Categories
Concert Reviews

PT Walkley Impresses at Album Release Show

On the night of his album release, PT Walkley entertained a packed Blender Theater audience by playing his debut album Mr. Macy Wakes Alone track by track in its entirety. With a full band – at times reminiscent of an orchestral arrangement — Walkley conducted the band with the simple nodding of his head. From backup singers to string arrangement, Walkley’s showcase was one not to be missed.

Perhaps the most versatile musician I’ve seen in concert, Walkley’s voice changed drastically from song to song. One example is the mere difference from second song “Why,” where he exercised a softer, more angelic voice complete with fitting string and horn accompaniment, and then made the shift to the deeper and edgier track “No One Needs To Know” — and that was just in the first 10 minutes of his set.

What makes Walkley stand out from other up-and-coming musicians is the content of his album. He has said in interviews that he hopes to bring back cover-to-cover listening and seemingly does so, as the characters and themes on each track intermingle throughout Mr. Macy Wakes Alone. His publicity is doing pretty well, especially after being hand picked by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin to open their Madison Square Garden show.

Not your average singer-songwriter, Walkley has also composed music for several Ed Burns films as well as had his music placed in numerous commercials including MasterCard and GE. With so much varied musical exposure, his diversity in concert no longer seems all that surprising, but continues to impress concertgoers as heard from the screams and applause after each song’s end.

With string, horn, percussion and continuous guitar and backup vocals, Walkley’s set did not disappoint. Slower ballad “Coming Over” showcased his deep and trance-like vocals. With the complement of a harp, the concertgoer had the relaxed vibe of being on a tropical island, easily picturing palm trees swaying in the background. Always quick to change the mood from song to song, next track was energetic “The Lucky Ones.” The song featured Walkley’s wife Michelle on infectious backing vocals. Their voices blended beautifully together, and the light musical accompaniment fit well, never overpowering the song’s main vocals and narration.

While “Evolution” sounded almost planetary at times, “Calvin the Coroner” had a carnival-esque feel to it. With a faster piano introduction and crescendo of Walkley’s vocals at the end of each line, the song is quirky with lyrics, “When Calvin was a boy there was a lot to comprehend/A high imagination but he never had a friend/His father bought the funeral parlor just around the bend from the Macy’s/He helped around the basement and he swore he’d never tell/He couldn’t stand the bodies but he grew to like the smell/Formaldehyde and suicide were words that came too well to a young boy.”

Before playing upbeat track, “Audrey Macy” Walkley introduced the song by saying, “This song is about a murder and a girl named Audrey Macy.” A captivating tale of a trust fund girl who is never satisfied, she eventually kills her father to inherit money he already has spent, thus forcing her to work the rest of her life. Yet another example of Walkley’s versatility, with fitting electric guitar and percussion, the music only assisted him to tell the story effectively.

With rave album reviews and having recently opened for Coldplay, PT Walkley has definitely been making a name for himself. Setting the bar well beyond most musicians these days, Walkley begs the listener to pay attention to every detail of his performance and album as the recurring themes and characters only make sense when listening cover to cover. Definitely an ambitious musician, Walkley is breaking the mold of the music industry as we know it today, and it would behoove every music lover to give him a listen.

You can read this review, originally posted on Filter here. For more on PT Walkley, be sure to visit his MySpace.

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Photos

Hellogoodbye/Ace Enders Concert Photo Collage

Yesterday I introduced you to Hellogoodbye in my interview with frontman Forrest Kline during their nation-wide BBQ tour. An extremely diverse line-up, Hellogoodbye and Ace Enders and a Million Different People drew packed crowds to their fall tour and left concertgoers who went to see one band walk away avid fans of the other.

Both had extremely energetic and fun sets when I saw them in New York. Rather than give you my take on it, I figured I’d post Wendy’s photos of the show below so you get a feel of each performance. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words right? Did you get a chance to see the BBQ tour? I’d love to hear your reviews of it! Be sure to tune in next week for my interview with Ace Enders!








Categories
Concert Reviews Festivals

Chicago Duo Show Festivalgoers What CMJ Is All About

Possibly the most anticipated act of last year’s CMJ Festival, the Cool Kids brought their energy to CMJ once again, this time at the Blender Theatre Tuesday night. Having graced the pages of Rolling Stone last year as an “Artist to Watch,” the Chicago rap duo “Chuck Inglish” Ingersoll and Mikey Reed proved that they still have it going on.

Taking the stage shortly before 10:30 p.m., the Cool Kids brought their tight hooks and bass-heavy beats to the stage with “Delivery Man.” Cameras were flashing and every hand was in the air having anxiously anticipated their entrance, for many, since 8 p.m.

Ingersoll and Reed got the crowd energized during their set, which featured their infamous hit “Black Mags” as well as “Box of Rocks.” Even Mickey Factz joined the duo throughout their set, jumping around the stage for “I Rock.”

The night was full of surprises as one fan threw Reed a box of cereal to which he eventually emptied into the crowd. Later, fans jumped onstage for a dance-off contest to win copies of their album in addition to jokes being told, the best comedian winning an XBox game. Their second year at CMJ, the Cool Kids continue to bring something new to the table. I can’t help but wonder what it will be next year.

While most in attendance were anxiously awaiting the Cool Kids performance, Toronto natives the Carps, kept the crowd energized.

For a two-piece, bassist Neil White and singer/drummer Jahmal Tonge held their own. An unexpected pairing with Tonge providing smooth and soulful vocals, at times reminiscent to that of Usher, and White cartwheeling onstage during their performance, the Carps’ vigor was impressive.

The Carps played a half-hour set comprised of eight songs, including a solid cover of Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison” as well as their interpretive song, “Compton to Scarboro,” which Tonge explained being about gun violence. Tonge captivated the audience’s attention by telling the story of a man robbing a convenient store as he and White acted out the parts, White convincingly falling to the ground dead as the song progressed.

The lights engulfed Tonge and White onstage in an eerie glow as their catchy R&B; beats got the crowd clapping along during their set. While the crowd seemed uninterested at times, Tonge evoked attention with his constant, and sometimes curious, onstage banter. “Listen to your parent’s kids, sex is overrated,” he said at one point, later asking the crowd, “Do you love us yet? I just need your love.”

With the upcoming election on everyone’s mind, even at CMJ, the band made their stance known. “Make sure you go out and vote Barack,” Tonge said. “We just elected another conservative in Canada and I would hate to see that here.”

Cartwheeling onstage before their last song, the Carps ended their set with just as much energy as when they began. While it’s often hard being part of such a diverse festival line-up, the Carps worked the stage as if they were the headliners and who knows, in a few years they just might be.

To read the original Cool Kids review posted on the official CMJ blog click here. To read the Carps review, click here.

Categories
Concert Reviews

The Graduate Treat NYC Crowd To A Wet Finale

Though they were onstage for just under 30 minutes, the Graduate easily stole the show Wednesday night at the Blender Theater. With a high-energy set and solid instrumental interludes, the Graduate kept the crowd alive while continually jumping around onstage.

All the while, the Graduate drew concertgoers closer and closer to the stage throughout their seven-song set and had many in attendance clapping along to each song. With previous stints on Lollapalooza, the Warped Tour and Germany’s Rock am See it’s easy to tell that their busy tour schedule over the past two years has only strengthened the band’s onstage performance.

Starting the night off with “I Survived” from their debut album, Anhedonia, the five-piece Illinois band quickly grabbed the crowd’s attention with an almost organ-sounding keyboard intro before frontman Corey Warning took over on vocals. When he introduced their next song for the night, “Sit and Sink,” screams permeated the venue. “Did I tell you how much I love New York?” he asked the crowd. “Well it’s true!” New Yorkers seemed to love the band as well.

The Graduate’s live show far surpassed expectations I had from just listening to their album. The band’s lineup is made up of a drummer, bass player and two guitarists, one who splits his time on keyboard, while frontman Corey Warning alternates his time on vocals and guitar. The instrumental accompaniment between the bandmembers was strong, never overpowering Warning’s vocals. The instrumental “Interlude” exemplified the core sound of the Graduate, and although no one was singing, the crowd was surprisingly really into it.

“The City That Reads” started off a bit slower than their previous songs, with strong instrumental features that fit the mood change in the song well. When Warning sings, “Baltimore is quiet and cold,” you believe him. “Doppelganger” livened the night up with Warning rocking out on tambourine before playing their last song of the night, “The Formula.”

Ending zealously, each guitarist put down their instrument before bringing out a set of drums, dousing them with water for visual effect and then hammering on them. You can’t get a better finale than that, except maybe a fireworks display. Eventually, the guys picked back up their guitars to finish the song and left the stage to a room filled with screams and thunderous applause.

When I asked Corey what makes the Graduate standout from other up-and-coming bands, he explained that fans have told him their live show is what pushes them over the edge and makes them keep coming back. After seeing their performance last night I have to agree.

To listen to their music and see when they’re coming on tour near you, be sure to check out the Graduate on MySpace. Lead singer/guitarist Corey was nice enough to sit down with me before the show and answer all of my questions about the band, touring and their music so be sure to come back in a few days for the full interview!