Kate Tempest with Akinyemi @ Elsewhere, Brooklyn, NY
Photos and review courtesy of Edwina Hay | October 1 2019
British multihyphenate Kate Tempest (spoken word artist, rapper, poet, novelist, and playwright) announced four US shows along the west coast and one taking place on the east coast in Brooklyn, NY. The brief tour was done in support of her third record, The Book Of Traps & Lessons.
The sold-out concert in Brooklyn on Tuesday night began with an opening set by a young, energetic local rapper from Queens, Akinyemi. He spent much of his set running across the stage and engaging the audience in call & response. Despite most of the audience not being familiar with his music beforehand, he easily won the room over as it was quite difficult to not enjoy his enthusiasm and sense of humor (after knocking down a microphone stand, he quickly joked to Elsewhere that he valued their equipment).
Kate Tempest took the stage promptly at 10PM, joined by Clare Uchima.
Tempest began her set with songs from her first two albums Everybody Down and Let Them Eat Chaos such as “Marshall Law,” “We Die,” “Europe Is Lost,” “Circles,” and “The Beigeness,” before performing Traps & Lessons in its entirety. All of her songs were delivered with such passion, to be heightened by Uchima’s live synths and mixing plus the impressive lighting design; during “Brown Eyed Man,” the lights went out quickly, only to return to a deep red during a dramatic part of the song while “Circles,” the spotlights on stage naturally went around in circles.
I last saw Tempest perform live in 2015 after the release of her first album, “Everybody Down” at the intimate Mercury Lounge and as I made my way home just before midnight, I couldn’t help but wonder when I’d be able to see her perform these songs again.
The Band Camino @ 9:30 Club, Washington DC
Photos courtesy of Carolyn Lederach | September 13, 2019
Hot Chip with Holy Fuck, Brooklyn Steel, Brooklyn, NY
Photos & review courtesy of Edwina Hay | September 3, 2019
On Tuesday, September 3, 2019, Hot Chip kicked off their North American tour in support of their newest record, A Bath Full of Ecstasy, in Brooklyn, NY. The show, which took place the day after Labor Day, began their three night stand at Brooklyn Steel. Holy Fuck, of Toronto, began the show at 8:30PM and performed a new song which featured vocals by Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor. Hot Chip had many in the audience dancing until the very end of their set. Although the band planned on ending the night with second encore (a cover of “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys), it sadly didn’t happen because they exceeded the venue’s 11PM curfew.
Hot Chip
Holy Fuck
Breaking Benjamin @ PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
Breaking Benjamin with Chevelle, Three Days Grace and Dorothy
Photos & review courtesy of Ana Santos | July 31 2019
Currently on tour in support of Ember, Breaking Benjamin swept through NJ’s PNC Bank Arts Center on Wednesday, July 31st. With a tour ticket stacked with incredible supporting bands – Diamante, Dorothy, Three Days Grace and Chevelle – it is no wonder that energy was high and voices loud throughout the night.
From Dorothy’s soaring blues vocals, to Three Days Grace’s raucous rock n’ roll energy and Chevelle’s flawless alternative edge, Breaking Benjamin easily absorbed the audience’s fervor and shot it back with unwavering showmanship. Kicking things off with “Red Cold River,” “I Will Not Bow” and “Never Again,” the band took a short breather to invite a number of young rock n’ roll initiates on stage. When the number of children almost outnumbered the number of VIP pass holders on stage, the band continued with a bombastic 17-track set including a badass medley featuring everything from Star Wars to Nirvana to Metallica.
It’s been my experience over recent years that a Breaking Benjamin show is consistently solid and once again they did not disappoint. This tour’s outstandingly strong support made the long night that much more worth it.
Chevelle
Three Days Grace
Dorothy
The Phillips Backyard Weekender @ Phillips Brewery, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Photos & review by Leanne (Green) Yerex | July 26 2019
Located on the popular Government Street in downtown Victoria, British Columbia, sits Phillips Brewing & Malting. A Victoria fixture since the early 2000s, Phillips not only brews unique craft beer - they’ve gone on to host concerts and music festivals in their “backyard”.
An unassuming parking lot and loading bay by day, the Phillips Brewery “backyard” is transformed each summer into a space boasting a stage, food trucks, craft beer, cider and spirits. In its sixth year, this year’s lineup included artists such as Shad, Danny Brown and Dirty Projectors.
This three-day music festival draws crowds up to 4500 who are ready for a weekend of sunshine, craft beer and music.
Kicking things off Friday afternoon was local DJ Jennay Badger (not pictured), followed by community brass and woodwind ensemble The Brass. The Brass are anything but what you’d expect for a brass and woodwind ensemble, covering the likes of Arkells, David Bowie and Beyoncé.
Friday’s lineup brought out the more laid-back festival-goers with Montréal trio Random Recipe getting everyone dancing and swaying with their steel-drum infused tunes.
Random Recipe was a perfect segue into DJ Z-Trip’s reggae-inspired set in preparation for headliners Steel Pulse.
Saturday’s lineup was stacked with hip-hop artists, but by far the standout was Brampton, Ontario’s Haviah Mighty. A founding member of The Sorority, Mighty recently released a solo album, 13th Floor, which she referenced often during her set, performing various songs off the album.
By the time K-Os took to the stage, the venue was becoming increasingly packed. While Friday felt like a laid-back summer party, the energy had quickly shifted to a beer-fuelled bro-fest, for lack of a better description.
Bundled up in a hoodie and trenchcoat despite the hot summer weather, K-Os performed hits like “Man I Used to Be” and “Crabbuckit” much to the delight of fans.
Surrey, British Columbia rapper Merkules and his extensive crew took to the stage, pausing often to talk to the crowd, and even bringing his parents and wife out on stage to thank them for their support.
Capping off the night was Danny Brown. It’s a safe bet that the Detroit rapper was the reason most people had purchased single-day tickets to the festival. By this point the crowd was so jam-packed towards the front of the stage, it took moving as a large group for us photographers to even enter the photo pit. Brown delivered a set filled with hits which had the sign-wielding fans who were pushed up against the barricade, screaming along.
Unfortunately, Saturday brought out a crowd filled with people - mostly men - that for some reason in 2019 still seem to think it’s ok to touch a person or their belongings without their consent. Both myself and other photographers encountered issues, including having camera gear grabbed, or being grabbed at by people behind the barricade while we were simply trying to do our jobs or exit the photo pit. Thankfully, though, we work alongside other photographers and a security team who keep an eye out for everyone. With Saturday coming to a close - I was hopeful that Sunday would bring back Friday’s laid-back atmosphere.
Thankfully, this was the case. The sun continued shining on the brewery backyard, with Sunday’s crowd being considerably smaller and more mellow.
Experimental music and performance art collective Yamantaka // Sonic Titan brought their eclectic sound to the stage, complete with elaborate face paint.
I was personally looking forward to Shad’s set. I hadn’t seen him perform since Tall Tree Music Festival in Port Renfrew, British Columbia, years ago, before his time as the host of the Q on CBC Radio One.
I was not disappointed! Backed by his band, he moved around the stage energetically, often stepping out onto the monitors towards the crowd.
Closing out the weekend was New York’s Dirty Projectors. During their set, in stark contrast to the prior night, I witnessed a concert-goer leading strangers in a choreographed dance near the back of the venue. More and more people joined in, and by the end of the set, there was a full-fledged dance number happening.
As the sun set on the brewery, people filtered out of the venue, many of which headed to the Phillips Tasting Room, myself included. Capping off the festival sipping a flight of beer brewed right where we had spent the weekend was the perfect end to this unique festival.
Taking Back Sunday @ House of Vans, Chicago, IL
Photos & review by Kris Lori | July 13 2019
As rockers grew nostalgic for the Warped Tour days, House of Vans recruited one of the best bands to play on their House Parties Series and fill that summer rock void. Taking Back Sunday is a long time friend to the Vans family and it made sense that the theme would commemorate those fond Warped Tour days. They were joined with Rozwell Kid and Pronoun as Brian Ewing was the featured artist of the night.
House of Vans filled to the brim with emo, pop punk, alt rock lovers of every sort, thrashed about as the iconic bass line dropped for their one of their many hits, “Liar (It Takes One To Know One)”. Outside the doors of the venue were a few folks lingering and singing along to some of their favorite songs from the band. What a way to honor a legendary era of rock music from a company that helped us all celebrate the summer right for 25 years.
Pitchfork Music Festival (Day Two) @ Chicago's Union Park
We sent our fearless co-founder Victoria Sanders to Pitchfork Fest for an array of bands and 105F humid Chicago summer temperatures. Who did we see? How did it go? Here’s a little visual recap below for you!
Scroll through our day two coverage of Ric Wilson, Chai, Belle & Sebastian, Jeremih, and The Isley Brothers.
P4K Music Festival
Day Two
Day two was more hot, more humid, and more intense than day one. Those who made it back out to the park for round two were more than ready to kick off their day with Chicago’s own Ric Wilson - who if you have not yet heard of him, you will soon. He’s doing major things, bringing an energy that you can’t ignore to the stage. Ric get’s his own gallery, and then some with his in the crowd dance.
Scroll through our day two coverage of Ric Wilson, Chai, Belle & Sebastian, Jeremih, and The Isley Brothers.
“I was lucky enough to work with CHAI, who were at Pitchfork from Japan. Their stage energy is unmatched, and their brand of feeling beautiful in your own skin and being cool being yourself pop-punk-indie music was what everyone needed.”
BANKS with Samoht @ House of Vans Chicago
BANKS curated House of Vans the night before her third record, III, was released and it was an intense, beautiful show full to the walls of fans ready for more and more. Samoht opened, and impressed everyone in the room (and even those choosing to stay outside by the variety of food trucks at the show).
BANKS & Samoht
House of Vans Chicago
Here’s some visuals from the night showcasing BANKS and Samoht. Photos courtesy of Victoria Sanders.
