concert review

Concert:★★★★1/2

Album: ★★★★1/2

When I first heard of the Icelandic band, Of Monsters and Men, the first thing I thought of was John Steinbeck’s book, Of Mice and Men, followed immediately by the thought of a group sitting somewhere in a cave with fur coats on. I’m not sure why the latter came into mind. The band released their first album, My Head is An Animal, on April 3rd, and I had the pleasure of seeing them live the night before at Black Cat. The debut album is absolutely amazing and personally reminds me of a weird mix between Arcade Fire and The Head and the Heart, except happier (sort of).

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“It took you guys 16 f**king years to get here. But that’s ok, we’re glad you’re here,” was Dave Grohl’s greetings to all the fans who were experiencing their first Foo Fighters concert, on November 11^th, 2011, at the Verizon Center. There is perhaps only one adjectival phrase in the music world that can describe the scope of the Foo Fighters’ show; of Springsteen proportions. The Foos hit the stage at 9 o’clock sharp, following impressive, if not slightly poorly amplified, opening sets by The Joy Formidable and Social Distortion (for you classic rock fans, Social Distortion closed with an interesting rendition of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire”), and then played for the next three hours; with the same intensity and energy that they hit the stage with. Read More »

A concert that could be described as “experimental” doesn’t exactly insinuate a sold-out venue, but Portugal. The Man‘s show at the 9:30 Club this past Tuesday was exactly that. Complete with psychedelic rock music, fog machines, strobe lights, giant balls of light, and a crazy, enthusiastic–and completely packed–crowd, many people took it upon themselves to do a little experimenting of their own. To avoid going into graphic details, I will focus on how the progressive rock group from Wasilla, Alaska portrayed their creative musical talent through their experimental rock instrumentals and unique vocals paired with an incredible light show that I will not soon forget. Read More »

The Head and the Heart

Last Friday, September 23^rd, I was fortunate enough to catch The Head and the Heart at the 9:30 Club. After seeing them for the first time at Bonnaroo this summer and missing them at Newport due to a scheduling conflict with Middle Brother, I was determined to see them again, and this second performance did not disappoint. The first opening band, Salt Lake City’s The Devil Whale, brought the energy to start off the night. Unfortunately, after studying in the library until 4 AM the previous night, I was not quite bringing the energy yet. Still, their spirited rock got my feet moving and inspired me to look them up after the show. I did perk up quite a bit when Thao with the Get Down Stay Downcame onstage. Their catchy tunes were a lot of fun live, and I knew it was going to be a good night when they launched into one of my favorite songs, “Bag of Hammers.” I felt a bit spoiled with these great acts in addition to The Head and the Heart. Read More »

When I was six, I learned that my younger brother was partially deaf. My parents had noticed that he was having a hard time responding to them, and after a couple of tests and trips to the otologist, they learned that was due to the fact that he was only able register the lowest frequencies of sound in his left ear. My parents were understandably concerned; Mr. Holland’s Opus had just been released, after all. Fortunately, though, the doctors said my brother’s imperfect hearing would only be a slight annoyance for him and that he wouldn’t really be at risk of full deafness as long as he avoided standing in the front row at rock concerts.

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The weekend started on Thursday night, stepping out of a taxi at Union Station and dropping my new iPhone directly under the wheels of a passing bus, which miraculously left it unscathed. Perhaps this is some omen whose meaning I have yet to unravel, or maybe just a testament to Steve Jobs’ brilliance. Regardless, I was on my way up to New York City to spend the weekend seeing two concerts and sustain some well-deserved permanent hearing damage.

I arrived at the Strokes show Friday night in the middle of the opening act, a group of unrecognizable and unremarkable hipsters wearing vintage hats. Minutes after they exited the stage, yet another group of hat-wearing guitar-slingers ran on, saluted the crowd a Happy April fool’s day, and proceeded to play what, to me, sounded like 80’s cover songs.  This, as I learned the next day, was Elvis Costello making a surprise appearance to play three songs to a sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd. Another 30 minutes and lead singer Julian Casablancas ran to center stage, the crowd erupted with approval, and the show began. Read More »

On March 14 at the 9:30 Club, I covered my very first concert for WGTB. I was fortunate enough to get to review one of my favorite artists, Ben Kweller, alongside a possibly more famous co-headliner, Pete Yorn. The two share a grungy acoustic-semi-alternative kind of sound that I find infectious, but that made my dear father giggle with mirth when I played it for him: “I love the voice cracks!”

Before the concert began, I was lucky enough to sit down to talk with Mr. Pete Yorn. When I asked about themes that have appeared throughout his repertoire, he was quick to answer. “A lot of people miss where they’re at, ‘cause they’re just trying to get to the next place,” he told me. “That’s a theme that I’ve seen come up since my first record, since I’ve been writing songs… just being present—if you’re present, you can really get the most out of every moment.” Read More »

Slightly Stoopid may have released their first album in 1996, but the rowdy crowd who packed in to hear them at the 9:30 Club was surprisingly extremely young. High school-aged young. (I watched two very sad, under-aged fans being escorted out of the club before the band even hit the stage.) But I can see why they have such a consistent appeal with youth. The band from Ocean Beach, California sums up in their music and their demeanor so precisely what high school is and should be. Their songs create the perfect, perpetuating jam soundtrack for riding the emotional swells of your teenage years. Their music not only sounds good but feels good, too. Read More »