TV on the Radio successfully transferred their studio-oriented material over to the live spectrum, although the group has become the indie scene’s new “flavor of the month” and the degree to which their new place under the spotlight will last, has yet to be determined.
The Secret Machines effectively took the spectacle of arena-rock and scaled it down for the size of a club, as their “In The Round” tour blasted through Boston’s Avalon Ballroom.
Was Baltimore worthy to host the first American incarnation of the Virgin Festival this year? Will it be the city-of-choice for next year or will Virgin CEO Richard Branson move the music festival to another American city? Who the hell knows, but despite seriously steep ticket prices, the Baltimore version was highly entertaining.
What happens when great jambands break apart or lose a key player? The Everyone Orchestra happens, and that's the exact void they filled on their recent Northeast fall tour.
Although Harvey Danger is still in their
Pual Smith's energy is almost unparalleled by anyone I’ve witnessed onstage before.
While some in the audience soaked it up as simple giddy fun, others were clearly annoyed by Jet's lack of showmanship and overall mediocre playing. All classic rock clichés came out, as did a few lighters during “Look What You’ve Done.”
Tool’s sold out performance at the Tweeter Center was an apocalyptic sing-along that had to be seen to be believed. Maynard James Keenan and Co. started off the night’s first act with “Stinkfist,” the opener off 1996's Aenima. Early on, Maynard was lacking the explosion of energy he’s known for, and stood still. In keeping with his reclusive tendencies, as soon as the photographers ceased shooting, Maynard kicked it up a notch and exhibited the fierce stage presence fans were used to expecting from their favorite messianic front-man.
The east coast half of the two-date, bi-coastal festival presented an eclectic lineup of acts from every neck of the musical woods. Featuring artists like Jurassic 5 and the Wailers, all the way to rap/rockers like 311, and Boston’s hometown heroes the Dropkick Murphy’s; the abundance of represented genres was endless.
As sad as it is that CBGB’s is closing its doors at the end of the month, there couldn’t have been a better way to say goodbye to the Home of the Underground than with Pete Yorn. With his latest, Nightcrawler, just released, Yorn delivered some riveting new songs along with a repertoire of classics from his extensive catalogue.
