by Sean Reiter
“What a gorgeous crowd you are San Francisco,” The Beaches lead singer Jordan Miller exclaimed to the crowd early as she set the party tone for their headlining set at The Warfield. “Any singles in the audience? I’m 19 days single. You can’t really fall in love with another person until you fall in love with yourself.” As an incredibly enthusiastic crowd roared with approval, the band crept into their third song of “Me and Me” and the audience bounced with glee – arms up and singing and chanting along throughout the set.
Guitarists Leandra Earl and Kylie Miller provided a sonic weave and were in constant motion for songs like “Grow Up Tomorrow” and “Touch myself” after kicking off the show with a glass-raising version of their hit “Last Girls At The Party.” Drummer Liza Enman-McDaniel set the rhythm as Jordan Miller alternated between playing bass and passing it off to her sister Kylie.
As a child of the 80’s, my best point of reference was to describe The Beaches’ performance as a terrific modern day version of “The Go-Go’s” with modern themes and mentalities. The Canadian band’s songwriting has real substance (take a listen to their recently-released album “No Hard Feelings”) and large talent on full display with their performance.
Before “Did I Say Too Much,” Jordan invited an audience member to come up and share a time they shared too much. Leia took the stage and shared a story of her and her wife going MILF-hunting and the success of their mission – eliciting terrific reactions of surprise from the band members and roaring approval from the San Francisco audience. The Beaches seemed like a band that couldn’t be a better fit for modern-day San Francisco!
Earlier in the night, Annie Dirusso and her band provided an energetic and fun supporting set that connected with the early-arriving crowd (the sold-out Warfield was nearly at full-capacity when she took the stage). Dirusso continually marveled at “the vibe” of the San Francisco crowd. Songs like “Nine Months” and “Wet” had the crowd locked in and Dirusso’s between song banter balanced the quick songs and created a set-wise continuity. Her set showed that big shows and headline stages are coming soon.
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