Fun. and Tegan and Sara, Satuday, July 20, 2013 at Merriweather

Tegan and Sara 7/20/13 at Merriweather.



This show was Natalie's 8th Bday present.

Me and Natalie

Fun. at Merriweather 7/20/13

Eric, Natalie and I went to the Fun. show last night in honor of Natalie's 8th birthday. When the tickets went on sale many months ago, Natalie was in love with Fun., listening to their music non-stop. She knows most of the words to most of the songs, but thankfully doesn't know what all of the references are about. Dana, Sharon, and Rachel were also all at this show, but we were in seats, so we didn't really get to hang out much.

The evening was insanely hot and humid at the beginning for this sold-out show at Merriweather Post Pavilion (approx. 20,000 people), and then there was a huge thunderstorm between the two acts. Rachel had the misfortune of lawn seats and didn't stay for most of Fun., but since she was there for Tegan and Sara, it sounds like she didn't mind so much.

Tegan and Sara put on a great show, really. If you were a fan, I am positive you would have felt extremely happy about seeing them live. They had impressive stage production with videos projected behind them and they were very friendly and engaging to the audience. I wish I liked their music, but I still don't.  This is how clueless I sometimes am: I had no idea that Tegan and Sara has a strong lesbian following. Um, duh!

Fun. was INCREDIBLE live. They absolutely lived up to their name. Even Eric, who is not a fan, said he was impressed by how good they were as performers and that the stage production was extremely good.  They had screens all over the background and the stage platforms and the best lights show I've ever seen. There was even a costume change between the first and second numbers and confetti cannons near the end. The artists were engaging (though a bit potty-mouthed, which of course Natalie heard.) You could hear the singing loud and clear above the instruments, and we had a pretty good view from our center MM row seats.  SO worth the admission price. Loved it!  We skipped the encore to get out of the packed parking lot before the crowd.

We Were Promised Jetpacks and Twin Radio, Jammin' Java, June 14, 2013

Twin Radio at Jammin' Java, 6-14-13

We Were Promised Jetpacks, Jammin' Java, 6-14-13

Adam Thomson of WWPJ, 6-14-13

Eric and I went to see We Were Promised Jetpacks at Jammin’ Java on Friday, June 14, 2013, mostly because it was a Friday night and I thought it would be a fun show. We arrived so early that we went to the Outback Steak House across the street so Eric could eat and I could watch. (No way I’m eating steak. Bleh!) Call it an early Father’s Day dinner.  We arrived right before the opener, Twin Radio, went on, and connected with two women I’ve met at several Indie Concert Meetups before: Laura and Jane. The other half of the group were no-shows, maybe because the show sold out.  FYI, Jammin’ Java’s idea of sold out is entirely civilized. The floor was not crowded at all. Laura and Jane told us about their recent cross-country drive that included stops in Austin and Memphis and other music hot-spots. It sounded like a lot of fun.

Twin Radio is a local band that really tried hard to engage the audience. You could tell they were very happy to be on stage and gave it their all, but they weren’t actually good. I don’t even know the names of the kind of bands they were emulating. Rock that an 11 year old boy might mistake for cool – something you’d hear on a top 40 station. Sometimes I wondered if they might have a Christian rock leaning, but I couldn’t make out the lyrics – mostly I was going from the big “Jesus” tattoo on the lead singer’s arm. I found the use of a keytar (guitar style keyboard) hilarious. That singer spent most of the time (poorly) pantomiming the song lyrics that you couldn’t understand over the rest of the music.  I think his mom might have been in the audience. I think the whole band were DC-suburbs born and raised. Eric signed up for their mailing list when they offered him a sticker. He said he felt sorry for them.

We Were Promised Jetpacks still have 2 distinct styles: jam-band (I hate that one) and gorgeous vocals over hard-driving rock (LOVE that style).  So I loved exactly 50% of the show and wanted to fall asleep the other 50%. Same as last time I saw them, but this time I got to be REALLY close to the stage. Unfortunately, the lead singer is no longer the cutie-pie he once was. That boy loves himself some beer – and it shows in his waistline.  Young guy, but he’s passed the pudgy mark and is on the way to truly fat.  His accent is still gorgeous, though, and he still looks like he has his eyes closed when he sings.

Of Monsters and Men, Haim, & Half Moon Run at MPP on June 11, 2013

Of Monsters and Men, MPP, 6-11-13

I went to the Of Monsters and Men show (lawn tickets) with the Indie Concerts Meetup group at Merriweather Post Pavilion on Tuesday, June 11, 2013, and I had a great time.  First, I saw Sharon, but she and her friend had standing room floor tickets, so we just said hello and they went to try to get a good spot. Then I found Krystle and Scott(?), who were really fun to hang out with. Krystle I had met at an earlier Meetup. HJ, a new acquaintance, showed up late because of a trip to the emergency room for a bad cut, but she was just as music geeky as me, so we had fun chatting right before OMAM.  It was a fun social evening, in good weather, though the ground was a bit soggy from recent rain.
Half Moon Run are still cute Canadian boys, and they sounded really good, but the lighting was dim and they didn’t engage the audience much. They did mention that their album was only recently released State-side, so it’s no wonder I couldn’t find the couple songs I liked after the first time I saw them (last year, opening for Metric, I think).
Haim had a new boy-toy drummer. A brunette instead of the blond from the last show. Their energy was MUCH lower than the last time I saw them, and the state lighting was again very dim. I know they are supposed to be a great live show, but if I had only seen this performance, I would not believe it. The potty-mouthed sister was still potty-mouthed, despite the huge number of kids and tweens in the audience.
Of Monsters And Men put on a very good show, though I quickly realized that I really haven’t explored the majority of their music. Most of it was slow, and you know I am not a fan of slow music at concerts. They had much better stage lighting (and actual stage set), and their costumes were entertaining. They talked to the audience a few times, which was great – I love their accents.

Dirty Projectors and The National, Merriweather Post Pavilion, 6-6-13

Horrible shot of Dirty Projectors, 6-6-13, MPP

Horrible shot of The National, 6-6-13, MPP

I arrived late for Dirty Projectors on Thursday, June 6, 2013 at Merriweather Post Pavilion because of the rain and subsequent traffic jams, and that was a pity, because I bought this ticket specifically to go see Dirty Projectors. It was raining and I had a lawn seat, but Merriweather was nice and let the lawn folks into the unsold Pavilion seats in the loge area. So I got to see most of the act out of the rain. They really are amazingly impressive musicians. I think it would have been incredible to watch them in an intimate venue. The voice control alone is astonishing. I didn’t even mind that they barely acknowledged the audience.

Jill and Bernie arrived in time for The National. I wasn’t impressed. They had some good lights on stage, and I learned that the band members are quite a bit older than I had imagined, but it sounded just like the recordings and there wasn’t all that much audience interaction to beef up the stiff performance. I left early and was perfectly fine with that.

Charli XCX and Little Daylight at U Street Music Hall 6-3-13

Little Daylight at U Street Music Hall 6-3-13

Charli XCX at U Street Music Hall 6-3-13

I went to see Charli XCX with Trish at U Street Music Hall on Monday, June 3, 2013. We got dinner a block away at Chix first (I recommend it highly, by the way), so we were late to Little Daylight. The few songs I saw them perform were good, but not memorable. Charli XCX is a wunderkind British singer-songwriter. She wrote “I Love It” by Icona Pop and has a new album she’s supporting. She got rave reviews for her live show at SXSW, so I was excited to see her. I felt she delivered, though I had a horrible view for most of the show. The songs are all pop rock – the kind you can dance to and sing along with.  She talked to the audience some, and she was energetic on stage. I hope I get to see her again from a better vantage point. Trish HATED the cover song she did – some 80s crap that I can’t even remember now.



Hey Marseilles at Ram's Head On Stage 6-23-13



Cole Cash at Ram's Head on Stage 6-23-13

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Sunday, June 23, 2013, Geri and I both took our 8-year-old daughters to see Hey Marseilles at an all-ages matinee at Ram's Head On Stage in Annapolis, which is a seated dinner-concert venue. It was a great time! I was sorry to see such a bad turn out, though. Not even ¼ of the seats were filled.  The last time I went to a matinee, it was nearly full. The music was beautiful. The artists authentic and engaged. They looked joyful playing on stage. I thought the lead singer sounded more like Colin Meloy in person than recorded. The band is chamber-pop from Seattle and includes a cello (played standing) and viola. Most memorable was when the lead singer talked about the girl’s milkshakes.  He called them temptresses for drinking them in front of him (he has a serious milk shake addiction.)

The opener was Cole Cash, a duo from Annapolis, MD. They were folksy/country sounding and did several covers.  (Maybe all covers. I couldn’t tell.) The woman has a beautiful voice. The man, not as good, but sounded great with her in duets. They played guitar and slide guitar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Features with opener Heyrocco at Black Cat, Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Heyrocco at Black Cat 5-15-2013

The Features at Black Cat 5-15-2013

 

I like a couple songs by both the Features and Heyrocco, the tickets were cheap at Black Cat, and the set times were early enough to take the metro home, so I took a chance on this show.  It was worth the money, but being worth $15 isn’t really fabulous.  Heyrocco seems to have some promising songwriting, but their stage presence and sound engineering wasn’t great. Their main effort at connecting with the audience was asking everyone to dance over and over, but the music wasn’t all that dance-inspiring. It came across as cute and slightly clueless about getting an audience going. They did not provide any examples of dancing to their music themselves. They were very polite to the audience, and towards the end announced sheepishly that their van had broken down and they needed a place to stay.  They suggested a sleepover where they could play songs for the host.  I so wanted to volunteer – if I had a bigger house, I would have.

The Features sounded a lot better, though they also struggled with instrument vs. mike levels. I think that was the sound guy’s fault, since it plagued both acts. Their act wasn’t very engaging, though. They didn’t move around on stage much and only spoke to the audience a few times. They did appear to be completely professional in their musicianship, just not must in terms of performers.  I left shortly before the end of their set. The evening ended up rather forgettable.

Favorite song by Heyrocco: Elsewhere

Favorite songs by the Features: Another One and  I Will Wander