Ventured out last night for the first time (for me) in years to a live concert. I have chosen to no longer drink or smoke and frankly going out to a club reminds me of how old and married I really am. A Place To Bury Strangers blew me away on SiriusXM so I knew I had to see them live. The opening DJ Xoanon set, Little Bull Lee and Hunters all kicked ass. The DJ Xoanon set had lush, rich floaty noise. Little Bull Lee had insane bass and a petite, but hot male singer. The pastel pink haired chick in Hunters kicked major lady ass. APTBS went off into their beloved 10+ minutes of eardrum shredding feedback (the band sells APTBS earplugs in a personalized case) and between that and the heat a lot of people were threw in the sweat soaked towel that point. However the trippy light and image show and their signature sound was spot on.
With that being said the venue had a creepy abandoned slaughterhouse vibe and absolutely no air conditioning. Being at an amphitheater is not the same as being trapped in a cinder block building with no AC. I innocently asked the bartender, in my Jersey accent, if the AC was broken and he laughed out loud and said that the venue is too costly to cool, but that they have fans and if you stand near them it isn't too bad. That's like comparing apples to oranges buddy. Frankly I was a bit embarrassed for the bands and for Charlotte, NC. I mean sure these bands are touring in their Dirty Donnie 1970's vans and probably playing other shitholes all over the U.S., but there are other venues here in town that could have hosted them. The other issue was the turnout. This is, after all, the town of suits and banking, it was a Wednesday night, it was 90 degrees out and this band is pretty under the radar for most folks, so the crowd was painfully light - probably about 50 people if that.
It was a grueling evening heat-wise to persevere from 7pm until midnight but well worth it to see these bands.
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