Concert Review: The National, Wye Oak and Local Natives at the Aragon Ballroom, 12/6/2011

Last Tuesday night, Brooklyn based indie rockers, the National, played a sold out show at Uptown's Aragon Ballroom.

Even though the National has been one of my favorite bands for about six year now, I never quite got around to seeing them live.  At first, it was just pure laziness on my part, but for the last couple of years there have been some serious obstacles in my way: like only playing Chicago for Lollapalooza (port-a-potties and poor sound quality, I think not) or playing the exact same night AND time as my other favorite Ohio rock band- the Black Keys.  Excuses excuses, I know, but I was getting seriously worried I'd never see them live. So when the Aragon gig was announced, I was super excited that not only were the National playing Chicago again (and indoors!), but they had two bands I liked a lot opening for them! 

Baltimore duo Wye Oak started off the evening a little bit before seven.  Their album, Civilian, was one of my favorite albums of this year, but I was even more impressed with their live show. Jenn Wasner's vocals really popped in a live setting and her guitar playing was phenomenal. The band had incredible sound for a two person outfit, especially considering the Aragon's barn like acoustics and that poor Wasner spent most of the set being half- electrocuted by her mike.

Next up were L.A. based indie poppers Local Natives. Out of the bands, they were probably the one I was least excited to see. I enjoyed their album, Gorilla Manor. But they are a little too upbeat and accessible for me to listen to on a regular basis.  But in concert, they were adorable and the audience really enjoyed their set.   Local Natives singer Taylor Rice had an easy going and affable stage presence (and looked vaguely like James Franco with a mustache).  It was probably smart to have them sandwiched in between two more lugubrious acts.  They were the only band that you could dance to and not look weird (though many tried and failed to prove otherwise). 

Before the National set, they had a live video of the band hanging out backstage.  It had a strange effect on the audience.  At first we calmly watched the video, then slowly started cheering louder and louder to cajole the band out of their dressing room- like a pre-concert encore. The band took the stage around nine and played for a solid hour and a half.  Singer Matt Berninger looked sharp in a suit coat, vest, tie, jeans and oxfords.  Casually holding a wine glass in his hand through the evening, he looked like the dapperest man in indie rock (Hamilton Leithauser better up his game).  The band opened with "Runaway" from their most recent album, High Violet.  But their set drew from throughout their career, including tracks from their more obscure early records like "Murder Me Rachael" from Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers and "Son" from their self-titled debut. 

Robyn at the Riveria Theatre, 2/14/11

This Valentine's Day, Swedish pop singer Robyn played a sold out show at Uptown's Riviera Theatre.  She was originally scheduled to perform last Friday, but the show had to be rescheduled due to an illness.  Opening for her were two performers I wasn't familiar with: Natalia Kills and Diamond Rings.

This was my first time going to the Riv and I was pleasantly surprised.  Even though it's twice Metro's capacity, it doesn't really feel all that much bigger.  It is also well staffed; no twenty minute waits for the bar here!  The sound quality seemed much better than neighboring venue the Aragon.  Although, the bathroom situation is pretty desperate.

Natalia Kills was the first up.  She is a British singer/ songwriter who has a slightly darker and arty take on pop music.  She had a strong singing voice and charisma; plus she and her dancers had pretty interesting choreography.  The audience seemed to enjoy her performance. 

Diamond Rings's set was less well received, but not because his performance was lacking.  There was a long pause between the first and second performances and the audience was more than a little antsy.  It's hard to blame them, normally you don't wait 45 minutes for an opening act.  Still, it's pretty rude to call out for a headliner during an opening act. Or spend the entire time talking over a performance.  Anyway, Diamond Rings set might have been a little on the long side, but he seemed to take much of the audience indifference in stride.  He has a new wave pop sound and a David Gahan-esque voice.  In a smaller venue and under better circumstances, he'd probably be much more enjoyable. 

The audience for the show was a mixture of hardcore fans and people just looking to party.  A couple people even came in costume, including one guy who glued pieces of a paper to his face to emulate the Body Talk, Part 3 cover.  That's some serious dedication there.  There were a lot more guys than girls in attendance, which I found a little surprising.  Most of the audience was polite (actually saying "Excuse me" when moving about!) and very excited to be there.  However, a few attendees behavior was on the obnoxious side.  And some people refused to let others pass by them, like concert trolls.  Thankfully, the stupidity pretty much died down by Robyn's set. 

Robyn finally took the stage around 9:45 PM (the concert started at 7:30 PM).  She opened with "Time Machine" and the audience quickly transformed into one big awkward dance party.  The Black Keys are known for their breakneck pace live, but Robyn could give them a run for their money.  She managed to get through almost all of the songs you can dance to on all three Body Talk albums, plus a few tracks from Robyn (including "Cobrastyle," "With Every Heart Beat," and "Konichiwa B----s"), in an hour and half long performance.

Robyn has real stage presence and boundless energy, as she danced throughout the entire double encore set!   Her live backing band was a nice addition.  They really showed off their skills doing a remix/ combo of "We Dance to the Beat" and "Don't F----ing Tell Me What to Do."  Other highlights from the show include, "Dancing on My Own," "Indestructible," "Hang with Me," and "With Every Heart Beat."  She closed with probably her most well-known song stateside, mid-90's hit "Show Me Love."  It was oddly inspiring to know she still performs stuff from her teen pop star days!  And scary to discover that I somehow had the lyrics to that song lodged in my subconscious for the last fifteen years. 

Even though last Friday I was bummed to discover the show had been delayed, Robyn's many songs of heartbreak seemed especially appropriate for Valentine's Day.  It was fun and uplifting to dance and sing-a-long to unrequited love songs, like a concert and group therapy session in one!  Robyn will be opening up for Katy Perry on her next tour.  Even though I'm not really a fan of Perry, I actually dig this combination and hope it introduces Robyn to a teen audience.  Robyn may use her fairshare of profanity, but she has strong and empowering outlook in her songs that positively differentiate her from a lot of pop stars.

Check out one of Robyn's albums:

Body Talk, Part 3 (2010).
Find it in the catalog! 

Body Talk, Part 2 (2010).
Find it in the catalog! 

Body Talk, Part 1 (2010).
Find it in the catalog!

Robyn (2008).
Find it in the catalog!

Robyn is Here (1997).
Find it in the catalog!

Wu-Tang at Congress Theater

Saturday night, the mighty Wu-Tang Clan, pride of Staten Island, took to the stage at Chicago's Congress Theater. But fans had to wait, and wait, for the pleasure. Doors opened at 7:30, but there was a long delay before anything happened on stage, and then what felt like a never-ending stream of opening acts made their appearances. First up was DJ Rude One, who was a fairly low-key presence on stage, but played an impeccable selection of records by East Coast hip-hop acts. (The inclusion of "Mind Playing Tricks on Me" by Houston rappers the Geto Boys was something of an anomaly, but it's a classic, so I'm not going to nitpick.) I was particularly impressed with the way he inter-weaved several tracks by Nas, making the unrelated songs into a sort of mini-suite. Next up was Que Billah, an artist I was completely unfamiliar with. The only conclusion I can make is that Billah is some kind of '90s rap revivalist: he took the stage with a posse of over-eager hype-men, one of whom wore a backpack the entire set; Billa himself removed his left shoe at one point to emphasize the importance of sneakers; and at least twenty minutes of his set was devoted to covers of iconic rap recordings by performers far more successful than himself. I don't really know what to make of Billa's placement on the night's roster. Next up was Chicago native and current candidate for 20th ward alderman, Rhymefest. He performed a sampling of songs from his current album El Che and his 2006 debut Blue Collar. Rhymefest was heavy on audience interaction, even bringing an audience member on stage to rap Kanye West's verse for one song. (His version was quite proficient, I thought.) To their credit, the opening acts seemed cognizant of their second-fiddle status. Both Rhymefest and Que-Billa made mention of having seen Wu-Tang perform on that same stage back in 2006, and Mr. Billa candidly posed the question, "Who can open for Wu-Tang?" It was after Rhymefest's set that the video screen onstage lit up with a giant yellow Wu-Tang logo. The crowd took this to mean that the headliners were up next, but no, it was tangential Wu-affiliate LA the Darkman who took the stage. His repeated statement "I'm LA the Darkman and I represent that mighty, mighty Wu-Tang" was cold comfort for many in the audience, myself included. The Darkman was a powerful presence onstage, standing alone in the harsh lights and frequently dropping verses without DJ backing. (He name-checked DJ Muggs, and performed the track "Devil in a Blue Dress" from the now-classic Muggs album Soul Assassins.) His flow was impressive, and many in the audience expressed familiarity with his songs, but no one seemed sorry to see his set come to an end. Anticipation was sky-high at this point, and the chants of "Wu-Tang, Wu-Tang" repeatedly reached crescendo and died away.

Concert Review: Black Keys at Aragon Ballroom NYE

Dundee Media Corner favorites the Black Keys played three sold out shows last week at Uptown's Aragon Ballroom.  I attended the New Year's Eve concert.  This was my second time seeing the Keys live in 2010, having seen them earlier at the smaller and (vastly) acoustically superior venue Metro. 

The Greenhornes opened for the Keys.  On paper, they seem like the perfect openers.  Both bands have garage rock influenced sounds and hail from Ohio.  However, the Greenhornes' sound was no match for the Aragon's deplorable acoustics, leaving much of their set to sound somewhat indistinguishable, like a musical KFC bowl. From what I could tell, the band seem to be playing with a lot of energy and they are very skilled musicians.  The Greenhornes would sound good at a smaller, better venue. 

This was my first New Year's Eve concert and it was definitely a different atmosphere.  It was sort of a mixture between a concert and a party as concertgoers were chatting away with each other throughout the night. The audience was primarily made up of women all-dolled up for the holiday and men in flannel shirts.  There were quite a bit more ladies at this concert, which may have been why the crowd was less rowdy than at the Metro Keys' concert.

The Keys took the stage a little bit before midnight. Much to my surprise, my doppelganger, Dan Auerbach appeared without his trademark mysteriously orange beard!  Opting instead for a clean shaven look. 

The set list was a mixture of old favorites ("Girl is On My Mind," "I'll Be Your Man") and new hits ("Tighten Up," "Next Girl," "Chop and Change").  There was considerable set list overlap from their Metro show; some of which made sense (I'd be sorely disappointed if they didn't play "I Got Mine") and some not so much (Is "Short Stack Billy" really that loved?).  I give the Black Keys credit for playing songs that are popular and giving the audience what they want; the Keys have to be pretty sick of playing "10 A.M. Automatic" by now. But I like it best when they break away from the expected and play some of their less popular stuff.  So I was pleasantly surprised to find that they added several songs from their first album The Big Come Up to the set and- best of all- a cover of the Kinks' "Act Nice and Gentle" from Rubber Factory.   

Music Roundup: Top Shows of 2010

I was originally going to post on the top five shows of the year; but then I realized I have only been to six shows total. So rather than praising the best of the best, I'd really just be dissing one band (sorry, Beach House, you did not make the cut).  Overall this has been a really good year for live music, shows ranged from really good (Beach House) to supremely awesome (see list).  Below are the top three concerts I've been to this year:

3).  Jens Lekman and Air France at Empty Bottle (January 2, 2010). Swedish crooner Jens Lekman is a real crowd pleaser; proving himself to be even more funny and charming live than on his albums.  Jens played pretty much every song you'd want him to (i.e. "Black Cab," "Postcard to Nina," almost all of Night Falls Over Kortedala), and none of his so-so songs (in spite of one girl feverishly requesting "F-Word").  I was slightly disappointed no one yelled out requests for "Kanske är Jag Kar i Dig" (loose translation: Maybe I'm in love with you), but thankfully he played it anyway.  Jens must have boundless energy as he managed to perform three encores, ending with an intimate take on "Maple Leaves." 

2). Black Keys and the Morning Benders at Metro (August 7, 2010).  Regular Media Corner readers know that we are not shy about our affection for this duo from Akron, Ohio.  And they sound even more awesome live, even with a less than ideal closing song choice ("Sinister Child").  I have tickets to see the Keys one more time to this year, so they still have a chance to get the top spot (especially if Dan Auerbach breaks out the steel guitar and plays "The Lengths").
Read the original concert review. 

1).  LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip at the Aragon (October 25, 2010). Monday night shows are usually very low energy, but this was the exception.  LCD Soundsystem did a nice job of balancing songs from all three of their albums.  The audience was definitely the best out of all the shows I've been to this year.  And then there was the light show, which was so spectacular that they had to post a warning on the door.   Read the original concert review. 

Showman of the year:  Erlend Øye.  Dan Auerbach can play a mean guitar.  Jens Lekman can captive an audience with Scandinavian twee-dreaminess.  But only Øye would have a dance-off with audience members to Paul Simon's "You Can Me Al".

Biggest regrets:  The National at House of Blues (August 7, 2010). I've been a fan of this band since 2005, yet I haven't caught them live yet.   This year I was forced to choose between the National and the Black Keys, and I chose Keys.  Still, I hope the National plays Chicago again soon (and not just at Lollapalooza).

LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip at the Aragon Ballrom, 10/25/10

New York City-based indie dance punk outfit LCD Soundsystem played a sold-out show at Uptown's Aragon Ballroom this Monday.  UK electropop band Hot Chip opened for the show. I like both bands and their music seemed complementary, so I was excited to get to see them both together.

I hadn't been to the Aragon Ballroom in several years and I was surprised by how much bigger it is than most of the other indie rock venues in Chicago.  It is at least four times as big as my most frequently visited venue, the Metro.  Aragon is somewhat dubiously known for having poor sound quality.  This was more apparent during the Hot Chip set, where the bass seemed to overtake the rest of the music. Parking was also more expensive than most other venues, a hefty 20 dollars for a spot at any of the nearby private lots.

Hot Chip took the stage almost immediately at 8 PM and played for about an hour.  Their set started out somewhat low-energy and with a bass-dominated, muddled sound.  However, their performance improved greatly through out the evening.  Standouts included "Over and Over" from their 2006 album The Warning, and "A Touch Too Much" and "Ready for the Floor" from Made in the Dark (2008). The highlight of the set for me was the fancy footwork by the band's sharply dressed multi-instrumentalist Owen Clarke.  He is truly the Justin Hammer of Hot Chip.

It was uncomfortably warm during the Hot Chip set, and once people had packed in for LCD Soundsystem, it became practically a sauna.  However, lack of room and high temperatures did not stop anyone from dancing.  LCD Soundsystem opened with an awesome rendition of "Dance Yrself Clean."  Their set list drew equally from all three of their albums and they played pretty much every song you could expect or want.  Their sound fared much better than Hot Chip; it was super loud, but the guitar and drums stood out as much as the bass.  However, singer and band leader James Murphy's onstage comments were barely audible.

Lee DeWyze at Arlington Park, 9/24/10

American Idol Season 9 winner and Mount Prospect native Lee DeWyze returned home on Friday to play a concert at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights. Backed by his own band, he sang a combination of covers and originals and treated the crowd to his first performance ever of new song "Only Dreaming" off his upcoming album due to be released November 16. He said the song is probably his favorite song he's ever written. DeWyze looked very confident onstage and told the audience how much he appreciated their support.

From the two times I've seen him perform live, I've seen how DeWyze connects to the feelings of the music and puts his whole soul into singing. On Friday he tackled covers of Elton John's "Rocket Man," Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody," Dave Matthews Band's "Crash Into Me," and U2's "Beautiful Day." "Beautiful Day" was his first single released after winning American Idol; much to the delight of everyone in the crowd, DeWyze sang his unique version of the song, which he has performed on various TV appearances but isn't the version released as a single. One of the highlights of the entire concert was "Rocket Man," where DeWyze's gritty, soulful take on the beginning made me completely forget Elton John's version. From his pre-Idol album Slumberland DeWyze sang "So What Now," "Annabelle," and one of my favorites of the night, "Stay."  He also sang two songs that he memorably performed on Idol: Simon and Garfunkel's "The Boxer" and Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." I think he sang a few more songs but I am not able to remember them right now.

While DeWyze previously performed at the American Idols Live tour in August at the United Center, this concert was his first solo performance since he won Idol; DeWyze told the crowd that this concert begins his career. I think he sounded awesome with the band backing him and you could tell how much fun he was having performing at home. At one point during the show, after ending a song, DeWyze announced that was the point where he was supposed to be done; his band left. Listening to the screams of the crowd, he remained on the stage and sang two more songs with just his guitar.

Black Keys and the Morning Benders at Metro, 8/7/10

While the Black Keys were in town last weekend to play at summer music festival behemoth Lollapalooza, they also played a late night show at the Metro in Wrigleyville. I am a pretty big fan of the duo from Akron, Ohio, having previously expressed my love for their stellar album Rubber Factory (seriously, listen it to it!).  However, summer music festivals aren't my favorite, something about the combination of port-a-potties, the hot summer sun, and poor sound quality just doesn't appeal to me.  So naturally I opted to see the Metro show instead and was one of the lucky few non-Lolla attendees to snag tickets. 

When I first approached Metro, I saw a line winding pretty far down Clark St.  I've attended shows that were sold out before, but never quite this popular.  California indie rockers the Morning Benders opened for the Keys.  I've been enjoying their most recent album, Big Echo, throughout the summer.  It's a nice blend of shoe-gazer and 60s pop-inspired harmonies that manages to sound both old-fashioned and fresh at the same time.  The band had more of a forceful, guitar heavy sound in concert and performed a really enjoyable set.  Lead singer Christopher Chu was a sarcastic but genial stage presence that slowly won over an initially indifferent crowd.  Also, I feel obliged to mention that the Morning Benders are pretty cute in a skinny hipster sort of way.  I'd recommend the band to fans of the Arctic Monkeys, the Shins, or Beach House.

During the break between the Morning Benders and the Black Keys sets, I noticed that the girl in front of me kept looking up in the balcony with a mixture of surprise and (I thought) disgust.  I assumed someone was doing something stupid, so I looked up there too.  Much to my surprise, I saw the pretty, brooding face of Ed Westwick aka. Chuck Bass from Gossip Girl.  I felt sort of bad for him, because Chicago audiences aren't quite as cool to celebrities as in New York and L.A.; people were gawking and taking pictures.  Also, he was stuck up in the balcony rather than being able to rock out in the pit like the rest of us.

The Black Keys took the stage a little after midnight.  Their set featured songs from all six of their albums, though their most recent album Brothers was definitely the focus; they played about 10 songs off of it.   They played primarily singles from their older albums, making the show a good primer for newer Keys fans.  However, as a nerd, I couldn't help but wish they played some deeper cuts too.  Nonetheless, this was definitely an awesome show.  I've always been impressed by Dan Auerbach's guitar work, but live, I was blown away by how amazingly talented he is. He's the equivalent of all four Midlake guitarists in one impressively bearded guitar player.  The Keys started out as a duo and were later joined on stage by a touring bassist and guitar player.  I can't say I really noticed a radical different in sound between the two piece and four piece Black Keys. Dan and drummer Patrick Carney are able to rock enough on their own.  Highlights of their set include: "10 A.M. Automatic" from Rubber Factory, "I Got Mine" from  Attack and Release, a cover of Junior Kimbrough's "Everywhere I Go" from Thickfreakness, and "She's Long Gone" and "Everlasting Light" from Brothers. My only real quibble with the set was the closer, "Sinister Kid," which is my second least favorite song off of Brothers ("Unknown Brother" is my number one and thankfully wasn't played).  It's not a terrible song, but with an incredible song catalog, they could have done much better (like "The Lengths").  Also, it has sort of a weird rhythm, so there was lots awkward dancing going on in the crowd.  Still this was definitely among my top two shows of the year so far. 

The audience for the show was definitely on the rowdy side.  Most of the people had attended Lollapalooza first, so they were more than ready to party, and it was a guy-heavy crowd.  The show started out crowded and wound up stuffed to the brim.  Between the geeky, in-place dancing done by most the audience (myself very much included) and the sizable crowd, most of the audience was pretty sweaty by the end of the night.  It was a fun and enthusiastic crowd that sang along with most of the songs and cheered wildly for everything, except Dan's confessed Lady Gaga love.

Kings of Convenience at Metro, 6/10/10

Norwegian folk duo the Kings of Convenience played at Chicago's Metro theater last Thursday. The concert was originally scheduled for last February, but had to be postponed because band member Eirik Glambek Bøe came down with swine flu.  The show was definitely worth the wait.

I'm a moderate fan of the Kings of Convenience.  I was first introduced to the band because band member Erlend Øye toured a couple years ago with my Scandinavian indie rock crush, Jens Lekman.  Erlend's awkward charisma and awesomely bad dancing intrigued me.  I am a fan of the Kings' two older albums, Riot in an Empty Street and Quiet is the New Loud.  They have a quiet, peaceful, melancholy sound that is really nice when you're in the right mood.  I also enjoyed Erlend Øye's techno side projects including the Whitest Boy Alive and his solo album Unrest.  However, I haven't really gotten around to listening to the Kings' new album, Declaration of Independence, even though it's their first record in five years and has been out for almost a year. Which is to say that I wasn't the biggest fan there or the most familiar with the material, but I was interested to see how Erlend's charms held up with material that was darker and less danceable than his solo efforts.

A Californian band called Franklin for Short opened for the group. I had not heard of them before, but they were very impressively bearded.  I half-expected them to sound like Leonard Skynyrd, but they had more of a conventional indie pop rock sound mixed with some alt-country twang.  The band is sort of a blend of twee indie (they have a song named after everyone's least favorite gift, "Electric Blanket") and neo-hippie (hence the beards).  I started out tolerating them, but their general affability, good lead guitar work, and use of the theremin won me over enough.

The audience for the show was different than I envisioned.  Somehow I didn't think that a semi-obscure, Scandinavian folk duo that sounds vaguely like Simon and Garfunkel would have a mostly male, mostly preppy fan base (polo shirts abounded).  Especially not one that loudly shouted and wooed like they were attending a sporting event.  There were times, several in fact, that the audience was louder than the band.

The Kings took the stage a little bit before 8:30 and played for over an hour and half.  Musically, the show was a little less than perfect.  Metro is a larger concert venue and was packed full of rowdy super fans; the King's delicate sound wasn't quite big enough to fill the room.  They also had some technical problems, including Øye's guitar making an irritating feedback noise.  Still, that wasn't really my draw to this show.  Bøe and Øye have known each other since they were fifteen (both are in their mid-30s now), so they had a lived-in onstage chemistry and peppered their performance with humorous stories about each other.  Gangly and bespectacled, Erlend Øye looks like one of the least likely rock stars in the world.  However, he is probably one of the most charismatic performers in indie rock.  Øye's persona definitely emphasizes his awkwardness.  However, he was able to captivate the audience with his off kilter comments and nerdy enthusiasm. At one point, he made the comment, "You are a very strange audience," prompting an audience member to yell back, "You are very strange too!"  Erlend could only nod his head in agreement.

The band played a variety of songs from their different albums, but material from their most popular album, Riot on an Empty Street, was best received by the audience.  Later during the show, Franklin for Short joined the Kings to play back up and finally gave them enough sound to fill up the room.  Additionally, it allowed Erlend to showcase some of his awkward dancing skills.  The highlight of the evening was the closer, a cover of Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al."  During which, Erlend encourage the audience to form a dancing circle which he jumped off stage to join.  Along side with Dan Deacon and Greg Gillis (aka. Girl Talk), Øye is one of the few indie rockers with enough pizazz and lunacy to be a genuine rock star.

Midlake at Lincoln Hall, 5/23/10

 On Sunday, May 23rd, indie rockers Midlake played Lincoln Hall in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. Lincoln Hall is a smaller, intimate music venue housed in a rehabbed movie theater.  It has easy parking and probably the best bathrooms ever comma concert venue category.  For Chicago History geeks, Lincoln Hall is located directly across from the Biograph Theatre,where John Dillinger was shot and killed. Opening acts included former Czars front-man John Grant and Grandaddy front-man Jason Lytle.

John Grant collaborated with Midlake on his solo album, The Queen of Denmark.  Midlake's flautist/ keyboardist Jesse Chandler even played with him for one of his songs.  Musically, he's a interesting choice for an opener.  Grant sounds like a mix between Ben Folds and Elton John; so he's pretty firmly indie pop.  He also has funny, light-hearted lyrics (a la Jens Lekman).  I'm not a huge fan of that style of music (except for Lekman), but he was an entertaining performer and has a great voice.   Jason Lytle's low key and wistful set was a more natural fit with Midlake's sound.

The show started out pretty empty, but gradually filled up throughout the evening.  By the time Midlake performed, the venue was surprisingly packed for a Sunday night concert.  Lucky for me, I was one of the few people who arrived for the first set, so I got to be pretty close to the stage.  Midlake started their set at around 10 PM and played for around an hour and half.  Midlake is usually quintet, but their touring band is a septet including four guitar players!  Front man Tim Smith has a reserved stage presence, which makes sense for someone who writes songs about wanting to escape to the forest.  Smith introduced the different band members and thanked the audience for coming, but besides that he kept pretty quiet.  Guitarist Eric Pulido, who resembles a bearded John Krasinski, was responsible for most of the onstage banter.  He is a genial and funny stage presence, even taking time out of the show to wish an audience member a happy birthday.    

Midlake played songs from two of their albums the Trials of Van Occupanther and the Courage of Others.  I am a big fan of both albums, but they are pretty different sonically; Trials has 70s Fleetwood Mac feel to it and Courage is more of a 60s folk mixed with prog rock sound.  It was interesting to see how the band incorporated the sounds from both the albums into a cohesive set.  Midlake definitely downplayed the synth riffs on Trials, going for a more bluesy country sound instead.  The prog rock side of Midlake definitely comes out in concert, extended jam sessions were done to several songs including the opening of "Roscoe", "Head Home" and the heart-breaking closer "Branches."  These sessions really demonstrated the technical abilities of the band and gave guitarist Max Townsley the chance to shine. Also, they rocked pretty hard. Other highlights include "In the Core of Nature" which was accompanied by two flutes and a recorder (a rare sight at a rock show) and a twangier and more upbeat version of "Fortune."  The small venue created a perfect atmosphere for Midlake's serious, delicate sound.

Previously on Midlake:
What We're Listening to: Courage of Others by Midlake.

Lee DeWyze at Arlington Park, 5/14/10

Yesterday American Idol contestant Lee DeWyze returned home to Mount Prospect and the Chicago-area for a day packed with interviews, appearances, and performances. The grand finale of the day was a mini-concert set to begin at 6:30 PM at Arlington Park. Tickets for the free concert were gone in 12 minutes on Wednesday night, after Lee was announced as making the Top 3, and all of the race day tickets were also snatched up. While I was disappointed I was not able to get any of the concert tickets online, I later found out that general admission tickets to the track were still available for $6. This was an awesome surprise yesterday morning when I read about the tickets the newspaper and I was able to buy a few before they also disappeared.

Race times were moved up to 1 PM to make time for the concert and many Lee fans filled the stands watching the races as they counted down till Lee's arrival. Around 7 PM we started to hear screaming in a corner of the stands; Lee was making his way through the crowd surrounded by bodyguards (he was preceded by a bagpipe player!). Before Lee sang he spoke to the crowd a little; he was very overwhelmed by all the fans who came out to see him. Mayor of Mount Prospect Irvana Wilks also said some words before giving him the key to the city and proclaiming May 14 to be Lee DeWyze Day.

Fans try to catch a glimpse of Lee DeWyze as he makes his way through the crowd at Arlington Park. He was 3 feet away from me, but I couldn't see anything!

Originally scheduled to sing only three songs, Lee ended up singing ten in total during his acoustic set on a small stage in front of the Winner's Circle. One of the first things Lee told the crowd was that he was going to sing more than three. He kicked off his set with Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody," which he said is a song he would like to perform on the show. He followed that with an original song. Next was Hinder's "Lips of an Angel," much to the delight of all the fans who sang along, which he performed during one of the semifinal rounds. Lee also sang "Walk Away" by Ben Harper before going into "The Boxer," one of his best performances on the show to date. At times he had trouble singing the lyrics because of how overcome he was with emotion (either that, or he forgot the words). Lee followed that with a cover of Dave Matthews Band "Crash Into Me," requested by his brother. He then went into another original song. Unfortunately I don't know the title, but he infused the lyrics with an intensity that I haven't seen him do on any song on American Idol. He really let loose while singing it. He introduced the next song, "Holiday in Spain" by Counting Crows, as being one of his favorites. At one point he jokingly began to sing Seal's "Kiss From a Rose," which he sang for this past week's songs of the movies theme and received negative feedback from the judges. Throughout his set Lee had fun with the crowd and even asked, "Am I smiling enough?" to reference a criticism he has received on the show about being too serious. Several times throughout the night he commented that he was told he had to leave, but he stayed up there to keep playing.

Lee started to sing "Hey, Jude" and then stopped to ask the audience to clap together during the song. After he got a few lines into the song with everyone clapping along Lee had to stop singing and moved to the side of the stage with his head in his hands because again became very emotional. He said that while he's been out in California he hadn't realized the extent of his support back home; over 41,000 people were in attendance at the concert last night. Lee ended the concert with a performance of "Stay," another of his original songs. Completing his set, he threw his guitar strap into the crowd, but even then he wasn't done; he came back on stage to wish everyone a good night.

I think the concert last night at Arlington Park was Lee at best. He was relaxed while singing and really let go, especially while singing his original songs. I loved his response to the crowd's support. He wanted to keep singing songs no matter what the American Idol handlers (or whoever they were) told him. I thought it was a possibility that he was going to have to be dragged off the stage! Lee told the crowd that when he goes back to California and performs at the next live show he will be thinking of everyone supporting him back home. I had an awesome time at the concert and definitely look forward to seeing the footage of Lee's hometown welcome on American Idol next week.

Images from Lee DeWyze Day (from the Daily Herald)

Do you want your own neon yellow "Vote 4 Lee" t-shirt or a blue "BELEEVE" shirt? Check out Where to buy Lee DeWyze merchandise for Mount Prospect businesses that sell Lee paraphernalia!

Crooner in concert: Michael Bublé

Saturday, March 27, Michael Bublé performed to a sold-out crowd at the Allstate Arena. Apart from the difficult time leaving the parking lot after the show (jeez!), it was a welcome night out.

His 13-member backing band, comprised of brass, piano, and percussion, was excellent. (And a classy Bublé introduced them all throughout the show.) Despite being in an arena, the atmosphere was that of a modern club, with cool nightlife scenes running in the background. Naturally, there weren't any special effects; the focus was on the charm and talent of the musicians and singer. Bublé has a sharp wit and his interactions with the crowd were amusing.

Some of the highlights included his performance of Home, a favorite of mine, and when he described how the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off influenced him. Mathew Broderick's scene on the parade float "made him want be a singer"-- he sang a couple of lines from Twist and Shout to prove it.

His performance of Feeling Good was the crescendo to the concert and he began the last encore, Song For You, on the mike and ended without it. We could hear him perfectly across the length of the arena. Impressive.

Crazy Love (2009)
Find it in the catalog!

Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden (2009)
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Call Me Irresponsible (2007)
Find it in the catalog!

Beach House at Metro, 4/2/10

Baltimore-based indie rockers Beach House played to a sold-out crowd at Wrigleyville's Metro theater on April 2. Beach House is popular among the Media Corner team, fellow staff member Linda previously wrote up their most recent album Teen Dream. I've been a fan since their self-titled debut, but this was my first time seeing them live.

New Zealander Annabel Alpers aka. Bachelorette opened for Beach House, and it was one of those rare instances where the opening act complimented the headliner well. Bachelorette has an electro-pop sound accompanied by Alpers' strong vocals. She overlaps her vocals on many of tracks, giving her a hint of 1960s girl group sound. Alpers has kind of an awkward, Charlyne Yi-esque stage persona. I doubt that most people in the audience had heard of her before the show, but she won over much of the audience after her set.

The mood in the theater was definitely interesting throughout the night.  Metro tends to encourage concert-goers to also visit its neighboring Smart Bar before and after shows. You couldn't ask for a more excited or receptive audience, though you could tell that many had partaken in the pre-show libation.  By the end of the night, it was rowdier crowd than you expect at most shows for dream pop bands, especially considering the concert was finished by midnight on a Friday night. 

Beach House took the stage at around 10 PM and played for about an hour and half.  The stage decorations for their set consisted of sparkly, shiny pyramids which, in combination with foggy haze of the theater and dark lighting, was reminiscence of a school dance.  Their set consisted mostly of songs off  Teen Dream with a few older songs thrown in the mix ("Gila" and "Master of None").  Lead singer Victoria Legrand's smoky, booming voice is one of the major strengths of the band and in the smaller venue it really stood out.  Perhaps due to the somber, dreamy sound of the band, I was somewhat surprised by how much charisma Legrand had in person.  Between her constantly moving, flowing locks and funny on-stage banter, she turned many of the too-cool-to-care hipster boys in the audience into teenyboppers.  One boozy concert-goer near me gleefully announced to his friends, "I think she'd like me" in reference to Legrand. Band mate Alex Scally was on the quieter side, their touring drummer actually interacted more with the audience than Scally did. However, Scally's guitar work made up for his lack of showmanship.  Highlights of their set included "Norway," "Used to Be" and an encore performance of "10 Mile Stereo."

Gaga oh la-la: Lady Gaga at the Rosemont Theatre, 1/9/10

Over the weekend Lady Gaga was in town for three concerts of "The Monster Ball Tour" at the Rosemont Theatre. Performing songs from both The Fame (2008) and The Fame Monster (2009), Lady Gaga put on an incredible show. I attended the second concert on Saturday and had an awesome time. Before Lady Gaga even took the stage her fans enjoyed themselves dancing to the Michael Jackson songs being piped over the sound system after opening acts Semi Precious Weapons and singer Jason Derulo performed. Impromptu dance parties sprouted up all over the theater and soon a conga line of dancers snaked up and down the aisles. It was so fun listening and dancing to the music and checking out the dance moves of the other Gaga fans. I've never seen anything like that occur at a concert!

Gaga finally took the stage around 9:30. She began with "Dance in the Dark," performing behind a light display that made it appear as though the stage was caged in. For the next song, "Just Dance," Gaga emerged playing a keyboard slung over her shoulder standing on top of a giant transparent cube while the backdrop screens projected a ton of bright colors. The next group of songs came from Gaga's The Fame Monster: "Alejandro," "Monster," and the inspired-by-vampires "let's go to church" Southern stylings of "Teeth" ("Take a bite of my bad girl meat... Show me your teeth!").

Taking a break from the choreography, Gaga sat at the piano and sang a few bars of "Cell Block Tango" from the musical Chicago before singing the emotional "Speechless," at one point stopping to let the audience sing the lyrics. Remaining at the piano Gaga then playfully sang some of her hit "Poker Face," injecting the dance song with some undeniably powerful notes and soul. Returning to her dance songs, Gaga performed a big chunk of cuts from The Fame, including "LoveGame," "The Fame," "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich," "Paper Gangsta," "Boys Boys Boys" and "Paparazzi." "So Happy I Could Die" (from The Fame Monster) was also performed, but I can't remember which part it was in the set list. For "Paparazzi" two of her dancers held up a beam that was attached to Gaga's hair by two large hooks. She also performed the popular "Poker Face," this time with her dancers instead of the piano. She closed the show out with "Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" followed by the hit "Bad Romance."

Gaga changed costumes several times throughout the concert but didn't make the audience wait too long for her reappearance. She also talked to the audience quite a bit between songs, remembering how when she performed at Lollapalooza a couple years ago she had just been dropped by a major record label. Gaga often emphasized how much she appreciates her fans (Little Monsters, she calls us); she said that she doesn't exist until she steps on stage to perform. She also brought attention to the RE*Generation campaign to raise awareness and money for youth homelessness. Fans that volunteered through the FREE.I.P program received free tickets to her tour, and Gaga pledged to match each $1 donation at ladyvirgin.com, up to $25,000.

During the entire concert Gaga continued singing live as she performed choreography for each song with her back-up dancers. She has a powerful voice and is a crazy-creative performer, and the high-energy of both Lady Gaga and her fans was constant throughout the concert. I felt the music vibrating on my arms, had a blast dancing the whole night, and really felt like I was a part of an extraordinary experience with all the other Little Monsters (insert monster claw hand here).

All photos by Danielle

Arctic Monkeys at the Riviera Theatre, 12/6/09

Last night the Arctic Monkeys performed an all ages show at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago. Opening with "Dance Little Liar" off their most recent album Humbug, the Arctic Monkeys (Alex Turner, Jamie Cook, Nick O'Malley, and Matt Helders) attacked their songs with a ferocity much appreciated by the crowd. Not surprisingly, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor," riled up the crowd and got one of the biggest responses of the night. "Brianstorm," "This House is a Circus," and "Fluorescent Adolescent" also ignited the crowd's energy. A cover of the Nick Cave song "Red Right Hand" was even thrown into the mix. While the Arctic Monkeys played songs from all three of their albums, a good chunk of the set-list came from Humbug, including the single "Crying Lightning" and my personal favorites "Cornerstone," "My Propeller," and "The Jeweller's Hands." For the encore they performed "If You Were There, Beware" and "505," which started out mellow and then built to an aggressive finish. This was my first time seeing the band perform live and I had an awesome night (my ears are still ringing).

Photos by Danielle Pacini