Last week we went to a super fun show at the Fox featuring Tune-Yards, Thao and The Get Down Stay Down, and Sudan Archives. (There was another opening act we missed and who I had a heck of a time finding online because the artist’s name is Siri…I’m 90% sure this is her, though.) Thought I would share some of the music with y’all, since it’s been floating around in my head ever since.
Sudan Archives is from Cincinnati and now based in LA. I can see why she’d be on the same bill as Tune-Yards; her performance was a mix of live vocals and violin over dope percussion loops. Here’s a taste:
Thao and The Get Down Stay Down is a San Francisco-based band who I’d heard but had never seen live (here’s a neat little introduction to frontwoman Thao Nguyen). After listening to a bit more of their stuff, I think I prefer some of the more recent/gritty songs, but chose this video from 2013 because it captures that fun point in time when both the old and new Bay Bridge existed:
Then there’s Tune-Yards a.k.a. tUnE-yArDs a.k.a. Merrill Garbus of Oakland, CA. The only other time I’d seen Tune-Yards was a free show in Stern Grove, a totally different—and equally awesome—experience. This show had fewer personnel: just Merrill, Nate Brenner, and a drummer (sorry I don’t know his name!!) and less live percussion, but way more visual pizzazz. I usually don’t care that much about stuff like staging and lighting design, but the light show kind of blew me away (a sample).
Tune-Yards have a new album out called I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life. It’s taking me a while to get into the album itself, but I really enjoyed the songs when they were played live at the Fox. Here’s the most recent music video; it’s got some pretty sweet dance moves:
While we’re here showcasing righteous female singers, I’ll include a few more for your listening pleasure:
- “Honeycomb” – Kadhja Bonet. Heard this one from A Song A Day and instantly fell in love. There’s a very timeless sound to Bonet’s voice. V good stuff.
- “Make Me Feel” – Janelle Monae. The new Janelle Monae joint is Prince-tastic. I’m really looking forward to her new album (coming out in April).
- “Pills” – St. Vincent. St. Vincent ALSO has a new album out (well, fairly new). When I first heard this song I had it stuck in my head for days.
In other news, it’s been raining a lot and I’ve been in a much more bloggy mood lately, so hopefully I’ll have more to share on here soon.
Flip the Record 