Concert Review/Photos: Vacationer @ Johnny Brenda’s
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
With roots in Philadelphia, and a following too, it's surprising that Vacationer had never played at Johnny Brenda's until a few nights ago.
[ 6/25 ] With roots in Philadelphia, and a following too, it’s surprising that Vacationer had never played at Johnny Brenda’s until a few nights ago. The Vacationer guys seemed right at home in front of the beaded curtains and loving fans, putting on a happy and mellow show.
“I’m going to go out on a limb,” lead singer/bass player Kenny Vasoli said as he pushed his sweaty mop of hair to the side, “I think this is a ladies’ shirt.” His flowery Hawaiian-style blouse was most certainly a ladies’ shirt, but the stage setup was so eclectic that he fit right in. On the front of the stage, the band set up a little light-up globe, but what made the stage so interesting was the Mary Poppins bag full of instruments. Besides the enormous vibraphone (marimba-style xylophone), throughout the show percussionists/multi-instrumentalists Matthew Young and Michael Mullin pulled out a cowbell, a finger drumming DJ controller, bongos, claves, and a maraca.
Vacationer had released their new album Relief just the day before, and they played a healthy mixture of old and new songs. The new music is upbeat, summer-anthem material, and the band played it with intense spirit and bouncy dance moves. Though the style of Vacationer’s music hasn’t particularly changed, nobody expected or wanted anything but their established playful sound.
Vasoli’s perfect voice and clear-as-a-bell tone really sealed the deal for me. It all seemed to contribute to the carefree atmosphere that the songs invited. On their new single “The Wild Life,” Vasoli croons, “no point in making plans/ the wild life is human nature,” and after the song ended, he let us know his plans for the evening: “We’re gonna plow the chillcoaster right through the clouds.”
Partway through the show Vasoli told the crowd that the brains behind the beats was his friend/vibraphone player Matthew Young. He seemed positively giddy when he told us, “When me and Matt started doing this, this is exactly what I’d hoped it would be.”
