rooney @ recordbar

rooney @ recordbar

On Thursday, September 13th, Rooney took the stage at recordBar to start the second half of their “A Cosmic Interlude” tour. Last year, Schwartzman promised an eager crowd – they played recordBar for the first date of that tour as well – that they would continue to come back each year with new music. He seems to be holding up on that promise. In fact, on the 13th, he told the crowd he enjoyed starting things off in Kansas City, and wants to come back to recordBar next year to kick things off again. We would totally understand if his crazy schedule didn’t permit that – the man just got back from signing a distribution deal for his latest full-length feature, The Unicorn.

Rooney was joined by Toughies and Mating Ritual, both of whom will have photos up this week! Get a glimpse into Rooney’s headlining set below.

Keep up with Rooney here.

darryl rahn @ rockwood music hall

darryl rahn @ rockwood music hall

Rockwood Music Hall in Manhattan’s Lower East Side was packed to the brim on September 1st. Darryl Rahn took the stage to support the release of his latest album entitled Making Strangers. Darryl’s personality and demeanor lend him a unconscious honesty, and his stage show is saturated in it. From the heartfelt opener “The Grey” it was an almost effortless captivation.

Darryl switched between playing with a full band behind him and going it alone with just an acoustic guitar. The standout from the unaccompanied portion seemed to “Reason To Run”. The crowd hung on the emotion of the lyrics and finger picked melody. It isn’t often that a palpable room-wide reaction to a performer can be spotted, especially on the Lower East Side where everyone is seemingly already over the next big thing. Darryl finds a way to connect through his songwriting its just folk enough to mean something more than a pop song, and its just pop enough to get put on a subconscious loop the following day. You can check out all the songs mentioned and keep up with Darryl’s socials via the links below.

Facebook | Twitter | InstagramWebsite

train @ sprint center

train @ sprint center

Train stopped through Kansas City a couple of weeks ago, and we got the pleasure of enjoying their set as they opened for the illustrious Hall & Oates at Sprint Center. The band made a point to hit all the high notes, working their way through hits like “Drops of Jupiter”, “Hey, Soul Sister”, “Drive By”,  “50 Ways to Say Goodbye”, “Meet Virginia”, and many more. Though on previous tours, the band has married couples on stage during “Marry Me”, we were happy to see there weren’t any shenanigans around that this time around.

Though we did witness at least one proposal during that song.

Between songs, Pat Monahan regaled the crowd with selfies, yoga poses, and more. Ever the ladies man, we didn’t stop hearing about his performance for the remainder of the night. And we totally get the hype.

sports, red shahan, the vik g. trio, calvin arsenia, + belle & the vertigo waves @ motm 2018

sports, red shahan, the vik g. trio, calvin arsenia, + belle & the vertigo waves @ motm 2018

Middle of The Map 2018 was absolutely insane. Not only was it one of the hottest weekends in Kansas City of the year thus far, but there was construction on every corner, and a lot of other events happening in the area. Despite all of the hullabaloo, we were able to nab some photos throughout the weekend. Below, check out some shots of Sports, Red Shahan, The Vik G. Trio, Calvin Arsenia, and Belle & The Vertigo Waves.

quiet slang @ rough trade

quiet slang @ rough trade

Frontman James Alex of Beach Slang brought his stripped-down project, Quiet Slang, to Brooklyn’s Rough Trade on July 9th.

It was a rainy Monday evening, and the show had been rescheduled from a prior date. Given those conditions, Alex was unsure, as he relayed to the audience between songs, how many people would show up. However, those concerns proved to be unfounded as the room was filled with fans hanging on every word.

Unlike Beach Slang shows, which are loud, clamorous, and brash, Quiet Slang is another entity entirely. As heard on Everything Matters But No One Is Listening, Quiet Slang’s debut LP, Alex has taken his work with Beach Slang and reimagined it, doing away with its thrashing, thunderous elements. Instead, Alex takes a sparse, orchestral approach: cello and piano, paired with his gritty vocals, give these formerly driving punk songs space to breathe, resurrecting them with new, balladic life.

This was reflected decoratively, as well. The stage set its own scene with flowers and strings of white lights with makeshift cotton clouds hanging in the distance. The rest of the venue was pitch-black save for a projector screen playing images of ballet dancers. Moving through the set, Alex was all heart from his honest vocals and earnest speeches of appreciation, thanking his fans over and over.

Quiet or loud, Alex delivered his audience an unforgettable night.