2023 was a jam-packed year full of excellent concerts in and around the Philadelphia area. Hundreds of ‘MMR concert events, spanning all the great venues throughout the Tri-State area from “The Big Joint” to Brooklyn Bowl, WMMR was there. Though I don’t have an exact number of concerts that I attended this year, my guesstimate is somewhere around 75, give or take. It was a daunting task, but I narrowed down the 75+ shows to my Top 5 of the year.
Here are the top:
Coming in at #5 was My Morning Jacket at The Met Philly. Jim James and the MMJ fellas brought their “Fall Tour 2023” to the historic Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia for two nights of amazing music. I was at night one on October 27th, with the show clocking in at close to 3 hours, the set and performance was one of the absolute best I have ever seen from My Morning Jacket. A band, in my opinion, that is a must-see live.
Taking the #4 spot on my list, was Candlebox at the Ascend Amphitheater in Nashville, Tennessee on August 18th. Dubbed “The Long Goodbye Tour”, Candlebox was touring in support of their 8th, and seemingly final, album of their 30+ year history, and their energy and performance was definitely one to remember. Shout out to our friend, Philly native, and Candlebox guitarist Brian Quinn! Candlebox is another must-see band live, I also caught them earlier this year opening for Bush in Atlantic City, NJ. SO Good!
Landing at #3 on my list, was Shinedown’s performance at this year’s MMR*B*Q. I have been fortunate to see “My Boys” several times on their “Planet Zero/Revolutions Live” tour, and their stop in Camden for the ‘RBQ was by far the best! The energy from both the band and the audience was through the roof! The rest of the MMR*B*Q line-up was amazing too… Billy Idol, Dirty Honey, Larkin Poe, Ayron Jones, Vixen77 all had the crowd wanting more, more, more.
#2 on my list is the German electronicore band Electric Callboy. The metalcore boy band embarked on their first-ever North American tour this year and every venue they played in the US was completely sold out, including their stop at Brooklyn Bowl Philly on September 14th. Check out some of the videos I took from the show here. I am hoping that we will see them back in Philadelphia in 2024!
Coming it at #1 on my list of favorite shows of 2023, was the return of PANTERA! It was great to hear and feel all those legendary songs live again! Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante did an excellent job filling the massive shoes of “Dimebag” Darrell and Vinnie Paul respectively. This is something that I hope continues for years to come! Pantera will be back out on the road in 2024 supporting Metallica’s “M72 World Tour” yet again.
Honorable Mention
I want to also give an honorable mention to Josh Homme and Queens of the Stone Age. They brought their “The End is Nero” tour to the TD Pavilion at the Mann in beautiful Fairmount Park on August 8th, while touring in support of their 8th studio album In Times New Roman… that came out in June. Having seen QOTSA a couple of times before, this was by far the best show I had ever seen from them.
Make sure you check our complete concert calendar for all the great shows already announced for 2024 and beyond! Can’t wait to see you guys at the next show!
Happy New Year! -bp
#5 Concert of the Year: My Morning Jacket at The Met Philly (10/27/23)
I attended night #1 of 2 of My Morning Jacket at the historic Met Philly.
The show spanned close to 3 hours almost going past midnight. Jim James and MMJ are most certainly a must-see band live.
#4 Concert of the Year: Candlebox at The Ascend Amphitheater in Nashville, TN (08/18/2023)
Candlebox was the opener for 3 Doors Down on this tour, and in my opinion, blew 3DD out of the water with their performance.
Massive shout out to Philly native and friend of the station Brian Quinn! He’s been the guitarist in Candlebox since 2015, recording 3 LPs with them.
#3 Concert of the Year: Shinedown at The MMR*B*Q (09/16/2023)
Shinedown’s stages and theatrics keep getting bigger and better every time they hit the road.
Look at the smile on Brent’s face! You could totally tell that he and the band were having a blast performing for the adoring crowd at this year’s MMR*B*Q.
Anyone that has ever seen Shinedown live knows. “My Boys” put on one helluva show every single time they step foot on the stage!
#2 Concert of the Year: Electric Callboy at Brooklyn Bowl Philly (09/14/2023)
Electric Callboy is a metalcore band meets boy band with some electronica sprinkled in. They put on an AMAZING show!
The energy of both the band and the crowd was a highlight for me and landed this show at #2 on my list of the best shows of 2023.
#1 Concert of the Year: PANTERA at Freedom Mortgage Pavilion (08/02/2023)
Zakk Wylde paid tribute to “Dimebag” Darrell seamlessly. And Charlie Benante did Vinnie Paul proud for sure!
2023 saw the mighty return of PANTERA! So many of their legendary songs hadn’t been heard live in this capacity in decades!
Honorable Mention: Queens of the Stone Age at The TD Pavilion at the Mann (08/08/2023)
The TD Pavilion at the Mann Music Center was packed with adoring fans of Queens of the Stone Age. These guys had some excellent improvisational jams throughout the evening.
Josh Homme and the fellas were touring in support of their 2023 album “In Times New Roman…”
