joe zorzi goes back to school…indie-style…
Hurley Rocks You Back To School concert series made its first stop at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park this past Saturday. The show was hosted by Mike “Rooftop” Escamilla and Rosie O’Laskey and featured performances by Brick + Mortar and Surfer Blood.
Before this show, the only song I had heard by Brick + Mortar was their single “Bangs.” I had heard from multiple sources that they put on a great live show so I couldn’t wait to check their set out. I was not disappointed. These guys brought the noise. I love when bands stray away from the traditional singer, guitarist, bassist, and drummer lineup and these two guys made a lot of noise with just their bass, drums and samples.
Singer, Brandon Asraf was quite a funny guy on stage and both him and drummer John Tacon put on one lively show. They’re New Jersey natives so they had a great crowd and you could tell they really gave it their all with the performance. I’ll be making it a point to get to more of their shows.
I got into Surfer Blood when their single “Swim” first started buzzing around the blogosphere and it was fun to finally see them. Their beachy tunes sound were perfect for a shore town like Asbury. The guys in the band looked so young. Singer and guitarist, John Paul Pitts engaged with the crowd, thanking them for watching and asking if they liked his sweet hawaiian shirt. For one song he dropped the guitar and walked around the venue while singing the lyrics, hanging out with the crowd and the hosts of the shot.
The show was really all about the music and it was cool to see Mike and Rosie chilling in the crowd watching the bands with everyone else. It was a more intimate setting for the Stone Pony and it would be cool to see more shows set up like this one.
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