Favorite Live Music Experiences of Summer 2017

Show of the Year So Far

Summer 2017

Summer of 2017 was going pretty well there. Then it ended for me in, maybe, the worst way imaginable. CoolMom is currently on another business trip in Asia, and not being able to talk to her for most of the day yesterday made for a long, tough day. I thought about how, during times like that, I sometimes take refuge in live music. It's just the cooldaughters and me this week, so I'm not sure how many shows I'll get out to before CoolMom is home; but I figured I could recap some of my favorite live music experiences from this past summer as kind of a proxy for that.

I'm not talking about "unofficial summer," like Memorial Day to Labor Day, or "local summer," which I guess is still happening now. I'm just gonna cover the period between June 20th and September 22nd.

Fruit & Flowers

Fruit & Flowers Drug Tax Release Show w/ Surf Rock Is Dead, Sic Tic. Baby's All Right, 6/29/17

My love for Fruit & Flowers has been well-documented here. I'd seen the band countless times and had many of the lyrics on the EP committed to memory by the time the Drug Tax release show rolled around, but the night was still special. The band got all styled for the big show. Openers Sic Tic and Surf Rock Is Dead were great. Caroline Yoder surfed the crowd. The show closed out with a bunch of Fruit & Flowers' friends crowding the stage.

It ended super late, and the Dickmans and I got home after 3am; but it was worth it.

Birdcloud

Birdcloud, Ex-Girlfriends, Little Vicious. The Saint, 7/3/17

A Little Dickman Records production.

Following Birdcloud's set at The Saint, a friend of mine found me in the crowd. He walked up to me and said, "I'm not sure what I just saw. I will never be the same." Birdcloud played their intelligent, raunchy, and hilarious ALT-alt-country while wearing adult diapers. Mandolinist Makenzie Green wore a neckbrace -- since signed and sold on eBay -- for most of the set; and the pair sent up Southern stereotypes, Williamsburg, and religion during a set that was truly mind-altering.

Ex-Girlfriends absolutely slayed, while Little Vicious put their own loud and rocking stamp on the evening.

Spowder

State Champion Records Launch Party w/ Spowder, Snakeskin, and Decoration. Monty Hall, 7/9/17

This was one of those shows that ended up being a game-time decision. It was a summer Sunday, and I was pretty set on just grilling and hanging by the pool. I decided at the last second to brave the (unbelievably horrible) traffic up to Jersey City and support the launch of a new, NJ, DIY label.

I knew what I was getting with Spowder, which was enough to sell me; but Snakeskin and Decoration both blew me away as well. I got to spend some time talking with label founders King Mike Abbate and Tracy Robinson. As if that weren't enough, the whole thing was over by about 9:45, which I always always love.

Little Silver

Little Silver Somewhere You Found My Name Release with Renee Maskin and Rachel Ana Dobken. The Asbury, 7/20/17

OK. This one was one of my "CoolDad Music Presents" joints. My childhood friend, Erika Simonian, and her husband Steve Curtis along with Ray Rizzo and David Tarica are Little Silver. The band take their name from the home of CoolDad Music HQ and the town where Erika and I grew up. When Erika approached me about wanting to do a hometown release show for their fabulous debut LP, I got excited.

The show was more than I could have hoped for. Friends old and new -- including the brilliant Renee Maskin and Rachel Ana Dobken -- were on hand for the evening. And, even though a few hotel guests thought it would be cool to play pinball during the sets, everyone had a blast celebrating with Little Silver.

Dentist

Dentist, Las Piñas, Partner on the Beach. Anchor's Bend, 7/31/17

This was just a Monday night show at the end of July. Nothing particularly momentous about it other than the fact that Las Piñas were on tour all the way from Argentina and Partner were visiting from Canada. It was another one brought to us by Little Dickman Records, and I do so love our friends in Dentist.

Just something about sitting in the sand on a lounge chair while my friends played in front of the ocean on a beautiful night made this one special. Simple things, I guess.

Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires

Lee Bains III and The Glory Fires, Désir Decir, Basic Bitches. Monty Hall, 8/2/17

The first time I saw Lee Bains III and The Glory Fires was at what ended up being a Bouncing Souls' Home for the Summer afterparty at Asbury Lanes. They took advantage of having a built-in crowd and tore the place down. I've loved them ever since.

They're a politically-minded, outspoken, hard-rocking band from Alabama; and every one of their shows gets my heart pumping. Our friends in Basic Bitches were also on this bill; and, as I've said, the addition of Nick D'Amore on drums has really helped give Naomi Scott's songs the punch they deserve. Désir Decir made their set one to remember for the hometown crowd.

The Battery Electric

The Battery Electric, Governess, Crazy & The Brains. Bond St. Basement, 8/5/17

This may have been the first time I ever saw Crazy & The Brains. They've been on my radar for a while, showing up in the listings for shows they've played and / or hosted at their own DIY space in Jersey City. I absolutely loved their set.

The combination of Crazy & The Brains, Buffalo's Governess, The Battery Electric, and the absolutely bonkers crowd made this, probably, the most insane show I've been to down in the basement to date. I wasn't going to take any pictures in that dark dungeon, but I ended up hooking up my flash and firing off some of my favorites of the year.

Patrick Stickles

StrummerJam. The Stone Pony, 8/19/17

Some shows are more of a marathon, and this one definitely falls into that category. Matty Carlock and The Vansaders turned in great sets. Jesse Malin and his band did the heavy lifting with an hourlong set of their own followed by a 20+ song guest-filled set of Clash / Strummer covers. Patrick Stickles, Ted Leo, Tad & Craig of The Hold Steady, and many more.

My parents had CoolDaughter #2. I had to go relieve them before the final super-jams, but I still had a great time.

High Waisted

High Waisted at Sea w/ Hypoluxo, Jonny Couch. East River, 8/30/17

I love High Waisted, and I've tried to make it to their annual booze cruise party for the last few years. CoolMom and CoolDaughter #1 were still on their Southeast Asian adventure. CoolDaughter #2 was in Maine with her cousin. I was on my own and decided to make the most of it.

This was the fourth installment of "High Waisted at Sea," and the band really have this thing down. They made it a memorable one for everyone on board. Confetti, inflatable pool toys, free flowing beverages, the works. I left beyond impressed with the amount of initiative and drive High Waisted showed not only by throwing the whole thing together, but also by delivering one of the craziest sets from any band I've seen in a long time.

Lowlight

Lowlight, Crazy & The Brains. Transparent Clinch, 9/3/17

This was just a laid back late Sunday afternoon. I'd opted for the (and let's just give this one a HARD honorable mention on this list) Dentist / RockNRoll HiFives show at APYC the night before, skipping Lowlight's set in Highlands. I knew I'd be able to catch them here.

I love Lowlight -- as a band and as people -- and I was really happy to be able to catch their set and spend some time hanging with them afterwards. I also got to see Crazy & The Brains in their old-time duo configuration. Cyclone Static closed out the afternoon; but I decided, instead, to head to my mom's where I caught the tail-end of dinner and got to spend a few hours with my brother and his family. No offense to Cyclone Static, but it stands as the best decision I've ever made in my life.

A Giant Dog's Sabrina Ellis, The RockNRoll HiFives' Eilee Centeno

A Giant Dog, The RockNRoll HiFives, They Live!. Monty Hall, 9/8/17

Remember that thing I said up top about taking refuge in live music. Well, I almost didn't go to this one; but I decided that I needed it. And, damn, if all the bands weren't exactly what I needed that night. They Live!, The RockNRoll HiFives, and A Giant Dog together put on what, for me, would have been the best show of the entire summer no matter how I was feeling going in.

I sang along, screamed, got super sweaty, cried a little bit (OK. Maybe a lot.), and took a bazillion pictures. I still have the setlists from The RockNRoll HiFives and A Giant Dog, and I'll keep them forever.

Crazy & The Brains

Third Annual Bond St. Block Party. Bond St., 9/16/17

This was a super long, super tiring, but super fun day of seeing some of the local bands I love like Lyons, Plato Zorba, The Battery Electric, GayGuy / StraightGuy, and more. I got to see local upstarts, latewaves, for the first time and came away duly impressed. I also got to see lots of friends for the first time in a little bit, and that was nice. The show in the basement with good buddies Yawn Mower and new faves Crazy & The Brains almost rivaled the Battery Electric show from the previous month.

I snapped a shit ton of pictures which you can see here.

So those are some of the highlights of my summer. It started out with the same hope and optimism as every summer, and it ended with what still feels like the complete crashing down of my little corner of the world. The music and the bands were with me the whole way, though. Even those I didn't mention here. I don't know where I'd be without all of it.