The sold-out Seattle show was Phoebe Ryan’s first stop on Tove Lo’s Lady Wood tour. Her latest single, “Dark Side,” was released three days before, and she played it live for the first time at the Showbox SoDo during her 30-minute set. Fun fact … Phoebe’s flight to Seattle was cancelled but she was able to rebook one at the last minute. She made it to the venue just in time for the show, but she had to perform in her pajamas because the airline lost her luggage. But that didn’t stop her from putting on an amazing performance!
Show Preview:Temples @ Neumos – Saturday, February 25th
~Dagmar
You can’t get your hands on Temples‘ second album, Volcano, yet. Happily, its release date of March 3rd approaches quickly. Or, if you go to Neumos on Saturday night, you’ll most likely hear songs off it, performed by the British quartet, Temples, whose albums have been produced by lead singer/guitarist James Bagshaw. The big difference here between the band’s 2013 release, Sun Structures, and Volcano is: while Sun Structures swings with a definite psychedelic rock emphasis, Volcano has gone more classic rock. And I love classic rock. Okay, there’s still some psychedelia happening; I like that, too.
The group, in appearance, matches both sounds perfectly. Now, I am not saying you need to look nice to play great music. And it doesn’t enhance the experience of listening to music; obviously, most of the time you listen to music without seeing the artists. What I mean is, Temples look exactly like how I would picture them. It makes it a cool bonus when you see a band perform live. Oh, and my favorite tracks from albums one and two? I am partial to “A Question Isn’t Answered” and, to what I have heard so far from Volcano, “I Wanna Be Your Mirror.”
Seattle was the second stop in the North American leg of JoJo‘s Mad Love Tour, in support of her third studio album with the same name. She was accompanied by a four-member band plus two backup singers for a rich, full sound. New York-based Stanaj opened.
Sound Off! began its sixteenth year on Friday, February 10th. The competition, which included Cult Bride (indie/folk), Fluencie (dance), Jason McCue (folk) and Mission 253 (pop), was the first held under the building’s new name, MoPOP. EMP is no longer! Long live MoPop. Jason McCue won semifinals one, while Fluencie came in at runner-up. All photos by Simon Krane:
Show Preview: Alter Bridge @ the Moore, Wednesday – February 22nd
~Dagmar
Alter Bridge
Rock band Alter Bridge, from Orlando, Florida, wrap up The Last Hero Tour 2016-2017 at the Moore Theatre on Wednesday, February 22nd. Going on tour, letting fans hear the music from last year’s release, The Last Hero, seems a smart choice. The album is their Billboard top-charter since their debut, One Day Remains, and has particularly spoken to listeners with the political “Show Me a Leader.”
A big impression I have of Alter Bridge, three-quarters of whom were part of Creed, is their ability to make songs with perfect segues between faster parts and the more tuneful, vocal portions. That can be a huge problem for me in listening to harder rock. Sometimes it can be excessive, but entertaining; at other times, it’s nice not to think, now here’s the guitar solo. I’m not saying that the guitar solos don’t impress, they do. What I mean is they’re just as melodic as the songs’ hooks, the catchy bits. Think of the songs as containing hooks within hooks.
They’ll be joined by fellow Floridians, NONPOINT. Tickets & more details are right here.
