On Stage: Coco Montoya brings the blues to The Flash

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Coco Montoya There are various generations of blues artists and they span a really large age range. On October 26, Coco Montoya, one of the country’s best modern blues guitarists, will headline a show at Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http://www.kennettflash.org). Montoya has built a reputation as an ace guitarist...

On Stage: Ghost appears locally as US tour leg wraps up

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Ghost Ghost, a Swedish rock band whose music spans many genres, rose to arena status a few years ago – and has continued to build on its success ever since. Now one of the most popular touring bands in the world, Ghost is coming down to the final few shows of its mammoth year-long schedule of live concerts.

On Stage: The Bros. Landreth do things just a bit differently

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times The Bros. Landreth The Bros. Landreth, who are headlining a show at City Winery (990 Filbert Street, Philadelphia, citywinery.com/philadelphia/) on October 24, got their band  name from the two members – brothers Dave and Joey Landreth. Why is the name The Bros. Landreth instead of The Landreth Brothers?

On Stage: The Bad Plus celebrates new album with show in Philly

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times The Bad Plus In 2017, The Bad Plus had a minus – and then a plus. The trio from Minnesota lost a founding member, added a top-flight player from Philadelphia and never missed a step along the way. On October 23, The Bad Plus, which now features Philadelphia jazz legend Orrin Evans, visits Evans’ hometown for a show at South Jazz Kitchen (600...

On Stage: Toto headlines at The Met

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Toto There are live shows in the area on October 20 to suit just about any musical taste – a legendary 1970s classic rock band from Los Angeles, a veteran guitarist from Canada, a versatile classical music ensemble from Delaware and a British prog-rock band that is celebrating its 50th anniversary. On Sunday evening, The Met (858 North Broad Street,...

On Stage: Ethan Iverson Quartet

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Ethan Iverson Quartet For years, the Ars Nova Workshop has been presenting area jazz fans with musical gems in the form of live concerts by some of the top jazz artists in the world. On October 17, ANW will present a performance by the Ethan Iverson Quartet at the Caplan Center for Performing Arts (University of the Arts, 211 South Broad Street,...

On Stage: Shepherds seeks to raise their profile with tour

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Shepherds Shepherds is an alternative rock band that has been around for almost a decade – and is still flying under the radar. The band just released its sophomore album, “Insignificant Whip,” on Arrowhawk Records and is on the road on a two-week, 10-city support tour. The band might have had a higher profile had it released more than one...

On Stage: Venerable acts headline locally this weekend

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor The Legendary Pink Dots There are five musical acts playing around the Delaware Valley on October 12 that are very, very different musically but have one major aspect in common – longevity. The Legendary Pink Dots – an Anglo-Dutch experimental rock band formed in London in 1980 – have found a genre all their own. Although far outside the mainstream, LPD...

On Stage: ‘Cabaret’ comes to West Chester

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Cabaret The Resident Theatre Company (RTC) at Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (236 North High Street, West Chester, http://www.rtcwc.org) has embarked on its third season and has started the journey with a musical that is guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser – “Cabaret.” “We took an email survey last season to find out which shows audiences...

On Stage: Grayscale has deep Chesco roots

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Grayscale Grayscale is celebrating the release of its sophomore album, “Nella Vita,” with a show on October 5 at the Theatre of the Living Arts (334 South Street, Philadelphia, 215-222-1011, http://www.lnphilly.com). It will be a homecoming for the Philadelphia-based band after a brief stateside tour and the lone area gig prior to an ambitious...