Photos: CHVRCHES and Donna Missal at Observatory North Park, 12.13.21

I'm gonna skip all the parts about my anxiety of being in a crowd of 1200 people during a pandemic and just get to the good stuff. CHVRCHES played their first of two nights at the Observatory North Park on Monday, December 13. 

Darren, Nova and I have been listening to their latest, Screen Violence, incessantly. It has become a staple in the speakeasy for me and D. We jam it in the car. We sing along. It's easy to call CHVRCHES a family favorite that we can all agree on. 

This was my fifth or sixth time catching the band, so it's always fun to see what they'll include on their setlist. We got some favorites, old and new, plus a couple unexpected. We were also curious how she'd perform "How Not To Drown" which has the great collab with Robert Smith, but Lauren sang the whole thing instead of enlisting the bandmates to do so. 

The set had something for all fans. The indie jams, the pop anthems, and even the heavier EDM-leaning songs with the big drops that make the crowd go insane. And Lauren joked about how she thought it would be a great idea to do costume changes which is why the setlist has some funny spacing in it. We got four solid looks that complemented the music being played, from mysterious with a black transparent lacy cloak to angelic feathers to a rocker dark jumpsuit to a playful look of t-shirt (her own Final Girl merch) and shorts.     

I do also have to mention that Nova and Darren got a spot along the back tier railing next to a couple. They eventually made conversation about how cool it was that Nova was a fan and that it was a wholesome activity for us to all do together as a family. She revealed she's a principal at a private high school in Carlsbad, her partner a high school teacher. She then proceeded to get absolutely hammered. She vaped weed the whole show while pounding Modelos and slipped and fell at least twice. I hope she remembers the show and not just from the certain bruises she has on her ass. We're still in a don't-take-your-mask-off-under-any-circumstances mandate among our household, so it's funny being so dead sober around all that pent up energy of people just wanting to get completely sloshed. 

So yes, the show was great. We were also next to a guy who was a Donna Missal superfan, so it was kinda fun getting the lowdown on her before she took the stage to open the show. She was great and faintly brought to mind Kitten for me, who play every show like they're in a stadium for their biggest, baddest show ever. Her pics are at the end of this post. All after the jump. 

Setlist as written:

INTRO/ HE SAID SHE SAID

FOREVER

LEAVE A TRACE

CALIFORNIA

HOW NOT TO DROWN

VIOLENT DELIGHTS

SCIENCE

GOOD GIRLS

BURY IT

MIRACLE

NIGHT SKY

FINAL GIRL

RECOVER

NEVER SAY DIE

ASKING FOR A FRIEND

MOTHER

CLEAREST BLUE 

Photos: Chvrches & Lo Moon at CCCU OAT, SDSU. 9.20.2018

Of course, I was head over heels when I'd originally heard that Chvrches was returning to San Diego, but the excitement was bubbling over on Thursday, the day of show, when I found out that not only was my photo pass secured, but we'd also be able to attend the 91X X-Session at Phaser Control Studios. We felt that seeing an international artist in such an intimate setting warranted pulling Nova out of school in the afternoon and headed to the studio. I was specifically called out by name not to take photos, so I obeyed, but I'm kinda bummed after the fact because one, everyone else was doing it, and two, our picture with the band has the lighting of a 1970's shrink's office because there were these stage LED lights on in the background.

Still, it was an amazing privilege, so thanks to 91X for letting us in on the fun.

Afterward, we came home and got all of our work and homework done and then Nova and I went to the show at the OAT. Fortunately, another photog had an extra ticket, so after Darren's soccer game, he was able to join us and only missed the first couple Chvrches songs, though he did miss the moment a massive giant cockroach climbed up the seat next to mine and over the armrest to take a swim in my nacho cheese. The venue kindly replaced them for me, but there's nothing on this earth Nova hates more than roaches so we had quite the freakout.  The show itself was amazing and we had amazing seats and it was nothing but joy. If you've seen Chvrches live, you know that they put on an incredible show, and if you haven't had the chance, don't miss them next time they come around. I tried to trim down the number of photos, but they're such a joy to shoot, I couldn't resist. Check them out after the jump.

Photos: Chvrches & Alvvays at Observatory, 4.1416

I generally don't post photos within hours after leaving the show, but I'm so backlogged that if I don't post these now, I probably never would. I will also say that I felt like I'd never been in a photo pit before. My pictures were pretty awful. I can usually get the basic photo gear I have, but I'm no match for the lovely Lauren Mayberry who probably meets my S-Health daily step target in the first 8 minutes of her set. I haven't seen an artist cover that much real estate of their stage in so long, but I guess when you're preparing for Coachella, you've got to do more than just hover at one mic the whole set.

This was a pretty magical show. For one, Darren and I saw Chvrches at House of Blues in our early dating days, so to be able to see them again (after they cancelled the year I was at Outside Lands) was pretty special. This was an all ages show, but after going to Third Eye Blind last week, I just couldn't imagine taking Nova to a sold out show at the Observatory. All the things we love about the venue...the great sightlines, the freedom to move around the room, the tiered flooring...do little to help your experience when you're 8 years old and 4 1/2 feet tall. So I did a significant amount of trying to talk Darren out of bringing Nova. He prevailed, however, and with a little help from my Observatory coworkers, we were magically able to sit in the balcony with no sightline problems whatsoever. It's hard to explain to her that this is special, this isn't how every show will always be, but it's magical nonetheless. Nova tried to predict each song as they were coming and sadly I didn't get a setlist pic, but it was an incredible show from start to finish. We might not get parent of the year awards for not putting her to bed until 11 on a school night, but I don't think she'll forget this night for a long time. Nor will we. More photos after the jump, including a few of Alvvays, who did a lovely job opening the show and redeemed me for missing their Soda Bar show last year.