The morning of April 1st, Alynda Segarra, lead singer of Hurray for the Riff Raff, tweeted:
used to sleep in golden gate park, playing august hall tonight 😇
— hurray for the riff raff (@HFTRR) April 1, 2024
While I wasn’t meeting them “down in the Castro” as Segarra sings in the song “Colossus of Roads,” I was lucky enough to see them at the downtown San Francisco venue that same night.
Fronted by the phenomenal Segarra, Hurray for the Riff Raff is a vibrant blend of folk and Americana, with stylistic touches from their time in New Orleans. Since forming in 2007, Hurray for the Riff Raff has crafted a polished discography, releasing nine albums such as the acclaimed LIFE ON EARTH (2022) and their newest LP The Past Is Still Alive (2024). Their music explores themes of violence, capitalism, and harm reduction alongside joy and relationships—experiences echoing Segarra’s own travels, at times both mundane and arduous, across much of North America.
Opener Sen Morimoto also had their fair share of stories to tell. Equipped with two guitars and a saxophone, Morimoto seamlessly blended jazz and art pop into a set that managed to be both cohesive and multifaceted. Each time they pulled out their saxophone, the entire crowd pulled out their phones to take a video, forever capturing the artist’s skill on film.
Hurray for the Riff Raff left an undeniable mark on August Hall with their forthright yet poised performance. They kicked off the set with two of their most popular songs, “Alibi” and “Buffalo.” With a somewhat older crowd attending the Monday night show, I was curious to see if Segarra would be able to successfully get a little head-nod and jig from the members of the audience, but these two songs did the trick—thus, the tone for the evening was set.
The performance was punctuated by moments of frank storytelling, elevating the experience for everyone. In both “Colossus of Roads” and “The World is Dangerous,” Segarra exposed fresh wounds, told tales, and gently relayed some much-needed advice. For lack of a better analogy, it felt like my grandparents telling me about their lives— that is, if my grandparents were folk-rock artists who spent much of their youth hopping intercontinental trains.
As the night drew to a close, the ballads of Hurray for the Riff Raff, both told and untold, lingered in the air. They left an impression on me, even as I realized I had a midterm to do the next day. Their music served as a reminder of resilience and, funnily enough, motivated me to go to class the next morning. Together, Hurray for the Riff Raff and Sen Morimoto didn’t just put on a concert but took us on a journey.
Article by Rushaad Mistry
Photos by Izzie Porras