Yungblud with UPSAHL @ The Warfield - San Francisco
Photos & words by Dana Jacobs | March 17th 2022
Yungblud’s hotly anticipated Life on Mars tour took one of its last stops in San Francisco earlier this month to a fervently energized sold-out crowd. Hours before Yungblud, the stage name of Dominic Harrsion, took the stage, hundreds of fans wrapped around the venue. By the time the lights dimmed awaiting Harrison, the crowd was visibly restless with anticipation. The roar that filled the venue as Harrison’s silhouette emerged at the microphone was a testament to his enduring popularity.
Yungblud’s music heavily incorporates themes of mental health, isolation, and struggling to fit in. Harrison leans into these themes throughout his live shows, and San Francisco was no expectation. In between high-octane bursts of energy jumping around the stage, Harrison spoke with the audience about the importance of finding community together and reaffirming safety of his shows for all fans. Harrison unfurled pride flags multiple times as they were thrown onstage by fans, to the audience’s uproarious applause.
Yungblud’s set was relatively short at only 14 songs including an encore, but his seemingly boundless energy made for a continuously engaging night. Through high energy songs like “parents” and “The Funeral,” Harrison quite literally jumped and ran up and down the stage while maintaining impressive vocal control. Saving one of his most popular and meaningful tracks, “Machine Gun,” until the final encore song, Harrison ensured that an already raucous night ended on both a spirited and significant message
Opening for Yungblud was rising alt-pop singer UPSAHL, whose effortlessly cool set electrified the crowd. Since the release of her debut album Lady Jesus in 2021, the young Arizona native has garnered massive success with singles like “Drugs” and “People I Don’t Like” stacking up tens of millions of streams. The angsty punch of UPSAHL’s alt-pop songs fit perfectly with the Doc Martens and fishnets aesthetic of the crowd, who responded in kind as they sang along. UPSAHL commanded the stage with unbothered swagger as she moved deftly between playing bass, guitar, and working the stage with just her microphone. Despite a relatively short opening set, the young artist left the crowd energized and eagerly awaiting UPSAHL’s next move.
Amber Mark with Shaun Ross @ Lincoln Hall - Chicago, IL
Photos & words by Timi Ikene | April 03 2022
On April 3rd, Amber Mark performed one of the most electrifyingly intimate shows I've seen an R&B artist perform. She engaged the crowd so well that a novice fan became a die-hard one by the third song. Between the funky rhythms, melodic electric keys, and Mark's silky voice, I think it's safe to say she'll be selling out more shows in Chicago to come.
Glass Animals @ The Anthem - Washington DC
March 29th 2022: Glass Animals with Sad Night Dynamite @ The Anthem - Washington DC
Glass Animals in Washington DC - Photos Courtesy of Gabby Ames
On March 29th, Glass Animals brought all the energy to Washington DC on their first of two sold out shows. They played songs from their first album ZABA as well as their more recent album Dreamland. With an incredible set design that brought the cover of Dreamland to life, they finished off the night playing their hit “Heat Waves”.
Sad Night Dynamite
Together Pangea @ Cobra Lounge - Chicago
Together Pangea with Sad Park + Skating Polly @ Cobra Lounge - Chicago
Together Pangea in Chicago - Photos Courtesy of Kaitlyn Johnston
Together Pangea brought their brand of loud indie punk to a sold-out crowd at Cobra Lounge on Easter weekend. Saturday’s crowd showed up early, and in a big way. The lineup for this leg of the tour seemed to be catered perfectly for Together Pangea’s die-hards to find their new favorite bands. Opening the evening was Sad Park - a young band reminiscent of if emo sweethearts Prince Daddy & the Hyena lost their hard exterior and focused on being a more palatable, radio-ready version of their best attributes. Following was Skating Polly - a band so dynamic and diverse musically that there was no time to lose interest in their 45 min set. With loads of punk energy and loud, saturated bass lines - Skating Polly took charge of the stage and claimed it as their own. Both openers did an excellent job of setting up the evening for Together Pangea. The band took the stage, and from the first note, the room exploded with energy. The California veterans tore through 19 songs quickly and without a wasted moment and left the room wanting more.
Sad Park
Skating Polly
Geographer @ Sleeping Village - Chicago
March 29th 2022: Geographer with Chong the Nomad @ Sleeping Village - Chicago
You’d never know it from the low-key exterior of Sleeping Village in Chicago, but on the evening of March 29, the inside of the venue was a glow. Geographer and Chong The Nomad as support came through with some of the best live sets I’ve ever seen.
Chong The Nomad is a name you must keep on your radar as an ethereal vocalist and jaw-droppingly talented electronic producer. Her music forces you to dance- you just can’t help it. While the crowd was small during her opening set, she performed as if it were for a festival of thousands and danced around the stage often forgetting about her own sprained ankle she mentioned at the start of her set.
The drummer and lead vocalist duo that made up Geographer’s live show also provided a beautiful performance of light and color, both sonically and visually. While simple, their production of neon glowing beams behind them set up their show for greatness, and even with just two artists gracing the stage, their presence was massive. Geographers’ sound builds within each of their individual songs but also builds throughout their set, reaching anthem-level energy even within such a small space.
The Geographer and Chong The Nomad tour wraps up this week with dates in El Paso and Tucson, and I definitely look forward to what’s to come from both of these artists.
Chong the Nomad
Matt Maltese @ Beat Kitchen - Chicago
March 27th 2022: Matt Maltese with Girl Puppy @ Beat Kitchen - Chicago
Matt Maltese - Photos Courtesy of Alana Swaringen
Matt Maltese hosted his sold-out Chicago show on March 27th at Beat Kitchen, with Girlpuppy as his support. The combination of these artists on this bill was a perfect setup, as both provide a very haunting and intimate sound but in entirely different ways. Girlpuppy gave a dreamy and melodic intro to the evening and while her soft grunge aesthetic contrasts Matt Maltese’s sound, her performance was what was needed to get the night started.
Upon reflection, this evening really caught me by surprise- Maltese’s committed fans waited outside long before doors opened, and were passionate about nailing that perfect spot to see the talented piano player and singer. What was surprising was as a performer who’s seated during his entire set, Maltese can only provide so much crowd interaction that the appeal of being close to him didn’t seem to cross my mind. But once his show began, I understood the captivation that his sound provides, the sonic energy that just pulls you in and makes you want to do anything to catch a glimpse of him moving his fingers across the piano keys. Maltese also had no lack of crowd interaction whatsoever, constantly checking in on his audience and cracking jokes. Maltese’s haunting and emotionally fueled ballads were balanced with intertwined humor. It was clear that almost everyone in the room was both moved and entertained.
Matt Maltese just completed his US run and will continue some touring in the Uk and Europe when the fall rolls around. To hold us over until we can see him live once again, check out his recent 5 song EP drop “Quiet Recordings” out now.
Girl Puppy
Kim Gordon with Bill Nace @ Webster Hall - NY
Photos and words courtesy of Edwina Hay | March 18th 2022
In September 2019, the influential musician and artist Kim Gordon released her debut solo album called No Home Record. The international tour in support of it was originally scheduled to begin in May 2020 but was scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly two years later, the No Home Tour began in Boston and made its way to New York City for a performance at Webster Hall in Manhattan on Friday, March 18, 2022.
The first five dates of the tour in the US features Bill Nace as the opener, and the final two shows in Asheville and Atlanta have harpist Mary Lattimore performing before Gordon instead. Then in May, No Home Tour will make its way to Europe (the original tour in 2020 was the reverse where Gordon would start in Europe and conclude stateside).
Bill Nace started his set promptly at 8:30PM, performing seated, surrounded by foot pedals while tapping on a red lap guitar, occasionally using the pedals to distort the sounds the guitar made throughout his experimental set. His newest record, Both, was released nearly two years ago and I believe this might have been his first performance in NYC after that album came out on Drag City Records in May 2020. I’ve seen Nace perform on stage with Kim Gordon in the past as the duo Body/Head and it was fitting to see him on stage solo to warm up the crowd for Kim’s first performance under her own name years later.
Kim Gordon has a full band for The No Home Tour which includes Sarah Register on guitar (who was previously in the NYC band Talk Normal), Camilla Charlesworth on bass, and Madi Vogt on drums. Vogt was the first to appear on stage and began to play first while visuals appeared on screen at the back of the stage, until everyone was on stage to start performing “Sketch Artist,” the first track from No Home Record. Kim spent much of her performance sauntering, kneeling, and pacing the stage, absolutely owning it and giving such life to these songs.
During the concert, I realized that one of the benefits of the tour being postponed for two years is that the audience at Webster Hall had lots of time to spend with Kim’s solo album and were very eager and excited to finally hear these songs performed live. As the band played “Don’t Play It,” I observed a small section near the front of the stage jump up and down and sing along with Gordon, giving me the impression it was one of their favorites. During “Get Yr Life Back,” Webster Hall’s giant mirror ball spun around reflecting the colorful lights around the venue.
At the end of the set, there was a three song encore including a cover of “Blonde Red Head” by the no wave band DNA, and concluding with “Grass Jeans,” a single that was released by Kim in December where proceeds will be donated to Fund Texas Choice. At the close of the final song, Kim handed her guitar to people in the audience where it moved around the floor while Kim climbed on amps stationed towards the back of the stage. She then returned to the front of the stage where the guitar was passed back to her by the audience, marking the end of the concert.
The Midnight with Nightly @ Royale - Boston, MA
Photos and words courtesy of Lisa Czech | March 21st 2022
The Midnight’s sound can best be described as full-bodied dance music, peppered with a bit of 80s nostalgia. Fans couldn’t get enough of the ample saxophone solos, and the energy onstage was electric. If you love the 80s, but want a modern twist, this is the band for you.
Their sold out Boston show marked the halfway point of the tour, which began in Nashville, stretched up to Ontario, and ends in Miami on April 3rd.
Nightly opened up the show with eight catchy alt-pop songs, guaranteed to get stuck in your head.
