Show Reviews – Page 10 – Spinning Platters

Show Review: Scorching the Psychotherapy Sessions in Florida

Photos and review by: Alan Ralph @AlanHasPicks

Ten days after attending, photographing, and reviewing Overkill, Exhorder, and Heathen at Great American Music Hall, Spinning Platters’ resident metalhead took a trip to the extremely sunny, hot, and occasionally rainy shores of Florida to ring in his 50 years of existence with a weekend of metal with The Pyschotherapy Sessions at MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre in Tampa and another Overkill show at House of Blues in Orlando!

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Show Review: Overkill Scorched San Francisco

Photos and review by: Alan Ralph @AlanHasPicks

It is fairly common knowledge that thrash metal originated from here in San Francisco starting in the early-mid 1980’s with most of the heavy hitters like Metallica, Death Angel, Testament, Forbidden, Exodus, and Vio-lence, among others. The east coast, however, also had some major thrash metal bands brewing, with Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, and Overkill leading the pack. Cut to today, and most of these bands are still around and still continue to rage, almost as good or better than they did all those years ago!

One of those bands actually travelled 3,000 miles from their east coast home to begin their tour here in San Francisco. Hailing from Old Bridge Township, New Jersey, the seminal 1980’s band Overkill came to town to show-up their Bay Area thrash metal brethren, and in the process, laid waste to the Great American Music Hall, proving that after 43 years and 20 albums, they still thrash as well or better than most of their Bay Area metal counterparts… and everyone else!

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Show Review: Garbage, Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds, and Metric at Concord Pavilion, 6/6/23

This concert was an extremely rare event. Possibly described as a single-night festival hosting only the headliners. Despite the unique opportunity, the majority of the crowd was late to arrive. Unfortunately, this is typical for a mid-week show with a start time of 7 pm at a venue as remote as the Concord Pavilion. Garbage executed an aggressive grunge-punk vibe; Noel Gallagher and High Flying Birds flowing chill melodies. Metric was the perfect dynamic intro, as their versatile style lent a glimpse of what was yet to come. Continue reading “Show Review: Garbage, Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds, and Metric at Concord Pavilion, 6/6/23”

Show Review: KMFDM and Chant at the Belasco 05/17/2023

“KMFDM/Better Than the Best/Megalomaniacal and Harder Than the Rest…”

As is typical of working in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles, my live concert experiences are constantly in flux with my day job. So it was after a seven-week run of live theater work that I finally had my evenings back to cram in some concerts, with KMFDM and Chant at the Belasco to kick off what would become a whirlwind two weeks of live music before jumping right back into more theater work and officially losing my social life for the next six or seven weeks. Self-pitying aside, it was a great night to head into Downtown LA with a friend to finally see the truly legendary and outstandingly prolific KMFDM for the first time!

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BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 3

(You’re reading Day 3. Be sure to catch up on Day 1 and Day 2!)

Day 3 of BottleRock Napa Valley is always bittersweet because it’s the last day, and I want to see more phenomenal artists, but my feet hurt, and I’m ready to get back to my real life, too. While I’ve been off to the races the past two days, seeing bands right away in the first hour of the day, today I opted for a slower, easier start. I stopped to catch a bit of Half Alive, where I enjoyed the trio’s energy and especially “Still Feel.”

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BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 2

You’re reading Day 2 – be sure to check out what you missed on Day 1!

Day 2 of this year’s BottleRock started with similar weather to the previous day. By the time I was done watching Paris Jackson‘s set (my first of the day), I was already warm enough to take my jacket off. Despite having heard at least a few of her songs here and there, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Jackson. She has a solid sound with her band, and her set was enjoyable pop-rock. I enjoyed her enough that I’ll be curious to see where her music career will take her. Continue reading “BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 2”

BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 1

You might not be able to tell by the weather, at least in Napa today, but it’s almost summer! Memorial Day Weekend marks the unofficial start of summer and the arrival of BottleRock Napa Valley’s 10th festival! The day started out pretty chilly, which had me worried that the weekend might be colder than I’d hoped for a festival weekend, but thankfully it eventually warmed up to a nice breezy, sunny day.

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Show Review: Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade with Fishbone at Meritage Resort, Napa, 5/19/2023

Even the poster still says Silverado Resort. This show was moved in a hurry! Brian Allen of Flyland Designs did the art for this poster — it’s killer.

About two weeks ago, well after most of the shows had gone on sale, Blue Note Napa announced that they were moving their Summer Sessions series of concerts from the Silverado Resort to the Meritage Resort. The Napa Valley Register reported that it was due to some permitting issues with Napa County, but regardless, if there’s a new venue out there in the world that’s hosting a show as promising as Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade and Fishbone, I was going to have to check it out. Continue reading “Show Review: Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade with Fishbone at Meritage Resort, Napa, 5/19/2023”

Show Review: A Night of Enchantment: Pixies and Slow Pulp Grace the Fox Theater – Oakland, 5/4/23

A Night of Enchantment: Pixies and Slow Pulp Grace the Fox Theater

Within the heart of downtown Oakland lies the historic Fox Theater, a stunning Art Deco masterpiece that has set the stage for many an unforgettable concert experience. Last week, the theater’s exquisite interior and world-class sound system played host to an electrifying performance by the Pixies, with Slow Pulp as their mesmerizing opening act. Continue reading “Show Review: A Night of Enchantment: Pixies and Slow Pulp Grace the Fox Theater — Oakland, 5/4/23”