TFDI @ World Cafe Live

On October 11, 2011 I went to see the TFDI Tour at World Cafe Live (Upstairs) in Philadelphia, PA. TFDI usually consists of Matt Duke, Jay Nash, and Tony Lucca, but unfortunately one third of TFDI could not make the World Cafe Live show last minute due to personal obligations. I must admit, I was bummed to hear this news on Tony's Facebook page because I love seeing the three of these guys together and when you put their voices together the harmonizing is incredible. Although, I was confident that Jay and Matt would still put on a good show, and I was happy to find out that I was right. Luckily the other two thirds of TFDI are still entertaining - not only are they talented musicians, but they can be quite comical, as well. Jay started the show, singing some of his own tunes and eventually Matt joined him on stage to sing some Jay Nash songs with Jay. Then Jay left the stage and Matt sang some of his songs and eventually Jay joined Matt to sing some Matt Duke songs. Then the boys started the "TFDI" portion of the evening and sang some of their songs from the two TFDI albums they released (if you want more information about what TFDI is, check out one of my previous blog posts). They weren't able to do some of the songs because Tony is the main singer in those songs, although I got video of them performing "Heaven With a Broken Heart" and Matt did an amazing impression of Tony when Tony's part of the song came up. Overall, it was an excellent evening spent with Mr. Duke and Mr. Nash. They actually played over two hours worth of music. As always, I look forward to the next time TFDI rolls through Philadelphia and hopefully all three guys will be able to be there. :-) I took video with my iPhone of some of the songs from the night, so definitely check those out. Plus, I included the full set list below.

TFDI's Set List - World Cafe Live (Upstairs), Philadelphia, PA - Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Jay Nash - Till I Get Through
Jay Nash - The Siren
Jay Nash - "Stand Tall" (not sure the exact title of this one)
Jay Nash - Wayfarer
Jay Nash w/Matt Duke - Golden State Goodnight (Jay Nash song)
Jay Nash w/Matt Duke - Hard Lesson (Jay Nash song)
Jay Nash w/Matt Duke - Baby Tornado (Jay Nash song)
Jay Nash - Unshakeable
Matt Duke - Needle and Thread
Matt Duke - Kangaroo Court
Matt Duke - M.L.T.
Matt Duke - I've Got Atrophy On the Brain
Matt Duke - Kingdom Underground
Matt Duke w/Jay Nash - Sex and Reruns (Matt Duke song)
Matt Duke w/Jay Nash - Love You Anymore (Matt Duke song)
-TFDI songs- (performed by Matt Duke and Jay Nash)
Stranger in a Strange Place
Sweet Talking Liar
Heaven With A Broken Heart
Slow It Down
Lover I Don't Have to Love
The Weight (The Band cover)
-Encore-
American Girl (Tom Petty cover)
Sledgehammer (Peter Gabriel cover)

Jay Nash performing "Unshakeable"
Matt Duke performing "I've Got Atrophy On the Brain"
Jay Nash & Matt Duke performing the TFDI song "Heaven With A Broken Heart"
Jay Nash & Matt Duke performing the TFDI song "The Weight" (The Band cover)
Jay Nash & Matt Duke performing "Sledgehammer" (Peter Gabriel cover)

Kate Voegele & Parachute

On October 10, 2011, I saw Kate Voegele and Parachute at the World Cafe Live (Downstairs) in Philly. I've seen Kate a few times now, so I knew what to expect from her performance and as usual, I wasn't let down. (If you want to know more about Kate Voegele, check out some of my previous posts about her.) Unfortunately, there were some serious problems with the sound during her set. Granted, it was the first night of the tour, but she had to keep communicating to the sound technician during her set about fixing certain aspects of the sound. I give her a lot of credit, because most artists could have gotten really pissed off, but she kept her cool and joked around about it. With the exception of the sound issues, I thought she did an amazing job. One of the highlights was her version of the Bruno Mars song, "The Lazy Song" (I actually got video of the whole thing, so definitely check that out, below). Another great thing about Kate's set is that it was probably the most amount of songs I've seen her perform. Usually she's an opening act for bigger artists, but she was a co-headliner this tour, so she was able to perform more of her music.

Kate Voegele's Set List - World Cafe Live (Downstairs), Philadelphia, PA - Monday, October 10, 2011
Impatient Girl
I Won't Disagree
Angel/Chicago medley
Sandcastles
It's Only Life
Only Fooling Myself
The Lazy Song (Bruno Mars cover)
Heart In Chains
Blue Sky Beautiful (a new song of hers - first time she ever performed it live)
Enough For Always
Forever and Almost Always
99 Times
Till The World Ends (Britney Spears cover)

Kate Voegele performing "The Lazy Song" (Bruno Mars cover)
Kate Voegele performing "Heart In Chains"
Kate Voegele performing "Forever and Almost Always"

Parachute performed after Kate Voegele. I had never seen Parachute live and had really just started listening to their music because I knew they were playing with Kate and I wanted to know some of their tunes. When I started listening to Parachute, I was pleasantly surprised and was really looking forward to seeing them live. Well, they didn't disappoint at all. They're a really talented band and a lot of fun to see live. I'm always a fan of any band that uses a lot of different instruments, which is what Parachute does on stage. They had a lot of energy, too, which is always a plus. I would definitely go see another Parachute show if they come to town again. I took some video of a couple of their songs as well and included those links below.

Parachute's Set List - World Cafe Live (Downstairs), Philadelphia, PA - Monday, October 10, 2011
American Secrets
Ghost
She (For Liz)
White Dress
Halfway
Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting (Elton John cover)
Kiss Me Slowly
She Is Love
Back Again
Something to Believe In
What I Know
- Encore -
Forever and Always
Under Control

Parachute performing "White Dress"
Parachute performing "Halfway"
Parachute performing "She Is Love"

Rad Bromance

When I went to World Cafe Live with my friend, Amy, in the beginning of December (for the Bryan Greenberg show) we noticed a flyer that displayed future shows and one show caught our eye. RAD BROMANCE - AN ALL MALE LADY GAGA TRIBUTE BAND. We simultaneously agreed that we had to buy tickets for the show. I mean, come on, what female in today's day and age wouldn't want to see an all male band rock out to Lady Gaga covers? So, on December 22nd, Amy, our friend, Tiff, and I traveled down to World Cafe Live for this event. The show took place on the upstairs stage at WCL, which I was surprised because I imagined a band like this to play on the downstairs stage (plus there is a lot more room to stand and dance downstairs). Unfortunately, we weren't able to reserve a table so we had to do the whole standing room only thing, which the upstairs venue is not really well equipped for that. It was packed in there, so that was probably the only compliant I had because we couldn't really see the stage very well. Other than that, it was an amazing show. Rad Bromance basically gave all of Lady Gaga's hit songs a rock twist, which was refreshing. As much as I love Lady Gaga, her songs get overplayed on the mainstream radio, so it was nice to hear a new version of her songs. I just wish they sold their version of her songs, but I'm pretty sure they'd have to deal with all the copyright issues if they were to do so. Apparently, Rad Bromance is originally from the Philadelphia area. Since Gaga only has so many hits (I mean, she's only been around a couple of years) the band only performed for about an hour, but they basically covered every one of her popular songs. I'm not quite sure how often they play in the area, but if you're a Gaga fan (aka "Little Monster") then I suggest you check them out. They have a page on facebook (I've included a link below) that displays their upcoming shows. I also included some YouTube videos of Rad Bromance performing live (some of the sound isn't the greatest, but it gives you an idea).

Rad Bromance's Facebook Page
Rad Bromance performing "Bad Romance"
Rad Bromance performing "Love Game"
Rad Bromance performing "Dance in the Dark"

Bryan Greenberg

Bryan Greenberg is probably better known as the actor who appeared on shows like One Tree Hill, October Road, and is currently starring on the HBO show, How To Make It In America. He also starred in movies like Bride Wars, Perfect Score, The Good Guy, and Prime. I found out that Bryan is also a musician when I saw his character sing on One Tree Hill. Turns out he had an actual CD out. He would probably go into the singer/songwriter category. He often plays acoustic shows when he does tour. I saw him play at World Cafe Live in Philly two years ago and really enjoyed his music (he's lovely to look at, too). It was pretty exciting being that close and seeing him in person as well, since I'm a huge One Tree Hill fan. Last week, Bryan came back to the World Cafe Live, but this time he was with a full band. The show was great, and he's got a great personality, as well. In between songs, he would share some stories that went along with the songs, or just interact with the crowd. The only thing I wasn't a fan of during this show, were the many younger girls who came because of his character on One Tree Hill, and they weren't really there for the music. But Bryan embraced this crowd with friendly smiles. Bryan actually sang a lot of new material because he's releasing a new CD in January 2011, titled, "We Don't Have Forever." After the show, my friend, Amy and I stuck around to meet Bryan and get a picture with him. There were a lot of girls who stayed around, as well, but we didn't have to wait TOO long to meet him. Unfortunately, we didn't have much time to actually talk to him, but he seemed really cool and nice in the short time we did spend with him. I included a video of Bryan performing his song, Someday, which he sang on One Tree Hill. This video is a couple of years old because I couldn't find any current videos of him performing live. I also included a video of him performing the song, You Can Run, which features Kid Cudi (who is also on the show "How To Make It In America").

Bryan Greenberg featuring Kid Cudi "You Can Run"
Bryan Greenberg "Someday"