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The Soft Moon (Photo courtesy Ticketfly)
Luis Vasquez, better known as The Soft Moon, has spent the past year ruminating to the music of his latest album, Criminal, released nearly a year ago via Sacred Bones Records. He brings further dark contemplations to the Rock and Roll Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 19.
LP performs at the 9:30 Club, one of the best concerts of the year, on March 5, 2018. (Photo by David LaMason)
Editor’s Note: This year, we asked our bloggers to name their Top 10 shows of 2018 or choose their Top 10 photos of the year. We will run them over the course of mid-December as our Best of the Year posts.
As we are nearing 2018’s finale, I have to say that this past year brought with it some of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time. From the big production shows in large theaters to completely packed club shows, there was an intensity to most of the performances this past year that I’ll remember for years to come! Here are my 10 best shows of the year.
Lauren Sanderson performs at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Nov. 17, 2018. (Photo by Ari Strauss)
Twenty-two-year-old alternative hip-hop artist Lauren Sanderson performed to a room of exuberant young fans over the weekend at the Rock and Roll Hotel. She recently signed a record deal with Epic Records, and she is touring in support of her recent EP release, Don’t Panic.
Glorietta performs at Rock and Roll Hotel on Oct. 19, 2018. (Photo by Matt Ruppert)
Rock music history is littered with supergroups and friend records (not exactly bands, but brief collectives). Glorietta is kind of the former, more the latter; supergroup implies major fame for all or some of the members, and as much as I think they all deserve nationwide recognition, their achievements are all strongly in the indie musicverse. The talents behind those achievements were clearly on display at the Rock and Roll Hotel recently.
Little Dragon performs at Rock and Roll Hotel on Oct. 17, 2018. (Photo by Will Colbert)
Swedish electropop band Little Dragon was in town recently for a two-night stint at the Rock and Roll Hotel. The avant-garde group, known for blending a wide range of electronic influences into their music, delivered an energetic performance at the intimate venue.
Blitzen Trapper celebrates the 10th anniversary of Furr at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Oct. 5, 2018. (Photo by David LaMason)
Blitzen Trapper, the five piece from Portland, Oregon, has been going strong for well over 15 years now, but it’s their 2008 album, Furr, where most fans got their start with its experimental Americana and vivid lyrical imagery. Blizten Trapper celebrated the 10th anniversary of that album at Rock and Roll Hotel on Friday.
Jade Bird performs at Rock and Roll Hotel on Sept. 28, 2018. (Photo by Ari Strauss)
Breakout British singer/songwriter Jade Bird stopped by Rock and Roll Hotel recently, and the versatile performer put in a succinct performance that alternated between melancholic ballads and hard-charging energetic rock.
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