Artists: Bleachers, Claud
Venue: Hollywood Palladium
Date: October 15, 2021
Whenever someone asks me to name an album that I adore from start to finish, never skipping a track, Bleachers’ debut album, Strange Desire (and accompanying cover album, Terrible Thrills, Vol. 2), is listed in my top 5. It makes sense that I’d latch onto this musical project by Jack Antonoff, because I was a huge fan of fun. previously (which he was a member of). I’ve been avidly following Bleachers since that debut album, and I was thrilled to finally get a chance to see them in the type of venue they can fully own.
The show was opened by Chicago native singer-songwriter, Claud. I went into the show not knowing who would be opening, but Claud commanded the stage from their first entrance upon it and I was glad to have them there. I got a lot of Chvrches feels from Claud‘s music. It was very fun and easy to dance to. One of their standout songs for me was, “I Wish You Were Gay.” Being the first band to be signed by Pheobe Bridgers’ record label, Saddest Factory, I think that Claud is going places for sure. Definitely check them out on Spotify.
When it was time for Bleachers to go on stage, I knew that I was going to want to dance – two shots of whiskey later and I was ready to put on those dancing shoes and groove to what Bleachers had to deliver. I enjoy the Hollywood Palladium as a venue, because there’s really not a bad place to be in that venue since it’s wide, but not deep. This is the first standing room only concert that I’ve been to in a while, so it took a little getting used to, but the vibes of everyone around me helped me ease in. All I felt was pure joy and happiness from those around me – no doubt due to Bleachers’ energy on stage. Everyone was dancing and having an amazing time.
This tour is in support of Bleachers’ newest album, Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night. They lived up to that album title, as they took the sadness out of Friday night for all of those people, and myself as well.
They played all of their biggest hits, from “I Wanna Get Better” to “Don’t Take The Money” in-between a lot of their newest music. The two stand out songs from the new album that were played include “45” and “How Dare You Want More.” I ended up leaving the show with a vinyl of the new album, because I found that seeing the songs performed live made me fall in love with it more.
I appreciated seeing double on stage – two sets of drums and two tenor saxophones. I often describe this band as “saxy,” because they really are! Both saxophone players were stellar! The entire band was excellent, and Jack Antonoff killed it as the front man. My only issue was that I couldn’t understand a word he was saying when he talked between songs – but that didn’t bother me too much, because the music itself all sounded great. All in all, it was a hell of a Friday evening, and that’s not just the double shot of whiskey talking.
Check out the Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night on Spotify!
The Indy Review 