Girl at the Rock Shows

I’m not sure what’s going on this week, but I feel like I’m being held underwater. The shows have all been fantastic, and they honestly may be the only thing saving me this week. Thursday was a particularly rough day. Something set me off in the morning, and no matter what I did, I just couldn’t recover. I needed something to snap me out of it, if only for a couple of hours, and that’s exactly what my time spent at Amsterdam Bar & Hall did.

I was super excited to see the first band of the night- Drug League. I feel like there was a time, a couple of years ago, when Drug League was on every bill, and I was seeing them time and time again, but then, it all just stopped, so I was more than excited to have a chance to see them for the first time in literal years. Although the line-up of this band has changed, their quirkiness has not. The sole punk band on the four-band line-up on Thursday night, Drug League laid it all out on the stage for the audience and transported us back to when things were a bit simpler– 2021. Okay, that was a weird little schtick that lasted throughout their set and even included a New Year’s Eve-styled countdown to 2021 and a petition for the government to turn back time and make it 2021 again. Although I may not have understood the schtick, I did understand the music they were performing, which gave me so much life. It’s chaotic but organized. Their sound is very much in the vein of a band like PUP or Joyce Manor but has more of an avant-garde edge to it. Add the way that these members clearly like to have fun on stage and refuse to just stand in one spot, and you were left with a heck of a way to kick off what would turn into a pretty lengthy but super fantastic night of local music.

There’s something so calming about the music and overall aura of Vinny Franco and the Love Channel. I remember that distinctly from the first time I saw them in December of 2023 and knew that their vibe was exactly what I needed on Thursday night. They did not disappoint. The music of Vinny Franco and the Love Channel is R&B meets funk. It was a complete 180 from the punk offerings, but it fit due to the sheer passion and love radiating from the stage. This is a massive group; at times, nine people brought their own flavors and spices to the sound. It should have sounded chaotic and a bit unorganized, but instead, every song performed by the group (cover or original) was presented with a clean-cut sense of professionalism and an undeniable feeling of perfection. Everyone in this group is truly an amazing musician, but Vinny Franco’s voice holds this whole group together. It’s dark and warm but has this fire behind it. It is silky smooth with an almost pop-leaning sensibility, but it comes off as somehow rugged even with the smoky haze that it casts over an audience. Long story short, Vinny Franco and the Lovel Channel are excellent, and Vinny Franco has the voice of an angel. This is a band that is not to be slept on.

I know I just saw anni xo less than two weeks ago but that was a fluke as they were a stand-in for another act that had to drop off the bill that night. anni xo came in the form of a trio that night, but anni quickly mentioned that that was a special scaled-down performance. Thursday night was my first time seeing anni xo in all their glory with a full band behind them. Usually, this is where I would say that I prefer this act with a full band over a more chill trio, but truthfully, I can’t say that. What I can say is that anni xo is the kind of act that, regardless of whether it is a trio or five-piece, will catch you and still a little bit of your heart with every passing song. Their 90s-drenched singer-songwriter vibe was genuinely enhanced by the rocking band behind them but you still got the folksy side of this amazing local performer that I felt was a highlight of the trio performance a couple of days ago. This speaks to not only the talent of the band behind anni xo but the talent of anni xo in general. There’s a reason that anni xo’s name is all over the place these days, and I hope it continues to be like that. I also hope you take some time to check out this truly bright star in an already dazzling local scene.

I’ll be honest, I was peeved about how late it was once headlining act afters took the stage. It was supposed to be a 10:15 PM set but ended up being closer to 10:25 just due to the run of the show. Usually, I don’t care how late I am out on a work night. It’s just part of the job. But this week, all I wanted to do was go home and try and get a solid night of sleep before diving into the final workday of the week. I was stressed, annoyed, peeved, whatever you want to call it but all of those feelings went away as soon as afters started playing.

I truly can not understate the power of this band. Formerly known as Druzy Rose, afters has a sound that will knock you right on your butt if you’re not ready for it. Heck, even if you’re ready for it, the power of this band will surely make you take a step back. Stylistically, afters is the definition of a genre-fluid band. It’s definitely rock, but beyond that, the lines get a bit blurred. Indie rock rhythms mixed with a soulful pop-leaning voice but a powerful alt-rock-driven beat, capitalized by a stunning show of talent by all of the members on stage, made me wonder who brought what element to the stage. Was the drummer a metalhead? The bassist a bit of a ska-lover (shout out Joe Baron for being an incredible bassist and amazing friend)? Although some of these questions could easily be answered as afters is a bit of a supergroup and featured many musicians who had graced the stage previously in the night, it was fun to wonder who brought what to the table and try and figure out how afters came up with the signature sound. At the same time, it didn’t really matter. The music of afters is dynamic and so well done that it’s impossible to not just get lost in it all.

Thursday night was a celebration of afters’ brand new album ‘EVERYTHING WAS BEAUTIFUL.’ Being brand new to this band, I couldn’t tell you if they did an album playthrough or anything like that, but I can tell you that, contrary to their album title, everything becomes a bit more beautiful after you spend a night with afters and there was no other place I would have rather been.

Line Up:

Drug League

Vinny Franco and the Love Channel

anni xo

afters

Venue: Amsterdam Bar & Hall

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 26

Crowd Surfers- None

Stage Divers- None

Mosh-ability- 1 out of 10

Amount of Beer Spilled On Me While Walking Around- 0

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None Witnessed

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 0

How Many Times I’ve Seen These Bands Before (or at least how many times I can remember)-

Drug League – 1

Vinny Franco and the Love Channel – 1

anni xo – 1

afters – 0

Celebrity Sightings – Zaq Baker / Topez

Overall Score – 8.7 out of 10

Show on Deck —Sluice / Porridge Radio // Bizhiki / Christy Costello / Dalmatian Club / Kiernan / Mati / Porch Light / Room3

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