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Photo by Keeyahtay Lewis
I am here to report that the angsty teenager inside of me is alive and well. The part of me that I thought was long-gone jumped back out with a vengeance when I saw that Taking Back Sunday would be performing their 2002 debut album in full on a worldwide 20th anniversary tour with a stop in Austin, TX for two nights at Emos. Read more
I mentioned that OMD was playing a sold out show at Emo’s in a Have A Nice Weekend post last Friday. I stressed that of all the bands that were formative to new wave that still influences so many bands today, the only one touring right now with the same level of love for their music, past and present, is Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark. They are touring in support of their recent release The Punishment of Luxury, which if you haven’t given a shot, you might want to.
In addition to their hit after hit set, OMD brought along GGOOLLDD, some fun indie pop stuff that you can dance to, with outfits and poppy fun.
Let’s get to a few random thoughts and plenty of pics.
The other Sound on Sound makeup show we ventured out for was to catch Japandroids and Cloud Nothings at Emo’s.
We interviewed Cloud Nothings several years back during Fun Fun Fun Fest, six whole years back, and several albums ago. They were a highlight, winning best drummer award, as I recall.
I last saw Japandroids open for Iggy Pop. That was pretty nuts. They even knew they were speed-bump on the way to the spectacle.
Click through for a few thoughts and the photos.
As previously mentioned, I’d caught the Jesus and Mary Chain a handful of times since their return a few years back, but I had yet to catch them in an intimate indoor setting, such as Emos. Some brief thoughts below.
Thirty plus years into their career, and people, such as myself, are still clamoring to catch The Jesus and Mary Chainlive. I’ve been fortunate enough to catch the legendary act twice, though both have been at festivals, so perhaps the intimacy was missing…until now. Tomorrow night in Austin, the Scottish act will grace Emos, allowing those in attendance to get just a little bit closer to the band. They’re touring in support of their recent album, Damage and Joy, which was their first release of original material in almost 20 years. Even if you haven’t listened to that new LP, they’re guaranteed to play some of their “hits,” so fans will be sure to get a taste of nostalgia. Plus, the Dig are opening up, who’ve started to map out some solid performances in their own right, so be sure to show up early.
Doors are at 7 PM; tickets still available HERE.
When ACL cancelled a day of the festival a few years back, we were flooded by a series of pop-up shows to keep visiting artists busy. When the press release landed cancelling the entire festival, I emailed Team ATH to keep an eye out and put an ear to the street. One of the first big acts to land a venue was Animal Collective. The show at Emo’s sold out in two minutes. In fact, most pop-up shows sold out in a ridiculously short time, but I think this one was the fastest by far.
If you were at Scoot Inn or Hotel Vegas, get ready for notes and pics from the big show that featured Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith as the open…
There have been several bands over the years that we have seen grow and graduate the indie blogoshpere. I have seen CHVRCHES many times, loved the band’s material, met the band while Lauren was still too shy to out from the backline between the giant synth stands. During their set at FFFX, we discovered that she has gotten past that stage fright and is now a performer beyond the skilled vocals.
Now, I have been on a bit of a photo burnout sabbatical. It is what happens after weeks of festivals back to back to back with shows scattered in between. I figured I’d break that shooting manual focus lenses, going B&W, by checking a local fave in Night Drive and seeing CHVRCHES on the smallest stage they’ll play stateside until the regrettable reunion tours in 2035. Heh.
Give to Habitat for Humanity. Click through for pics.
It isn’t a new idea, plenty of people have followed a band for a day, but it is something I have wanted to do for a while now. The last time The Twilight Sad was in town in support of We Were Promised Jetpacks, I had some time to chat with James, lead vocals, and Chris Patin, the tour manager, about following the band for a day during SxSW. You see, Chris is a friend of the program; he is in The Calm Blue Sea. James and I oddly ended up standing next to each other at several day parties in previous SxSW’s and we have had friendly conversations about tea, food, travel, normal human stuff. Seemed like a good fit. What follows is an account of the day, followed by a ton of pics. As a bonus, I got to see several other bands, some pretty damn good ones, including Torres and Ringo Deathstarr (more on them later).
MMG rapper Wale will be headlining Emo’s this Friday, February 6. The stop will be part of Wale’s Simply Nothing Tour, promoting his upcoming fourth album, The Album About Nothing. Wale’s career-long deliberate references to the TV show Seinfeld come with whole-hearted approval from Jerry Seinfeld himself, which says a lot about Wale’s talent and artistry. While Friday’s concert will no doubt be a showcase of Wale’s upcoming album, it would be safe to assume there will also be some songs performed from his Festivus mixtape that appropriately dropped on December 23. A highlight from that mixtape is the Janet Jackson-sampled “Girls On Drugs”. Festivus can be streamed or downloaded for free via Audiomack. “Girls On Drugs” is below.
Just when it looked like we were going to skip that whole fall season thing, last night’s rain and cold front had us grateful for the change in venues from the Scoot Inn to Emo’s. This same rain didn’t prevent people from getting there early to catch the opening act, even despite the 6:30 door times. It was a night of appreciation for beauty in simplicity, where opener Chris Staples did his part to warm the crowd for the elegance of Manchester Orchestra. Read on for a brief synopsis of the evening. Read more
