Just Go To The Show! Transcending the 1990s

Eight Months! 14 Shows! 13 Different Venues. My Philadelphia Live Music Adventures of 2024! 

I recently realized something that astonished me: from March 22 through October 11 of this year, I attended 14 different live music events. That’s a huge number for me these days. I have rarely had a year in which I haven’t experienced live music, but I’d imagine I’d have to go back decades to a year when I saw anywhere close to 14 shows.

But here is the truly mind-blowing part: I saw those 14 shows in 13 different venues, all in Philadelphia and the surrounding areas. It was only at the 14th show, on October 11, that I entered a venue I’d previously visited this year.

Philadelphia is a large city, so it’s not a surprise that there are many venues to see live music. But in 45 years of concert-going, I am certain that I’ve never attended shows in so many different locations.

Most surprising of all: I didn’t plan any of this, at least not too deliberately. It all just happened. Shows were announced, either Donna or me or both of us said, “Let’s go to that show” and we/I just did it.

Along the way, my love of seeing live music – which had not gone away – was beautifully reignited. I believe that seeing music performed live is one of the best things in life and the last eight months have proved that to me repeatedly. Or, more specifically, 14 times.

With each show, I probably had thoughts about posting reviews here but this and that came up, or maybe I was even off to the next show before I wrote anything about the last one.

Ultimately, my procrastination was a good thing, because now, as my year of shows is winding down – I do not currently have tickets to any upcoming shows, for the first time since December – I feel like I can reflect on the music I saw and the people who made it and the people I went with and write with a perspective I might not have had in the heat of the moment.

Rather than write about the various shows in chronological order, I’m going to group them thematically. This will make more sense as I go.

Here is a caveat for what will follow in this and hopefully upcoming entries: the shows that I will describing do not paint a picture of pop music in 2024, nor do they represent the cutting edge of contemporary sounds. I’ve been doing a decent job of keeping up with new music this year – hell, that Action Bronson album is one giant earworm – but the live shows I’ve seen belong in another set of categories.

Let’s start by transcending the 1990s, shall we?

Transcending the 1990s: Fastball and Nada Surf

I got a job in the organization where I still work in October 1990 and at the beginning of my second work week, I met the woman I would marry two years later. Then in 1997, our first son Jimmy was born. So, it’s not like I hate the ‘90s or anything, OK?

Having said that, there are many aspects of ‘90s pop culture that I didn’t love or care about back then and don’t love or care about now. I’ve got reasons for this, but they’re not important now. What is important is that Fastball and Nada Surf are two guitar-based, alt-leaning pop rock bands with origin stories deep in the 1990s. And also important: I did like Fastball and Nada Surf.

Fastball was formed in Austin, Texas in 1992, the same year Nada Surf was coming together in New York City. High/Low, the 1996 debut album by Nada Surf, featured the Weezer-esque “Popular”, which was accompanied by an MTV-staple video, in those final days before MTV abandoned videos. “Popular” didn’t crack Billboard’s Hot 100 chart but it was a solid modern rock hit.

Meanwhile, Fastball also released their debut album, Make Your Mama Proud, in 1996. The album didn’t sell, but their second album, 1998’s All the Pain Money Can Buy, sure did, bolstered by a big existential hit single, “The Way.”

I liked both “Popular” and “The Way” and even bought both the High/Low and All the Pain Money Can Buy CDs, but neither band sent another hit song rocketing up the charts, and I got distracted, not thinking much about either about Fastball or Nada Surf for years.

It has only been since around 2019 that, for separate reasons, I found my way back to both Fastball and Nada Surf and learned that both bands had been continuing to make music all along. Upon further investigation, I discovered that I love much of this music, and I am still getting caught up on the complete back catalogs of both bands.

This brings me to:

Fastball – City Winery, Philadelphia, April 19, 2024

I rediscovered Fastball in 2020, when I was researching and writing a 20th anniversary retrospective article on Barenaked Ladies’ Maroon album. Because of this newfound appreciation, when my friend Michael told me that he and his wife Teri were going to see Fastball at City Winery and had two tickets available, I was intrigued. “We should just go to the show,” I said to Donna later. We did, and my mantra became “Just go to the show” for the rest of this year.

Going to see Fastball with Michael and Teri proved to be a fantastic double date. We ate dinner at Reading Terminal Market and, since we were just down the street, we walked up 12th Street to pay homage to a true Philadelphia landmark, the building where the legendary Sigma Sound Studios was housed. Name any album recorded by the giants of Philly soul – the O’Jays, Spinners, Lou Rawls, Stylistics, Patti LaBelle, Billy Paul, and many others – and it was probably produced at Sigma. And don’t forget Bowie’s Young Americans.

Inspired by our Sigma visit, the four of us were ready to have our faces rocked by Fastball. Fastball did not disappoint. The band played “The Way” and other popular tracks from All the Pain Money Can Buy with an infectious blast of fun and enthusiasm, showing no disdain for playing what people wanted to hear. Other albums in the catalog were represented by key tracks like “You’re an Ocean”, “I Will Never Let You Down”, and “All I Was Looking for Was You”.

Fastball wasn’t rocking City Winery strictly just to rest on their laurels though; they were there to support their upcoming album, Sonic Ranch, which was released two months later. The band played several new songs, including “Rather Be Me Than You”, “America” and “Hummingbird.” While bands sometimes joke about playing unfamiliar material, these new Fastball tunes were slotted in beautifully among the more familiar tunes, and proved to be highlights of the show. And as it happens, Sonic Ranch is an excellent addition to the Fastball catalog and one of the best pure pop rock albums you’ll likely to hear this year.

Fastball City Winery setlist

Nada Surf – Underground Arts, Philadelphia, October 3, 2024

I am not seeing an actual date, but sometime within a month or so after the Fastball show, Nada Surf released a song, “In Front of Me Now” from their Moon Mirror album, which was ultimately released on September 13. Sometime during the summer, the band’s October 3 show at Underground Arts, not too far away from City Winery was announced.

I did not jump on tickets right away – I had seen Nada Surf in early 2020, just before COVID lockdown started – but the more I heard “In Front of Me Now”, the more I wanted to go to the show. “In Front of Me Now” is probably my favorite song of 2024, but the lyrics, which are about being present in the moment, took the song to a deeper level each time I heard it and before long, I was saying “Let’s just go to the show” to Donna, who had not seen them in 2020.

So, we went to the show. Us, at the show:

Office Dog, a new band out of New Zealand, opened the show. They are a powerful live band, though their music isn’t quite as accessible as that of either Fastball or Nada Surf. I did buy their debut album, Spiel, because I think it’s important to support the support acts, and I’ll give it some spins to let it sink in a bit for me.

What was truly wonderful about Office Dog was sensing their enthusiasm for being out on the road. I think this was their debut tour in the U.S. and they seemed to love being in the room with all of us. That was cool to see.

As for Nada Surf, they performed a powerful show, playing most of the songs from Moon Mirror, a big chunk of their now-classic 2002 album, Let Go, and several other fine songs scattered across their catalog. They even hauled out “Popular”, which wasn’t necessarily a show highlight, but it was fun.

The final song, “Blizzard of ‘77” sung, un-mic’ed by all four band members, accompanied by the entire audience, was a highlight. So was “Blonde on Blonde”, the song that led me back to Nada Surf.

But again, just like Fastball, Nada Surf’s new songs were highlights of the night. “In Front of Me Now” affected me just as much as the studio version had been, and “Open Seas” live was just jaw-droppingly great. I am glad I had a moment after the show to tell Matthew Caws how much I love the Jimmy Webb/”Wichita Lineman” reference – “the phone on my chest plays Jimmy Webb/and I feel myself out on the line/wanting you for all time” at the end of the song.

Like Sonic Ranch, I highly recommend Moon Mirror as a stellar example of a veteran band, still at the top of their game.

Nada Surf Underground Arts setlist

So, there you have it. Fastball and Nada Surf, two great bands that are perfectly happy to acknowledge their past, while creating and performing new music that stands strong with the best of those earlier work.