Concert Review: Johnny Manchild and the Poor Bastards at Smith’s Olde Bar
September 27th, 2023 | Atlanta, GA
The Jazz rock band Johnny Manchild and the Poor Bastards (JMPB for short) made their first trek to Atlanta, Georgia this past Wednesday. The Bastards have been spending September traveling through the United States on a mini tour. After some van problems, the trio made it to one of their last dates at Smith’s Olde Bar. The DIY venue was a good start for the Bastards’ first dance in A-town.
For those wondering why I said trio earlier, sadly it was not a full outing for the Bastards. Manchild has been slowly testing out touring areas this year, and this tour was one of these dates. Earlier this year, Manchild did a solo tour, titled So you want a tour, where he would play at any venue the host could provide for a fee of $300 to stay on the road. Manchild did 23 shows in 45 days, traveling as far as Ontario, Canada. The current tour is known as the Bastard Trio tour as Manchild has drummer Ethan Neel and bassist Alex Coleman accompanying him.
The show started at 8:00 PM with the opener, Babbler. They are a self-described Atlanta jazz trio with a lot of promise. They came out on the stage wearing button down shirts, ties, and suspenders and proceeded to tear the house down. Even though they like to think of themselves as the leaders in a new age of free-form post-rhythmic acid jazz, their sound is more akin to the 90s grunge bands. They also mix some progressive rock tendencies into a few of their songs.
Their stage presence is unique, as drummer Andrea Palese did most of the talking for the band. Bassist Addison Whitney would alternate between using his fingers, a pick and a drumstick to play the bass. When he wasn’t using his pick, the audience would find it stuck to his forehead. Lead singer and guitarist Keaton Jacobs would mix screaming vocals with swagger like line delivery. All their songs were originals, with most featuring some soundbite that ranged from Ronald Reagan to an old instructional video to start them off. They even played an untitled track that they created this week. They asked for the crowd to name it after the song was over and Palese decided to choose “Ratatouille” as the new song’s name.
They did a great job at getting a reaction for the crowd, often times working them up as Bastard fans walked into the venue. They were rocking so hard that Whitney broke a drumstick on his bass and threw it out into the crowd. I caught the broken drumstick and snapped it in half like a wishbone with another fan. On their final song, they went into a breakdown section where Jacobs got low to the ground and shredded his guitar. Palese took this time to stand up from his drum set, point at me and say, “You. Yeah you right there. You know what to do.” The rest of the song was a blur from the thrashing that was going on in the room. Just like that, Babbler set a great precedent for the Bastards. They only have one song out on streaming, so if you’re in the Atlanta area and see them on a show, I’d highly recommend watching them perform. They’re fantastic and will only get better.
When the clock struck 9:00 PM, the Bastard Trio came out to play. At this point all the fans had gotten to Smith’s and forty to fifty Bastards filled the room. Manchild came out wearing a plain green t-shirt and sported some cigarette earrings. He smashed the keyboard with his forearms and the trio started the show off with “The Message.” The crowd roared and sang along to every word. Manchild introduced himself and the band afterwards and explained to newcomers that this isn’t the full band.
“The Message” was a red herring as even though the Bastards have over forty songs out on streaming services. the band mostly played new songs that have yet to be released. Manchild and company will release their fourth album, Rapture Waltz, in early 2024. The first single off of that album will be released in December, according to Manchild. So, after introducing themselves, the Bastards went straight into a new song called “Fake Me Out.”
For the songs that were previous released, the Bastards played three songs off of One Big Beautiful Sound, one song off of We Did Not Ask for This Room, and one song off of Insomnia. The other eight songs all came off of Rapture Waltz. Personally, I was all for this decision. All of the new songs sounded fantastic even if half the band wasn’t there to perform them. Those in attendance got to hear most of the new album five to six months before it’s set to release. We also got to see Manchild play the guitar instead of piano on certain songs, which is a rare sight.
Manchild explained the decision to play the newer music, saying “I love to play our old songs and hear you all sing the lyrics, but most of the show will be the new stuff. I hope you all come back next year when you’ll know the words.” For some fans, I could understand why they would be upset with this decision. If it’s your first time, you want to hear the songs you love to listen to. But for me, I loved it, and it only got me more excited for the new record.
The new songs were an eclectic mix. “Better Unsaid” was a piano ballad that just featured Manchild singing about not feeling at home in your own home. “Everything Stays” was a sinister punk ballad about the feeling of lockdown, with Manchild going crazy on guitar. I could tell the trio was having a fantastic time playing the new material. Drummer Ethan Neel had a big smile on his face throughout the show. The final song, “Oh, Songbird” was a giant jam session between the band. Near the end of the song, all three men converged toward the middle of the stage and fed off the energy of each other. A climatic end with what could be the most popular song off the next album.
Afterwards, the Bastards sold merch to help pay off the repair bills they had to pay for their van. Almost every fan got in line to buy at least one piece of merch to support the band. I spoke to bassist Alex Coleman after the show, who said that they’ll be back in Atlanta twice next year. Manchild just got a booking agent and Coleman said, “He plans on working us hard next year for touring.”
Overall, this was a fantastic experience. As a longtime fan, it was like going to church to worship. The tour just ended, but you should be able to catch the Bastards next year after Rapture Waltz comes out. If you want to follow the band for updates on the album and their next tour, their account is @poorbastards on instagram and @johnnymanchild on X. The band plans on doing an album presale in November where you can pay money in different tiers to crowdfund a vinyl, merch, tour, and more.
Setlist
- The Message
- Fake Me Out
- We
- Beyond Me
- Better Unsaid
- Everything Stays
- Polarity
- So Much Better
- Lambs
- Friends
- All in My Mind
- You Want a Song
- On, Songbird
- Written by Logan Hurston
