Lunar Vacation @ The Constellation Room Night 1

Photos and writing by Brenda Rodriguez (AKA B, AKA DJ Albóndigass)

On April 5th, 2025, Lunar Vacation returned to The Constellation Room in Santa Ana, California for the second time. This small venue space made for an intimate concert and sharing of their lulling sound. Last time they performed there was back in September following the release of their 3rd EP Everything Matter, Everything’s Fire under the Keeled Scales record label based in Austin, Texas. While the signature bright yet relaxed vocals of Gep Repasky, the layered guitars, and the plodding beats remain, Everything Matters, Everything’s Fire features a new pop direction. In an interview with KUCR, Lunar Vacation mentions how this album is a manifestation of their life experiences and the band’s close-knitted friendship. Their sound is reminiscent of Yo La Tengo, Radiohead, and Snail Mail.

I knew I was in for a dreamy ride since the start of the show with Sour Widows setting the vibe. Sour Widows is a band from Oakland who explore themes such as love, loss, introspection, and friendship through an alternative, indie, punk-y, shoegaze sound. Their melancholy lyrics contrasted with their explosive punk sound made them all the more compelling and angsty. Their duality was fun as they would switch between edgier sounds and a more mellow bedroom pop aesthetic. The lead singer and guitarist (Susanna Thomson) had such an incredible voice, ranging from low to yelling into the mic. They were even selling beanie babies as part of their merch very reminiscent of the mid-90s.

Lunar vacation, an indie rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, came onto the stage starting their set off right with “Set the Stage.” I was stoked to see them perform since they were a band I listened to a lot back in high school, their sound feels very warm and nostalgic. All of their music influences and instruments shine through more so live, I was especially in trance with the various instruments the keyboardist (Matteo DeLurgio) pulled out such as the tambourine and other handheld percussion instruments. The jingles added an element of fantasy. The distortion pedals and electric guitars transgressed the Constellation Room. My favorite tracks live were “Swimming,” “Sick,” and “The basement.” As they were pushing people out of the venue the song “Autonomy” by Boy Harsher was playing, ending the night perfectly with a dance/electronic number.

SETLIST:

SET THE STAGE

SICK

PEDDLER

UNLUCKY

ONLY YOU

JUST FOR TODAY

TOM

YOU SHOULDN’T BE

ERASE ALL THE B’S

SWIMMING

NO OFFERINGS

MONTEREY

GEARS

THE BASEMENT

BLUE HONEY

CUTTING CORNERS

FANTASY

Lunar Vacation and Sour Widows at the Echoplex, April 6, 2025

Photos and writing by Rania Al-Hamoodah

Despite its futuristic name, the Echoplex is a typical, small concert venue. I walked down the narrow hallway lined by tour posters past, present and future, and was welcomed by that familiar pre concert buzz. Inside it was exactly what you’d expect: stage, bar, seating area tucked in the back, and a merch table. The stage was unsustainable in set up, which gave it a more intimate, backyard gig feel. And, luckily for me, the average height of the first few rows was 5 feet tall, lending me a great view despite getting there late.

As the openers, Sour Widows, silently walked on sporting their mullets and babydoll dresses, I knew I was in for a treat. I was expecting a cutesy indie band to play some mellow indie songs, however I was pleasantly surprised with 30 minutes of fantastic shoegaze. Sour Widows skillfully wove one song into another, and had the whole crowd slowly headbanging. Before playing “Big Dogs”, one of the members teased a part in the song in which we “knew what to do” (spoiler: I didn’t know what to do). Apparently, I was supposed to scream in the mid-song, but I missed my queue. By the end of their set, the crowd was thoroughly warmed up, a job marked well done.

After gushing about the openers, I pulled out the classic concert move: Heads Up (luckily my friend pays for the premium packs). The energy swelled as the clock hit 8 PM, and Lunar Vacation took the stage. I couldn’t help but notice the obvious pun when they played their first song “Set The Stage”. Their set was well mixed, with the standard dip in tempo towards the middle. They avoided some of their older songs, which is understandable, as it was representative of a point in the members life they no longer resonated with. However, when they played ‘Unlucky’, I was transported to my eighth grade self that first fell in love with the song.

As the show progressed the banter in between songs became more frequent, giving the crowd a glimpse into the band’s repartee. A notable point was when the lead singer, Grace, started making a joke about White Lotus asking for the new episode to not be spoiled. She continues to make a Twin Peaks reference, which didn’t land, and as I watched her face cringe slightly while she played the beginning riffs of the next song, I remembered that everyone in the band was just another person.

The show ends with a sweet and melancholy note with “Fantasy”, and the crowd starts chanting “One more song!” while I walk to go meet the openers. As we chat and the chanting continues I hear the crowd erupt. The band was back on stage.

Amid the commotion, a frantic tech yells “they told me they wouldn’t do an encore!”. I ran back to the crowd and to everyone’s (including Lunar Vacation’s) surprise, they were coming back for one more song. The first few chords of “The Basement” were strung and the crowd erupted yet again. The pure shock of an unexpected encore, especially the throwback to a previously unplayable 2017 track had me jumping up and down with joy.

SETLIST:

Set The Stage

Sick

Peddler

Unlucky

Only You

Just For Today

Tom

You Shouldn’t Be

Erase All the B’s

Swimming

Monterey

Gears

Blue Honey

Cutting Corners

Fantasy

ENCORE:

The Basement

Check out Lunar Vacation here!

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