Djxfactor511
Well-Known Member
In-laws got me a season pass of lawn tickets for the big amphitheater near us. Only a few shows announced so far, but looks like I'll be seeing a lot of live music next year!
Upcoming/Recent Shows
- Thread starter Absolut Kaz
- Start date
imtheocean
Well-Known Member
Social Distortion at the Observatory North Park, San Diego 1/4
I've seen Social D. a number of times over the years, and really enjoyed last nights show. The last few times Mike seemed like he was going through the motions, but last night he was engaged with the music and audience. Played a suprisingly good cover of Wicked Game, plus some new stuff, of which Ghost Town Blues was my favorite. He said they are recording, so hoping we get some new stuff from them soon.
The only weird part was when Mike took off his hat. I swear that's the first time I've ever seen him without his hair slicked back (and he ditched the eye makeup too). Took some getting used to.
I've seen Social D. a number of times over the years, and really enjoyed last nights show. The last few times Mike seemed like he was going through the motions, but last night he was engaged with the music and audience. Played a suprisingly good cover of Wicked Game, plus some new stuff, of which Ghost Town Blues was my favorite. He said they are recording, so hoping we get some new stuff from them soon.
The only weird part was when Mike took off his hat. I swear that's the first time I've ever seen him without his hair slicked back (and he ditched the eye makeup too). Took some getting used to.
Matt M
Santa Extraordinaire
First show of the year was one my gal really wanted to go to, so we picked up 8 tickets and bright sone friends along. Had a really great time, but man the sound continues to be hot garbage at this place. Could barely hear the muddy vocals in the back half of the room. In the thirty or so years I've been to shows at this place, I'm astounded that they can't figure out how to get the people in the doors quicker or improve the sound in the room. We sat in the bar around the corner watching the line while it took them 1.5 hours to get everyone in (apx 1500 people). All that being said it was a good time out with friends, and i could tell if the sound was better it would be a fantastic performance.
Lainey Wilson @ the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, Oregon.
Lainey Wilson @ the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, Oregon.
Max Sterling
Well-Known Member
Viking Dan
Well-Known Member
Yeah - why the F are the Strokes headlining over RTJ?!
Rip_City
Well-Known Member
Very in late in posting the previous slew of concerts dating back to last year.
Let's Eat Grandma was fine enough. Not really one of my favorites.
Alana Rich
Pop musician based here in Portland, OR! Apparently she's also performed a few halftime intermission shows at Trail Blazers games, but I don't remember her name at all. She's also a fairly successful YouTuber with some posted covers of top40 radio songs in the past decade.
Vocally, she was fine. No musicians backing her up except for a DJ to the side (not present in the photos here). Instrumentals of her music are very by-the-numbers for pop. She brought out a few backup dancers for the last few songs.
Let's Eat Grandma
Decent show, but not enough to be considered one of my favorites from '22.
They opened with the very energetic "Happy New Year," but I could immediately tell that the vocal and instrumental mixing was not well balanced; could barely hear Rosa's (somewhat pitchy) vocals for the first few songs. It's pretty obvious that both are nervous as performers.
The energy and passion for their performances, as @Djxfactor511 had mentioned months back, was not in doubt. Jenny and Rosa locked eyes with each other several times as they danced back and forth several times during instrumental breaks and a few harmonized sections. A few cute moments of course (a few awkward hugs and cheesy smiles towards the audience), since they are childhood friends.
Closed out with the banger "Levitation," which did sound much better than a majority of the set. As for the encore, they played the crowd favorite "Donnie Darko," jamming the full 11min from the studio version. Even more distorted and noisy from the original album cut...with both Jenny and Rosa finishing out the set by laying on the ground as the harsh noise and distortion took over the room. Easily the best two songs in the set.
Decent performance; but I dunno if I'd see again.
Post-Show
Got a photo with Rosa and Jenny after the show, but didn't like the way it turned out. All of the vinyl for Two Ribbons were sold out, and the T-shirt designs were not great, so I left without merch in hand.
Let's Eat Grandma was fine enough. Not really one of my favorites.
Alana Rich
Pop musician based here in Portland, OR! Apparently she's also performed a few halftime intermission shows at Trail Blazers games, but I don't remember her name at all. She's also a fairly successful YouTuber with some posted covers of top40 radio songs in the past decade.
Vocally, she was fine. No musicians backing her up except for a DJ to the side (not present in the photos here). Instrumentals of her music are very by-the-numbers for pop. She brought out a few backup dancers for the last few songs.
Let's Eat Grandma
Decent show, but not enough to be considered one of my favorites from '22.
They opened with the very energetic "Happy New Year," but I could immediately tell that the vocal and instrumental mixing was not well balanced; could barely hear Rosa's (somewhat pitchy) vocals for the first few songs. It's pretty obvious that both are nervous as performers.
The energy and passion for their performances, as @Djxfactor511 had mentioned months back, was not in doubt. Jenny and Rosa locked eyes with each other several times as they danced back and forth several times during instrumental breaks and a few harmonized sections. A few cute moments of course (a few awkward hugs and cheesy smiles towards the audience), since they are childhood friends.
Closed out with the banger "Levitation," which did sound much better than a majority of the set. As for the encore, they played the crowd favorite "Donnie Darko," jamming the full 11min from the studio version. Even more distorted and noisy from the original album cut...with both Jenny and Rosa finishing out the set by laying on the ground as the harsh noise and distortion took over the room. Easily the best two songs in the set.
Decent performance; but I dunno if I'd see again.
Post-Show
Got a photo with Rosa and Jenny after the show, but didn't like the way it turned out. All of the vinyl for Two Ribbons were sold out, and the T-shirt designs were not great, so I left without merch in hand.
Rip_City
Well-Known Member
Helen was also OK. I was curious about this show seeing that Liz Harris is involved in this shoegaze collective with a pair of Portland record store owners providing percussion and bass contributions. Last concert from '22.
The Spatulas
Wow, this was my least favorite opener of the year. They honestly sounded like The Shaggs but just a hint more semblance of rhythm. Could not tolerate the lead lady's vocals and just wanted it to be over.
Helen
Pretty enjoyable, if slightly unremarkable, performance. The band started and closed their set without any transitions or announcing of any songs in the setlist. Liz's guitar amp also had a handful of feedback difficulties throughout the set that took several minutes to correct.
For three songs in setlist, with each of these three spread a few songs apart, Liz performed solo vocals + guitar, very much akin to the timbre of what you'd hear on either of the A I A albums. It made for a very beautiful cleansing after getting hit with a shoegaze blizzard for a few tracks, especially right near the front of the stage. Without question my favorite sections of the set, as you could probably guess.
Can't complain too much for a $15 ticket entry, to be fair. Liz remains one of my top50.
Post-Show
The band has a rather extensive selection of merch: six shirt designs, their lone album from 2015 on LP/CD, beanies, and polaroids. Didn't get anything though (was in no-buy mode during this period), and just said hi + thanks to Liz when I caught her near the venue doors.
The Spatulas
Wow, this was my least favorite opener of the year. They honestly sounded like The Shaggs but just a hint more semblance of rhythm. Could not tolerate the lead lady's vocals and just wanted it to be over.
Helen
Pretty enjoyable, if slightly unremarkable, performance. The band started and closed their set without any transitions or announcing of any songs in the setlist. Liz's guitar amp also had a handful of feedback difficulties throughout the set that took several minutes to correct.
For three songs in setlist, with each of these three spread a few songs apart, Liz performed solo vocals + guitar, very much akin to the timbre of what you'd hear on either of the A I A albums. It made for a very beautiful cleansing after getting hit with a shoegaze blizzard for a few tracks, especially right near the front of the stage. Without question my favorite sections of the set, as you could probably guess.
Can't complain too much for a $15 ticket entry, to be fair. Liz remains one of my top50.
Post-Show
The band has a rather extensive selection of merch: six shirt designs, their lone album from 2015 on LP/CD, beanies, and polaroids. Didn't get anything though (was in no-buy mode during this period), and just said hi + thanks to Liz when I caught her near the venue doors.
Rip_City
Well-Known Member
Here's my concert tiers from 2022, stowed away in a spoiler tag to not clog the thread for those who are uninterested. Couldn't add openers (nor link to individual posts) as I ran past the character limit. 
Concert Rankings 2022 |
# | Tier | Artist/Band | Venue | Comments |
| 1 | S | Godspeed You! Black Emperor | Roseland Theater | Life-changing. |
2 | S | Ichiko Aoba | Polaris Hall | The most intimate concert experience perhaps ever; was ~6ft away from her with no obstruction. Her clearly articulated vocals and formal Japanese had me transfixed and on the verge of tears more than once. Completely forgot there was an audience in the middle of songs. Signed record + poster + photo together. |
| 3 | S | Boris | Revolution Hall | Nothing is the best opener I have ever seen. Boris was relentlessly brutal, like I had hoped. Together, they devoured. Glad I had earplugs. |
| 4 | S | Sons of Kemet | Star Theater | Shabaka Hutchings at his best. |
| 5 | A | Arooj Aftab (2nd round) | Aladdin Theater | Met with a friend for the first time this year to see this show. Third time seeing. My favorite of Arooj's performances so far. |
| 6 | A | Caribou | Roseland Theater | Went with a college friend. The 15-minute live performance of "Sun" was exhilirating. |
| 7 | A | Spellling | Star Theater | It's like they transformed The Turning Wheel into a rock epic with theatrics. Phenomenal. |
| 8 | A | Ethel Cain | Mississippi Studios | She's the real deal. Some pitchiness had no dismal effect on my fulfilling enjoyment. Signed poster + photo together. |
| 9 | A | Grouper | Polaris Hall | A dreamlike sensation while awake, really nothing like it. Liz signed three records with doodles. |
| 10 | A | Silvana Estrada | Doug Fir Lounge | First concert of the year, also cheapest ticket ($12). What a way to kick it off...she and her band were stellar. A four song encore in a small venue? Sign me up for more. |
| 11 | A | Rina Sawayama | Roseland Theater | Amazing energy from her + crowd. |
| 12 | A | The Comet is Coming | Revolution Hall | Won free ticket in local giveaway. Shabaka never disappoints. |
| 13 | A | Amber Mark | Doug Fir Lounge | The only thing I didn't like was the realization that I'll probably never see her in a small venue again. Total blast. Signed record. |
| 14 | B | Ana Roxanne | Holocene | Went with a friend. So beautiful and evocative, yet a bit short. Signed records. |
| 15 | B | Magdalena Bay | Holocene | Absolute blast. A cheesy narrative behind the performance, but it was an all ages show so who cares? Signed shirt from Matt & Mica + photo together. |
| 16 | B | Stella Donnelly | Mississippi Studios | Gosh, she was a surprise. Can't believe that the 300-cap venue had < 200 in attendance. Signed record. |
| 17 | B | Fennesz, KMRU | Holocene | Second time seeing Fennesz. Beautifully noisy. Met Patricia Wolf for the first time in person. |
| 18 | B | Otoboke Beaver | Doug Fir Lounge | Got hurt a bit, but this was wildly exciting. |
| 19 | B | Stereolab | Roseland Theater | Some of the best sound quality I've heard at a concert. Perhaps not the most exciting or memborable concert ever, but certainly enjoyable. |
| 20 | B | Arooj Aftab (1st round) | The Old Church | Second time seeing. Small church venue works well for her music. She's always worth the money. Signed record. |
| 21 | B | Julianna Barwick | Aladdin Theater | Ambient serenity. The openers complimented well, especially Sontag Shogun. |
| 22 | B | Kishi Bashi | Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | Only time I was at what I deem a "large" venue for a concert this year. Great performance, outside of an awkward encore attempt that ended without any music being played. |
| 23 | B | Melvins | Hawthorne Theater | Loud as fuck; bad venue acoustics slightly hampered enjoyment. |
| 24 | B | CHAI | Doug Fir Lounge | Cheery, fun show. Only good vibes. Only 50min show in total. Sadly, YUUKI (ユウキ) was not present for the Portland date. |
| 25 | B | Jenny Hval | Holocene | Amusing commentary from Jenny in between songs. Great performance, but sad I won't hear many of the Classic Objects songs on future tour…she isn't one to play older material live. |
| 26 | B | Brandee Younger + Dezron Douglas | The Old Church | Won free ticket in local giveaway. Signed record from Brandee. |
| 27 | B | Erika De Casier | Holocene | Some technical difficulties hampered a fun, sensual performance. Signed record + photo together. |
| 28 | B | Circuit Des Yeux | The Old Church | Long pauses in between songs. Shockingly only three songs performed from the new record. Cover of Bauhaus's "Double Dare" was menacingly excellent. Signed records. |
| 29 | B | Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio | Star Theater | Enjoyed myself far more than I expected to. |
| 30 | B | Haru Nemuri | Hawthorne Theater | A bit inconsistent, but amazing near the end. Signed record and poster + photo together. |
| 31 | C | Hatchie | Mississippi Studios | I may have overstated my enjoyment in the concert post. Still enjoyable, if unmemorable. Signed record + photo together. |
| 32 | C | Holocene 20th Anniversary | Holocene | Free show. Went primarily to see Patricia, but also enjoyed Moss Wand. The DJs and Crystal Quartez were bland, though. |
| 33 | C | Visible Cloaks | Holocene | Cheap show and a decent night out. Unfortunate that Visible Cloaks' visual backing went out with 10min to go in the set. Liz signed a record with doodle. |
| 34 | C | King Hannah | Doug Fir Lounge | Most disappointing turnout; < 100 people total. Disrespectful crowd amidst a mostly enjoyable performance. Signed record. |
| 35 | C | Let's Eat Grandma | Doug Fir Lounge | Kind of an inconsistent, slightly awkward performance. When the band was clicking, they were enjoyable. Photo together. |
| 36 | C | Rochelle Jordan | Holocene | Was hoping for a bit more, but good enough. Volume was not mixed well. Crowd energy was kinda lame. Signed record. |
| 37 | C | yeule | Holocene | Criminally short performance. Somewhat awkward ending. |
| 38 | C | Squid | Wonder Ballroom | Second time seeing. They were much better the prior year with a friend. |
| 39 | C | Helen | Holocene | Bad opener. Some interesting segments, but not enough to win me over. |
| 40 | C | Armand Hammer | Polaris Hall | Crowd was full of annoying zoomers, reminds me why I don't seek out hip-hop much live. Performance was good, but unsure about seeing again because of preceding sentence. Merch line was horrible. Bought and signed record from Woods + ELUCID. |
| 41 | C | Marissa Nadler | Mississippi Studios | About as "meh" as it gets. I like Marissa's music, but she is a bit bland live. Not to mention awkward. Second opener Eight Bells were heat. Signed records. |
| 42 | D | CS + Kreme | Mississippi Studios | CS + Kreme sucked; only went to see Patricia as opener, who was good. Patricia signed record. |
| 43 | F | black midi | Wonder Ballroom | Almost thought about leaving after the opener; quite unpalatable. Security was ill prepared. Performance was a bunch of noise. Did not enjoy myself at all. |
Djxfactor511
Well-Known Member
1 day post knee surgery and I was back at it again last night at The Agora in Cleveland seeing Angel Olson.
Missed the opener Erin Rae for the 2nd time in a year unfortunately.
Mixed feelings on Angel's set. Her voice is SO GOOD, and her keyboardist has the perfect harmonies to compliment her, but so many of her songs are just so mellow, and on a sleepy, wintery Thursday evening, the half full crowd was starting to doze off. Angel is a pretty planted performer, meaning she doesn't move around much, so it wasn't a super engaging watch in a standing only floor. If I had a comfy chair or a blanket to lay down in a grassy lawn venue it would have been a much more enjoyable experience. There's no denying that the band, expanded with a violin and cello, sounds great, but not sure they did themselves any favors with the venue.
Missed the opener Erin Rae for the 2nd time in a year unfortunately.
Mixed feelings on Angel's set. Her voice is SO GOOD, and her keyboardist has the perfect harmonies to compliment her, but so many of her songs are just so mellow, and on a sleepy, wintery Thursday evening, the half full crowd was starting to doze off. Angel is a pretty planted performer, meaning she doesn't move around much, so it wasn't a super engaging watch in a standing only floor. If I had a comfy chair or a blanket to lay down in a grassy lawn venue it would have been a much more enjoyable experience. There's no denying that the band, expanded with a violin and cello, sounds great, but not sure they did themselves any favors with the venue.
wokeupnew
Well-Known Member
I LOVE Angel Olsen, but I agree with what you said. I've seen her 3 times and 2 of those 3 times I've felt the same. The first time I saw her during the My Woman tour was the exception. Those songs and those that preceded it that she played are much more lively with energy. She and her band were all wearing space suit outfits which was not a sleepy vibe. The second time was a solo acoustic show which comes with the teritory. She was singing while gently strumming on her guitar. It was a beautiful show but there were definitely people in that audience that were asleep at some parts of the show. The most recent time was last year with SVE and Julien Baker. I was bummed she only played about 8 songs but they were more subdued. Her voice is soooo gentle at times that it lulls you to sleep. It's not a bad thing, her voice is one of my all-time favorites but in a big room with her "Big Time Band" you kind of expect some rockin' tunes and not a nap.
My Neighbor Brotoro
Active Member
I, too, saw Angel Olsen in concert
Djxfactor511
Well-Known Member
Sandler was bust-a-gut hilarious, but Rob Schneider can fuck off.
Mack37
Well-Known Member
Do catch Erin Rae, she is wonderful.
Djxfactor511
Well-Known Member
Yep, definitely! Circumstances beyond my control both times. Wish I had.
Djxfactor511
Well-Known Member
Joke Christmas present to a brother in law turned out to be a fun night. Michael Bolton's still got the pipes. Started at 7:30 and ended at 8:50. Gotta love an early night!
Viking Dan
Well-Known Member
Oh Hell Yes.
