French rock band, PHOENIX, returned to Philadelphia as part of a highly-anticipated tour after many years that were quiet
for the natives of Versailles.
Opening up the set was THE LEMON TWIGS, out of Long Island, NY. The young group has turned many heads and already
played “Coachella” with several appearances on the late-night circuit. They exude energy -- nearly to excess, playing with
enthusiasm and occasionally, wild antics. Musically, they lay down rock ‘n roll that is reminiscent of THE BEATLES in the “Sgt.
Pepper” era. The core of the group are the D’ADDARIO brothers, who take turns changing between fronting the group and
sitting behind the drums. Overall, they put on a great performance of their original work, far exceeding the expectations for
warming up the crowd -- who most likely came away as fans of the group.
Phoenix opened up their set with the title track of the June 9 release “Ti Amo”. This widely-anticipated new album comes
after several years of a break from touring. The group is best known for its biggest hits from their 2009 release, including
“1901” and “Lisztomania”. They received a Grammy for that album, a Billboard #1 listing, and made it to many “best-of”
lists for the year -- including ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE’S. Subsequently, they appeared on every major television outlet,
including “Saturday Night Live”, not to mention a slew of festival appearances.
Having one other release since then (in 2013), their latest, “Ti Amo”, has been anticipated to see if they can restore the prior
success. If their live performance is any indication, they still have the effortless ability to layer textures of sound over a
driving, danceable beat, and draw the audience in for the first to last note. While appearing quite calm, laying down driving
rock riffs mixed with deep and heavy electronic textures, the guys from France enjoyed themselves and appreciated the
Philly crowd. It was a mutual appreciation, as the nearly full house at THE FILLMORE demonstrated with their lit up reaction
-- that the mix still worked and that the new offerings and old favorites of the band continue to have appeal and to get
people dancing.
http://wearephoenix.com/
https://www.facebook.com/wearephoenix/
http://thelemontwigs.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheLemonTwigs/