Angel and the Badman, Jeramiah Red, and Hell or Highwater
at the Observatory
I went to this concert with Hank and Dan along with a few family friends, and before the show we had dinner together which caused us to be late. As we hustled into the Observatory halfway through the first band’s set, we were shocked to hear a “rock-a-billy” style music floating through the small stage’s doors. Upon entering the itty-bitty room, we saw a stand up bass and two guitarists performing a very awesome country-rock set. Angel and the Badman made me want to get up and dance, so I did. I hooked my dad’s elbow in mine and we proceeded to one-couple square dance. The musicians were completely into the music and the crowd—however small it may have been—was extremely pleased…as well as amused by my dad’s and my dancing. We started off the night excellently, I must say.
We were then treated to a forty-five minute wait while Jeramiah Red took their sweet time showing up to the venue on a party bus with thirty drunk people. Once they finally made their way onto the stage to begin their oddly long tuning process, a few women dressed like strippers took the stage to advertise Coldcock Whiskey in a provocative manner that did not increase my desire for whiskey in the slightest, but did make me silently urge Jeramiah Red to hurry up and get their guitars tuned. Eventually, they did accomplish this seemingly difficult task, and began an intensely energetic performance aided by the Coldcock Whiskey coquettes who seemed to find the stage their property for advertising even during the sets. Jeramiah Red had this charismatic aura that seemed to be contagious, and the whole crowd, though completely inexperienced in the art of moshing, began to bang around in a pathetic circle in beat to the awesome music. Their music was a very cool sound that seemed to mix hardcore rock with ‘70s music and a hint of country. Like the band VIZA, they had a percussionist who had more energy than the rest of the band members mashed together. We were so impressed that we ended up purchasing both the available albums at the merch table.
Hell or Highwater was amazing. They surpassed their incredible performance at the Sleep Train Amphitheatre by a mile and half. Their energy was like a tidal wave pouring over us, and the set list was perfectly laid out. The lead singer was sweating like a shower faucet in his thick leather jacket and running around the stage to spread his passion to every person in the crowd. At one point, he brought out a boogie board and invited people to compete in a crowd surfing contest. That was won hands down by a woman who managed to stand on top of the boogie board, 7 feet from the ground, for almost a minute. Extremely impressive. These guys were awesome and the songs from their EP “The Other Side” seemed to be the most popular and fun.
This was an awesome concert and every band impressed me! Thanks to everyone who played!
We were then treated to a forty-five minute wait while Jeramiah Red took their sweet time showing up to the venue on a party bus with thirty drunk people. Once they finally made their way onto the stage to begin their oddly long tuning process, a few women dressed like strippers took the stage to advertise Coldcock Whiskey in a provocative manner that did not increase my desire for whiskey in the slightest, but did make me silently urge Jeramiah Red to hurry up and get their guitars tuned. Eventually, they did accomplish this seemingly difficult task, and began an intensely energetic performance aided by the Coldcock Whiskey coquettes who seemed to find the stage their property for advertising even during the sets. Jeramiah Red had this charismatic aura that seemed to be contagious, and the whole crowd, though completely inexperienced in the art of moshing, began to bang around in a pathetic circle in beat to the awesome music. Their music was a very cool sound that seemed to mix hardcore rock with ‘70s music and a hint of country. Like the band VIZA, they had a percussionist who had more energy than the rest of the band members mashed together. We were so impressed that we ended up purchasing both the available albums at the merch table.
Hell or Highwater was amazing. They surpassed their incredible performance at the Sleep Train Amphitheatre by a mile and half. Their energy was like a tidal wave pouring over us, and the set list was perfectly laid out. The lead singer was sweating like a shower faucet in his thick leather jacket and running around the stage to spread his passion to every person in the crowd. At one point, he brought out a boogie board and invited people to compete in a crowd surfing contest. That was won hands down by a woman who managed to stand on top of the boogie board, 7 feet from the ground, for almost a minute. Extremely impressive. These guys were awesome and the songs from their EP “The Other Side” seemed to be the most popular and fun.
This was an awesome concert and every band impressed me! Thanks to everyone who played!
 | Zoe Adler is a music journalist from Long Beach, California. Besides her website, which is her pride and joy, she works with the GRAMMY Foundation and the Long Beach Independent. Additionally, Ms. Adler is a musician, spending half of her time playing the flute, piccolo, trombone, and marching baritone. She has been with TeenView Music since the very start and hopes to make something of it in the future. |
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