Regular Everywhere: June 2026 Concerts in Review
Coming off of a 60+ band May, June brought a calm but dynamic variety of shows that spanned pop-rap to musical theater to soul/R&B to punk. It was also wild to find myself in New Orleans, LA again; my first time since escaping Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Let's break down June's musical happenings…
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Flo Rida
@ New Orleans Convention Center — New Orleans, LA — June 18, 2026
My day job can bring me to interesting places and witnessing Flo Rida in a convention center ballroom was certainly one of them. Despite it being a corporate production, he put on a sweaty, high-octane performance on par with his contemporaries. For clarity's sake, I used the word sweaty here as a synonym for horny—his set definitely brings out the Wild Ones [sic].
One thing I do admire about his music is his penchant for leaning into drum-less hooks. I used to annoy my band with this fact during writing sessions, often asking, "What would Flo Rida do?" which was always to pull out the drums.
While I didn't have Flo Rida on my must-see list, I'm generally up for anything and am glad that I went. It was a nice reprieve from the business of the day and was genuinely fun.
Hairspray
@ The Muny — St. Louis, MO — June 20, 2026
I find it surprising that I had never seen Hairspray, the play or the movie. It took Richard Kind playing the role of Edna Turnblad at the world famous Muny for me to drag the family out to see John Waters' famous story. It was an absolute delight and a stark reminder of how much work we still have to do as a society. We loved it!
Twangfest 27: Playadors Stax Records Revue w/ The Freedom Affair
@ Off Broadway — St. Louis, MO — June 26, 2026
This was a stunning show and an expert-level booking for the nearly thirty-something Twangfest.
Kansas City's The Freedom Affair opened with a barnburner of a gospel soul set that was not just an homage. They had both the hooks and the harmonies. I hope to run into them again as soon as possible.
St. Louis' Playadors played a lengthy STAX Records revue featuring a host of special guests amidst their already stellar rotating roster of local music royalty. They played an exceptional, extended set of Memphis soul favorites, hitting both the well-known classics and some deeper cuts for the die-hards. A++, would see again!
Jeffy & The Sunken Heads
@ Vintage Vinyl — St. Louis, MO — June 28, 2026
I have been looking for an excuse to see Jeffy & The Sunken Heads and their Vintage Vinyl album release was the perfect opportunity. Comprised of all scene veterans, The Sunken Heads have nailed the straight-faced, comedic punk rock a la Devo and The Dead Milkmen. The songs are bite-sized, catchy, and had the whole store dancing.
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Katrina, eh?
I briefly lived in NOLA in 2005, while engineering and working at Piety Street Studios, House of 1000Hz, and at a resort studio just north of Lake Pontchartrain. I moved down the week of the TapeOp conference that year and found myself headed home because that summer's sixth hurricane seemed different—Tony from Drums & Tuba and I agreed at Saturday morning yoga that we should duck out of town for a bit. Since everything I had in Clark Marty's sublet fit in my Accord, I just took it all back to St. Louis with me.
I didn't plan to stay away from the city, but it wasn't in the cards to return right away after the hurricane. In the years following, my band had multiple attempts at playing a show there, but each time the show got canceled for one reason or another.
Going back 20 years later, ironically during a tropical storm, was both familiar and strange. What I saw of it had both stayed exactly the same, while feeling a few degrees different than before. That said, the humidity was certainly as I remembered it.
