Concert Review – Page 4 – Spinning Platters

Show Review: Imagine Dragons with The Naked and Famous and X Ambassadors at SAP Center, 2/13/2014

I can't even say how much I needed a good show like this one. — I can’t even say how much I needed a good show like this one.

Over the past three decades, I’ve called many a band my favorites, but of course over time, preferences change and so have I. For me, the ones that “stick” are those that tend to have qualities I can’t find elsewhere: a voice so unique I recognize it even a new song, a melody I can’t get out of my head, or lyrics that make me feel like I’ve been spied on… No matter what, though, the favorite bands I come back to again and again always share one quality in particular: they sound even better live than they do on their albums. Seriously: imagine that seeing concerts regularly is what you do, and after the zillionth time of getting amped up to see a band you’ve been into, you discover they’re less than stellar live. Trust me, it sucks, and it definitely always sours my love for not-so-amazing-live bands. (At least a little.) So after a year and a half spent devouring every single Imagine Dragons song I can get my ears on (and a little preview at a festival last summer), I was beyond ready to see if these Dragons had what it takes to launch a long-term love affair with me. I don’t subject myself to standing-room-only general admission floor tickets for just any act (I may be getting too old for all of that), but there I was on Thursday night, about six rows back from the stage at SAP Center, waiting for the lights to go down. Continue reading “Show Review: Imagine Dragons with The Naked and Famous and X Ambassadors at SAP Center, 2/13/2014”

Show Review: Matt Nathanson with Vicci Martinez and Parachute (Mix 104.9’s Chris-Mix 2013) at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, 12/12/2013

Matt Nathanson brings a little holiday cheer to Santa Rosa.

One of the best things about the Christmas season is that it, like summer, is a great excuse for radio stations to bring cool bands and artists together for a show that’s a celebration, and always a fun time. This year, the one I chose was Mix 104.9‘s 8th Annual Chris-Mix, last Thursday night in Santa Rosa. Not only did it promise to be a fun, mellow night out with a friend, but I hate to miss a chance to catch San Francisco’s own Matt Nathanson (ok, he’s a Massachusetts native, but he calls the city home these days). The show also boasted Vicci Martinez (familiar to many from her run on the first season of NBC’s The Voice) and Parachute. There’s also always the promise of the occasional Christmas carol on such evenings, but either way I knew it promised to be a good show. Continue reading “Show Review: Matt Nathanson with Vicci Martinez and Parachute (Mix 104.9’s Chris-Mix 2013) at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, 12/12/2013”

Show Review: Howie Day with Tyler Hilton and Anna Rose at Yoshi’s Oakland, 12/10/2013

Howie Day is nothing if not entertaining.

Tyler Hilton rarely gets himself to Northern California. I know, because every time he does, I’m there with bells on. I first met Tyler nearly a decade ago, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, of all places. Some friends and I had driven (!!) from LA to see a band we love play their hometown for back-to-back nights, and the night before the first show, Hilton (and touring buddy Curtis Peoples) was playing the little coffee shop venue next door. The poster showed a handsome guy who resembled Elvis, but sneaking in to check him out would mean losing our spot in line. Instead, we chatted the boys up when they arrived for soundcheck, and after their set, they came out with their guitars to play us a song or two. Nine years later, Curt and I are still friends, and I still have a crush on Tyler Hilton, owing in equal parts to his wonderful, raspy voice, and yes, his good looks. He never remembers me, but that’s okay: as long as I can hear him sing once in a while, I don’t need much more than that. So add him to a bill with singer/songwriter Howie Day (whose huge 2004 hit “Collide” has been an earworm for just about everyone on the planet at one time or another) and NYC’s Anna Rose,and I wouldn’t miss it. Early this week (Tuesday at Yoshi’s in Oakland), that’s exactly what I schlepped out to the East Bay to see. Continue reading “Show Review: Howie Day with Tyler Hilton and Anna Rose at Yoshi’s Oakland, 12/10/2013”

Show Review: Ryan Cabrera with Keaton Simons and Mike Annuzzi at Red Devil Lounge, 11/20/2013

Ryan Cabrera. Tonight on a very special episode of Blossom.

Once upon a time (circa 2004), Ryan Cabrera was a new face, introduced to many (most?) by way of his then-girlfriend, Ashlee Simpson via her MTV reality show, The Ashlee Simpson Show. Despite his Muppet hair and whiny voice, Cabrera’s major-label debut, Take it All Away, peaked at #6 on The Billboard 200 chart, fueled largely by hit single “On the Way Down.” Now, nearly a decade later, Ashlee Simpson is long gone, and it’s been six years since Cabrera last released an album. Nonetheless, he’s inexplicably touring with my beloved Keaton Simons (for whom I’d do most anything), and so I had no choice but to subject myself to an evening of his music last week at what turned out to be my farewell show to the soon-to-close Red Devil Lounge. Continue reading “Show Review: Ryan Cabrera with Keaton Simons and Mike Annuzzi at Red Devil Lounge, 11/20/2013”

Show Review: Hitchcock Week — Greatest Hits

Last night closed the book on Hitchcock Week with the San Francisco Symphony. The talented orchestra players, conducted by Joshua Gersen, performed selections from Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief, Strangers on a Train, Vertigo, Dial M for Murder, and North by Northwest. Part of the night belonged to the complex scores, at times sweepingly romantic, other times suspenseful and bombastic. The other half belonged to the charming host, Eva Marie Saint (On the Waterfront, North by Northwest). At 89 years old, she still carries a youthful exuberance that would make you question whether she was a day over thirty. Aside from a few film intro slip ups, she held her own, constantly throwing out sharp pokes at herself, hilarious flirtations at Gersen, and telling fascinating anecdotes about her work with Hitchcock.

Continue reading “Show Review: Hitchcock Week — Greatest Hits”

Show Review: Macy Gray at Yoshi’s Oakland, 10/25/2013

If you ask me, Macy Gray’s career was ahead of its time. Fourteen years ago, On How Life Is came out, and all I’ve known about it in the time since is 1) that while I was beyond tired of hearing radio-saturated “I Try,” it was a great song, 2) Macy has an amazing, interesting, soulful voice, and 3) that the critics loved her. When I saw that she had a show scheduled in the Bay Area, at a favorite tiny venue (Yoshi’s Oakland, last Friday night), I decided it was high time I gave her my full attention. Continue reading “Show Review: Macy Gray at Yoshi’s Oakland, 10/25/2013”

Show Review: Stephen Kellogg with Fort Atlantic at Cafe du Nord, 10/23/2013

Stephen Kellogg is a friend of a friend (or several friends, actually). Even so, I’ve never met him, and though I’ve seen him once or twice, I couldn’t have named a single of his songs… until last night. His newest album, Blunderstone Rookery, came out this summer, and when I heard he was playing Cafe du Nord on a chilly Wednesday night, I couldn’t think of anything else I needed to do. It was about time I finally laid ears on him, and a bonus, too: opening act Fort Atlantic. It wasn’t hard to find a girlfriend up for some live tunes, and soon we were settled into the dim venue with a plate of their fantastic fried pickles, ready for the night to get rolling. Continue reading “Show Review: Stephen Kellogg with Fort Atlantic at Cafe du Nord, 10/23/2013”

Show Review: Bryan Abrams with Kevon Edmonds at Bal Theatre, 10/19/2013

Almost exactly a month ago, I was looking forward to reminiscing about high school days gone by. Color Me Badd, a group whose first album was loaded with songs my sister and I adored, was back together and playing near me. Sadly, though, the band had recently begun to fall apart, and what I thought would be a super fun evening of nostalgia was missing something. The day of the show, I realized that two former members were no longer with the group, one of them being its former lead singer, Bryan Abrams. While I understand that things are bound to happen over the course of two decades, my disappointment was undeniable. Rather than reviving the songs I most wanted to hear, they had replaced Abrams with singer/songwriter Corey Cross. To be fair, he’s a great singer; it just wasn’t the same. Thankfully, last night at the Historic Bal Theatre in San Leandro, I got to see what had been missing: Bryan Abrams.

Continue reading “Show Review: Bryan Abrams with Kevon Edmonds at Bal Theatre, 10/19/2013”

Show Review: Pink with New Politics at SAP Center, 10/15/2013

Pink makes her grand entrance: dangling in the air, held by three muscled men.

To sum up P!nk in one word seems at first like an impossible challenge. And then you see her live, and if you’re a word lover like me, the right one might dawn on you, just as it did me when I saw her Tuesday in San Jose at SAP Center on The Truth About Love Tour. Ready? The word is spectacular. Give it a minute: she can dance her ass off (both in the traditionally choreographed styles we’ve come to expect with pop acts and more modern/contemporary styles. She’s a bad ass aeralist in her own right, and she’s not too shabby when it comes to acrobatics these days, either. And of course, she’s singing 100% live the entire time, too, as she doesn’t believe in lip-synching. Even when she’s suspended in mid-air upside-down, she’s still singing, and it’s near perfect. Add a great opening act (New Politics), a fun set, costumes, makeup, and a “story” throughout the evening, and it gives you quite the spectacle to behold. So there you have it: Pink = spectacular! Continue reading “Show Review: Pink with New Politics at SAP Center, 10/15/2013”

Show Review: Man Man with Xena Rubinos at the Great American Music Hall, 10/1/2013

You know you’re at a show with a decent amount of energy when the singer and the guitarists jump and dance around on stage. You know you’re at a show with an amazing amount of energy when the drummer jumps and dances around on stage. Hyperkinetic experimental rockers Man Man put one one such show at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall, joined by the incomparable Xenia Rubinos. Brilliant, engaging music coupled with riveting stage presence led to an unforgettable night of unusual music.

Continue reading “Show Review: Man Man with Xena Rubinos at the Great American Music Hall, 10/1/2013”