G. Love and his band stopped in San Francisco to throw down a very buttoned up concert at the legendary Warfield Theater.
San Francisco was treated to some Canadian delight recently as Vancouver’s Black Mountain came through bringing along Toronto’s own The Sadies. Both bands are throw backs to the classic era of rock, yet they’re also wholly indebted to the contemporary music scene.
This night’s trio, assembled on the occasion of the CD release party for Marco's new cover rich album Me Not Me, consisted of Marco on keys, Andrew Barr on drums and Marc Friedman on bass. Andrew’s brother Brad opened the show solo, demonstrating his wide range on both the acoustic and electric guitar while covering most of his recent acoustic release, The Fall Apartment:
The unique coupling of modern and outmoded electronic instruments is the heart of Simian Mobile Disco’s sound, and subsequently their live set up. The spread gives the duo a flexibility to maneuver onstage between digital and analog sound production: a flexibility they explored with curious fervency at the Mezzanine in San Francisco on Sunday Night.
On the cusp of releasing their first studio album since 2002’s Senor Boombox, the Disco Biscuits are riding high following a few years of rediscovering themselves.
One weekend in Portland Oregon reinforced the notion that there is nothing better than a communal vortex of celebrations. All at once we were lucky enough to celebrate Valentines Day, the 150th birthday of Oregon, and the reemergence and rebirth of Portland’s Jazz fest. Any one of these events would have been enough reason to celebrate, but when all were combined in a single weekend, the parade of musical talent that graced our city tapped an energy that transcended any one stage.
The Sugar Club may be one of the only place I enjoy going to in Dublin for live music. It looks like a cinema-theatre, a place where everyone can see what is happening on the stage while being seated. Amanda confirms later on her appreciation of the venue “This looks like fucking civilized”. The gig was sold out, which was no surprise because this is the front woman of the internationally known punk cabaret band “The Dresden Dolls”.
The Album Leaf in concert is a five-piece, multi-instrumental electronic collective, while behind the scenes, it is James LaValle, himself a talented multi-instrumentalist. LaValle’s meandering sound is beautiful: experimental electronica, pinging and bumping in all the right ways, creating nothing so much as an ambience for living. Live, the five-piece serves up a masterful blend of soaring melodies and steady beats, delivered by mostly traditional instruments (including a violin), and a video screen, projecting randomness.
It was already packed tight when I arrived at Southpaw in the heart of Park Slope, standard for an Antibalas show in their home borough. The venue proved to be a good fit for the afro-beat collective, despite the small stage—wedging 12 band members, including keys, full percussion and six horns, into that cramped area was an impressive feat.
When I first heard that Kings of Leon were headlining the worlds most famous arena, I have to confess I did a double take. Was this not the same band that only a few months ago were playing Webster Hall to an eager-but-miniscule crowd? Well, the pretty boys pulled it off and rocked out last night while having a sold out fan base in its grips. Caleb Followill remarked that KoL “have one of the last true fan bases in Rock and Roll.” While that rather lofty declaration is up for debate, what is indisputable is the crowd’s reaction: pure adulation. Playing through their entire catalog from Holy Roller Novocain to the arena rock tribute album Only by the Night, KoL ran through their catalog. Highlights were “Milk”, “Sex on Fire”, “Revelry” and “Black Thumbnail” during the main set and, as a shout out to the island hosting them; they cut into “Manhattan” in the encore. Removed from the music, one of the more interesting aspects to the Kings’ set had to be the spotlights, highlighting the brothers-Followill on drums, bass and lead vocals/guitar, while their cousin Matthew, on lead guitar, remained in the shadows. A strange setup that was made even stranger when, post-encore, the three bowed on stage while Matthew left….your humble reviewer is not trying to start drama, but it was a weird sight. All in all, while they could certainly fill MSG, the room may have been too big for them as the sound seemed to dissipate as the set progressed; “Cold Desert” and “Trani” were a bit weak and didn’t work as closers. Kings of Leon are a big time rock band that will hopefully feel more at home when they play here next tour. Setlist: Crawl My Party Molly’s Chambers Closer Revelry Fans Milk Four Kicks Wasted Time Sex on Fire Slow Light So Long The bucket Notion Black Thumbnail On Call Use Somebody Cold Desert Trani Encore: Knocked Up Manhattan Charmer
