreys McGee who he met at a family wedding. Bayliss remarked, however, that it had been […]

The mother of the original New York Punk music scene sauntered into Santa Barbara Tuesday night, January 27th, to play a very special concert downtown, at the elegant Granada theater. The concert began shortly after the red carpet opening of the 32nd Santa Barbara International Film festival, just across the street at the Arlington Theater. […]

Iconic British blues rock guitarist Kim Simmonds rolled into the sedate central California coastal town of San Luis Obispo, with his seminal rock group Savoy Brown, to perform at the SLO Brew Company. The Brew House, is a gem of a venue, offering an upstairs restaurant and bar, and a downstairs live music room. The […]

Bill Frisell is making old songs new again. Or maybe, with 2014’s Guitar in the Space Age!, Frisell is making a new record, old. In any instance, when his tour pulled into Boston, and his band squeezed into the intimate space of Scullers Jazz Club, what was clear above all was the timelessness of some […]

Like their most recent sold-out appearance in the Ballroom at Higher Ground, Dr. Dog’s previous performances at this Vermont venue have become something of a rite of winter. Proceeding from acting as openers in a less-than packed smaller room in Vermont, these Philadelphia-based DIY rock and rollers have pushed their unorthodox methods of writing, recording […]

Boston’s own Extreme is currently celebrating the 25th anniversary of their most successful album to date, Pornograffitti. The band earned their first number one single with the monster ballad “More Than Words” alongside other hits as “Hole Hearted” and “Get the Funk Out”. Extreme is not known for embracing nostalgia, but they recognized their diehard […]

Most people are familiar with the actor Jeff Daniels. Daniels first came to prominence in the 1983 film,  Terms of Endearment and has been working steadily on stage and screen ever since. He’s coming off a particularly big year  having won an Emmy for his portrayal of Will McAvoy in the HBO series, The Newsroom […]

It is a rare opportunity to be a firsthand witness to a major crossroad in a band’s evolution, especially when the band has been in the music game for 22 years. Fresh off the busiest year of touring that The String Cheese Incident has done in almost a decade, there is much rejoicing in Cheese […]

The first time I saw Clear Plastic Masks live, I remember thinking, “It’s only a matter of a time before these guys hit it big.” They’ve got the soulful swagger of Alabama Shakes and the cool-kid attitude of the Black Lips. And their stage presence is so naturally electric. They can put on a hell […]

Los Straightjackets came out of the gates ripping and roaring when they hit the stage in front of a sold out crowd at Austin’s legendary Continental Club on Thursday night. They would be joined by one-of-a-kind rocker Deke Dickerson later in the set, but to get things going the lucha libre-masked quartet cranked out a […]

For a crowded evening at the Middle East Nightclub in Cambridge, the Upstairs lounge was converted into a jostling, whooping and jovial dance floor. That1Guy took the stage to an audience of receptive concertgoers who, for roughly 90 minutes, engaged in what could be considered a musical conversation. As the artist – also known as […]

Glide’s Andrew Bruss is providing day to day coverage of Jam Cruise 13 as it makes its way around sea over the course of five days.  Here are the highlights and photos from day 5 aboard the ship. Be sure to check out his coverage of day 4 here A Change of Plans: Our last […]