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Venue

Stern Grove Park

Stern Grove Entry Rd., 94132, San Francisco, CA, US

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drh

Concert in your area for Rock, Indie & Alt, and Folk & Blues.

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Violent Femmes biography

After meeting immediate acclaim from their first album, a unique mix of alt-rock & folk, The Violent Femmes continued to succeed for years later releasing 8 albums and having sold over 9 million records.

Originally formed in 1981 by the rhythm duo of Brian Richie on bass and Victor DeLorenzo on drums, they selected the name originally as a joke but by the time Gordon Gano joined to round out the line-up, it had stuck and the band was in place. They started out gigging at cafes and busking on street corners. On one such street gig they impressed members of The Pretenders who asked the band to open for them at their set that evening.

Their 1983 self-titled debut album slowly but surely became something of a cult classic, with songs like ‘Blister in the sun’ and ‘Kiss Off’ helping it to turn gold long after its initial release. The albums unique sound resonated with audiences and is now considered one of the best alternative albums of the decade.

They followed this with 1984’s ‘Hallowed Ground’ which saw the band head towards a more country driven sound, led by Gano’s religious lyricism. This was followed by the more mainstream leaning ‘The Blind Leading the Naked’ which saw the band enter the charts for the first time and even spawned a minor hit in their cover of T-rex’s ‘Children of the Revolution’.

From this point on, they had many break ups and reformations but the band always managed to release new music and continue playing shows worldwide.

Tune-Yards biography

tUnE-yArDs is a music project by musician and singer Merrill Garbus. She was born and raised on the east coast of the US. Her music is categorized as world beat, experimental, indie pop, and folk.

While living briefly in Vermont, Garbus was a puppeteer for a theater. Her musical background includes playing ukulele for a band in Montreal called Sister Suvi. Garbus moved to Oakland, CA, US to focus more seriously on her music career and in June 2009 she released an exclusive vinyl and cassette recorded album called “Bird Brains” through Portland-based company Marriage Records.

tUnE-yArDs caught the eye of British independent label 4AD and was officially signed to them in July 2009. By fall of that year “Bird Brains” was re-released internationally with extra songs “Want Me To” and “Real Life Flesh.” The album was recorded entirely by Garbus via handheld digital tape recorder and incorporated ukulele, drums, and her own vocals.

The follow-up album “w h o k i l l” released in 2011 was co-written by Garbus’s partner and bass player Nate Brenner. The live album was recorded in Oakland, CA, US by New, Improved Studios. The singles “Bizness and “Gangsta” were considered some of the top songs of 2011 by magazines like Time Magazine, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times. tUnE-yArDs music expanded to the advertising world when the hit “Fiya” was used for a Blackberry Torch commercial in 2010.

Garbus considers Michael Jackson, Debbie Gibson, and Cyndi Lauper as major influences in her music. tUnE-yArDs music videos contain many colorful elements, with surreal scenes and characters that match the crazy drum beats and global vibe of Garbus’s work. The videos have over a million views on YouTube.

Live reviews

Violent Femmes - 30th anniversary of the first album. We're all a little older than we were when the first album came out, so they could be forgiven for being a little slower, smoother, mellower. The stage was set out with a selection of guitars, banjos, etc. so it certainly looked like being a slicker, more professional affair. But - not a chance!!! I felt 30 years younger as they launched into the opening bars of the opening track: Blister in the Sun. We danced wildly, we shouted along. It all sounded as fresh and exciting as it had when first heard, and it was faithful to the album - normally I like a bit of variation in a live show, but somehow this was just perfect. On it went with hardly a pause: pretty much the only thing Gordon Gano said was to tell us where you turned the record over on the vinyl version, and the only instrument changes were where necessary (for Gone Daddy Gone, for example). End of side 2 and I was exhausted and sweating like anything. But I thought they were going to give us all of Hallowed Ground as well as they showed no signs of slowing down. We didn't get that, but plenty of other old favourites (including my personal fave "Held her in my arms"). A special mention has to be made for the venue - I can recommend the Troxy which is a great building and (for me) really easy to get to on the DLR. Ears ringing, sweating and exhausted I went out into the night feeling 30 years younger - you can't ask for more than that.

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nearvana

Gosh, where to start? The concert was SO dope I just don't even know what to say!
I want to first say that it seems so surreal to have actually witnessed such finesse in person. Both tUnE-yArDs and James Tillman are uniquely talented and it was an honor to be able to make the concert.
I guess I'll begin at the beginning of the show; James Tillman was the PERFECT opening act for the tUnE-yArDs. His mellow vibes with their upbeat flavor really worked in a sort of symbiotic nature. He is truly a gifted musician and I hope he makes it to a much more widespread audience because he definitely has a lot of talent to share with the world. Now for the big dogs: tUnE-yArDs was undeniably awesome! They played some of their old stuff and some new stuff and the energy was live the ENTIRE time. There wasn't a moment I didn't feel engaged. Meryl is SO personable that you feel like she's speaking to directly to you. My favorite part was when she thanked us for being there--it was a genuine appreciation. Hell, the audience was appreciated so much tUnE-yArDs came back and performed an encore. THAT is love and respect for your fans.
Also, can I add how perfect the venue was? It was at Playhouse Variety in Little Five. There was romantic seating at round tables, there were traditional theater seats, and there was space at the front of the stage for people to stand if they wanted. Plus the staff was super friendly and helpful. I definitely want to go to more concerts at this venue. So, the question isn't whether or not I'm going to see James Tillman or tUnE-yArDs perform again; it's when?!

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