Two amazing tours that will be a pain in the ass to get to this Summer

by | Jan 12, 2016 | MUSIC

Oh man, it’s summer-tour announcement season and get ready to be disappointed by how far we’re gonna have to travel to see some of our favorite national bands.


Oh man, it’s summer-tour announcement season and get ready to be disappointed by how far we’re gonna have to travel to see some of our favorite national bands.

First up is Tame Impala whose new album Currents topped more best of 2015 charts than you could possibly imagine.

Don’t believe me? Listen below:

Since 2007 the Australian-born project of Kevin Parker has become a kind of psychedelic Willie Wonka leading drug fueled teens through a musical chocolate factory at every gig they play.

Yea, it’s freaking incredible. And the good news is they are hitting the road this summer with dates all around North America… and the closest one to us is at Merriweather Post Pavilion on 6/16.

The last time I went to Merriweather for a show it took my friend and I about 6 hours to get from RVA to our seats, so if you plan to make it, leave early! That show (Animal Collective a few years back) also happened on a Friday so perhaps this Thursday night-gig wont be so brutal.

To sweeten the pot, the French electronic music band M83 (led by Anthony Gonzalez) will open for Tame Impala, so you’re gonna get two international acts in one night. It’s been a few years since M83 have dropped anything, but with a new tour and rumors of a new release, you’re sure to get some new jams this time around.

Check out their hit video/song “Reunion” below:

Tickets go on sale this Friday, no price points have been released yet.

For those willing to go a bit further for a slightly more interesting setting, Tame Imapala is playing two shows in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park on 6/14 and 6/15. If you got friends in the city, maybe now’s the time to set that shit up.

Up next on the “Oh god, I need to see this show but how the hell can I rationalize the trip” list is Florence and the Machine feature Grimes.

Yea, just soak that up for a second.

Florence should need no introduction, but for those uninformed she managed to top charts with her 2015 release How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful. Her insanely epic track “What makes a man” similarly topped charts and became a kind of anthem for a lot of people… maybe just me?… probably other people too. Don’t believe me? Check out the NSFW video below:

English-born Florence Welch leads up the outstanding project which bares her name. She manages to mix melodrama and rock in a hyper-modern masterpiece loved by hipsters and moms and top 40 radio alike.

To contrast her more traditional sound, she’ll have Canadian alt-alt-performer Grimes who dropped Art Angles to similar acclaim late last year. Check out the first single from that release, “Flesh without Blood:”

As I wrote back in November, Art Angles has enough meat in it to qualify for best albums of 2015. Her mix of weirdness and pop was exactly what I needed during this past mild Fall season.

But sadly this match up wont come any closer than Tame Impala, with these two leading ladies are playing in the heart of Brooklyn at the Barclays Center on 6/14.

So if you can snag tickets to both Florence/Grimes on 6/14 and Tame Impala on 6/15 you’ll have yourself a pretty incredible week in NYC.

Brad Kutner

Brad Kutner

Brad Kutner is the former editor of GayRVA and RVAMag from 2013 - 2017. He’s now the Richmond Bureau Chief for Radio IQ, a state-wide NPR outlet based in Roanoke. You can reach him at BradKutnerNPR@gmail.com




more in music

Stay Hungry pt. 1 | Band on the Road

Editor's Note: Writer's Block is a space for Virginia writers to share personal essays, fiction, memoir, and works that fall somewhere in between. In Stay Hungry, Richmond local Eric Kalata looks back on a cross-country tour and the restless optimism of...

RVA Live Music | WiFiGawd, Hot Mulligan, Heavy Friends & More

Starting the summer with some big shows. Kanawha Plaza is looking like the spot to be this season, but there is still plenty happening in the clubs around town this week. Lastly, Happy Pride! I'd love to feature as many LGBTQ+ artists as possible this month, so if...

‘Songs of Truth’ Brings Sojourner Truth to the Hippodrome

Editor's Note: For more on the life and legacy of Sojourner Truth, read Christian Detres' companion essay HERE. This has been an inspirational season for Richmond’s homegrown theatre. We are following up the sold-out run of Witchduck with the mid-project musical...

“The Game Is the Game” Reppa Ton Drops New Album

Editor’s Note: This piece was developed from an extended conversation between Reppa Ton and Chauncey “Chance Fischer” Jenkins. The new album drops tonight at midnight HERE. Sitting outside at Common House talking through Memento Vivere when the conversation drifts...

The BIG Richmond Summer Music Field Guide 2026

Trying to put together a list of shows in Richmond these days is becoming a pretty hard thing to do. The city has gotten really busy, but at least it’s not boring. There are more shows, festivals, DJ nights, and random Tuesday concerts happening in the River City than...