Concert review: Crumb on tour — 5/6 — LA

By Kristine Pascual

photos by Zach Arquilevich

On May 6, Crumb performed an incredible show at The Novo in Los Angeles.

Right by Crypto.com Arena was the Golden State Warriors vs. Los Angeles Lakers NBA game, which led to basketball fans crossing paths with indie rock fans awaiting the show.

Initially, the venue was not too crowded, but around 9 p.m. more fans began to spill into the room. Some waited in the crowd while others stood outside socializing, smoking and drinking. At first, the crowd was pretty mellow.

Crumb came out around 9:30 p.m., leaving the crowd in awe and excitement, as they finally saw their favorite rock band. They opened with one of their classics, “Nina,” from their 2019 album, “Jinx.” Lead singer Lila Ramani’s voice is hypnotizing and complemented so well by the instruments that you cannot help but feel ethereal in the moment.

The entire show felt like a dream. Everyone was either dancing, swaying their heads to the music or cheering for their favorite members throughout their solos.

Crumb also performed some of their newest singles, including “Dust Bunny” and “Crushxd.” Ramani apologized as they had only performed the singles a few times live just before the show. Nevertheless, they sounded incredible.

There were several solo moments throughout the concert but my favorite was Bri Aronow’s trumpet solo during “Cracking.” He nailed it and at that moment all eyes were on him.

What was really great during the show is that there was no pushing or shoving within the crowd. Most of the time, at concerts, people are fighting to get closer to the front or just being rude in general. Everyone in this case was just happy to be there, regardless of whether or not they were physically close to the stage. It was evident that every person in the room was feeling the music through their body, dancing along and enjoying the moment.

I had the pleasure of shooting the band on a mini camcorder, capturing the best moments of the show. I made sure to shoot clips of each member having a solo moment. Ramani did an amazing job interacting with the fans. She was super sweet and insanely talented balancing playing her guitar, singing, playing the synth and getting the crowd going.

Bassist Jesse Brotter seemed as if he were up there having more fun than anything. Brotter had several solos and nailed every single one. The fans screamed and cheered him on as he jammed out on stage. Brotter kept the same energy from the start of the show all the way to the encore.

What I love most about Crumb is that there’s this passion that you can feel pulsing throughout the room. The concert truly felt like an intimate group of fans watching Crumb rehearse and have a good time performing and doing what they love. Fans stood at the barricade cheering the members on, clapping when they danced and singing along with every lyric.

At the end of the show, fans screamed for another song. Crumb gave it to them. The band performed two of their older songs from their 2017 EP for their encore. Those who began to disperse before then missed out on hearing songs from “Locket.”

It was quite the experience to hear one of my favorite albums live. To be part of the music is always special for any fan.

Crumb will continue the North American leg of their tour, hitting just a few more cities, then will take off to the United Kingdom later this year.