This past Saturday I decided to check out the Gorgon City show at Framework’s newest venue, “Reframe Studios Outdoors.” Walking into the location that sits in a tucked-away Atwater Village immediately raised the bar for outdoor venues in Los Angeles, and here’s why. Lines move quickly through security and efficiently, which then funnels you directly to the back of the venue. Very intuitively placed, you have everything you need right there — restrooms, a medical tent, and several food trucks that fill the air with tasteful smells.
Later that evening, I was able to enjoy some everything fries from their “Wing Me Up” food truck that were fairly priced for the massive portion size I received. I chowed down on salty chicken tenders and fries smothered in buffalo sauce and ranch, exactly what I needed to fuel myself for the rest of the night.
Immediately after this initial entrance area, you see ample bar space along with several activations that included major name brands such as Redbull, Don Julio, and Eargasm. At no point did I see long wait lines for any of the amenities despite it being a sold-out show.
Cred. Press Provided
Moving into the production and setup, everything is custom-built for each artist, all the way down to the tree placement. The music was crisp from every corner, with Framework opting to use d&b audiotechnik, a German-engineered sound system. The stage was creatively built with state-of-the-art light and laser systems. Massive stanchions were also placed throughout the whole venue that projected different visuals, making the experience feel truly immersive.
As you continue through, you see VIP placed to the left with a platform for viewing and bottle service tables behind the DJ booth and to the right. Entering VIP, you have a private bar, private bathrooms, and never once through the night did it become overcrowded or difficult to see the stage. There are plenty of places to sit and relax while still being able to jump back into the action. For an even more elevated experience, the VIP table service had a private entrance with another set of private restrooms and access to both VIP and GA areas.
Now we can talk about the crowd, one of the biggest factors for me when attending a show. Not only was it a well-curated mix, it was genuinely filled with people who wanted to dance the night away while still being respectful to their fellow concert goers. With 9,000 people in attendance and a sold-out show, you never know what to expect.
Cred. Press Provided
Gorgon City, the duo from London, performed such a captivating set that it kept the crowd going for their full two-hour time slot. Securing their largest attended show in the States, the pair did not disappoint. Their set ebbed and flowed while playing everything from melodic house to their hit “Voodoo.” Gorgon City kept up the momentum all the way until midnight, when the show closed to a completely full house.
I saw less phones and more people smiling, dancing and having a good time than I have in recent years. If you’re looking for a truly unique and upscale EDM concert experience, Framework has delivered, and I’m excited to see what the rest of their outdoor summer series has to bring.
Greta Van Fleet rocked the Bowery Ballroom in NYC this past Wednesday (5/27). The room was filled with love, light, and power as the band took the stage. Josh Kiszka walked out, roses in hand, ready to share this experience with a passionate fan base. After more than a year-long hiatus and not playing live since September 2024, the crowd was certainly eager and excited for this show. Compared to their performance at Madison Square Garden, this 600-capacity room led to a much more intimate experience. The band also carried through on their old school vibe by only charging $20 per ticket and requiring an in-person visit to the box office the day before the show to ensure the tickets went to fans.
Cred. Lewis Evans
As they opened the set with ‘Highway Tune,’ their debut single that launched them to stardom, the crowd was vivacious and detonated, singing along to the whole song so loudly that they almost out-sang Josh himself. Vibrant riffs and robust grooves filled the room as they went through their set. The band took the approach of going through their catalog in chronological order. They continued by playing their hits ‘Safari Song,’ ‘When The Curtain Falls’ (my personal fav from them), ‘Heat Above,’ and ending the set with two new songs. One being their new single ‘Play Your Games,’ which is out today (5/29). These new songs held true to their signature sound with an ultra-feel-good vibe. The band’s musicianship and talent are self-evident. Josh showed off his powerhouse vocal style, Jake Kiszka shredded through cutting riffs and solos, Sam Kiszka handled the low end with groovy bass lines and hopped on a Hammond B-3 organ when needed, and Danny Wagner held strong, steady grooves throughout the show. Being a musician myself, it’s always enjoyable seeing real people playing real instruments.
Greta took the stage in style wearing all black, clean and eloquent silhouettes with sparkling sequins that matched the nighttime NYC skyline. The fans came out serving looks as well. The classic 70’s rock style and aesthetic were certainly prominent, with many people flaunting bell-bottoms, florals, flowing blouses, and sequins, of course. Others showed their support and fandom by rocking GVF band tees. The demographic of the crowd was super mixed as well. It’s always cool to see how powerful music is and how it can bring so many people from all different walks of life together. No one can deny the effect music has on us.
Cred. Lewis Evans
My only critique from the night, and it’s not about the show itself, but about something I saw when looking out into the crowd. Along with the sea of people, I saw a sea of cellphones. Some were videoing the entire set while others were checking notifications. Now I don’t want to be hypocritical because I have certainly taken videos of shows and understand wanting to document the highlights of the night, but it’s always important to live in the moment and be present with what you are currently experiencing.
After the final song, the audience was still engaged and infatuated with the band. Each member took a minute to come up front and greet their fans, showing their appreciation for the crowd. Josh grabbed his final bunch of roses, hopped on someone’s shoulders, and went through the audience, handing them out to eager fans who didn’t want the show to end. This was an extremely successful show and left the audience excited to see how this new era for Greta Van Fleet will unfold.
RAYE is the exact voice you’d want to represent single women. She’s lived through it all before: sleepless nights, painful yearning, years spent getting over an ex, who could be reduced to a few body parts: just skin and bones and two eyes and no brain. But the South Londoner Rachel Keen, a.k.a RAYE, isn’t writing off dating despite the ailments of the single scene; she’s turning it into a grand, dramatic, symphonic narrative — packaged grandiosely in her sophomore album, This Music May Contain Hope.
Cred. Ariel Goldberg
Closing out her tour of the same name, RAYE radiated at Los Angeles’ The Greek Theatre in an unsurprisingly sold-out first-night appearance. Preceded by opening acts from her sisters, Amma and Absolutely, the family affair was a lively lesson in 21st-century womanhood. No holds barred, the haute hitmaker waltzed onto the stage in a long trench coat and an umbrella — standing under a cardboard rain cloud — establishing the scene around the album’s opener, “Intro: Girl Under the Grey Cloud,” as a dreary London day, but only briefly.
We’re then transported back to a 60s-style soundstage, RAYE’s pin-up style on pointe, where the soulful singer stood before us in a red satin dress and signature bob, sided by two back-up singers in the same garb. The drum sequence welcomed in the next song, her hit single, “WHERE IS MY HUSBAND,” the ol’ razzle-dazzle to match. No one could stay seated—especially when the old Hollywood-style background lit up with bold lettering, reading “Beware…The South London Lover Boy.”
“Girls, stay safe out there/ Best you stay prepared/He’s a South London lover boy,” she forewarns — backed by the energy of the big band. Silencing the crowd was her prolonged, quizzical stare over the lyrics, “He’s not looking for a heart, just your pillow to rest his head.” Perhaps we all stood in solidarity, having found ourselves in similar situations far more times than we care to admit.
From the start, RAYE set the record straight that she does not recommend reading reviews online — vocalizing that she talks too much during her shows. She was right. After hearing her third or fourth fourth-wall-breaking narratives that carried the show forward in story format, one could argue she didn’t talk quite enough.
Cred. Ariel Goldberg
That said, the performance was laid out in three parts, beginning with Raye’s Jazz Cabaret. “Cue the door!” she hollers to the stagehands. We are then entered as an audience into an intimate England club, where RAYE brings the story to life. “She goes to the band and asks if she can sing a song,” she cues in third person. “I’m going to describe her love life in a few brief words: dried up rivers,” a laugh rippled through the theater. The band picks up the pace as she takes a seat, breaking into song with the smooth, jazzy neo-soul single “Worth It,” brass, percussion, keys, and strings swaying alongside her.
If there’s one thing about RAYE, she’ll keep spirits high with zany asides and theatrical expressions, but she isn’t without her serious moments. In the next section, she gently wound down the audience — even dismissing weary souls to the bar for a drink—while she took a seat at the piano for “Ice Cream Man.” An incredibly raw, years-long look into the inconceivable grief caused by sexual assault and harassment, all sat in silence as the song brought her to tears.
The production was an act that came in many waves, and this part was prolonged in the heavier topics of the album, including heartbreak. RAYE stood solely as she belted the lyrics to “Nightingale Lane,” an ode to her past lover, where she reminisces on kissing beer-stained lips in South London and reflects on the pub, where it all started — and ended. “A bit unoriginal, don’t you think?” she scoffs.
As a prelude to the melodramatic number, she first stepped onto her soapbox: “I’m going to say maybe 25 percent of us are not looking for love — do you think that’s a fair estimate?” she asked. “So, for the 40 percent of us really excited for someone to walk into our lives and choose us, the lyrics of this song are ‘somebody loved me once, and some day someone will love me again,’” reframing the song as less of a lament and more of a reminder that love isn’t lost. “I’m going to tell that to someone who needs to hear it,” she emphasized. Most of us stayed seated as we came to our own realizations that maybe she was talking to us.
Cred. Ariel Goldberg
But the vivacious vocalist didn’t leave us in our feels for long. It was only a matter of an outfit change that crescendoed the set into the orchestral section, beginning with the high-streaming “Click Clack Symphony.” While the song features Hans Zimmer, RAYE shook her head, signaling he would not be making an appearance, and he really didn’t need to. Her lyrical stamina and impressive range could carry the entire five-minute ballad, instruments not necessary—but certainly not forgotten. In fact, after each song, Keen made sure to list the names of each musician, never missing an opportunity to praise the people who really do make the art a reality.
The night, like a movie, continued its ascent, ushering us into the final section: the nightclub. The set shifted into shades of neon, laser lights setting the scene, almost as if we were joining RAYE on one of her iconic nights out in South London. Harking back to the hits that skyrocketed her initially, she spent just mere moments singing breathy lyrics of “Prada” and “Escapism,” with the crowd echoing back, “Just a heartbroken bitch, high heels, six inch/In the back of the nightclub, sippin’ Champagne.”
The night built to an epic climax. “I’m not a very good liar, so I’m telling you there will be an encore,” she said, lingering in anticipation for the curtains to close. And guess what? There was an encore — a very fitting one at that, with “Joy,” a dance-y, gospel-inspired number, which both of her sisters joined her on stage for. Tying the album’s themes of hope, relentless reassurance, and finding love with a bow, the trifecta sang for everyone in the audience: the 40-percenters in search of the perfect person, those happily partnered up, and even the people who find content in solitude — yes, you, the lucky 25%.
On that note, we’re not good liars either, so you can trust us when we say RAYE is a radiant force to be reckoned with. This Album May Contain Hope is not only a dazzling record from start to finish, but also translates excellently into an on-stage production with all the bells and whistles—big band, bouncy curls, bare souls, and a bit of joy we could all use against our woes, because according to RAYE, there will, in fact, be happier times ahead.
