Photo Gallery – Page 2 – Spinning Platters

Show Review: Railroad Revival Tour (Mumford & Sons) at Oakland Middle Shoreline Park, 4/21/2011

Not technically the headliners, but you could've fooled me

The Railroad Revival Tour is a concept tour package where one of the main conceits is that all the bands have equal billing and play equal set lengths. That’s a nice thing to say, but the tickets sold lightning quick due to the recent boom of success of Mumford & Sons. While they weren’t officially the headliner, the singing along told another story. But by the end of the show, they convinced me that this was, indeed, a true group package. Seeing all three bands was a bit of a challenge, but worth it. Continue reading “Show Review: Railroad Revival Tour (Mumford & Sons) at Oakland Middle Shoreline Park, 4/21/2011”

Show Review: Bright Eyes with Farmer Dave Scher at The Fox Theater, 4/12/11

In sharp contrast to the last show I went to at Oakland’s beloved Fox Theater, the crowd was overwhelmingly mellow, especially considering this could be the last time Bright Eyes plays the Bay Area. Luckily this ended up being more telling about Bright Eyes’ fans maturity than their level of worship. Just like every other time I’ve seen Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis and their team of talented musicians (this was number nine if anyone’s counting), the audience still fell into a hush while a sense of quiet worship filled the room as the band took the stage. And they held that stage for over two hours of intensity. Continue reading “Show Review: Bright Eyes with Farmer Dave Scher at The Fox Theater, 4/12/11”

Show Review: My Chemical Romance with Neon Trees and Architects at The Fox Oakland, 3/31/11

MCRFists — Fists in the air for My Chemical Romance

MCR!!!! That’s all my fangirl heart was screaming while walking towards The Fox and the hoards of people, clad mostly in black, slowly making their way in to the theater. Of course, I didn’t have a ticket, just a photo pass, but trivial details will not keep me from a show! After a brief panic the ticket was procured and I made my way in and was amazed by the crowd already formed on the floor. By the excitement radiating through the room I could tell that this, the fourth time I’ve seen My Chemical Romance, was going to be the best. Continue reading “Show Review: My Chemical Romance with Neon Trees and Architects at The Fox Oakland, 3/31/11”

Show Review: Revolver with Hey Rosetta! and 7 Orange ABC at Rickshaw Stop, 3/11/11

RevolverReviewHeader — Revolver giving us their sweet harmonies

Sometimes I like to know as little as possible when I go to shows, all I need is a recommendation from a friend of good taste and I’m off! Seeing a great show from a band you know is fun, but even better is seeing a band you know nothing about and being blown away. This show was one of those.

Show Review: Nicole Atkins, Cotton Jones, That Ghost at Cafe du Nord, 2/16/11

natkins1 — The beautiful Nicole Atkins and her much more beautiful hat.

Earlier that day, not knowing who Nicole Atkins was, I listened to two songs on YouTube. On record, she has a strong, beautiful, and towering voice. I would probably like it to Stacy Dupree, the lead singer of Eisley, every bit as pretty and powerful, but just a tad lower and a little more soulful. It was enough for me to decide to check out the show that night. I walked in expecting a well-defined showcase for that wonderful voice and a fairly relaxed atmosphere. I’m not sure I received any of it, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

There’s always a war within a smaller venue show for an artist with a great voice. Do you soften up everything else and let the voice shine, or do you just say forget it, and rock out? I’ve seen both sides of the equation many times and have been disappointed by both. Most often, I tend to side with the showcase of the voice. When a voice is gorgeous, it almost feels like a waste for it to be muddled by guitar, bass, and drums that are turned up too loud. But tonight was a night for rocking, and that is, exactly what happened.

Continue reading “Show Review: Nicole Atkins, Cotton Jones, That Ghost at Cafe du Nord, 2/16/11”

Show Review: The Velvet Teen with Silian Rail at Bottom of the Hill, 1/7/11

The Velvet Teen is a force of indie-noise-pop-rock to be reckoned with that everyone should know about. This is something I spent years of my youth slowly convincing all my friends of, and now, finally, this show proved that people have been listening. Bottom of the Hill was packed before the first band even started playing and the energy in the room was palpable. There was no question that something great was about to be heard. Continue reading

Show Review: Turkey Trot 2010 with The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Misisipi Rider, Hang Jones and Walking in Sunlight at Cafe Du Nord 11/26/10

This show was a big step away from the ordinary and comfortable for me. I do not generally listen to country music unless Jenny Lewis and She and Him’s first album count, and I’m pretty sure they don’t. So really I had no idea what to expect. What I got was a fun evening full of talented musicians and smiles. Continue reading “Show Review: Turkey Trot 2010 with The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Misisipi Rider, Hang Jones and Walking in Sunlight at Cafe Du Nord 11/26/10”

Show Review: Young the Giant with Geographer at Rickshaw Stop, 11/5/10

YTG_crouch — Sameer Gadhia of Young the Giant

Since I saw Young the Giant open for Marina & the Diamonds earlier this year their self-titled album has been in heavy rotation on my iPod, so I was super excited that they were coming back to town. I love getting the chance to see a band at that moment in time where they are number one in your mind and the potential for a great evening is endless. Add on top of that a good venue and great opener in Geographer and I was confident I would not be disappointed. Continue reading “Show Review: Young the Giant with Geographer at Rickshaw Stop, 11/5/10”

Show Review: Free Energy with Foxy Shazam and Hollerado at Slim’s, 10/29/10

Foxy_Stagedive — Foxy Shazam shows everyone how it's done

Spinning Platters has seen all of these bands before, more than once in fact, yet about half of the staff was at this show. Why? It is impossible to resist the chance to see three such high energy fun acts all in one night, and it was Managing Editor Dakin Hardwick’s birthday party! For both these reasons it was a very fun night full of joy and dancing. Continue reading “Show Review: Free Energy with Foxy Shazam and Hollerado at Slim’s, 10/29/10”

Show Review: Azure Ray with Tim Fite and Whispertown (solo) at The Independent, 10/24/10

Azure_left — Maria Taylor and Orinda Fink shine in darkness

When we arrived at The Independent I was surprised by the lack of people. Maybe I live in a bizarre universe in which Saddle Creek in the early 2000’s was the epitome of music, but I thought Azure Ray coming back would be big. Apparently I was wrong. It could have been the rainy Sunday night, or maybe it’s that slow, haunting pop songs are out of style. Nevertheless, it turned out to be a lovely, and surprisingly varied, evening of music. Continue reading “Show Review: Azure Ray with Tim Fite and Whispertown (solo) at The Independent, 10/24/10”