Marisa Torrieri photo
Jammin out at Cafe 9 on a Sunday afternoon.
Turkey Vulture — a metal/punk duo of Milford-based couple Jessie May (vocals, guitar) and Jim Clegg (drums) — typically spend Sunday afternoons entertaining their two toddler sons. So when May growled into the mic and ripped into a distorted-guitar riff at Cafe Nine on a recent Sunday afternoon in early August, it felt wholly cathartic.
“This was definitely better than a weeknight show,” said May, who works for a public school nine months out of the year, of the August matinee show her band played with Lowell, Mass.-based trio The Imposers and Bobcat, One Man Band, a traveling solo artist. “I don’t think I would even do one of those during the school year. I am a teacher, and the morning timing is so tight with daycare drop off and getting to work.”
Her husband, Clegg, also appreciated the timing of the gig.
“A day show is awesome because you get to hang out, be in a band, and still be ready for the work week,” he said.
In cities like New Haven, where rock ‘n’ roll experiences are largely after hours, Sunday afternoon matinee shows are somewhat of an underdog — and an underutilized source of entertainment that typically cost a fraction of the price of a movie theater ticket. For full-time working parents like May and Clegg, matinee shows also offer a chance to participate in and support local music with less exhaustion. Many local musicians with 9‑to‑5 jobs know all too well what it’s like to push through work after clocking in just a few hours of sleep.
“Even though the vibe is different, it’s somewhat better than a weekend night show too — no matter what time I go to bed, my kids will be up at 6 a.m., and I will be solo with them for most of the following day,” May said.
But it’s not just working parents who appreciate attending (or playing) matinee shows at New Haven venues like Cafe Nine or Three Sheets. The 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday window is also a favorite of adults who don’t like driving in the dark, or those who simply prefer earlier bedtimes. In 2023, actor Jamie Lee Curtis made national news after declining an invite to a pre-Oscars dinner that started too late and then requesting that the band Coldplay play a concert that starts at 1 p.m., not 9 p.m.
At Cafe Nine, every matinee show has a bit of a different flavor: A lot of the Sunday matinees are free, or a $5 to $10 cover, so people can experience top-notch talent performing original songs in a fun environment and not break the bank, said the club’s owner, Paddy Meyer.
“I always try and mix up the matinees genre-wise, so one week it could be a roots rock/rockabilly show, the next week could be free jazz, or a soul food/DJ pop-up event,” Meyer said. “And the best part is, you can be home by 8 p.m. so your Monday isn’t totally cooked.” (Upcoming Cafe Nine matinee Sunday shows include Cavegirl & The Neandergals on Sept. 29, a Connecticut Women’s Roller Derby Fundraising show on Nov. 3, Chloe Kimes on Nov. 17, and Christine Ohlman’s annual holiday extravaganza on Dec. 15.)
The earlier time of the Sunday show certainly didn’t water down the intensity of the performances at Cafe Nine in August. Turkey Vulture’s 30-minute set, which included the debut of the band’s new single, “Fiends Like Us,” was filled with the usual torrent of hard-hitting punk and metal originals (and a couple of covers, including one of “In the Pines”), which the intimate crowd of about a dozen concertgoers cheered on.
The Imposers — Terry McNulty on vocals and upright bass, Beau Mooney on guitar, and Mark Enet on drums — kept the energy high for the next 45 minutes, segueing between sunny surf-rock instrumentals and catchy, up-tempo rockabilly tunes. The good vibes made the two-hour trek worth it.
“We like playing any shows, whether it’s matinees or nighttime, but [with] the matinees you can kind of hit a different audience sometimes,” says McNulty. “All shows are fun.”
However, getting the same turnout on a Sunday as a weekend night is sometimes harder, as crowd sizes tend to be higher after dark, McNulty admitted.
“It’s really not too hot of a turn out if you’re not known in the area,” he said.
The smaller crowd size than what’s expected on a Friday night didn’t seem to shake Bobcat, One Man Band (also known as Aaron Gelbman), a solo powerhouse musician who belted out one soulful rock song after another, for a full hour, armed with his trusty guitar and a stompbox. At the tail end of his set, he invited members the other two bands onstage for a jam session, culminating in a feisty cover of Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues.” It was the perfect nightcap — at 6 p.m.-ish.
“I play every chance I get and hope there’s more people in the audience than are on the stage at the time I’m performing,” said the artist, who has been touring the country in his Honda Odyssey for over a year and a half and counting. “It’s all for the love of entertaining the people.”