JORGE GUERRERO – ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED BY OCT 4 2023
Downtown where the Riverwalk meets N St. Mary’s Street, the Aztec Theatre stood mighty as their box office signs read SOLD OUT, with a line of dedicated fans wrapped around the block, where they each sat patiently but anxiously to get in. Having debuted in 2014 with their dreamy album “French Exit,” the San Diego indie pop sensation TV Girl, comprising of Brad Petering, Jason Wyman, Wyatt Harmon and their touring band members, the “Traveling All-Star Band,” embarked on their North American tour at the historic San Antonio venue to support their most recent summer album release, “Grapes Upon the Vine.”
Their album is heavily influenced by old gospel music and its themes but still retains the indie pop DNA of TV Girl with its masterfully chopped samples and charming, lackadaisical nature. Opening the night off, Los Angelesbased artist, Neggy Gemmy warmed up the crowd with her sparkling vocal hooks and floating atmospherics alongside powerful chest-caving bass, that rocked the local San Antonio venue. Once TV Girl walked on stage, the crowd erupted as the southern California band made their long-awaited return to a North American stage and began their performance with fan favorite, “I’ll Be Faithful,” from their newest album. Singing every word without missing a beat and swaying side to side, the audience cheered and danced as TV Girl showered listeners with a stream of fan favorites and viral TikTok hits like “Birds Don’t Sing,” “Cigarettes out the Window” and “Not Allowed.” With concrete preciseness, frontman Brad Petering tapped away throughout the night on his SP404 sampler loaded with loops and snippets of his deep discography synchronized with captivating visuals. Petering thanked his tour sponsor, Mountain Dew: Code Red, before telling everyone to purchase the band’s newest album, “
Because the record is made out of plastic that will outlive you and when your collection is discovered in a thousand years, they’ll know you had good taste!” As the night proceeded and the crowd cooled down, per Brad’s request, TV Girl continued their concert and dove into the slower and more heartfelt tracks of their discography such as, “Fire,” “Safeword” and “Blue Hair,” as fans swayed and lit up the band with their phone lights. After a brief walk off stage following their performance of “Heaven is a Bedroom,” TV Girl returned as screaming fans begged and chanted for the band to play their most popular song, “Lovers Rock.” Petering and his band gave into the jeering locals’ demands and closed out the concert, singing along with an echoing crowd to his love ballad that became their most recognizable track. Following the concert, excercise and sports science junior, Jordan Burks, told The Rattler, “[The performance] was incredibly moving. Lovers Rock was my favorite part”. Sophomore and psychology student, Marina Palacios, also chimed in, “Finally experiencing TV Girl and seeing them perform songs I first heard on Tik-Tok like Not Allowed and Pantyhose was magnificent.
Their presence was joyful and the crowd did not miss a beat” Stretching until December and ending home ground at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California, TV Girl and their “Traveling All-Star Band” set about their North American tour at the fabled San Antonio venue, the Aztec Theatre. With a night full of indie, hypnotic pop full of tranquil synths and captivating bass lines, the now Tik-Tok viral band, which has become a notable indie pop project, graced the city. Their remarkable and unforgettable performance of nostalgic but sarcastic, bright tracks are full of motifs about heartbreak, cynicism, memories, loneliness, and hopeless romance.