On Sunday March 10, 2024 the Silversun Pickups rolled into Providence to promote their new Physical Thrills album. So accordingly, I headed to Providence with a couple of good dudes to check it out.
Let me start by saying that I don’t know how to categorize this band and wasn’t sure what the crowd would be like. While discussing this in line, some peeps in front of us, and my friend Frank, all agreed that the band sits in the “Dad Rock” category…whatever that means.
Their opening act was a female trio out of NY called Hello Mary. I would’ve bet that the bass player (whose last name is Oppenheimer and that’s pretty cool) was no older than 16, but according to the interwebs she’s 19 along with the guitar player, and their drummer is 23 I believe. As my buddy Dan pointed out, the drummer had a bit of a Don Henley thing going on as she was also co-lead vocals along with the guitarist.
They had some decent tunes, though the stage presence in between songs was lacking. They spoke very quietly with little energy. But during the songs, they rocked from time to time. In one of their last songs, the drummer had some strong vocals screaming “I hate you!” (perhaps that’s the song title) and it was pretty cool. I do enjoy a good rock scream.
Around 9pm, Silversun took the stage. Now I’m not a megafan and I’m not super familiar with their catalog, but I like their style. I didn’t know their first few songs, but thanks to some other fine folks that were there, I can tell you that they opened with Growing Old is Getting Old. They then did 3 more songs before going into It Doesn’t Matter Why which is a pretty fun song that I really like. The next song however, was the highlight for me. The first time I heard their song Panic Switch I absolutely loved it, and I still do. It has a bunch of ups and downs as far as the energy goes, and it has some sexy bass lines. Yeah, that’s right, I said it. And my bass playing friend Dan agrees! Having it so early in the set was cool, but I was sure it would be their encore so it threw me off a bit. But what a great tune.
Alone on a Hill, Kissing Families, and Don’t Know Yet (filled with lots of finger snapping) were found throughout the set. Substitution, another good tune, found its way towards the end of the setlist but Nightlight closed the show.
Then it was time for the encore. Apparently Three Seed was the first song of the encore, but man I did not dig it. So boring! They snuck in a few others and then ended the show with Lazy Eye, which you’ve probably heard, right about 11pm.
A few observations if I may. First off, what a diverse crowd. I’m quite certain the age range was from teens to 60s, maybe 70s. Blue hairs, longs hairs, short hairs, hippy looking dudes, black, white, didn’t matter. Music kicks ass and I love to see so many different peeps enjoying the same band.
Secondly, Silversun Pickups are a 4-piece band. Lead guitarist/singer, bass player/singer, drummer, and let’s call the 4th guy “Synth Man.” He provides all the weird digital sounds you hear on the songs and is integral to their sound. But holy shit is he boring to watch. He just sits there with 2 tables filled with his stuff that you can’t see. So, you just see him and his legs tapping to the beat. Boring AF!! They should put him in the back and move the drummer up front because he was fun to watch. That dude beat the crap out of those drums and really should have a chance to showcase his energy. Synth Man…no energy at all. He looked bored.
Third, the singer dances like a mixture of Carlton Banks and Axl Rose while holding a guitar. But not in a bad way because how else do you dance while playing guitar? It’s good to see him moving around the stage and having fun.
Lastly, I would say that they have a fairly unique sound. In some ways, they remind me of Smashing Pumpkins (whom I love) and Loudermilk (the band, not the TV show). And speaking of the TV show Loudermilk if I may go off on a tangent… In the show, Loudermilk is a music critic who back in his day could make or break a band with his reviews of their albums/performances. But there’s a band called Loudermilk as well. Why did Loudermilk never review Loudermilk? Bummer.
Anyway, that’s it for now. Full playlist here
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