Brick + Mortar (Photo courtesy Erika Tooker)
Brick + Mortar put on a great show at DC9 on Saturday, Aug. 19. If the band simply sounded as good as they did, I would have walked away happy. But the duo did even more than that — including a fun use of props.
Britt Daniel fronts Spoon at Merriweather Post Pavilion on July 30, 2017. (Photo by Theresa C. Sanchez)
Neil Young was right. “Rock and roll will never die.” And no, that’s not an allusion to the seemingly myriad musical festivals or anniversary tours featuring reunited elders of sound like 2016’s Desert Trip — affectionately dubbed “Oldchella” — or most recently, the bicoastal weekend-long fêtes Classic East and Classic West last month. “Rock and roll is here to stay,” thanks to bands like Spoon (whose title is not a reference to the culinary utensil, but an homage to the 1970s German avant-garde collective called Can #themoreyouknow). These indie musicians heralding from the capital of the Lone Star State embody the notion that evolution is a form of revolution.
With the March 2017 release of their ninth studio album, Hot Thoughts, a promotional tour was sure to follow and it did. Their July 30 appearance at the newly renovated Merriweather Post Pavilion was not a solo headlining gig, but they most certainly performed like it was.
Palm (Photo courtesy Carpark Records)
Philadelphia’s Palm is making some absorbing experimental music, as evidenced by their most recent EP, Shadow Expert, published via Carpark Records on June 16. The art rock quartet perform at DC9 on Wednesday, July 26.
Muse perform at Firefly Music Festival on Sunday, June 18, 2017. (Photo courtesy Live at Firefly/Firefly Music Festival)
Sunday was a big day at Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware, capped by a stunning headline show by English art rock trio Muse to close out the entire festival.
While we were there, I took the time to catch two other favorite acts for a third day of reporting on performances at Firefly 2017, by all measures a smashing success enjoyed by 90,000 people who poured into The Woodlands to watch more than 125 concerts over four days.
Bent Knee perform at O’Brien’s Pub in Allston, Massachusetts, on Aug. 16, 2015. (Photo by Larnel Jones)
It’s 12:36 in the morning and I have to be up at 6:30 tomorrow for work. Normally, this review would wait! Thanks to Bent Knee, that isn’t going to happen, and I am not mad about that at all. The reality is, I have never been more excited to write a review for a band than I am tonight.
Bent Knee (Photo by Chris Anderson)
Avant-garde collective Bent Knee is preparing to release their fourth album Land Animal via InsideOutMusic/Sony, and the band performs at Black Cat on Thursday, June 8.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Photo courtesy Nasty Little Man PR)
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds will release a long-awaited greatest hits complication, Lovely Creatures: The Best of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds 1984-2014, on May 5 through Mute/BMG. The package covers the first 15 albums by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, From Her to Eternity to Push the Sky Away. Meanwhile, Nick and company will hit the United States later this month to begin a tour in support of their 16th studio album, Skeleton Key.
While the band have no DC date, they land somewhat nearby in Philadelphia at Electric Factory on Monday, June 5.
