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Jen Cray
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Supercrush at Uncle Lou's
THIS LITTLE UNDERGROUND
Supercrush, Sad Halen, Gamma Waves and Please Be Kind, Aug. 25, Uncle Lou’s
Orlando concert promoter
Josiah Wess always does his due diligence in appropriately promoting all the shows he books under the
Bad Balloon banner. But there was something a little
extra about the way he was hyping Seattle band
Supercrush.
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Jen Cray
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Supercrush at Uncle Lou's
His online urges on the show were especially gushing, personal even. If you’ve seen enough bills organized by him, you know the guy has
good taste. So here’s a street-proven pro tip: If Josiah glows about it, heed him. This Supercrush show cemented that.
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Jen Cray
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Supercrush at Uncle Lou's
In their
Florida debut, Supercrush arrived as a band that’s both aesthetically good
and remarkably finished as a live ensemble. Stylistically, this high-functioning quartet take the sighing melodic vastness of
Teenage Fanclub and filter it through the gusting haze of
My Bloody Valentine. It’s an incredibly effective synthesis of power-pop appeal and shoegaze rush, all done with loving revivalist devotion. And it’s the splendor that happens when pretty songs come with
jumbo jet power.
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Jen Cray
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Supercrush at Uncle Lou's
The show also featured a strong local support cast studded with a couple bands that have really impressed over the last year or so. I’ve already sung the praises of
Sad Halen a couple times so far this year, like
here and
here.
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Jen Cray
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Gamma Waves at Uncle Lou's
But
Gamma Waves, whom I first noticed at another
Bad Balloon show, have gone from good to even better in the year since I last saw them. This band’s thick and thrilling hard rock is blessed with a
Nirvana-esque range where clear melodic instinct comes with mud, volume and bite. And their muscularity now has even more tone and definition. This young Orlando band is
one to watch.
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Jen Cray
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Gamma Waves at Uncle Lou's
The only unfamiliar name on the bill was new local act
Please Be Kind, the solo vehicle of Trina Perry. Still very much a developmental project, her simple songs are nonetheless feeling, moody and tender affairs.
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Jen Cray
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Please Be Kind at Uncle Lou's
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Jen Cray
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Please Be Kind at Uncle Lou's
Follow Bao on Twitter (@baolehuu)
Email Bao: baolehuu@orlandoweekly.com