Seattle’s (by way of South Carolina) Emery headlined El Corazon on January 24th. And they rocked. Thank you to Steve Campagna for the shots of the quartet, who started their own label, Bad Christian, in late 2013. Look for the label’s first release, Emery’s You Were Never Alone, this year.
Emery – all photos by Steve Campagna
The Thermals, My Goodness & Summer Cannibals @ Neumos, January 15th
Show Review & Photos by Abby Williamson
The Thermals
I don’t know what your favorite activity for a Wednesday night is, but mine is seeing live music. And on this particular Wednesday, it was the Thermals at Neumos as part of the Capitol Hill landmark’s 10 year anniversary. Joining the Portland trio on the list were fellow Portlanders Summer Cannibals and Seattle’s own My Goodness.
It was nice seeing the old clown face staring down at the crowd from Neumos’ stage, that creepy creepy clown that used to be so synonymous with Neumos. But then again, it’s nice that the creepy clown has since been retired.
Summer Cannibals
Aaaanyways, on to the important stuff. Summer Cannibals were surprisingly fun. I had no idea what to expect, but they were a perfect accompaniment to the Thermals. It was dirty, gritty, garage rock that felt so authentic that you almost thought they were just making the stuff up on the spot. There was nothing twee or precious about Summer Cannibals, just good old-fashioned rock and roll – no modifiers needed.
The only modifier that I could think of for My Goodness was. . . badass. And my goodness were they great! Apologies on the pun, I’m sure it’s happened several times before. But holy smokes, I felt like an idiot for just discovering how great My Goodness is. Heavy blues rock from a duo. Sounds familiar. I will make the Black Keys comparison, but these guys are much faster and deeper. It’s the kind of rock and roll that you can feel in the back of your throat and it works its way out your ears and all you’re thinking is – more please. Psst, they’re opening for Augustines at Neumos on February 7th if you’re on the same page and want more.
My Goodness
And just when I was totally satisfied with my evening, the Thermals made it even better. I’ve seen the Thermals so many times, and every time their energy is just as infectious. The songs are easy to sing to, easy to dance to, and just get you excited. At one point the guitarist from Summer Cannibals actually crowd surfed for an impressive length of time. There’s nothing better than musicians that are just as excited to see live music as fans too. It’s honestly one of my favorite things, and it’s one of those things that unite everyone – we’re fans of music, even the musicians themselves. It’s wonderful to see, and the Thermals have been around for so long in the Portland music scene that I’m sure everyone in that town has seen them play at least once. We got to see some old favorites, as well as a handful of tracks off the new record Desperate Ground, and we ate it all up.
The Thermals
My Goodness
Summer Cannibals
One of the first shows we’re covering for 2014 is Reverend Horton Heat‘s appearance at Showbox at the Market. We’re starting off the year with a bang!! Rev, the new Reverend Horton Heat album – and first in 5 years – just came out on the 21st. You just might want to grab that up. Opening for the evening were Danish band Nekromantix and Old Man Markley. All photos by Monica Martinez:
Reverend Horton Heat
Nekromantix
Old Man Markley
Gabriel Winterfield of Jagwar Ma
One of my final concerts of 2013 was Jagwar Ma‘s headlining appearance at the Neptune on December 10th. For a couple months I’d been listening to their album, Howlin’, over and over again, zoning out in my own little Jagwar Ma world. The Australian duo is fiercely good. Also on the bill were Seattle’s Iskha Dhaaf and Vox Mod, who put on some seriously trippy, move your ass music. Catch them whenever you can in Seattle.
Jagwar Ma
Iska Dhaaf
Vox Mod
More Photos of Jagwar Ma @ the Neptune
More Photos of Vox Mod @ the Neptune
Normally when I cover a show, I write a review about the headliner and a small something about the opener. In this case, headliner and world record holding violinist, David Garrett and opener and world champion accordionist, Martynas Levickis had the crowd going wild with their mix of classical and modern songs.
Germany’s David Garrett amazed his first crowd at age 11 and recorded his first CD by age 13. Garrett‘s latest work Music, released in 2012, has such classics as , “The Ninth Symphony,” “Ode To Joy,” and “We Will Rock You.” Garrett fired up the crowd early with “We Are The Champions” by Queen.
Martynas Levickis blew onto the Lithuanian stage in 2010, while studying at the Royal Academy, when he won Lithuania’s Got Talent.Since then he has been wowing crowds all over the world as he plays a mixture of classical and modern songs. Yes that right, Martynas raised the roof with Katy Perry’s “Hot n Cold” and Lady Gaga’s “Telephone.”
Photographer: John Rudolph
