'2023' Dates
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Unwound got back together for the first time in over 20 years. Their bass player had passed away in the interim. Today they filled out the band with a second guitarist. It sounded awesome. They played two separate sets. It was so much fun to hear this band loud again. I really liked each performer. I loved the drums. I really liked the way the guitars both felt like they were warming up and swarming. There were many songs I did not know right away. I don't know if I don't have them or if they were re-arranged. Regardless it was awesome. They dedicated the last few songs of the second set to their former bass player Vern. Their drummer lives here in Portland, and she said her kid was at the show. I went with my old friend Jon from San Francisco again. We had fun.
Archers recently put out a great new album and went out on tour. I went with my friend Jon, who I'd gone to Unwound with earlier in the week. This was another show full of mostly dudes my age. The band rocked, no question. They played all the hits. The opener was a young band who were clearly influenced by the types of music I grew up with. I'd listen to them again.
It'a always great to go to a new place to see a show. This is an old theater with an awesome neon marquee. Jon invited me to go. We got there just when the last opener ended. I stayed seated throughout the show since I was a little tired. It's the same line up as the last time I saw Deerhoof, so many years ago. I joked with Jon that I could remember when the long haired guitarist had short hair. The drummer as usual had so much energy! His drum kit is pretty simple too: 3 drums and 3 cymbals. The structure of their songs continues to be so interesting. It was a good night out.
Earlier this year, I learned that Love And Rockets were going to play a big festival in southern California. Of course they added some west coast club dates afterwards, and I was able to get tickets to this show. From the stage David J said it was the first city to sell out for the tour. It was nice place to see them; it's only a little larger than the Metro. Mike and I were able to get a good spot, off to the side and pretty close to the stage. This is because I still had my crutches and "boot" on, so we were able to sit in the ADA section. We arrived during Vinsantos' set. Vinsantos played keyboards, and there was a guitarist off to the side. I'd known nothing about them prior to the show. They are a drag burlesque performer who has apparently been opening for Bauhaus shows for some time now. There was a lot of audience chatting going on, and Vinsantos made a commment along the lines of how much people paid for a ticket to just talk. Why not stay at home? The line for the merch was near us and it was already long when we got there. As far as I know, it was long for the entirety of the show. I got in line during a few Love And Rockets songs I was not familiar with. I got an iconic and classic Love And Rockets logo t-shirt. Man, I had so much fun at this show. From the moment Daniel Ash walked out, you could see his very spiky hair in silhouette. Soon thereafter you got to take in his rock star bright red blouse. I knew I was just going to be in psychedelic glam rock seventh heaven. For the occasion, I wore my 35 year old "Earth Sun Moon" t-shirt. The band all wore sunglasses. David J wore a three piece maroon velvet suit. I knew all the words to the songs from the 4 albums I love from back then. They played a few songs from each. There were a few songs that I was not familar with (which Mike was). They opened with the slow version of "Motorcyle." They played "No New Tale To Tell" in about the middle of the set; definitely one of my favorites. "Ball of Confusion" was the encore closer, and they came out for a single-song second encore, which I did not know. But I identified it by the lyrics the next day. It was "Sweet FA." Other awesome ones were "Kundalini Express", "Yin and Yang (and the Flowerpot Man)" and "Dog End of a Day Gone By". Before the show started, I'd asked the person seated beside me if she'd seen them before. She had not, but her partner was a huge fan and was somewhere up front of the stage. She said they'd had met David J in person before, and their partner had said "I love Love And Rockets and would you ever tour again?" David J apparently said "No way, you're living in la-la land if you think that's going to happen." Lala Land was a lot of fun tonight!