Hurray for the Riff Raff played Rockefeller Park (pics, setlist)

Hurray for the Riff Raff are back out on the road supporting their new album The Past Is Still Alive, one of our favorite albums of 2024 so far. Ahead of a run supporting Norah Jones, they stopped in NYC for a pair of NYC shows: a Grammy Museum-presented “New York Evening” with them at National Sawdust on Wednesday, featuring a solo performance from Alynda Segarra and a conversation with them and Hanif Abdurraqib; and a free, outdoor show at Rockefeller Park on Thursday, part of the River & Blues Festival. We went to Thursday night’s show, which thankfully coincided with a break in the humid heat that had enveloped the city earlier in the week. The weather could hardly have been nicer as people gathered on Rockefeller Park’s lush field to take in the views and picnic ahead of the show, to the accompaniment of DJ Suzan Z Anthony. Many in the crowd stood up and came closer as Hurray for the Riff Raff began their set with “Alibi” off The Past Is Still Alive. They played the album in full on Thursday night, along with two songs from 2022’s fantastic LIFE OF EARTH. As good as those songs are, it was even more of a treat to hear them as a magnificent sunset descended over the Hudson. You can see pictures from the show and the setlist below. There are two more free River & Blues Festival shows coming up this summer at Rockefeller Park: Leela James on July 25, and Abraham Alexander on August 1. SETLIST: HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF @ ROCKEFELLER PARK, 7/18/2024 Alibi Buffalo Hawkmoon RHODODENDRON Dynamo Colossus of Roads Snakeplant (The Past Is Still Alive) SAGA Vetiver Hourglass The World Is Dangerous Ogallala