It’s time for a look back at my top live shows of last year. I saw 51 bands last year, some of them multiple times, and a good amount of them at the Levitation Austin and Levitation France music festivals. Here’s the start of the list…
25. The Well – Levitation Austin / Antone’s – October 29th
The Well are one of the best doom bands out there right now, and their live shows never disappoint. They were damn loud in Antone’s and walloped the place with thundering sound. They also played some new material, which bodes well for a new album from them in the future.
24. The Psychedelic Furs – Andrew J. Bird Music Center / Cincinnati – July 20th
My friend described the venue as “the Borg Cube of music venues,” but the Furs filled the place with gorgeous sound, playing a good mix of old and new material. Richard Butler sounded as good as ever and everyone on the band was clicking.
#23. The Brian Jonestown Massacre – Levitation France – June 05th
“You don’t need more drugs, sir, you need better drugs. If you had better drugs, you’d be mellowed out and not yelling.” Those words from band leader Anton Newcombe pretty much summed up the trippy feel of their set to close the 2022 Levitation France music festival.
#22. La Femme – Levitation Austin / Stubb’s – October 30th
Sexy, sweaty, sizzling, and super, this set from the French quintet had the Stubb’s crowd go from, “What is happening?” to “Wow! This is amazing!” by the end. The whole place was bouncing and even yelling back French lyrics they didn’t understand.
#21: Pelada – Levitation France – June 04th
Booked somewhat at the last minute for the 2022 Levitation France music festival, Pelada closed the Scène Elevation (Elevation Stage) one night to a gobsmacked crowd who was bowled over by their fierce industrial-tinged electro. Everyone was in their hands for the entire set, and everyone left with a crush on singer Chris Vargas.
Who makes the top 20? Come back tomorrow to find out!
The final day of Levitation France (June 05th) had the coolest weather, but there was no rain. The predicted thunderstorms all came overnight, and most of the rain came in the afternoon on Saturday, so we never had to wear our ponchos. The bands we saw that day were among the most varied in musical styles.
First up were the Japanese trio Kuunatic, who play music I can best describe as psychedelic traditional Shinto music mixed with some doom metal bass. It was their first time playing in France, so that made their set a little more special. Everyone in the crowd was intrigued by them at first and loving them by the end of their set.
Kuunatic getting us into a different headspace.
We took a lunch break (Yay, focaccia!) and then came back to the Elevation Stage to see Frankie and the Witch Fingers. My girlfriend hadn’t seen them before, and this would be the fourth time I had. To say their set was powerful would be a massive understatement. They destroyed that stage. The crowd was absolutely bonkers by the end of their set. Many, it seemed, had no idea what was in store for them and were almost blasted into shock not even halfway through their show. My girlfriend described them as follows: “They play like their hair is on fire.”
Frankie and the Witch Fingers melting faces.
Pretty much everyone did an about-face after their set to watch The Brian Jonestown Massacre, who played a good mix of new and classic material. I lost count of how many times some of them switch instruments. Audience members were calling for songs, or trying to have loud conversations with band leader Anton Newcombe in-between songs. Newcombe’s banter with the crowd was fun, especially after one man yelled, “I need more drugs!”, and Newcombe replied, “You don’t need more drugs. You need better drugs. If you had better drugs, you wouldn’t be yelling. You’d be mellowed out.” They sounded great. Top marks go to whomever engineered their set.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre with their requested “drug lights, not drug bust lights.”
The day, and the festival, ended with British post-bunkers Lumer playing a hard, rocking set. They’d been hanging out at the festival most of the weekend, and they looked like they were on a mission, possibly to rescue a skyscraper full of hostages or even some ducklings that had fallen through a sewer grate, every time I saw them walking somewhere. They all had this intense focus and looked ready to either fight or share a pint with you depending on the circumstances. Their live set embodied this the entire time.
Lumer illuminating the evening.
Afterwards, we got on the first of only two paid shuttle buses leaving the festival to go back to downtown Angers. This bus nearly sideswiped a road sign along the Angers streets, to the point where we had to yell for the driver to stop as he attempted to make a turn. He backed up and went through a number of additional one-way streets to get back on track to the downtown city center…where he proceeded to sideswipe two parking poles while attempting to make another tight turn. The wreck caused the glass in the rear exit doors to burst, and it appeared that the bus was stuck on the poles and unable to move. One festival-goer, with a beer still in hand, managed to remove the poles from the sidewalk so the us could make the turn. Only a third of us got back on the bus, either to return to a campground (the only other stop it was scheduled to make) or, like us, to see how this crazy trip would end. Thankfully, it ended with us at the city center without further incident.
The post-festival transportation is my only complaint about Levitation France. There were plenty of buses going to La Chabada, but only three returning on Friday and Saturday nights and only two on Sunday night. Plus, the odds of finding an Uber driver late night in Angers are slim to none. I don’t know if the festival can convince Angers to have more late buses (especially for those who can’t or don’t intend to stay for the whole evening – most of the buses didn’t arrive until the final act was done each night) next year, but that would be a great upgrade to an otherwise fun festival.
Next year will be the tenth anniversary of Levitation France, so the lineup will surely be one to behold. Start brushing up your Français now, and get ready for Levitation Austin on Halloween weekend!
The psychedelic rock collective known as the Brian Jonestown Massacre hail from San Francisco and have had numerous lineups throughout the years. Front man Anton Newcombe has always been the steady figurehead of the group, and their fans are legion. The stories of their rock and roll lifestyle are wild and border on legendary. Their Levitation Austinset at Stubb’s BBQ on April 29th will be packed to the gills, I’m sure.
