Show Reviews
Combichrist @ In The Venue 10.18 with William Control, Davey...
Combichrist is one of the most influential bands in the industrial music scene and has been for some time. I have never been let down when I have seen them live. They are constantly requested in the clubs and always put bodies on the dance floor. … read more
Finch @ Club Sound 10.10 with Wounds
After quite a few years in a Finch-less hiatus, the world is a bit brighter now. The popular 2000s post-hardcore group was scheduled to stop here on their last tour, where they were meant to play my favorite album, What It Is To Burn, in its entirety, but weather stopped them and they never rescheduled. My heart never really fully mended until I heard the surprising news of a new album and support tour suddenly manifesting this summer, and I made sure I was at Club Sound for their return. … read more
The New Pornographers @ The Depot 10.10 with The Pains...
Last Friday brought the most exciting double bill in pop music to The Depot in Salt Lake City—The New Pornographers, in support of their latest album Brill Bruisers, and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, in support of theirs, Days of Abandon. … read more
Joey Bada$$ @ The Complex 10.08 with Vince Staples, CJ...
Hip-hop shows at The Complex are a feast for the senses. I like to drink it in like it’s a chilled glass of Alizé. Weed smoke and grocery store body spray form an atmosphere as thick as any inversion in February. Brawny men in wife beaters strut their stuff. Tattoos tell stories. … read more
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats @ Urban Lounge 10.04 with...
The month of All Hallows’ Eve has come upon us, and what better way to kick this off than to witness Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats blast out their fuzzed, psych-induced ’70s-style heavy metal that arouses nostalgia for the early years of Black Sabbath. … read more
Justin Townes Earle @ The State Room 09.28 with American...
Justin Townes Earle had promised in an interview earlier in the week that there would be no fighting at his upcoming show. He swore those days were behind him and it would be a new him approaching the stage Sunday night. Regardless of promises, a rowdy crowd of middle-aged Utahans poured into The State Room that night in hopes of blues, sweet tunes and plenty of booze. … read more
Ty Segall @ Urban Lounge 09.27 with La Luz, Max...
This is better than when I saw Ty Segall play here in Fuzz and that was one of the best performances I can remember. Holy cow, this is amazing. How can he play so well and so hard, non-stop? … read more
Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band @ Urban Lounge 09.24 with...
When Peyton and his posse take the stage, they’re greeted with saloon-style whistling and hollering. Sporting a pair of workman’s overalls and a scruffy beard, Peyton looks like he just finished picking crops for 10 cents a barrel. … read more
2014 X96 Toyota Big Ass Show
The 19th edition of X96’s Big Ass Show will unfortunately be remembered as much for the unending deluge as it will for the atmosphere and music. As unfair as that may be, a good portion of the show’s attendees were as interested in finding shelter a good portion of the time as they were in finding a good place to see the next act; the latter being a much easier task, as I imagine that only a fraction of the expected attendees actually showed up. … read more
TRUST @ Urban Lounge 09.25 with Crater
As Alfons grasped the microphone, while bubbling synths ignited all around him, and people lost themselves to the power of dance, he seemed as the Wizard of Oz, operating only to give people a feeling of freedom they couldn’t create on their own. … read more
BEACHMEN with Koala Temple, High Counsel, Palace of Buddies 09.18...
The Urban Lounge has been doing this thing lately where they showcase local music to the public every week at no cost. It’s a simple “walk in and enjoy yourself” strategy to support our homegrown heroes. As a Salt Laker who doesn’t really attend farmer’s markets or other such gatherings, I try to catch as many of these as I can. Besides, organic produce doesn’t have shit on the ripeness of this lineup. … read more
Tycho @ The Depot 09.17 With Christopher Willits
Hearing Tycho live is a very different experience than hearing it in headphones or on vinyl—it has a much more intimate feel. … read more
