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So what happened here?

June 10, 2022 by Paul Debraski

For nearly fourteen years I was able to keep up this daily blog of books and music.

About a year ago I got a promotion and that changed everything.  I no longer had the time to post everything I wanted to.  Heck, I didn’t even seem to have the time to read all the short stories I wanted to.  Amusingly (or not), just before this new position, I had gotten a print subscription to the New Yorker.  This now means that I (like many others) have a two-foot stack of New Yorker magazines that I haven’t even looked at yet.

For a few weeks I was limiting myself to only the concerts that I went to because that was a little easier to write about.  Although back in the good old days, I used to include photo and links, and I pretty much have neither now. And I’m several shows behind as well.

So I’m still reading books and I think I may try to post some thoughts about them from time to time.  I’d also like to think I have time to write about my concerts, but even those are proving to be challenging.

So let’s consider the blog on hiatus more or less, with occasional posts about things I’ve read or listened to.

The good thing is that I like the new position and wouldn’t change it for the world. I guess I never realized how much down time my old position gave me!

Posted in Paul Debraski | 3 Comments »

Wesley Stace [FREE AT NOON] (World Stage, Philadelphia PA, October 9, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

October 9, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 9, 2026] Wesley Stace

Add this to the number of Free at Noon shows I haven’t gone to but grabbed a ticket for.  (I don’t feel bad since it didn’t sell out).  Wesley Stace was supposed to open for Loudon Wainwright last week but Loudon cancelled the show for some reason so Wesley did an entire show himself.

Who is he?  Wesley Stace once recorded under the pseudonym John Wesley Harding and released some 20 albums.  These albums bear a resemblance to Elvis Costello because he shared some of the members of The Attractions and also because his singing voice has the same arch tone and timbre as Costello’s.  I saw him open for Steven Page back in 2018 and loved his set so much I bought a novel of his as well.

But today I just wasn’t feeling the effort of driving into Philly.  And, to be honest I listened to some of his new album and found it a lot more adult contemporary than his older stuff.  It didn’t seem worth it.  I’ll listen online when it gets posted though and see if I made a mistake.

 

Posted in Free at Noon, Philadelphia, PA, Wesley Stace, World Cafe Live | Leave a Comment »

BRÍET (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 9, 2026) [DAÐI FREYR]

October 8, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: October 9, 2026] BRÍET 

BRÍET is an Icelandic singer.  Her earlier singles were sung in Icelandic, but her newest album has songs in English.  When I listened to her English language album, the songs were folk, borderline country.  She told us that she made that album in Nashville, so that makes sense.

Indeed, the first song she sang, Until Then, was just her with an acoustic guitar.  And wow, her voice was beautiful.  Unlike the couple behind us.  These two horrible individuals spoke at normal volume during the song about how great a singer she was.  What he actual fuck?  They were very complimentary which was nice, but holy shit, they didn’t even try to whisper.  It was like the most pretentious bullshit spoken at pretentious volume.  When he loudly said “she’s like a mermaid” I nudged my wife and said that we needed to move.  So we did.

But not before Cowboy Killer.  BRÍET won over the audience before this song by saying that she was in Nashville and walked into a bar where these older guys said (she did a good southern accent) “hey pretty lady.”  Then she said he had a huge cowboy hat and then put her hands at her waist and said and the largest …  ….  she couldn’t think of the word so people helpfully shouted “belt buckle” and she said “no, penis.”  Instantly won over everyone.  (it was really a belt buckle).

And that’s how Cowboy Killer came about. Continue Reading »

Posted in BRÍET, Cher, Daði Freyr, Iceland, Philadelphia, PA | Leave a Comment »

KRS-One / Kuf Knotz & Christine Elise / Dell-P / J the Audiophile (Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, October 8, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

October 8, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 8, 2026] KRS-One / Kuf Knotz & Christine Elise / Dell-P / J the Audiophile

I really enjoyed KRS-One’s debut album.  But I didn’t really listen to anything else after that.  I didn’t even know hw was still in the game (he has been putting out albums regularly ever since).  So that’s 30 years of not listening to someone.  So I really wasn’t going to go to this show.  Although I see from a recent show that he did 5 songs from that debut album.

Kuf Knotz is a Philly rapper who blends hiphop poetry with deep grooves of soul and beats sun kissed with the spirit of Lo-Fi & 90’s era vibes , Kuf’s inimitable style focuses on unsubtle spirituality, that, like his music, focus on unity, positivity and creativity.

He has been touring was with harpist Christine Elise.

The rest of the lineup also opened for Ghostface Killah when he played Underground Arts.

Dell-P is a Philly rapper who has nice old school flow–aggressive and clear–with catchy choruses.

J the audiophile is a hip hop, soul, electronic dance music, disco, and funk DJ, music producer, and all around vinyl enthusiast living large in the City.  He is dedicated to the preservation of vinyl culture in Philadelphia.  He has some albums out.  I think they’re all instrumental with spoken samples.  I guess for a live show he would be spinning, but I don’t know if it would be his own stuff or just DJing.  But I love the retro vibe he’s playing.

I probably would have enjoyed this whole night, but he had tickets to another show.

 

 

Posted in Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, Christine Elise, Dell-P, J the Audiophile, KRS-One, Kuf Knotz | Leave a Comment »

Schizophonics / Descartes a Kant / Dale Crover (Kung Fu Necktie, Philadelphia, PA, October 7, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

October 7, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 7, 2026] Schizophonics / Descartes a Kant / Dale Crover

The Schizophonics put on one of the most incredible high energy shows I’ve ever seen.  I will never forget it and I would like to see them again.  I’m not sure how they could handle a stage as small as Kung Fu Necktie because the stage as Asbury Lanes is pretty big and it could not contain the energy of Pat Beers on vocals and guitar.  It was insanity in the best way.  I’d be afraid he’d start destroying things on that tony stage.  And somehow with all of his chaos Lety Beers on drums and Sarah Linton on bass kept the show going smoothly.

When this tour was announced, I found out about it because Descartes a Kant, one of my favorite bands was opening and I want to see them again so badly!  I really want to see them headlining, but what can you do.  Having the two bands together on a bill was amazing.

And then, about a week ago, Descartes a Kant had trouble with their visas and had to cancel their shows.   This was a devastating blow.  I still wanted to see the Schizophonics, but now it just didn’t seem as much fun somehow.

So I just blew the whole show off.  I’m sure The Schizophonics will be back and Descartes a Kant has already promised they’d be back so… we’ll see.

Dale Crover of the Melvins was the first opening act.  I saw him with the Melvins recently although I don’t know much about his solo stuff.  I assumed it would be heavy and Melvins like but it’s not at all.  It’s weird, for sure, but it’s pretty mellow.  When he played in Europe recently, it included a very faithful cover of Neil Young’s Harvest Moon (!).

Maybe I should have gone after all.

 

 

 

 

Posted in Dale Crover, Descartes a Kant, Kung Fu Necktie, Philadelphia, PA, Schizophonics, The Melvins | Leave a Comment »

Slift / Rhododendron (Le Poisson Rouge, New York, NY, October 7, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

October 7, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 7, 2026] Slift / Rhododendron

Perhaps one of the worst things that could have happened to my concert going landscape was to discover Le Poisson Rouge, and amazing small club in NYC that gets the best bands all the time.  I’ve been twice.  Once to see Kathleen Edwards who I thought was never going to tour again and once to go to a Phish after-party after a show at MSG.

LPR is a massive pain in the ass to get to for me and there’s no reason I should ever see who is playing there.  But in this case I found out from the band Slift that their only area show was going to be there.

I have been obsessed with Slift since the pandemic when I saw their incredible Levitation Session video.  Since that video, they have come to the East Coast three times–twice in Brooklyn and now at LPR.  I thought about going to this show so much.  I even had tickets to something else that night but I still thought about going.   When I decided not to go to the show that I had tickets to, I seriously considered going, but oh, what a pain it would have been.

And what do they sound like?  Well, from LPR’s page:

Guitarist Jean Fossat and bassist Rémi Fossat are related.  They’ve been friends with drummer Canek Flores since high school, and 2026 marks a decade together in this trio. In the technical sense, every previous album by the radiant and heavy French trio SLIFT has been a fantasia—a composite of genres and forms that allowed the band to improvise, to jam on themes until they seemed to spiral together into space. Their acclaimed third album, 2024’s Ilion, was a sci-fi story built with 10- to 13-minute exploratory escapades, often starting with doom metal or stoner rock before spinning freely into glorious instrumental oblivion.

It’s possible that their live show could never compare to the amazingness of that video.  And they have apparently no following here.  So they would have to play a teeny place in Philly.  But damn if they could get to Union Transfer, it would be incredible.

Rhododendron were supposed to open for Voivod in a few days, but that tour was cancelled because of someone getting sick.  So in theory I could have seen them twice in a few days.  But now I won’t see them at all.

Formed in 2019 in Portland, Oregon while the band’s members were still in high school, Rhododendron’s Ezra Chong (guitar, vocals), Gage Walker (bass), and Noah Mortola (drums) set out to push their musical limits without regard for genre boundaries or audience expectation.  In the past 7 years the trio has developed a sound rooted in technical precision and repetition. Drawing from the angular experimentation of underground rock in the 1980s and 1990s alongside elements of jazz, ambient, and progressive music, their compositions are deliberate with intensity. Riffs fracture and reform, rhythms lock into patterns only to break apart, and extended passages build pressure before shifting direction.

They sound pretty great too.

I’m not sure if it would have been worth the immense hassle to go to this show.  But maybe it would have been.

Posted in Le Poisson Rouge, New York City, Rhododendron, Slift | Leave a Comment »

The Linda Lindas (Theatre of Living Arts [TLA], Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2026)

October 6, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: October 4, 2026] The Linda Lindas 

Four years ago i got tickets to see The Linda Lindas with my daughter. The show was postponed for a week and she was unable to go  the following week.  So I went by myself and really enjoyed it.  I figured I’d either see them before they broke huge or before the broke up.  Well, I don’t know if they broke huge, but they have played some pretty big shows (they opened for Green Day after all).

The foursome are great musicians, they write rocking punk songs, and most important, they have a ton of fun.  When I saw them last time, drummer Mila de la Garza, was possibly 12 (she is 16 now).  The oldest member, Bela Salazar turned 21 last year.  Guitarist Lucia de la Garza is now 18 and bassist Eloise Wong is now 19.

In four years, the band has grown more sophisticated in their song writing and in their musical chops.  But they still have a lot of fun onstage.  Eloisa and Lucia jump on their gear boxes to get close to the crowd.

Last time they tried their best to get the young kids in the audience as close to the front as possible.  It wasn’t possible this time, I guess.  I felt bad for the little kids who arrived early but weren’t allowed to get near the barricade.  I couldn’t help but think they could have asked the parents to back off and let the kids up front.

When I saw them last time, they had just released their debut album, which is full of young punk songs.  I didn’t like the album enough to get it, but it was fun–and Racist Sexist Boy is a great song for young girls to hear.

Here it was four years later and they’ve all grown up.  They also had a fifth member on stage Adan Diaz, their friend, who played synth and percussion as needed (there’s some songs we can’t play by ourselves).

When the show first stared, their voices were too quiet, but that was fixed fairly quickly.  I hadn’t listened to the new album yet, but I was so impressed by these new songs.  They have added all kinds of sounds to their basket.  They opened with the first song from the new album which has cool synths, percussion and a funky bass line.

They followed it up with Oh, from their debut.  It was one of the few songs from that album that they played, and it sounded bigger.  By the end of Growing Up all four members had sung lead. Continue Reading »

Posted in Deux Visages, KulfiGirls, Philadelphia, PA, The Linda Lindas, Theatre of Living Arts | Leave a Comment »

Deux Visages (Theatre of Living Arts [TLA], Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2026) [THE LINDA LINDAS]

October 5, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: October 4, 2026] Deux Visages

I saw Deux Visages open for Sir Chloe two years ago. I really enjoyed their set, which was made up of songs from their one EP.  Back then they were based in Miami, but they have since moved to Philly (so this was a hometown show).

The band was a four piece but are now a five piece. They are fronted by Daphney Homono (who has a shock of bleached hair).  This was especially notable because their set was lit very darkly and mostly in black and white.   The rest of the band includes Jack Chiu on guitar, and possibly Tony Jouvin on bass.  The other two members were not mentioned and I can’t find anything about them.

I was right in front of Jack and while his guitar was a little too loud, his playing was fantastic.  The songs where catchy (in a very 90s style) with nice guitar flourishes.  I remembered particularly enjoying Cheetah last time, with its very cool bouncy guitar riff.

But most of the set was from their as yet released new album (due out next month).  I really enjoyed the way Jack’s guitar was busy without overwhelming the melody or the vocals. Continue Reading »

Posted in Deux Visages, KulfiGirls, Philadelphia, PA, The Linda Lindas, Theatre of Living Arts | Leave a Comment »

KulfiGirls (Theatre of Living Arts [TLA], Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2026) [THE LINDA LINDAS]

October 4, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: October 4, 2026] KulfiGirls

Back in June, I left a Mekons show a little early to head across town to catch KulfiGirls who I had just recently learned about.  Somehow, this show at W.O.W. was on only the second of four bands when I walked in and I was beat.  I just couldn’t stick it out for two full band sets (even if they were good).  So I hoped I’d get to see them soon and imagine my surprise when they were suddenly listed as the first opening band for the Linda Lindas!

I made sure to get to TLA early because sometimes (like tonight) the first band goes on BEFORE the announced start time.  And indeed, KulfiGirls came out on stage at 7:30.

Abi Natesh came out on stage looking beautiful in traditional Indian dress.  She sang and sat by an instrument and that’s when I realized with certainty that I had seen her perform with Pinkshift at Asbury Lanes a few years ago.  I didn’t know who she was or what her instrument was called, but tonight she had us say the instrument with her.  Not a sitar but a Veena.

Abi played a pretty, quiet melody on the instrument.  She may have been singing, but her mic was quiet at the start (it was eventually turned up).  Stephanie Bruning on the far side of the stage played flute  (and I love me some flute in my rock music!).   Guitarist Joan Natesh started building some tension while killer drummer Adesola Ogunleye played a martial beat.  Abi started playing a nifty lead line and then started singing from the seated position (I was glad I was near the front or I would never have seen her). Continue Reading »

Posted in Deux Visages, KulfiGirls, Philadelphia, PA, The Linda Lindas, Theatre of Living Arts | Leave a Comment »

Russian Circles / Pelican (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, October 4, 2026) [DID NOT ATTEND]

October 4, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 4, 2026] Russian Circles / Pelican

Russian Circles played Union Transfer last year and I didn’t know anything about it.  I’d never heard of them until this show and I only investigated because of Pelican who I like.   They are a three piece instrumental band from Chicago.  They are very heavy and not very math rock influenced.  But their instrumentals convey a lot of intensity.

Pelican is an American post-metal band also from Chicago known for their heavy, atmospheric and almost entirely instrumental style.

I would have liked to check this out but I had tickets for another show this evening already.  So many shows in October.

I’d been vaguely aware of Pelican for a while, and when this show was announced, I listened to a bunch more and was really excited to see them.  When they came to town last year I really wanted to see them, but the show was the same night as another commitment.  I was excited to see them coming back, but once again, the timing was terrible.

Posted in Pelican, Philadelphia, PA, Russian Circles, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists (Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, October 1, 2026)

October 3, 2026 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: October 1, 2026] Ted Leo & the Pharmacists

I’ve seen Ted Leo four times before this.  Twice with Pharmacists, once solo and once with Aimee Mann for a Christmas show.

I enjoyed his solo show–which was personal and fun and also informative–but when he has the whole band with him, the show explodes.

The band set up and Ted came to the mic and said they were early (it was 9) and they were going to take a few minutes and then come back.  Why did they wait until 9:15 to start?  I have no idea.  The first thing he said was that the Phillies were losing (it was a win or they were out of the playoffs–they lost) and then he told people not to soot the messenger.

He started playing Timorous Me by himself.  And, just like on the record, about half way through the song, the rest of the band came out and the room exploded with sound when they all joined in on time.

I noticed immediately how much bigger and better Ted and the band sounded than Labrador.  And I don’t mean that as an insult to Labrador at all, because I enjoyed their set a lot.  But TL/RX just filled the room in ways that Labrador didn’t.  Is that because the headliners get more time to set up their gear and do soundchecks?  Even in a small place like this?  I have no idea.  But man, TL/RX just filled the room with music.

Ted has been in punk bands, but he has also written slower songs.  But holy cow, these songs were fast and fun and intense and loud and just screamed for everyone to dance.

We were right on the barricade (there was like no one there when we arrived, but it filled in), so we probably didn’t get the best sound–Ted’s vocals were always a little quiet which is shame because his words are so good.  But the energy was undeniable.

I love the way that Ted doesn’t skimp on the sounds of his songs, like the little guitar scratches that start out The Sons of Cain.  There’s few things as fun as the whole band screaming heeeeeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyy (or Caaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiinnnnn or whatever they say) at the end.

We were right in front of Ralph Darden and he was so much fun to watch.  He jumped around, played solos and sang backing vocals.  Just a great performer.  Marty Key on bass mostly stood by the big bass speaker but occasionally he came out front to contribute backing vocals.  But his bass sounded amazing. Continue Reading »

Posted in Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, Labrador, Stiff Little Fingers, Ted Leo, Ted Leo + Pharmacists, The Pogues | Leave a Comment »

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