Mia X Ally: Tour Finale Leaves Fans Wanting More
Tuesday night, the SOLD OUT crowd at City Winery Philadelphia gathered to witness the final show of “The Shipping Up To Boston Tour”. The collaboration of electric violinist Mia Asano and the internet's most famous bagpiper, Ally the Piper, has clearly resonated with audiences, as each stop on their 8 city tour has sold out, with the finale landing them in the City of Brotherly Love. Their fusion of rock and metal music with Celtic undertones creates a unique and engaging sound that has appealed to a broad range of music fans, as evidenced by the growing popularity of each artist and their growing social media presence.
This duo of talented performers had an impressive start to their 20 song set, which consisted of a combination of original music and cover songs. The opening songs, including "Megalodon," "Fairy Tail," and the recognizable theme music from "Game of Thrones," set the tone for an exciting and dynamic performance. It's noteworthy that the performers were talkative and engaging with the audience, sharing personal stories of their musical journeys and creating a more intimate and interactive experience for the crowd. Their level of audience engagement was impressive, particularly for newer artists, and added to the overall dynamic of the show.
The Boston-based violinist, Mia Asano, is an exceptional performer, with a captivating stage presence that mesmerizes and exhilarates the audience. Her ability to use the entire stage and to get up close and personal to the Philadelphia crowd added to the excitement and energy of the performance. Her social media videos, with her 1.6+ million followers, while showcasing her talent, only offer a limited view of her abilities. Seeing her perform live offers a more complete and immersive experience of her musical talent and showmanship.
The introduction of Ally, by Mia, highlighted her musical talent, specifically her ability to play multiple instruments, 12 in total. To the surprise of the audience, Ally stated that she’s been playing the saxophone longer than the bagpipes. There was a humorous moment where Ally apologized to her bagpipes and asked them to “cover their ears”, which added a light-hearted touch to the performance, and drew laughter from the crowd. Ally's skills on the saxophone were showcased when she performed her solo, Magdalena.
With few live music acts showcasing an electric violin, a “guitar lesson” was provided by Mia, adding variety to the show and provided an opportunity for Mia to educate the audience on the differences between the two instruments. While similar in construction, Mia enlightened the crowd on how the violin has less strings, but is harder to play. The back-and-forth between Mia and {guitarist} Doug, performing the same chords on different instruments, added an entertaining touch to the performance, but it was Mia who exclaimed her victory as she stated “I can play lower than a Cello, so I win” to which the crowd erupted in laughter. She then performed her song "Believe Me".
With so few shows between them, both Mia and Ally worked in perfect unison as if they’ve been together much longer then they have been. At this point in the show, the duo showed off their comedic chops again with Ally discussing how she learned how to play electric violin on Tik Tok, and she decided she was going to play Dragonforce: Through the Fire and Flames, which happens to be the hardest song on guitar hero. Mia gave caution and said she was her instructor on Tik Tok, and she taught her Hot Cross Buns! After the laughter died down, they played the song, with swapped instruments!
In a deep and touching moment of the show, Mia gave an emotional dedication to Jason David Frank, also known as the Green Power Ranger. It's clear that his passing had a personal impact on her, and her decision to recreate the Go Go Power Rangers theme song through her electric violin is a powerful tribute to his memory. When her version went viral, she donated her first six months of streaming revenue to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in his honor. Mia's dedication to suicide prevention is admirable, and she continues to educate the community through her shows and followers. Overall, her actions demonstrate a strong commitment to supporting mental health and suicide prevention initiatives.
There are many resources for suicide information and prevention, some of which can be found by clicking here.
Mia and Ally closed out the show with two high-energy and crowd-pleasing performances, starting with their cover of "Shipping Up To Boston" the Dropkick Murphys hit song, and title of their current tour. As they left the stage to a standing ovation, they immediately returned and came back for an encore performance of "The Devil Went Down To Georgia". As impressive as the show has been, it was a pleasant surprise to see both performers sing as well as play their instruments for the final song of the night.
Overall, Mia and Ally put on an incredible show that left the audience energized, entertained and definitely wanting more.
Full photo set from the performance can be found by clicking here.
City Winery, located on the corner of Filbert and 10th street, is Philadelphia’s premiere venue, restaurant, winery and event space. With live music, comedy, and wine events in an intimate venue with good food, a full bar, and great wine, it has become one of Philadelphia’s hottest attractions. It host’s two music venues (Main Stage & The Loft), a full service restaurant and wine bar, a tasting room and an outdoor patio. It can be utilized for weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs, corporate events, and gala fund raisers for 20 to 1000 people in their stylish spaces.