Van Hunt is back! The psychedelic soul rocker made his return to New York with a sold out show at the Studio at Webster Hall on September 19, 2011. I’ve seen two other guitar players who fit the above description perform live this year and I can honestly say, Van Hunt is the only one out of the 3 who is still taking chances and is growing tremendously as an artist. Van Hunt is so great live. His band is different since the last time I’ve seen him, but they are still tight. Van challenges the audience by playing his hits and best loved album tracks in different arrangements and every time I go to one of his concerts, I find myself singing along to the words not realizing what song it is until the chorus kicks in. Tonight was no different, but one reason I keep coming back to see Van Hunt perform is that the arrangements of the songs are just as great as the studio versions. It’s not just the grooves though – his lyrics are so great. He expresses many things we all think, but never have the guts to say out loud.
Van Hunt
Van’s latest album is called “What Were You Hoping For?” and off the new album, he played the title track, “Watching You Go Crazy Is Driving Me Insane,” “North Hollywood,” “Eyes Like Pearls” and “A Time Machine Is My New Girlfriend.” The new songs are much more rock oriented than his previous albums, but for those like myself that have seen Van Hunt live before, this direction is a natural progression in sound for Van. He also played a few tracks from his unreleased 3rd album “Popular” including “The Dimples on Ur Bottom,” “SNM” as well as the final track of the night, “The Lowest 1 of My Desires,” which featured an audience sing-a-long of the chorus which is “I wanna fuck… you baby.” A video of that song will be coming soon, so stay tuned. From his second album “On The Jungle Floor,” he played “Man of the Year (Hot Stage Lights)” (but the version from his online only EP) and ”Character.” From his self-titled debut, we were treated to “Dust,” “Hello Goodbye,” “Seconds of Pleasure,” “What Can I Say,” “Her December” and “Down Here in Hell,” all with different arrangements. Lucky us!
Van Hunt
I highly recommend you check out Van Hunt in concert if you have not already done so. There are very few artists these days that are willing to take risks, but Van Hunt is one of them. Seeing Van Hunt and talking with him afterwards is the best way I could have possibly spent the final hours before my birthday, so thanks for that Van!
Click play and see why Theophilus London is set to be one of the hottest new stars of the music scene. Last name London. First name Theophilus. This catchy jam will be stuck in your head for days! Theophilus London’s album “Timez Are Weird These Days” is out now.
I have wanted to see Sade in concert for a really long time. She hasn’t toured in a decade but let me tell you, it was worth the wait! Performing at New Jersey’s Prudential Center on June 25, 2011, Sade was electric for the duration of her two hour set. She took the stage around 9:40 and opened with “Solder of Love,” the title track off her latest album. She received thunderous applause after the first song and Sade thanked the crowd for being so patient with her and for all our support over the years. She dedicated the next song, “Your Love Is King” to us. She had a great stage show with LED screens that lit up and sometimes she performed behind a sheer curtain that had visuals projected onto it. She performed old songs and new and pretty much played every song you would expect to hear except for “Hang on to Your Love” and “Never As Good as the First Time.”
Sade
A highlight of the show for me was when she sang “Pearls.” She appeared alone on stage, lit only by a spotlight as she sang that extremely beautiful and sad song. Also, “No Ordinary Love,” “By Your Side,” and “The Sweetest Taboo,” were also top notch. Sade hit all the notes and looked as gorgeous as ever. There were 4 outfit changes during the show and lots of applause. It was wonderful hearing an entire arena sing the lyrics of “Smooth Operator” and “Kiss of Life” as well. I hope it’s not another 10 years before Sade comes around again and if she’s coming to your city on this tour, I recommend you see Sade perform. She is amazing.
Sade
See the set list and another photo after the jump.
What better way for the New York based band The Postelles to celebrate the release of their debut album than by playing for their hometown crowd at Mercury Lounge on June 7, 2011. The show began with a great set by The Ambassadors (more to come on the Ambassadors, so stay tuned). Around 11 pm, the quartet hit the stage. If you don’t know their music, they remind me of surf rock meets The Strokes! Speaking of The Strokes, Albert Hammond Jr. (guitarist for The Strokes) produced The Postelles debut EP. The band played a mixture of older songs as well as many tracks from their self-titled album including “She She,” “Stella,” “123 Stop” and “Sleep on the Dance Floor.” Lead singer Daniel Balk has a great stage presence as he plays guitar and gets his feet moving at times like James Brown (but he doesn’t do the splits). When crowd favorites such as “Whole Wide World” and “Running Red Lights” were played, the audience sang along to every word. They also performed a cover of The Rivieras (and later The Ramones) song “California Sun.”
The Postelles
If you missed the Postelles on June 7, never fear. The band is also playing the Mercury Lounge on June 8, 2011 so don’t miss your chance to see one of indie rock’s hottest new bands. Their self-titled debut album is available now! You can see the set list after the jump.
Los Angeles! First, I am extremely jealous that you get to partake in this opportunity. Singer Poe is back! Sorry for the last minute news, but I just found out moments ago. The singer will be performing at the Standard Hotel in Hollywood tonight, May 11, 2011. The event starts at 7:30 pm and is FREE!
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