Live Music Reviews

My Morning Jacket at the Mann Center in photos and the first Review In Haiku!

My Morning Jacket
filled the crisp evening air
with a sound bouquet

Haiku by Todd Marrone, Philadelphia based artist and frequent Sisters collaborator. Check his stuff out!

Go here to view the full set of photos of My Morning Jacket live at the Mann Center in Philadelphia.

Big Audio Dynamite Live at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia

Today’s Song of the Day is another Two Sisters and a Show clip, but this time around it was one sister, one brother-in-law, one nephew, and one brother-in-law’s brother and a show, three long time fans, and one born and raised on BAD (nephew). I was hard pressed to stop and take photos or video because that meant standing still (tall order), but I did manage to do it for this one, at encore #1. An incredible show, and seeing Mick Jones live again for the second time in just under a year is something I never thought would happen, ever. Mick Jones: king of kings. Photos from this show are forthcoming in a future post.

I asked my nephew to give me five words to describe how he felt about the show. His reply: amazing, cool, awesome, and surprising . . . and . . . loud.

Big Audio Dynamite “The Bottom Line” live at The Electric Factory in Philadelphia, August 4, 2011:

Two Sisters review posted on FrankiesGun website

In tandem with the photos I posted yesterday, here is my review (written under the name of Ady’s and my Two Sisters and a Show entity) of the Rochester, New York show for our friends over at Frankiesgun.com, a great site dedicated to The Felice Brothers. Check it out, it’s loaded with the photos and two videos I shot at the show, as well as the sole video to have popped up so far—taken by another audience member/fan,—of the epic “River Jordan,” aka the one where “the Guild was killed.” Thanks again to Sean, who is over there at the controls of Frankiesgun.com, for sharing my review on his site.

By the way, if you’re not yet familiar with The Felice Brothers, you should poke around the rest of Sean’s site, it’s a great way to get your feet wet with their music, loads of other videos, photos and information about the band. Then go catch them live, they’re currently adding dates in the US (including Cleveland and Philadelphia and points in between and down south) through early November and in the UK through December. You’ll thank me if you do you know . . . ’cause without a doubt it’s the greatest show on earth!

The Felice Brothers – (non review) Mauch Chunk Opera House, Jim Thorpe, PA

I’ve been sitting on this one because I keep trying to review it and no matter how I slice it, no matter how long I sit here typing and retyping, I have to admit defeat. Pencil down. I’ve been officially and completely swept off my feet and given a 1-2 punch right to the gut by The Felice Brothers and words simply fall short. You just have to be there and see them live. And dance your ass off. And then you’ll want more after it’s all over. They are so completely addicting it’s ridiculous. I think I even might secretly want to BE a Felice Brother. And I’m a girl for cryin’ out loud.

How’s that for a review?

Moving on ever so slightly, I’m now here simply to make good on a promise to share the heap of photos Ady and I took under the guise of Two Sisters and A Show, so over you go to Flickr to over 200 photos, and a video (one that’s not found on youtube) right….here—> The Felice Brothers at Mauch Chunk Opera House 2011.

As always, feel free to share the images amongst your loved ones, but please give credit to Two Sisters.

“Greatest Show on Earth” video footage by Ady:

Speaking of, Two Sisters is starting to morph into an entity of it’s own, we’ve begun tweeting our chronic travels to see live music via a new joint account very recently, if you wish to follow us we can be found at Two Sisters and A Show via Twitter

That is all.

(The video above was shot by another audience member from the opposite side of the stage from where we were…spot the Two Sistas?)

The Felice Brothers live at First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia PA March 30, 2011

The saga of the two sisters continues. Last night as a birthday present from Adrienne to me, we hopped a train and attended an intimate and close-quartered musical bash courtesy of The Felice Brothers in the heart of Philadelphia, PA.

Before Adrienne told me of her surprise plans for us to celebrate, we’d each independently knew of the band (both of us had heard only good things) but not much else, so when I found out this was my gift, I poked around to listen to them before setting off on our next adventure into music land. Usually when we are on our journeys together it is to see a band in our collective list of very favorite and familiar bands. This time was a little different.

What neither of us anticipated as we headed out the door was just how completely blown away we’d be. The moment The Felice Brothers walked on stage, opening with “Fire at the Pageant,” they had my full and undivided attention. As cliché as it may sound, the stage came alive with intense, menacing, fabulous energy. Here we were in the sparse, crudely lit basement of a church, elbow to elbow with about 200 (?) fortunate others witnessing (no pun intended) the explosive energy spewing forth.

Most-of-the-time lead singer/guitarist Ian Felice’s voice is a vague cocktail of two parts Bob Dylan (running the risk of sounding like everyone else’s observation there), one part Paul Westerberg, and one dash of Kid Rock and even a sprinkle of Eazy E (the last two as noted by Adrienne), all shaken on the rocks of his own truly distinctive and amazing voice. Brother James Felice’s voice, his, booming, powerful and melodic and bassist Christmas each contribute perfect contrast and timbre giving the band a rich vocal sound.

By the time they rolled out “Ponzi,” another track from their forthcoming album Celebration, Florida (which will be released on May 10) Adrienne and I turned looked at each other for that “Holy shit” moment. We both knew that we’d be seeing them live again soon.

Musically The Felice Brothers are all over the map, which I loved. Within their repertoire one could picture being in an 1890’s saloon, down on a bayou in the dark, at a rave, and a second later on a peeling, sunlit porch with a pint of cider. Wafts of Beastie Boys-esque attitude, tints of very early Replacements, dashes of Pink Floyd, Old Crow Medicine Show and Bob Dylan drifted in at times but ultimately I’m most fond of the way they reminded me of a real life version of The Riverbottom Nightmare Band from Emmett Otter’s Jugband Christmas, and that, in my opinion is just freaking spectacular.

But these are just words and observations and nothing will explain away the mood, excitement and energy of their live show, as with most things nothing will adequately do except you getting out there and seeing them live yourself and there’s plenty opportunity here in the USA, Canada and a few dates in Australia over the next few months.

With that I’ll leave you with a bit from their website, along with some of the videos taken by our trusty blog photographer/videographer, Adrienne.

From The Felice Brothers website:

“Here’s what might come as a surprise about The Felice Brothers: their new and fourth LP Celebration, Florida is an exhilarating amalgamation of frightening horn sections, unexpected 808s, ambient synth lines, schoolyard taunts, booming, primitive drum beats, heavy bass lines, piano, violin, accordion, ringing guitars, rave beats, and sinister acid jazz that captivates and mystifies. Recorded in the gymnasium and theater of Beacon, NY’s old high school, the band explores a multitude of sounds and instrumentation throughout the expansive album. It’s inspired, imaginative, heady, menacing, passionate, and rollicking. Most importantly, it’s as steadfastly authentic as ever, expanding upon the dark, woozy undercurrent of ramshackle barroom blues, vaudevillian atmospherics, and surreal storytelling of their previous albums. Under The Radar wrote in a review of Yonder Is The Clock that The Felice Brothers find “inspiration and freedom rather than constraints in the traditions of folk music.” Celebration, Florida revels in this inventive, outlaw spirit; it’s the sound of a band that knows its roots and knows where it’s growing. It’s a group who just might expand the definition of Americana music along the way.”