Live Music Reviews and Photographs / NYC, Buffalo, Toronto, Pittsburgh
On Thursday, August 11th, Billy Joel continued his non-stop tour with an incredible show at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. It had been six years since Joel played here and the capacity crowd showed their appreciation. Many fans came to the stadium early to tailgate, getting ready to party with their idol. Having been a Billy …
Continue reading "The Piano Man is still keeping the faith at PNC Park – Aug 11, 2022"
The 80s were the heyday of the hard hitting hair bands, shredding the stage but with smiles on their faces. They played to sold out stadiums of eager young’s fans and partied like there was no tomorrow. Not privy to backstage antics, I don’t know if they’re still partying and the hair is definitely not …
As the “it” band of the last year, Wet Leg has been selling out venues faster than you can say “Isle of Wight”! Toronto was no exception as they stopped by the Phoenix Concert Theatre on Tuesday, even though there were at least four other amazing shows that same evening: Glass Animals, Cage the Elephant, …
Continue reading "Wet Leg sells out Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto – Aug 2, 2022"
The Houston based trio Khruangbin hit ArtPark in Lewiston, NY last night. In the midst of their cross country Space Walk Tour, the Buffalo show was a late addition and the fans in western New York could not be happier. The venue was packed before the opener even started, with many dressed as if they …
Continue reading "Khruangbin brings some funk and some fun to ArtPark – Aug 1, 2022"
It's been six years since Warpaint headlined the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto. Returning to a full house at the Opera House, the band saw eager fans packed into the beautiful venue. Personally, I saw the quartet of Emily Kokal (guitar/vocals), Theresa Wayman (guitar/vocals), Jenny Lee Lindberg (bass/vocals), and Stella Mozgawa (drums) at the Music …
Continue reading "Warpaint makes triumphant return to Toronto – July 27, 2022"
Indie pop sensation Clairo (aka Claire Elizabeth Cottrill) has been making music since she was 13 and it only took five years to introduce herself to the world when one of her songs “Pretty Girl” went viral. With her hit debut record “Diary 00” and successful tours in 2018 and 2019 (who jumps all the …
Continue reading "Every teenage girl in Toronto came to History to see Clairo – July 26, 2022"
The Pretty Reckless headlined their first show since December 2017 at Stage AE in Pittsburgh on Friday, July 22nd. After their Paris show in 2017, little did they know that it would be almost five years before they would headline a show again. They had a tour planned in spring/summer 2020 that was pushed to …
Continue reading "The Pretty Reckless play first headline show since 2017 – July 22, 2022"
When New Kids on the Block announced their "Mixtape Tour" would include Salt-N-Pepa, En Vogue, and Rick Astley, I was in! Not having been much of a boy band fan, I did listen to the other three acts quite a bit back in the day. As I entered the KeyBank Center in Buffalo on July …
Continue reading "New Kids on the Block brought some friends to the KeyBank Center – July 17, 2022"
With a new LP "Asphalt Meadows" set to be released in September, Death Cab for Cutie hit ArtPark's mainstage in Lewiston on July 11th for a welcome back party. The band is touring extensively through 2022, first with Illuminati Hotties supporting (as they did at ArtPark), then with Low, and finally with Yo la Tengo. …
Continue reading "Death Cab for Cutie plays to packed ArtPark – July 11, 2022"
At the age of 67, 80s hit-maker Howard Jones continues to tour extensively. Yes, those high notes are a little harder to hit now but his fans are there to help him through those. I covered his Acoustic Trio tour when he, bassist and ex-Kajagoogoo member Nick Beggs, and guitarist Robin Boult performed in Ithaca, …
Continue reading "Howard Jones and Midge Ure keep the 80s alive in Buffalo – July 7, 2022"
Everyone has a significant other that adores the handsome operatic crooner Josh Groban. With his boyish good looks, dazzling smile and smooth voice, I can see why. Yeah, it's may not be cool to enjoy what's considered "old people music" but you can't deny the fact that he's been immensely successful and has developed quite …
Continue reading "Josh Groban has Darien Lake swooning – July 1, 2022"
Noga Erez is Israel’s biggest pop star…at least according to Erez’s brother Gon. But who can argue with him. Having won Best Newcomer of the Year in 2018 (VIA), her sophomore album “Kids” critically acclaimed, and touring along the likes of Tove Lo and Florence and the Machine, her bona fixes are solid and indicate …
Continue reading "Noga Erez plays JCC Buffalo’s inaugural Creekside Concert – June 28, 2022"
If there was one way I would describe Tash Sultana, it would be a one-person jam band. The multi-instrumentalist from Australia makes full use of the available technology and is able to seamlessly able to create music incorporating any number of instruments from guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums to mandolin, trumpet, saxophone, panpipes, and recorder!! …
Continue reading "Tash Sultana parties with Buffalo at Babeville – Jun 22, 2022"
Superstar Patti Labelle picked a great evening to play the beautiful outdoor ArtPark on Tuesday, June 21st, and she was in fine form. Regularly engaging with and waving to individual members of the audience, she showed that she still has the pipes, with a little support from her excellent backup singers. She even danced a …
Continue reading "Patti Labelle wows ArtPark in Lewiston – June 21, 2022"
Canadian punk rock band PUP (aka Pathetic Use of Potential) wrapped up the spring/summer portion of their North American tour in Buffalo, NY at Babeville/Asbury Hall on Saturday, June 18th. This final show in support of their latest record "The Unraveling of PUPTheBand" was a high energy affair with a capacity crowd from start to …
Continue reading "PUP shoot their wad at final tour stop in Buffalo – June 18, 2022"
Why are jam bands so tightly associated with hippie culture and drugs? It's understood that 60s era hippies and psychedelics were an influence that drove some of the music of early jam bands like the Grateful Dead. However, it continued to persist with Phish in the 80s to even current day jam bands like Goose. …
Continue reading "Goose jams through the night at ArtPark – June 8, 2022"
What more can I say about the ethereal being we call AURORA that I haven't previously said? I've been covering her shows for several years now and the last one at Terminal 5 in NYC back in November was one of her best! Since then, she has released her latest album "The Gods We Can …
Continue reading "Otherworldly AURORA takes over Toronto – May 29, 2022"
Back in 2017, when Lo Moon was signed to a major label and was touring extensively, it seemed like the band was ready to explode. It didn’t happen, with differences in marketing strategy between the label and the band. Matt Lowell, formed the band, is the lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, and wrote much of the …
Continue reading "Lo Moon lays down some serious mood at Drake Underground – May 28, 2022"
It was the afternoon of November 19, 2019 when I peeked out the door at the Paste Studio in NYC to see if the next band had arrived yet and I saw two kids sitting on the floor in the hallway like they were in high school. It turns out those “kids” were Lili Trifilio …
Continue reading "Beach Bunny wraps up tour with triumphant return to Toronto – May 27, 2022"
When I first heard about the most recent Oh Wonder album "22 Break" and how Anthony Vander West and Josephine Vander Gucht (now Vander West) had been in the midst of possibly breaking up while writing the record, I was completely devastated! I had met them at their Paste Studio session in 2019 and they …
Continue reading "Oh Wonder celebrates life at Brooklyn Steel – May 15, 2022"
When I arrived early for mxmtoon's show at the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto on May 4th, I knew it was going to be a wild ride. The line several hours before the show was already almost two city blocks long! I had met mxmtoon (aka Maia) in 2019 at a session at the Paste …
It was Pretty in Pink and 80s high school proms all over again last night at History in Toronto. If you were music aware in the 80s, there’s no way you could avoid not knowing Orchestral Manouevres in the Dark and their brand of electronic dance music. While they were not the first pioneers (like …
Continue reading "OMD brings back the 80s in a big way at HISTORY – May 3, 2022"
It was a hell of a night for punk rock at Mohawk Place on Thursday with a trio of Sad Place, Skating Polly, and Together Pangea. Whether you call it emo, ugly pop, or garage rock, it was hard, heart pounding punk rock. I had been following Skating Polly since their collaboration with Veruca Salt …
Continue reading "A Skating Polly punk sandwich at Mohawk Place in Buffalo – April 14, 2022"
Nation of Language is one of those bands that seems to have come from nowhere and exploded onto the music scene. That being said, they did form back in 2016 with Ian Richard Devaney on guitars and lead vocals, Aidan Noell on synthesizers, and Michael Sue-Poi on bass. Supposedly Devaney took inspiration from OMD's "Electricity" …
Continue reading "Dancing the night away with Nation of Language at Lee’s Palace – April 7, 2022"
With her new single "Shotgun" already out and her new album "Sometimes, Forever" about to drop in May, it almost feels like I'm seeing Soccer Mommy (aka Sophie Regina Allison) just a month early. That being said, this spring tour is really what we had expected back in 2020 in support of her then new …
Continue reading "Soccer Mommy thrills crowd at Mr Smalls – April 2, 2022"
When I saw that Wolf Alice was playing at Stage AE in Pittsburgh, I thought it was great that they were playing larger venues. They are an amazing band, especially live, and are not to be missed. When I arrived, I discovered that they were playing on Stage AE's "club stage", significantly smaller than the …
Continue reading "Wolf Alice rolls on in Pittsburgh – April 1, 2022"
If all you know about Gary Numan is his big 80s hit “Cars”, then you’re missing out. Yes, he was an icon back in the 80s but he’s been putting out new music and touring regularly ever since. If you’ve ever been to one of his shows, you’d remember it vividly. And his music has …
Continue reading "One of the best shows of the year? That’s right…Gary Numan! – Mar 12, 2022"
How old are the members of Sunflower Bean? "TwentyTwo in Blue" came out pretty recently, right? The pandemic and subsequent lockdown have caused us to lose two years so, yes, they're TWENTY SIX now!! After being somewhat radio silent since the "King of the Dudes" EP was released in January 2019, we finally have a …
Continue reading "Sunflower Bean previews new album at Club Cafe – Mar 6, 2022"
The last time I saw Tame Impala was at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY in 2017. At that show all attendees were asked to place their phones in Yondr pouches for the duration of the show. Fast forward five years; same amazing band, different restrictions (vaccination cards). The band opened up their 2022 …
In late 2019, I had just started to get into The Regrettes' sophomore album "How Do You Love?" after kicking myself for missing their show in NYC. I was hoping for another tour in 2020 but, unfortunately, that was not to be. However, the band stayed busy during the lockdown, releasing two stand-alone singles "What …
Continue reading "The Regrettes slay Rec Room Buffalo – Mar 2, 2022"
I was enjoying the warm almost summer-like 68 degrees in Washington Square Park as I anticipated the show I was to see last Wednesday night. The lineup was definitely something to look forward to with British indie folk singer Fenne Lily as the headliner. Her beautiful voice had been hanging on the skirts of my …
Continue reading "Fenne Lily’s music was warm and soothing on a cold night – Feb 24, 2022"
Did you know that on Tuesday 2/22/22 Pluto completed one revolution around the sun after 246 years? Ok, so we missed by one day and it hasn't really been that long since we last saw Grouplove. However, for some of us die-hard fans, it SEEMS that long. The band had just started doing promos in …
Continue reading "It was a GROUPLOVE birthday celebration at Brooklyn Steel – Feb 23, 2022"
James Taylor and Jackson Browne wrapped up a long US tour at the Key Bank Center in Buffalo on Monday. I was lucky enough to attend and photograph for QRO Magazine. All their respective hits were in play as well as a number of covers, evoking memories from my younger days. Taylor, at points, hopped …
Continue reading "James Taylor brings back memories at Key Bank Center – Dec 13, 2021"
Canadian indie-band Tokyo Police Club was originally going to celebrate the ten year anniversary of their Juno nominated second full length album "Champ" in 2020. Unfortunately, the pandemic shut things down but when live music started to come back, the band immediately put together a "replacement" tour and a re-issue of that great record. The …
Continue reading "Tokyo Police Club celebrates “Champ” at Bowery Ballroom – Nov 19, 2021"
For two consecutive nights in November, young fans of FINNEAS (AKA Finneas O'Connell, AKA Billie Eilish's older brother and collaborator) could be found lined up for blocks around Irving Plaza. And why not? His debut studio album "Optimist" (released Oct 15, 2021) is stupendous. His charming good looks (kinda reminds me of a young Darryl …
Continue reading "Finneas brings the house down at Irving Plaza – Nov 17, 2021"
When talented Norwegian singer/songwriter/activist/fairy Aurora announced just two shows in the United States for 2021, I knew I had to be at Terminal 5 on November 14th. Having attended every one of her NYC shows since 2017, I've had the pleasure of watching her grow and evolve as an artist. Besides having a beautiful voice …
Continue reading "Aurora makes Terminal 5 the happiest place on Earth – Nov 14, 2021"
UK rock band Wolf Alice stopped by the Bowery Ballroom in NYC (Nov 12/13) as they wind down their first tour in three years. Their critically acclaimed third album "Blue Weekend", released last June, has the been the source of much press coverage and garnered them a nomination for the 2021 Mercury Prize. After attending …
Continue reading "Wolf Alice crushes two nights at Bowery Ballroom – Nov 13, 2021"
Blues/rock guitarist and singer/songwriter Samantha Fish, in the midst of a worldwide tour supporting her seventh studio album "Faster", stopped by Asbury Hall on Tuesday night. Winner of many awards for her blues albums and performances, her new record does skew a bit more pop. That being said, her consummate guitar playing is evident and, …
Continue reading "Samantha Fish was on fire last night in Buffalo – Nov 2, 2021"
Shot for QRO Magazine. You can also view the gallery here. After seeing the crowd at the Sea Hear Now Festival (see my coverage here) singing along to every Billy Idol song just this past weekend, I kinda knew what to expect as I drove up to Port Chester for his headlining show at The …