thao w/o the get down stay down @ johnny brenda's

Thao!

I practically lived at Johnny Brenda's this past week with three concerts in a span of 7 days. This is my second time seeing Thao. The first was with her entire band at Underground Arts back in mid-April of 2016. So, this was great seeing her practically a year later! I was curious how the songs would sound with just Thao. Band or no band this woman is simply talented and has such stage charisma. She had at least 4-5 different types of guitars on stage (one a banjo, one looked like a violin practically). I was excited she wore her white blazer, she wore that last time too. Thao played about 15-ish songs. I'll post the set list soon, my friend got a copy. She ended with "Meticulous Bird" but then came back out for an encore. What I liked the most was how much she talked with the audience and she mentioned that. Being with her band she keeps it moving with the songs but we got the chance to hear her speak to us. One of the songs she dedicated to her Grandmother which had me choked up since I lost mine at the age of 9. It was really touching. The funniest thing was how Thao joked she would not have to fight her bandmates over Kind bars backstage, she had dibs on the sea salt ones. 

Maryn hates April Fools Day

The opener was Maryn from Yowler aka All Dogs aka her other band I'm failing to remember the name of. I love watching her finger pick the guitar. No way I could even attempt that. She sang that "Sunset in August" song which brought me back to the Frankie Cosmos show from late April last year. Yowler had Felix and Gabby from Eskimeaux on stage to help her sing it and I captured the moment on my Iphone. Yes, I pretty much taped the entire song, it was that good. I'm sure I'll see more of Maryn at other venues. She said the band is recording new songs and coming out with a compilation of songs. Kudos to only two bands this evening! It gets to be a bit much at times with so many openers.

.frankie cosmos

Frankie Cosmos is on tour kicking off the release of her brilliant new album "Next Thing." Yowler (Maryn Jones), and Eskimeux joined her at the First Unitarian Chruch the last weekend in April. Boy, what a show! Yowler came out first and I was amazed at her adept guitar playing skills. She played a really beautiful song (I call it "Sunset in August" because I don't know the actual title) with Felix and Gabby helping her sing. It was one of my favorite parts of the show. Eskimeaux was really fantastic and I enjoyed all of the songs. It was so fun to watch Felix bang away on those drums. His one drum is composed of patchwork quilted pieces. That's pretty rad.

When Greta came out it was a sing-along practically. She had the entire audience in the palm of her hand. I loved her purple guitar. Towards the end of the show she pulled a Carrie Brownstein and sang on the floor, back flat. Guess she was pooped from all the touring! When the show was over, my friends and I made our way to the merch table. Yowler only had tee shirts left. We were super bummed because we wanted a cassette tape of her's! I ended up buying "Next Thing" on vinyl. My friends bought a tee shirt from each band. Little did I know Eskimeaux actually had a 7" that was a type of flexi-disc you can mail like a postcard! I'm also kind of bummed I did not pick up a red Eskimeaux tee. Oh well another time. I do not have the set list and have failed trying to find one online. If I do I'll edit and post it. Frankie is doing some NY shows this summer and I would love the chance to see her again. She's so fun.