“Is it your birthday girl cause you lookin’ like a present?!” Why yes, Lizzo, it is. Muchas gracias for dropping your first album in 3 years! Praise Goddess.
Obvi this #birthdaybitch was all about the music this week thanks to a dynamite show by Houston-hailin’ Khruangbin, the best band you’ll never know how to pronounce. Their Lone Star psychedelic grooves rocked a sold out set at Berkeley’s Greek Theater featuring all their best songs as well as a dynamic medley of 12+ covers ranging from What is Love to Seven Nation Army. They came to slay! The opener, Montreal-based Men I Trust, started their set with a cringy hello to “San Francisco” and a set of shoegazey lounge rock that was perfectly delightful and much more politely Canadian than their mistaken regional greeting.
Final shoutout to neighborhood band “The Haighters” that played two (!) sets at the Panhandle during my picnic party with hours of jammin’ rock and psychedelic classics to celebrate the birthday of their lead guitarist as well – rock on Mark!
Happy Passover, Easter, and March Madness dear readers!
For the local music nerds out there Spring brings a special gift of musical delight…This local holiday is Fauxchella.
Fauxchella is a time of year when the Bay Area music scene gets a bountiful boost of high quality shows from bands who are traveling up I-5 from Coachella Music Festival. So for those of us aching for an early taste of the 2015 festival scene – without risk of heat stroke or offensive SoCal fashion trends – Fauxchella is like Christmas (in April). The line-up this year is quite impressive. (photo credit: SFStation.com)
While many shows are already sold out, last minute tix always pop-up on craigslist or stubhub, so keep your eye out! I have 3 shows in my queue, see full details from my February post:
April 7th: The Preatures @ The Indie
April 16th: Alt-J & Jungle @ The Greek
April 21st: Slyvan Esso @ The Fillmore
In other news…Concert Recaps plus New & Noteworthy songs
Quick Concert Recap:
Ibeyi @ The Independent
How do I describe the magical journey that this concert beheld? Words won’t do it justice. These French twin sisters, Lisa-Kaindé and Naomi Diaz, knocked it out of the park! Best show of 2015 so far. Hands down. Their Afro-cuban beats had the brightly colored and ornate audience swinging their hips to dance tracks like Ghost and mindful acapella tunes like Oya. Captivated by the beauty of these young musicians we were all love drunk in their presence. Their unique sound is spreading across the country, as showcased by a recent NPR feature on World Cafe. (photo credit: thewildmag.com)
Jessica Lea Mayfield & Seth Avett @ Palace of Fine Arts
Recently Jessica Lea Mayfiled and Seth Avett (Avett Brothers), came together to record a tribute album to the late, great Elliot Smith. Sing Elliot Smith honors the seminal work of this influential singer-songwriter in a beautiful reflection by these two notable rock musicians. As avid lovers of Smith’s discography, Mayfield and Avett approached the collaboration with three years of work, infusing 12 of Smith’s melancholic tunes with a fresh flavor that reflects their personal genres – sparse and poignant alt rock vocals for Mayfield and southern upbeat twang for Avett. During the show the artists intermixed their Smith covers with some of his major influences – covering artists ranging from The Beatles to Bob Dylan. A few Mayfield originals were also played, including my favorite of the set – “Our Hearts are Wrong” a wise worded folk ballad with sweet and raw vocals that harken to a smoother Courtney Barnett-esque sound. Overall it was a beautiful show celebrating the life work of Elliot Smith and the artists he has inspired. (photo credit: juno.co.uk)
New & Noteworthy
Leon Bridges – “Coming Home”
Hot off an impressive set of shows at South By Southwest (even award winning), Leon Bridges is dazzling audiences with silky smooth vocals and an amazingly fresh Southern roots sound that is infused with a soulful spice that beguiles his youth. Just when you think a genre has reached it’s capacity you get hear an artist like Leon who makes you see the sunshine with a whole new vigor.
Griz – “Stop Trippin (iDA Hawk)”
With a soulful interlude into electronica this tune has got me flippin’ my hair all day everday. This song highlights a common theme amongst the remix genre of late, integrating funk and soul riffs into drum machine beats to create an intoxicating sound that keeps us listening on repeat.
2 Heads – “Coleman Hell”
Looking for a bit more bluegrass in your dancehall beat? Done. This Toronto-based produced seamlessly interlaces banjo in this catchy tune. His music is self described as “Electronic Folk”…think Blue Ridge Mountains meets Brooklyn. (And proceed to have your mind blown…)
Lady Lamb – “Billion Eyes”
In 2015 the resurgence of “lady rock” or female-fronted punk and rock bands is all the rage. As a music-loving feminist I’m extremely excited about this music trend… Get those kick ass women up on stage! Lady Lamb, or Aly Spaltro, is an up and coming singer songwriter who rocks this genre. This Mainer is coming to SF at the end of the month, so look forward to more details soon!
Broken Back – “Halcyon Birds”
Sometimes you just need a new tune to blast in the car when you’re driving with the windows down through beautiful wine country or along coastal highways. Will you feel like you’ve been ironically cast in a Levi’s commercial? Perhaps. But sometimes the sunshine feels a bit warmer with the right soundtrack…
Two hours on a plane, one hour on a train, and six flights up a winding staircase landed me at the door of Alexis’s Parisian flat; where two glasses of Champagne were happily waiting. I dropped my bags in the cozy lamp-lit living room and took in the bohemian décor (or “bobo” to the French) teak furniture and bookshelves of French literature. We joyously shared a celebratory drink, “Sante!”. I sipped it down quickly – happy to blur my exhaustion and forget the aggressive altercations I’d had with Air France employees that day. Speed was also of the essence because the Warpaint show started in 45 minutes.
It was a quick walk down Boulevard de Clichy to the venue, La Trianon. The red light district of Pigalle is visible from afar by the bright lights of the Moulin Rouge, and nestled among an array of sex shops and crepe stands. But soon enough those sights and sounds gave way to the true neighborhood ambiance – one filled with French cafes, whose full tables spilled onto the sidewalk, murals adorned every alleyway, and chic Parisians (à la mode, évidemment) promenaded down the boulevard. Once we arrived at, La Trianon, I was immediately impressed. The venue was beautiful, concert goers were led up two white marble staircases to the main lobby which was adorned with chandeliers & red velvet curtains. In the face of the music hall’s captivating opulence, the band’s “merch” table seemed almost comically underdressed. Inside the venue we filled in the main concert floor where opulent golden balconies hung above us.
Despite the ironic nature of seeing an LA band while abroad in Paris, Warpaint perfectly matched the city’s artsy culture and minimalist fashion. With a sparse rock sound that often pairs with avant-garde vocals, it was obvious that they were very much at home in Paris. After an initial language barrier snafu the audience was quickly won over by the band’s alt rock,female-powered vibe. Within 3 hours of my arrival in Paris I was swaying alongside 200 new friends as lead singer, Emily Kokal, crooned Warpaint’s 2015 title track, the heart-thumping “No Way Out (Redux)”. With haunting bass lines this song is reminiscent of “The XX”, but Warpaint takes this genre up a notch by adding an electric shot of adrenaline and three more kick-ass females on stage.
Their set continued with a few songs from Warpaint’s 2010 album, The Fool. Despite the band’s rise to international fame over the past few years this album continues to be their best loved and most famous. A notable song they played was, “Undertow”, eliciting many excited hoots and hollers from the crowd.
Throughout the show Warpaint’s bandmates were illuminated by an oscillating purple and green light show. These women were lit up as true rock stars – delighting us with drawn out lo-fi guitar riffs and even a few notable drums solos. The distorted guitar and vocals on “Go In” harkened back to the band’s beach-bound roots; a reminder of summer warmth that the Parisians in the audience were more than happy to dream of as they clutched winter hats and gloves in the concert hall.
Warpaint’s show was also notable for it’s varied range of song styles. From hard rocking anthems to folk-tinged ballads the band brought the audience through a range of emotions and experience. In the song “Billie Holiday” Warpaint exuded this deep reservoir of soulful resonance that reverberated throughout La Trianon. Since this is my favorite Warpaint song I had high hopes for the performance, and their superior execution of the ballad made me squeal with pure delight. When a band like Warpaint is able to demonstrate such varied musical dexterity it bodes well for their musical future, denoting new possible avenues of complexity that will help keep their sound relevant for many years to come.
Warpaint’s concert was a delightful introduction to Paris: a true European culture center where the residents live and breathe art everyday. In a community where one attends an art opening (“vernissage”) as commonly as Americans attend a house party, it was refreshing to bask in the creative glory of it all. The show at La Trianon was also a helpful reminder that we are all active participants in the art industry and lovers of culture. And in the spirit of the recent Spring Equinox celebration, I was able to reflect upon the fact that every few months we all begin a new phase of life. Thus we are granted the opportunity to mindfully integrate more artistic expression in our lives and in this way adopt the Parisian philosophy of welcoming “Art as Life”.
Happy Passover, Easter, and March Madness dear readers!
Music On My Mind 