Goth Babe and Bay Ledges at Franklin Music Hall

Last week indie-alternative artist Goth Babe (Griffin Washburn) rounded out his most recent US tour, The Lola Tour with his third to last show at Franklin Music Hall. He was joined on the 31 stop tour by various openers but Thursday’s performance featured Maine-based Bay Ledges.

The crowd was first eased into the night with the indie-alternative band, Bay Ledges. Consisting of Zach Herd on vocals and guitar, Kyle Kelly-Yahner on drums and Scott Padden on bass, the trio brought a chill, surfing, coast-life vibe to the night. The group primarily played songs of the most recent album Ritual, including my favorite from the album “sunsunsun.” The band was clearly making the most of their last few nights on this tour and giving it their all as Herd lost his balance at one point while bouncing around the stage before jumping right back into dancing. 

If you’ve ever been to a Goth Babe shown, you know how full of joy the entire room feels the whole night. The crowd erupted and jumping started the minuet Washburn and his band hit the stage. He was joined by Johnny Whiplash on drums and Hunter Martinez on guitar and keyboard/synthesizer. As the night progressed euphoric chaos ensued. Goth Babe has always made his shows more fun through his crowd interactions, including chatting to fans between songs and has crowd surfing play a large role in the concert’s atmosphere. It no longer a surprise when the massive pool floats are brought from the side of the stage and a fan or crew member are hoisted on to ride the waves of the audience and this night featured a giant watermelon slice. Part of the way through their set, Washburn acknowledged that he used to join in the crowd surfing but feel he’s “gotten too old for that,” so for this tour they’ve been sending a cardboard cutout in his place. Every city they’ve found a cutout pertaining to where they are so Franklin Music Hall got a guest appearance from (cardboard cutout) Danny DeVito from the hit show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The chaos doesn’t stop there as Washburn asked the crowd who was celebrating a birthday for the night. One might assuming this led to the whole venue singing “Happy Birthday,” however Goth Babe caught everyone by surprise as they switched to EDM/rave music and lighting out of the blue. The night continued with more dancing, singing and crowd surfing as Goth Babe played through their various EPs and singles, including the latest track “Bioluminescence.” The night ended with a blast, as Washburn returned to the stage for their encore with a cape and dinosaur hat before confetti cannons were set off during the last chorus of “Weekend Friend,” a Goth Babe classic.

Goth Babe The Lola Tour | Philadelphia setlist (8/10)
New Born Worlds
Moments/Tides
I Wanna Help Your Mind
Alone in the Mountains
Casita
Encinitas
Sometimes
Taking Over The Sun
Bioluminescence
Canary Islands
Trees
End Summer
I’m In Luv
Encore: Weekend Friend