I first came across Nightjacket in June 2020 via an online performance of "Lonely Archer" via Los Angeleno. You can see that Instagram video here. I fell in love with The Cranberries sound. "Lonely archer, take your aim. Might get lucky tonight. Shoot your arrows, and let ‘em rain. Yeah I might fall in love tonight." I got to catch the band live in 2021 and put them on my list of favorite 2021 new to me, but maybe not to you.
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| Nightjacket at Harvard & Stone |
Outside of the band, I do run into members of the band here and there. Adam D'Zurilla is the manager at Harvard & Stone and so I cross paths with him about once a month. I also run across lead singer Andrea Wasse via non-Nightjacket projects. The last time we crossed paths was back in August 2024 when she was playing a solo set over at Hotel Ziggy during a WFNM night. It has been awhile (last seen in 2022), but I also cross paths with her via DeadXLife. DeadXLife has some Los Angeles music history to it -- some of you coming across this know how I like going down that rabbit hole. DeadXLife is a duo with Andrea Wasse and Thomas Thorson. Thorson used to be in the band Draemings. The lead singer of Draemings was Kimi Recor. Recor was in favorite bands such as Kevin and (an all-time favorite) Black Flamingo. I actually could go on for a bit longer for this rabbit hole, but I'll leave it at that.
Back to Nightjacket, they've slowly been rolling out new singles since 2020 (started with "Lonely Archer"). Come 2025, they released a new song called "My Only Heart." To celebrate, they had a single release show at Harvard & Stone.
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| Nightjacket at Harvard & Stone |
The set almost got derailed at the start. After playing her guitar on a song, Wasse could be seen sucking on her thumb. She had cut herself due to (her explanation) "bad guitar technique." Anyways, I noticed it and went searching for some bar napkins. I figured maybe some pressure could help stop the bleeding. Luckily, someone had a band-aid. Wait, people just carry band-aids with them? Good thing they do. No one (well, I suppose there are always a few) wants to see a guitar with blood splattered all over it.
The band had the back of the stage decorated with a red tinsel foil curtain. Red and pink hearts hung down the curtain. It was a pre-Valentine day celebration. Perfectly planned timing for a song with "heart" in it. The set didn't include "Lonely Archer," but it did include other songs that I've fallen in love with such as "Just a Little" and "Don't Say A Word." The songs are finely crafted music that hits The Cranberries itch of mine.
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| Nightjacket at Harvard & Stone |
As for "My Only Heart," the song shifts towards the rocker direction. It takes the band in a different direction musically, but what isn't missing is intricately crafted music. Wasse's vocals especially shine singing the following lyrics:
Sing my favourite song,and I’m right where I belong
My only heart is with you
A song of true love that shines bright. The Los Angeles music scene is filled with songs about breakups. It is nice to hear a song about love that is meant to last.
Setlist: All Of My Friends, Just A Little, Lucky, Head Under The Water, My Only Heart, Don't Say A Word.
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