Words & Photos by Bill Bodkin
On Thursday, March 8, the worlds of groovy hard rock, post-emo and mix-hop came together in a glorious triple threat of sound at The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, N.J. The house was alive with electricity as Tango Machina, Cicada and Aquavibe all made their Wonder Bar debuts (with Cicada making its Asbury Park debut). Fans were made, souls were moved and faces were melted on this night and Pop-Break was there to capture it.
TANGO MACHINA
The Central Jersey trio debuted their fourth member, a new guitarist (during their last song), making this show a night that’ll live in the annals of Tango Machina’s history. The band really got into a tasty groove real fast, and more than one person in the Wonder Bar commented about how the band, as a three piece, sounded so full and just “f’n great!” The band really brought out a very Clutch-esque vibe, and the people in the audience really dug it. Also, it has to be said, Tango’s drummer looks absurdly like a tall, beardy Ryan Gosling.
Read Jeanne Crump’s interview with Tango Machina.
CICADA RADIO
On a personal level, it was very cool to have Cicada Radio on this show. The brothers Keefe, former Jersey Shore residents themselves, made a triumphant return to the area and had quite a lot of friends come and enjoy their sound. ALso, having known Cicada’s drummer Mike Kundrath for nearly a decade and the fact his brother Jay is a regular columnist for us, it felt great to put a friend on a show like this. The band was tight all night and blistered through their set with reckless abandon.
Read Bill Bodkin’s interview with Cicada Radio.
AQUAVIBE
Aquavibe brought the fire. Having seen them perform before, I can easily say these guys were super-motivated to get the crowd going, and they did. Their lyrical flow was superb, their energy was infectious and through the roof. So good. They also threw in some covers to go with their original set, including Kanye & Jay-Z’s ‘Paris; and a Biggie montage including one of my favorites ‘Hypnotize.’
Read Bill Bodkin’s interview with Aquavibe.
