During my youth, cruising the back roads and listening to music was a thing that we all did for entertainment. There was no Google or Spotify or even for that matter personal computers, yes I’m old! So when a song came on the radio you had to wait until the […]
Concert Reviews
The Murder Capital Kicks In The Door at DC9
There have been a bevy of bands over the last few years that seem to inject much needed energy into this thing that is rock ‘n roll, and the one I’ve been looking forward to seeing but hadn’t – that is, until Friday night – was the Dublin-based The Murder […]
Yo La Tengo Comes Out Swinging at the 9:30 Club
This stupid world – it’s killing me / This stupid world – is all we have What can you say about a band who, for the better part of 40 years has been a driving force in American independent rock and roll and, along with contemporaries like Sonic Youth and […]
alt-J CELEBRATES AN AWESOME WAVE’S 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY
alt-J’s debut album, An Awesome Wave, was released 10 years ago. 10 YEARS AGO?! I feel like an old man saying I can’t believe it’s been that long already. I was working at Hayman Studio when it came out and Ryan and I listened to it seemingly nonstop for months. […]
Whiskey Feathers at Manor Mill
This past Saturday night, I found myself in Monkton, Maryland at the historic Manor Mill. I was not there to view the beautiful art produced by local artisans or to participate in the many classes they offer, but to see a band called Whiskey Feathers in the Mills music space […]
Tedeschi Trucks Band – Warner Theatre – 3.4.23
The Tedeschi Trucks Band rocked the house at the Warner Theatre in Washington DC on the final evening of their 6 night run at the historic venue. The band’s blend of soulful blues and southern rock had TTB fans dancing in their seats from start to finish. Led by the […]
Finding Wyoming with Water Liars: 3.3-3.4 @ Proud Larry’s
This story ends in a hug. — — — — — We disembarked from our midnight flight into Memphis with a few thinly-packed bags and my camera, ears ringing from the pressure of a storm-torn trip. A woman met us outside the airport Comfort Inn, her tooth crooked, hips bent, […]
CORY WONG IS THE MODERN FUNK MASTER
Cory Wong must be an alien. Or at least superhuman. Since 2016 he has released fourteen studio albums and seven live albums. And that’s just his solo stuff. He also plays guitar for The Fearless Flyers and Vulfpeck. The latter even has a song named “Cory Wong. Oh, he also […]
Flogging Molly Rolls Up Its Sleeves at the Hall at Live!
Flogging Molly is a force to be witnessed. Led by Dave King, the band is steeped in both Irish folk and the punk rock ethos of The Clash. It’s a mix that’s kept this band going strong for nearly 30 years. And with a new album, Anthem, having been released […]
VIAGRA BOYS KICK OFF WINTER TOUR AT THE 9:30 CLUB
Just a few months ago I had never heard of the Viagra Boys. Then all of a sudden my musician friends started bringing them up and telling me how much they loved them. When those friends tell me about a band it piques my interest because they usually hear something […]
Low Cut Connie Returns to The Recher to Shake Things Up
On a chilly Friday night, Low Cut Connie rolled into Towson to heat things up at The Recher. Adam Weiner – band leader and driving force behind the Philly based band – is one heck of a showman, only matched by his boogie-woogie howl and that Jerry Lee Lewis meets […]
DANIELLE PONDER MESMERIZES IN PHILADELPHIA
This will not be the last time you hear of Danielle Ponder. It was only thirteen months ago that she quit her job as a public defender in her hometown of Rochester New York to follow her dreams of being a full time musician. Her performance at Newport Jazz Festival […]
Soul Asylum Brings It All Back To The Recher
Dave Pirner, the principal songwriter and longest member of Soul Asylum, had paid his dues long ago. Co-founding the band in 1981 as Loud Fast Rules, the name was changed to Soul Asylum a few years later before their debut LP in 1984. For forty plus years, Pirner has crafted […]
NEAL FRANCIS…MAESTRO AND MOTIVATION
Neal Francis has been through some shit. We all have our skeletons in the closet. What is refreshing though, is Francis doesn’t keep them locked up in that closet. He comes right out and tells you about his struggles with addiction. He doesn’t hide the fact that he has had […]
GREENSKY BLUEGRASS SOARS LIKE EAGLES IN PHILLY
E-A-G-L-E-S! EAGLES! I heard this chant so many times on Saturday night that I began questioning if I was at Lincoln Financial Field, where the Eagles were hosting a playoff game, or the Fillmore, where Greensky Bluegrass was set to take the stage. Mikaela Davis opened the show on this […]
CHUCK IS BACK! moe. AT THE 9:30 CLUB
14 months and 23 shows. That’s what has passed since Chuck Garvey suffered a stroke. Fans of moe. weren’t sure if they would see the guitarist and founding member join the band on stage ever again. It’s been a slow, arduous journey for Chuck, but he is back. On NYE […]
WHO ARE YOU CALLING A JAM BAND? UMPHREY’S McGEE IN PHILLY
Say what you will about jam bands. Strong opinions are had about them. You love ‘em or you hate ‘em. Say what you will about Umphrey’s McGee – call them a jam band if you must. Lead guitarist, Jake Cinneger, understands how you may label them that and he’s sorta […]
THIEVERY CORPORATION RETURNS HOME TO END WINTER 2022 TOUR
It’s a special feeling when you have the chance to see a band play in their hometown. To me the energy is palpable. The crowd is intimately familiar with the band and revved up to welcome them home and the band feeds off of this and maybe some home-cooking, too. […]
They Might Be Giants get to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Flood… two years later!
There are some bands that are literally the soundtrack to your life, and They Might Be Giants would have to be one of those top bands for me. My love for TMBG goes back to their 1990 release, Flood. I don’t even remember how I found them – I likely […]
SHAKEY GRAVES HEADLINES COAST IS CLEAR FESTIVAL IN KEY WEST
November 30th marks the official end of the Atlantic Hurricane season. In the Florida Keys, residents have traditionally celebrated this by dousing hurricane flags in rum and then burning them. In recent years, a new celebration has come to Key West. In 2017, after Hurricane Irma devastated the Keys, Billy […]
Bright Eyes heats up a packed Baltimore Soundstage
After taking a break as Bright Eyes in 2011, the trio of Conor Oberst (vocals/guitar/piano), Mike Mogis (guitar/lap steel/mandolin), and Nate Walcott (keys/trumpet) made their big return to not only performing as a band but also putting together their first album since that time – released in the midst of […]
Maxwell Lights Up the Theater at MGM National Harbor with “The Night Tour”
Legendary R&B and neo-soul artist Maxwell has been very busy touring this year, much to the delight of his passionate and loyal fan base, many of whom go back to when he first took the music world by storm in 1996. He began earlier this year with a 25 city tour entitled “The Night Tour”, […]
Cris Jacobs and Caleb Stine team up for a night of amazing music at The Recher
We all know the feeling of anticipation of a Friday night concert. That excitement lingers in the pit of your stomach all day. Well, multiply that feeling by 100, when it is a hometown troubadour. Cris Jacobs played to a packed house last Friday night at The Recher in Towson […]
Enthralled by and In Thrall to Kevin Morby @ The 9:30 Club, 10.22.22
When I listen to music, I have at least one of a few goals: (1) to get lost (2) to get found (3) to get transported When I go to shows, I have at least one of a few goals: (1) to lose myself in the many (2) to find […]
The Joy Formidable and The Front Bottoms Wrap Up their Tour in Baltimore
The Joy Formidable is back and better than ever this fall. After nearly a year since their last US appearance, this Welsh trio was back on tour bringing the same energy we’ve always loved. Wrapping up the last night of tour with The Front Bottoms at Rams Head Live in […]
Can’t Get Joe P Off My Mind
Joe P is very different from most of the artists I typically listen to, and I’m not talking about sound or genre. I first stumbled across Joe on Tik Tok in August of 2020. Covid restrictions were still very heavy around that time which also meant no concerts, so it […]
White Rose Music Fest – York, PA
The White Rose Music Fest was announced towards the end of summer and as soon as we saw the line-up, we grabbed tickets and blocked off the weekend to enjoy this outdoor music festival in York, PA. For those who don’t know, York has some decent spots for music, and […]
Toad the Wet Sprocket delivers a well rounded performance at The Strand Theatre in York PA
On a rainy Tuesday evening, fans of all ages packed the historic, 1,262 seat Strand Theatre in York, PA, for a 20-song set by Santa Barbara, California band Toad The Wet Sprocket. The Strand Theatre is one of two historic theatre’s in York which comprise the Appell Center for the Performing […]
Fontaines D.C. Returns to Baltimore in a Big Way
There are times when dwelling on nostalgia can make a person miss what’s in front of them, and there are plenty of on-line squabbles about the death of rock ‘n’ roll, but I’m here to say if you are in that camp you aren’t paying attention to possibly the best […]
The National @ Harrisburg Riverfront Park, 9.24.2022
This show was part of a wonderfully curated series by HU Presents, who continue to bring the best music possible to Harrisburg and Pennsylvania. Life is well-governed by the quietest loves and the loudest loves, with all those in-between half-forgotten. The moments when a snore tumbles onto a shoulder, a […]
IDLES Returns to DC to Bring Back the Love
Back in 2019, when IDLES made their first US stops in Baltimore and DC I came out of the experience saying believe the hype, and after having again witnessed this band take the stage at the 9:30 Club last year for two sold out shows and then again this past […]
Courtney Barnett Returns to Rock Rams Head Live!
Since the release of the fantastic Things Take Time, Take Time the latter part of last year, Courtney Barnett has been busy. Not only touring with her longstanding band of Dave Mudie (drums) and Bones Sloane (bass) but kicking off the touring festival “Here and There” which saw Barnett go […]
Steep Canyon Rangers at The Appell Center
Earlier this spring Woody Platt had announced that after 23 years he was going cut back on touring and stay closer to home. In planning for Woody’s departure, the Steep Canyon Rangers would have to change things up in order to prepare for the future. Little did they know tonight, […]
Lake Street Dive at the Appell Center, York PA
It’s a Wednesday evening in the city of York, Pa. On the corner of George and Philadelphia Streets there were a couple of tour busses parked on the curb. That could only mean one thing, there’s a band at the Appell Center for the Performing Arts and what a band […]
First Thursday, 6.2.2022
WTMD has long championed the causes of up-and-comers in the indie scene and identified the musicians and acts that will capture the nation’s interest. The June 2022 iteration of First Thursday is no different, with the soon-to-be-massive Momma playing a massive set before the ascendant beabadoobee followed. Momma Momma has […]