Concerts for 2023

[cramx3]

Monday night was Nemophila's first time in New York City.  Thanks to Lonestar for talking about this band otherwise I likely wouldn't of even known about the show. 

I will say, the show had a sort of "special" feel to it.  I think being the first time in NYC, and east coast in general.  The line to get into the venue went around the block (I think it must have consisted of 90+% of the people there). The fans were clearly into it from the reaction to the show.  And the merch was basically all sold out at the end.  It reminded me a bit of the Powerwolf show last month, where it was their first time in the US and the crowd was just wild for it and also bought all the merch.  It's shows like that, which really stand out to me because of how "real" it all feels.  It's clearly not just a band doing their 10th tour of the US and going through the motions along with a mild crowd that's seen the show before. 

Having said that, I wonder if the girls were a bit tired from coming straight to NYC from Dallas the night before.  I thought they were off a lot.  I don't really mind the mistakes, but there was one moment where the guitarist botched a part, botched the attempt to get back into the flow, and then shrugged and stopped playing for a moment before getting back in sync.  I kind of got the feeling they might just have been tired at that point.  Which sucks, but expected.  I can respect that they were clearly live though.  They did use some pumped in keys, but I couldn't tell if they were actually playing to a backing track or if things were being triggered.  I saw that because the sound usually went to shit when they used keyboard tracks.  The bass would go way too high at times.  Generally, I thought the sound was pretty bad overall for a headlining act.  Luckily my camera is pretty good at keeping the bass down on the recording so it actually sounds much better watching my videos than it did in person. Sounded more like an opening band to go along with the house lights that gave the band no help in being able to see them well. 

I do think they were actually pretty good though having said some negatives.  The crowd was into it.  I didn't expect a mosh pit for a good part of the show considering it looked like the type of crowd Lonestar had mentioend there would be (old dudes).  Even in the back where I was, there was a guy just going wild for every song. I'm a new fan, not a huge fan, so when I see others really going wild for this, it makes me happy for the band and it makes the show more enjoyable for the average fan like myself.  I enjoyed the full setlist, got to see songs like Life and Oiran that I've come to enjoy while checking them out recently. 

There was no opener and they only played for about 75 minutes which kind of was another letdown.  It wasn't an expensive concert for me to say the cost was too much for 75 minutes of music, but the effort to get in/out of NYC makes only a 75 minute show feel like a bit of a hassle.



Nemophila LIVE @ Gramercy Theater New York City NY 3/20/2023

Next concert:

April 1st - Polyphia @ Starland Ballroom, Sayreville NJ

[DTwwbwMP]

Mark, PLEASE DO NOT take this the wrong way, but I have to ask. Do you just see "anybody" just to go to a concert?

[cramx3]

Mark, PLEASE DO NOT take this the wrong way, but I have to ask. Do you just see "anybody" just to go to a concert?

Sometimes, if I'm bored.  I mean, I don't really stray too far away from rock concerts though so it's definitely not "anybody" but yeah, I'm pretty open to checking out live music if I am able to and have at least *some* desire to see the band.  Also, I do love capturing concert videos.  I don't think I've gone to a concert recently just for the hell of it though, there's got to be something I like or am interested in.

For example, I'm seeing Polyphia next and they aren't exactly a band I love.  It's instrumental, but I think it might be a cool experience because Tim Henson is an incredible guitarist.  I grabbed the ticket on sale for what I thought was a good face value and its a local venue.  It actually sold out so grabbing that ticket worked out for me.  I don't think I'd travel out of my way for something that I'm more on the fence about like Polyphia, but I think they may be a band worth seeing at least once.

Nemophila I actually do like, I just wouldn't of known about them if RJ didn't express his love so much.  Also add in the uniqueness of that show, and I found reasons I wanted to be there.

I'm more offended by being called Mark and not Marc than the question though 

[lonestar]

Yeah, I will say I'm glad I caught them at the beginning of the tour. It's their first time doing that many shows in such a short time as well, for their Japan tours they usually just do the weekends. I was especially concerned about the turnaround from Dallas to NYC, their flight left DFW at 4am after finishing up in Dallas at 10pm the night before.

They pump in keys and some backing vocals(which I never got since they have four capable backup singers and the mics set but whatever), never noticed it affecting the sound, but I've always been in front so the sound is usually fairly compromised anyways. SF had the same issue of being bass heavy, Roseville sounded perfect, as did their shows I saw previous to this tour. I'd gather using different rented equipment for each show played into it. The set length is pretty standard for them, we all wish they'd play longer.

The fans seemed to be rabid at every show, but NYC did stand out in the fan groups, as well as in the girl's reactions. Seems Roseville and NYC got the rowdiest crowds for sure.

Glad you took a chance man, glad you enjoyed it.

[DTwwbwMP]

Mark, PLEASE DO NOT take this the wrong way, but I have to ask. Do you just see "anybody" just to go to a concert?

I'm more offended by being called Mark and not Marc than the question though 

Sorry

[lonestar]

Hey Marc, what do you use for recording?

[Ben_Jamin]

Updating my list...Bolded are new additions


March 29th - Underoath w/ Periphery, Loathe - El Rey Theater, Albuquerque, NM

May 7th - Godsmack w/ I Prevail - Isleta Amphitheater, Albuquerque, NM
May 30th - Helloween/Hammerfall - Ogden Theater, Denver, CO
May 31st - Haken - Denver, CO

June 14th Bela Fleck and The Flecktones - The Lensic, Santa Fe, NM

August 15th - Mudvayne w/ Coal Chamber, Gwar, Nonpoint, Butcher Babies - Isleta Amphitheater, Albuquerque, NM (Took me forever to get tickets, because of some issues with my bank card I ended up having to use my friends card and paid him back)
August 31st - Pantera/Lamb of God - Isleta Amphitheater, Albuquerque, NM

September 22nd - Kansas - Kiva Auditorium, Albuquerque, NM

Oct 1st - Polyphia w/ Domi & JD Beck - Revel Entertainment Center - Albuquerque, NM
Oct 17th - Ne Obliviscaris/Beyond Creation/Persefone - Sunshine Theater, Albuquerque, NM

[twosuitsluke]

Went to see King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard last night for the first time, and this was their set...



Holy shit, what a show. I went with three of my buddies (who I successfully converted last year) and it was just what I needed. We went for a few drinks before the show and I was suitably lubed to dance around/rock out for 2 hours straight. It was so refreshing to see a band who are somewhat out of what I normally listen to, who are kinda in their prime right now.

The set wasn't necessarily my perfect set, but in true Gizz style they jammed out a lot of these songs and added in bits of other songs from their vast catalogue.

Highlights were Robot Stop, Hypertension, Work This Time (dat extended Joey guitar solo  ), Shanghai jam sesh and finally The Dripping Tap. The Dripping Tap was the one song I desperately wanted them to play so I'm so chuffed they finished with it. By that point I was sweat drenched, dehydrated and elated. This finale tipped me over the edge and I floated along to this transcendent moment. I danced, I swayed, I sung, I bopped, I banged my head! My mate said they jammed this out for even longer than the studio version but honestly I have no clue.

Most of the show is up on YouTube already so I'll be watching it later.

[ReaperKK]

First show of the year for me tomorrow and that's going to be the Winery Dogs. For those that have seen them this tour is there an opener? I checked online and couldn't find anything.

[ProfessorPeart]

First show of the year for me tomorrow and that's going to be the Winery Dogs. For those that have seen them this tour is there an opener? I checked online and couldn't find anything.

I think they have been grabbing mostly local acts. For the Milwaukee and Chicagoland shows they had District 97 open as they are based in Chicago. They weren't announced until like 2 weeks before the show. You probably have one, but you may not find out until you're there.

[cramx3]

First show of the year for me tomorrow and that's going to be the Winery Dogs. For those that have seen them this tour is there an opener? I checked online and couldn't find anything.

I think they have been grabbing mostly local acts. For the Milwaukee and Chicagoland shows they had District 97 open as they are based in Chicago. They weren't announced until like 2 weeks before the show. You probably have one, but you may not find out until you're there.

I don't even know if there was one for the NYC show, I showed up about 15 minutes before the band went on.

Hey Marc, what do you use for recording?

Panasonic Lumix

Saw Polyphia with Unprocessed last night.  I'll write up more tomorrow, but Unprocessed was pretty awesome as an unknown opener for me 

[ReaperKK]

I saw your clip on insta and it looked like a cool show!

[Ben_Jamin]

Saw Polyphia with Unprocessed last night.  I'll write up more tomorrow, but Unprocessed was pretty awesome as an unknown opener for me 

I'd say that lineup made for one fun concert when I saw them in Mesa. I got into Unprocessed right before I saw they were gonna tour with Polyphia. I look forward to hear your thought about the show.

[ReaperKK]

First show of the year done. I saw The Winery Dogs last night and the show was pretty good, the songs translate live a lot better than on record. Richie is a pretty awful front man though. He has the chops and the voice but he has pretty intense retesting bitch face, like someone served him a diet sprite instead of a sprite zero and he is gonna need to speak to a manager.

Billy is an absolute beast on bass, he stole the show IMO and looked like he was having the time of his life. I'm down to see any show where he is playing bass. Up next Killswitch Engage

4/2/2023 - The Winery Dogs - Charlotte, NC
4/11/2023 - Killswitch Engage - Charlotte, NC
5/9/2023 - Alter Bridge - Charlotte, NC
5/19/2023 - Plini - Charlotte, NC
5/24/2023 - Incubus - Columbia, SC

[cramx3]

Richie is a pretty awful front man though. He has the chops and the voice but he has pretty intense retesting bitch face, like someone served him a diet sprite instead of a sprite zero and he is gonna need to speak to a manager.

I'm not sure it makes him an awful front man.  I think maybe his guitar and voice speak for themselves.... but my god, his resting bitchface is terrible.  I've actually wondered if it's truly a resting bitchface or if he's just a miserable person  It is a bit off putting for sure.  I think seeing a musician look happy doing what they do adds to my enjoyment of the show and Ritchie just doesn't have that about him. Luckily, for my show at least, Billy and Mike looked happy and like they were having fun.

[El Barto]

First show of the year done. I saw The Winery Dogs last night and the show was pretty good, the songs translate live a lot better than on record. Richie is a pretty awful front man though. He has the chops and the voice but he has pretty intense retesting bitch face, like someone served him a diet sprite instead of a sprite zero and he is gonna need to speak to a manager.

Billy is an absolute beast on bass, he stole the show IMO and looked like he was having the time of his life. I'm down to see any show where he is playing bass. Up next Killswitch Engage

4/2/2023 - The Winery Dogs - Charlotte, NC
4/11/2023 - Killswitch Engage - Charlotte, NC
5/9/2023 - Alter Bridge - Charlotte, NC
5/19/2023 - Plini - Charlotte, NC
5/24/2023 - Incubus - Columbia, SC

That's funny. I always thought of him as a coke man. 

[ReaperKK]

Oh I see what you did there lmao

[lonestar]

The Warning just dropped US tour dates for May and early April. May 4th for me, two days before Bloodywood. Could be a rough week man...

[cramx3]

Last Saturday I saw Polyphia with Unprocessed as the opener at my local ballroom.  Show was listed as a sell out, but it may have been one of the least packed sell outs at that venue.  Usually you can't walk around that venue when it's sold out, but that didn't seem to be the case.  It may have just been that people PACKED the GA floor up front.  Either way, it made me happy because I hate when that venue feels too packed.

Anyway, the opener was Unprocessed.  I wasn't familiar with them at all until a couple hours before the show when I youtubed them.  Thought the songs I checked out were surprisingly good.  Djenty prog metal with a bit more atmospheric styles and vocals (unlike Polyphia).  I'm not sure anyone really was familiar with them, as I didn't really spot anyone singing along or seemingly knowing the music, but the crowd reacted pretty strongly to them at the timely moments.  There was a camera guy on stage for their entire set which was annoying because he constantly blocked the view, but maybe there's a video to be seen from the show at some point.  I thought the bassist was great.  He was pretty active on stage and also played a small keyboard set.  The band seemed pretty lively, but I do think the singer was not so great live.  His clean vocals sound much better on the songs I checked out than live, but his harsh vocals were solid.  Overall, I mostly really enjoyed their set, I jsut didn't get great video of them sadly.

I should also add, before I left, I searched DTF to see if anyone was talking about Unprocessed here and did find Ben's comment from last year seeing them and enjoying them. I think a lot of the prog nerds here may enjoy them.  They were selling only two tshirts and no CDs.  I actually would have bought an album to support them, but sadly the tshirts were not good (IMO) designs for me to want to buy. 



I'm actually shocked how good Polyphia was and still thinking how wild (comparably) that crowd was for instrumental progressive rock music.  I've stated before that I'm not a huge fan of instrumental bands.  Not that I dislike instrumental music, I just usually can't get too into it and get a bit bored after a bit of time.  It's why the John Petrucci concert got a bit stale for me as time went on during the show.  Theres just only so much I can take before I need a good vocal hook.  But even when listening to the latest Polyphia album, I found myself a bit more interested in their songs than a typical instrumental band.  It's just something about the two guitars that create really interesting soundscapes that I'm not really normally or ever listening to that gets my attention.  They just executed so perfectly and I don't even know how.  And unlike the JP show of pure shred, these guys are shredding but it just sounds so fresh and different to me.  The performance was amazing.  The crowd's reaction just lifted the show to another level though.  I've just never seen so many crowd surfers and people jumping and waving their hands in the air for instrumental prog music!  They even had a wall of death?!?! WTF.  The crowd was fairly young and diverse, I do hope that maybe some of these folks find there way to some of the prog metal bands I like because those crowds could really use that energy.  I don't think this show changes my opinions on Polyphia's music, but does make me feel the show was better than expected and I certainly can see why they are growing in popularity somehow. 



Polyphia & Unprocessed LIVE @ SOLD OUT Starland Ballroom Sayreville 2023

Next concert is changing things up, going reggae:

April 16th - The Wailers @ The Vogel, Red Bank NJ

also purchased Incubus tickets this morning 

[Ben_Jamin]

One reason I can think of for why their Instrumental Music is awesome is because of the grooves and the rhythm. This blending of Hip-Hop style grooves and rhythms with metal resonates with a lot of people. People are resonating a lot with the energy. I am one of these people, and I am also quite enjoying it a lot, it's where metal music is at right now.

I'll say it again, Polyphia in Arizona was a really fun show. The crowd there was really into it and a lot of people there were familiar with Unprocessed too. Once Polyphia came on, it was wild. We even had people singing along to some of the melodies. Euphoria was epic since the crowd was singing loudly to it.

[lonestar]

They're playing here a few days before Aftershock, I'm keeping my options open for now pending on what bands attach tours to the festival

[cramx3]

They're playing here a few days before Aftershock, I'm keeping my options open for now pending on what bands attach tours to the festival

They are playing Aftershock too?

[lonestar]

They're playing here a few days before Aftershock, I'm keeping my options open for now pending on what bands attach tours to the festival

They are playing Aftershock too?

Just checked, and yes they are, and it's the day I'm tentatively planning on going... the one with Babymetal. (also 311, Korn, Pantera and Avatar)



Also updating to add The Warning... really can't pass up seeing them at The Fillmore, even if it's two days before Bloodywood.

Feb 26- Riverside, Cornerstone in Berkeley
March 7th - Nemophila, Goldfield Trading Post, Sacramento
March 8th - Nemophila, Great American Music Hall, San Francisco
April 14 - Spiritbox & Intervals, Ace of Spades, Sacramento
May 4th - The Warning, The Fillmore
May 6th - Bloodywood, Sacramento
May 11th - Rolling Quartz, Bottom of the Hill
May 21st - Love and Rockets, Fox Theater, Oakland
May 25th - Haken, August Hall, San Francisco
June 30 - Tarja UC Theater, Berkeley
October 6 - Babymetal, Avatar, Pantera, Korn, Polyphia, et al.. Aftershock Festival, Sacramento

[KevShmev]

Got tickets today for Tears for Fears, who will be here on my birthday, so for now, my concerts this year are Taylor Swift and Tears for Fears. I feel so out of place on this forum. 

[ReaperKK]

Nah, I'd be at both shows if I had tickets

[cramx3]

Got tickets today for Tears for Fears, who will be here on my birthday, so for now, my concerts this year are Taylor Swift and Tears for Fears. I feel so out of place on this forum. 

Tears for Fears are playing the Garden and I'd consider going, but I'm not sure I will just because there's so many concerts this summer and I've got to pick and choose.  If that concert was this month I'd go.  I thought they were awesome last summer.  I see nothing wrong with your concert choices

[Glasser]

Got tickets today for Tears for Fears, who will be here on my birthday, so for now, my concerts this year are Taylor Swift and Tears for Fears. I feel so out of place on this forum. 

Tears For Fears are a great band. I'll be there Kev.

[lonestar]

Warning tix officially purchased....26$ ticket for 38$...only Ticketmaster can add a near 50% service charge...fuckers.

[King Postwhore]

Snarky Puppy tomorrow night in our state capital in N.H. 

[cramx3]

Babymetal announced a US tour today and it's the same day as my brother's wedding.  Oh well.

[lonestar]

Babymetal announced a US tour today and it's the same day as my brother's wedding.  Oh well.

Only NorCal appearance is Aftershock...which sucks cause Jason Richardson is opening and he's so fucking dope live.


Guess I'm going to Aftershock...

[Samsara]

Picked up tickets for WASP/Armored Saint in August. Not fans of WASP, so we're going strictly for Saint. Saw them last year on this tour, and Saint was amazing as always. Can't wait to do it again. 

[cramx3]

Well to turn my frown upside down on the Babymetal news... over the weekend my gf and I were talking about Red Rocks and we both agreed we wanted to try and see a concert there (I've gone to a few, it's a magical venue).  We saw Dirty Heads are playing Friday June 30th and their tour doesn't include a local stop so we started looking at the idea of seriously going.  Just now, 311 announced they are playing Saturday July 1st at Red Rocks... so we both agreed, we are going to try and book a trip tonight for a weekend at Red Rocks with some really chill music. 

[Metro]

Seeing Clutch in Norfolk tonight 

[lonestar]

Spiritbox this Friday... They posted some pics from their first show in IG, visuals look amazing. Very stoked for this show