This was my second Rock Hall show of the weekend (!) with equally as great weather for sitting socially distanced outside. Ben Gage is an Akron-based singer songwriter who played a lovely set out on the pavilion. He really won me over when he covered Gillian Welch’s Miss Ohio, captured below.
Did I mention how nice out it was?
Elliphant is making a triumphant return with this beautifully shot video for the perfectly polished Had Enough. Dua Lipa just jumped out of the top-40 fray with this amazing single, Levitating, featuring Madonna (!), Miss Elliott, (!!), and remixed by The Blessed Madonna (!!!). Finally, how could I not post this star-studded video of Erasure’s Nerves of Steel!
Bonus: You wouldn’t normally see a Rolling Stone video on this blog, but their recent video for Scarlet was actually pretty good - featuring Paul Mescal from Hulu’s Normal People.
A return to live music!! The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has just cemented a lifetime of memberships from me by breaking this drought with a series of shows out on their pavilion (temperatures taken, masks required). I missed the first couple, but this Thursday night could not have been more beautiful for my first.
Kid Tigrrr is a local band that I’ve been aware of, but have missed seeing live. While their whispery indie pop sound would have better served in a small club, they complimented this strange reunion with live music quite well. Check out some clips from the show.
Austra just released her new video for I Am Not Waiting, off my second favorite pop album of the Summer. Disclosure dropped their new video with Fatoumata Diawara for Douha (Mali Mali), which you should start for the dancing and stay for the visuals. YELLE is promoting their yet to be release album with their new dance-centric video for Karaté.
Bonus: Just ran across this video for Runway Daydream by The Ivy. Who’s not up for a summery pop tune from a cute boy band.
Sylvester was not of my era, but I’ve become a huge fan. I don’t even remember how I discovered them, but it wasn’t long before I was collecting Sylvester’s music on vinyl and and playing it on jukeboxes. I was thrilled to see this light shown on this amazing artist over at Amazon Music. Check it out!
"In partnership with filmmaker Lauren Tabak and writer/consulting producer Barry Walters, we dive into the music career of Sylvester, starting from church choir in South Central LA to his early years in San Francisco. It follows his ascent to stardom through his evergreen, international hits 'Dance (Disco Heat)' and 'You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)'. Through his groundbreaking career, Sylvester blew open the doors for queer visibility and gender fluidity in mainstream music, leaving a legacy that continues to influence today's pop music. The documentary features candid interviews with Billy Porter, Martha Wash (The Weather Girls, Two Tons o’ Fun), Sylvester’s sister Bernadette Baldwin, biographer Josh Gamson, producer/songwriter James Wirrick, and more. Listen to Sylvester on our Pride History playlist: https://amzn.to/37D73XG"
(Via (100) Love Me Like You Should: The Brave and Bold Sylvester | Amazon Music - YouTube.)
