popwreckoning

Prior to Thursday night, the last time I caught a show at Merriweather Post Pavilion was back in 1998. I don’t really like the place all that much; after you’ve seen great shows in smaller, intimate clubs where you can have a connection with the band that’s performing, the lack of intimacy in an outdoor amphitheatre like Merriweather is startling. The crowds also tend to be very different than those you encounter at club shows – Columbia is quite a drive from Washington or Baltimore, so you will mostly run into older patrons and their spouses drinking beer or parents with their underage kids in tow. Pulling into the parking area, my friends and I looked at the pretty empty field and were worried that there wouldn’t be a good turnout. Thunderstorms had moved through the area earlier, making the walk around the grounds a soggy adventure. I might not go to Merriweather to see most bands, but I will make the exception for Keane.

The pavilion is pretty empty when the first opening act, Fran Healy, begins his one-man acoustic set. Frontmen are all going solo these days – Brandon Flowers of the Killers, Kele Okereke of Bloc Party, and more recently, Paul Smith of Maximo Park. Healy is better known as the frontman for legendary Scottish alt-rock group Travis. He’s putting out his first solo album, Wreckorder, in October, so touring with Keane is a good way for Healy to preview tracks from his forthcoming release. He is very funny, at one point dedicating the 1999 Travis hit “Why Does It Always Rain on Me?” to the unfortunate souls who have lawn seating, and at another point, saying that bugs were biting him and asking if Columbia had mosquitoes, saying, “back in Scotland, we call them ‘midges.‘” In his Scottish accent, it was adorable to say the least.

He also told the story about how he successfully invited Beatle bassist Paul McCartney to play on his solo song “As It Comes” and trying to come up with an appropriate way to thank the Cute Beatle, decided he and his family would go vegetarian in honor of him. (McCartney later mailed Healy three of his late wife’s vegetarian cookbooks in recognition of the gesture.) The older crowd is appreciative of the Travis numbers sprinkled in the set like “Why Does It…” and “Sing” as they are played alongside new songs like the set-ender, “Buttercup.”

The second opener was bespectacled indie pop/folk singer Ingrid Michaelson, backed by a full band. Most of the time Michaelson, dressed in a frilly, small black dress, sang while strumming a ukulele. I’m not really a fan of her music, but even I cannot escape the radio play of her songs “Maybe” and “The Way I Am.” She is obviously a talented singer/songwriter, so I think I would have been more impressed with her performance if she hadn’t played so many covers. Michaelson’s version of Radiohead‘s “Creep” – just her warbling voice and her playing ukulele – was odd to say the least. Perhaps the strangest moment of the night was her saying goodbye with her version of Britney Spears‘ “Toxic”, including a choreographed dance sequence that ended with Michaelson on the shoulders of her bandmates.

Ingrid Michaelson Set List
Soldier
Poker Face (Lady Gaga acoustic cover fragment)
Die Alone
Parachute
The Hat
Creep (Radiohead cover done as an acoustic solo)
Maybe
Locked Up
The Way I Am
The Chain
Toxic (Britney Spears cover)

Keane‘s incidental music before they came onstage was a winner, including Two Door Cinema Club, Everything Everything (the Manchester quartet who recently opened for them on their sold-out Forest Tour of the UK), and Florence and the Machine. It got me appropriately psyched up for what was a fabulously tight set of songs from the English trio. From their recently released EP Night Train, Keane rather smartly only played the best tracks from the r&b-leaning release, including “Clear Skies,” “Stop for a Minute,” and “Your Love.” The latter is now famous as the only song in Keane‘s pretty substantial back catalogue that pianist / principal songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley sings on, and it is a great showcase of Rice-Oxley’s voice. One can only hope that he will share more lead singing duties with Tom Chaplin in the future.

This is not to say Chaplin did not keep up his end of the bargain. As usual, Chaplin’s beautifully compelling voice soared on the Keane ballads we all know so well, including “Everybody’s Changing” and “Somewhere Only We Know,” while being inexhaustible for the more fun, up tempo numbers, like “You Haven’t Told Me Anything” and “Spiralling.” I am torn between Thursday night’s versions of “This is the Last Time” and “Perfect Symmetry” as to which gets my vote for best song of the show. Both are tear-inducing when you hear them live, just gorgeous pieces of piano-driven pop. Going to see Keane is an event. An event you don’t want to miss.

Keane Set List
House Lights (instrumental)
Again and Again
Bend and Break
Everybody’s Changing
Nothing in My Way
Clear Skies
This is the Last Time
Stop for a Minute
Try Again
You Haven’t Told Me Anything
Spiralling
Bad Dream
Is It Any Wonder?
Your Love
Perfect Symmetry
Somewhere Only We Know
Bedshaped
//
My Shadow
Crystal Ball

Tour Dates
Aug 07 – Mann Center / Philadelphia
Aug 10 – Riverside Theatre / Milwaukee
Aug 11 – 1st Ave. / Minneapolis
Aug 13 – Fox Theatre / Boulder
Aug 14 – Mile High Festival / Denver

Keane Photos by Catherine Sexton

Keane: website | myspace | @ Constitution Hall | Keane to Release Expanded Version of Their Debut Album, Hopes and Fears | Keane announces North American in support of new album, Night Train
Fran Healy: website | myspace
Ingrid Michaelson: website | myspace | Everybody review | “Maybe” video

Failing to record the initial interview, Vanna takes over for PodWreck in this double-band interview including Of Mice And Men.

PopWreckoning is giving away tickets to see We are Scientists, who’ll be playing with Bad Veins and local artists Cowboy Indian Bear, on August 12 at the Record Bar in Kansas City, MO.

We only have a four pairs of tickets up for grabs. The contest will end at 2:00 p.m. the day of show (August 12). The show is 18 and over. Winners’ tickets will be at the door when you arrive at the show. Please also include your full name and email in the comment so that we can get in touch with the winners of the contest.

Winning is easy, simply complete the following steps:

1. Comment in this article and tell us your favorite science experiment and why? PopWreckoning staff will read your answers and choose from our favorite ones the day of show.

2. Repost this article on either your facebook, twitter, myspace, blog, website or other social media tool. Spread the wealth, then send us the link (by posting it in your comment).

Then, best (and easiest) of all, show up at the venue and enjoy the show, compliments of PopWreckoning. Good luck!



Mikey from Iwrestledabearonce hits on PodWreck as they conduct their first interview of the day at Warped Tour.

We got a chance to talk to Dan from Four Year Strong on their last day at Warped before they killed it on stage.

It’s day one of Lollapalooza and the Friday line up offers a diverse range of musical genres from electronica, folk, rock to Dance Think. If you’re unfamiliar with the genre of Dance Think, it is new genre crafted by Michigan’s My Dear Disco. It combines electro-pop with funk, rock and techno. Live it translates to music that you can dance too but with a twist.

“It’s a dance rock infused band, so there are going to be five people with five different types of sounds. There will be some bagpipes, screaming guitars, a giant megaphone, a clear drum kit and this giant red bass,” says singer Michele Chamuel. “It’s all going to come together into this groove, where each individual can stick out and make a body move.”

And yes, you read that right. The dance band has bagpipes.

“People love the bagpipes. We almost faded them out at one point because we kind of had the same thought. Does this really make sense? But then we noticed that people would kind of go ballistic whenever we used them. So, now we use them all the time…Well most of the time. They’re a staple of the show,” the MDD says.

So after jumping up and down and letting out a few screams of excitement, the band has being getting ready for Lolla. During some of their pre-Lolla preparations, the band stumbled upon a new way to get amped up for shows.

“We like to get pumped spraying ourselves with a fire extinguisher. We got into a little bit of a mess at a TV station doing that, but they were very patient with us.”

Granted, this was an accidental discovery. The band just got a new van. Lolla is actually the first trip that the band is taking in the new vehicle, but a stoway from the old van made it to the new one: the fire extinguisher. What didn’t make it: the safety. So when they were loading and a suitcase ended up on the extinguisher, mysterious mist started spraying everywhere. They quickly realized it was from the extinguisher.
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“It did pump us up and it was a good motivator. That’s the type of effect we want to have on the crowd: this blowing up fire extinguisher that’s just unexpected to happen”

Fire extiguishers aren’t the only way the band is preparing. Water, ear plugs, sun screen, plans to “leach off the hospitality of the major artists” and the most important item: “oil blotters.”

“If you go and look online, you can see that we don’t have a speck of oil on our faces. It’s beautiful: good clean pores.”

Of course, their fun personalities, unique instrumentation and clear complexions aren’t the only reasons to check them out. You’d want to be at this set because it will “melt faces.” Plus, they say they also beat all the other in an arm wrestling and thumb wars match.

“So, if you want to see a band that’s better at thumb wars and arm wrestling, come see us.”

My Dear Disco plays on the BMI Stage at 3 p.m., Friday, August 6. You can also catch them at various after parties. On Saturday, they’re playing a free after show with Neon Trees, but the venue is a secret. Keep on eye on My Dear Disco’s website for clues. And for those not able to join the band at the fest, be sure to check them online or in another city. They do a pretty unique cover of Lady Gaga’s “Pokerface” – that’s the bonus of two Lolla artists for the price of one! Although, we did find out that the band doesn’t plan to overdose the Lolla goers with their cover of that song.

This is by far the strangest interview we’ve done. Listen to PodWreck talk about showers and Australia, but beware of loud noises and language during this interview with Closure in Moscow during the band’s KC Warped Tour stop.
 

Third time really is the charm. Twice before I had purchased a ticket to see Tokyo Police Club in Kansas City, but twice the band had canceled on me. Sure, I’ve been able to catch the happy Canadian rockers in other cities, but it just isn’t the same as seeing them in your home in the comfort of a favorite bar.This particular show found Tokyo Police Club fans packed into the RecordBar for the band’s long overdue KC performance. Opening for them were alt rockers The Arkells and indie pop group Freelance Whales.

I missed the Arkells, but did arrive in time for Freelance Whales. Think of PlayRadioPlay or even an Owl City type sound if Owl City was indie and used a bunch of fun percussion instruments such as triangles and xylophones. It was adorable, and quirky and fun. The band started with my favorite tune, “Hannah,” so they had me dancing from the get go…too bad the rest of the bar patrons didn’t feel like dancing at this point in the show.

The stiffness of Kansas City crowds has long been a pet peeve of mine, but somehow, Tokyo Police Club broke through this stiffness and got people to move and dance. *gasp!* It’s extra impressive when you consider that people were dancing to a band that isn’t an electronica dance act, but a rock group. Plus, people were packed into the tiny venue like sardines. I think TPC just quickly enchanted with one of the best light shows that I’ve ever seen inside that venue and they played with an enthusiasm level that was contagious. Can you imagine my surprise to learn that singer Dave Monks was feeling sick this evening, but still gave 110 percent and smiled the whole time.

The set was packed with songs off the new album from the Julian Casablancas-esque “Bambi” to the raucous single “Wait Up (Boots of Danger).” But classics like the clap anthem “Tessellate” and the wonderful “Nature of the Experiment” also rounded out the set. The band even treated Kansas City to a brand new, never before heard tune as an apology for skipping the town so often. Awww. TPC had an encore planned, but they had already pushed their set well past the bar’s last call and with the house lights on in the venue, they had to end the night with “Your English Is Good.” Although, after the insane dancing and singing along to that number, I can’t imagine any song being able to top that.

We all went home happy and I can say with great surety that it’d be good to have them back.

Set List:
Colour
Nature
Box
Top 5
Spark
Cave
Tessellate
Hands
Big Diff
Not Sick
Be Good
Bambi
Food
Gone
Citizens
Breakneck Speed
Boots
Your English
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Graves & Cheer It On – not played

Photos by Patrice Jackson.

Tomorrow, Friday, August 6, Lollapalooza kicks off. Here are our recommendations for Friday survival and fun.

Tip 1: Let’s start things off with the weather. Unlike last year, it is supposed to be sunny all weekend! Yay! However, this means it will also be hot, even with the festival being set up next to the lake. So stay HYDRATED. And as awesome as it is, beer is not a means of hydration. WATER is a must. Fortunately, Lollapalooza, does have water stations set up (you can usually find them by port-a-potty areas). So there’s no excuse for not drinking water. And when you’re done with your plastic bottles or cups, make sure you recycle. Lolla has plenty of recycling stations throughout the park.

Another tip: Sleep. Especially tonight (Thursday) because between the actual fest, stuff to do in Chicago, and after shows, you won’t get much sleep the rest of the weekend.

Tip 3: Show up early. Especially on the first day when they have to put wristbands on. If there’s a band you want to see, it will take awhile to get through the check-in and over to the stage, so don’t plan on seeing a 1 p.m. band showing up at 12:50. It isn’t going to happen. There are two entrances to help people get in Grant Park quickly, but it will still take some time. Also, show up early because there are some great bands that start playing really early in the day. Don’t regret missing These United States at 11:15 a.m. because you were still watching TV at your hotel.

Tip 4: RSVP. There are tons of free events going on after the festival. More great bands, free drinks and more fun. But there’s a catch. A lot of them require RSVPs. So plan your post show fun now and double check if you need to RSVP. There’s some good recommendations on free after events here.

Tip 5: Watch bands you’ve never heard of. Look at the schedule. I’m betting you haven’t heard of quite a few of the bands playing, but go check them out. Did you know that just a few years ago, Lady Gaga played one of the smaller stages during the day? No one really knew who she was then, but now she’s headlining! So go discover someone awesome.

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Five bands to check out each day:

Friday: These United States (11:15 a.m.), Jukebox the Ghost (1:45 p.m.), My Dear Disco (3 p.m.), Devo (4 p.m.), Lady Gaga (8 p.m.)

Saturday: The Morning Benders (12 p.m.), Skybox (12:30 p.m.), Dan Black (3 p.m.), Gogol Bordello (3:45 p.m.) Cut Copy (7:30 p.m.)

Sunday: Health (11:30 a.m.), The Antlers (12:15 p.m.), The Dodos (1 p.m.), Freelance Whales (3 p.m.), Yeasayer (4 p.m.)

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PopWreckoning will be at Lollapalooza! We’ll post our reviews, photos and interviews over the next few days here. For more immediate coverage, follow PopWrecker Bethany on Twitter at twitter.com/glowah.

LIGHTS is an incredibly talented girl who plays the guitar, piano, drums, and even a keytar. Her music is very electro-pop and she describes it as “intergalactic” on her MySpace. But LIGHTS has recently released an acoustic EP simply titled LIGHTS. ACOUSTIC. In support of this new release, LIGHTS is doing a string of sold out acoustic shows. The first show in Philadelphia, PA, was packed; you had to get there early in order to get a table or even get a spot in order to see. The second she walked on stage, the crowd began yelling compliments at her. She giggled, she responded politely, and she did it very well. She immediately began playing “February Air” on her guitar and the entire crowd quickly started singing along. Between each song, LIGHTS told a story to go with the song she was introducing. She talked about songs being written for boys (or the same one), where she writes her songs (alone in her bedroom but she gets her ideas in the bathroom for those that want to know), and moving out of her parent’s house (which was 500km away but then she quickly realized we use miles and could not figure out the math). She is funny. She is witty. And most of all, she is charming.

Throughout the evening, LIGHTS went back and forth playing her guitar or a keyboard that had been set up on stage for her. She played both flawlessly. Twice she said she was going to play a song that she had never played live before and that this particular show was a very special one, thrilling the crowd even more. She played all of the songs off her new EP and ended the set with “Savior” which based off the crowd’s reaction, is one of her more popular songs. Even though she only played for one hour (plus two songs for an encore – “Fall Back Down” and “Ice”) it was just the right amount of time for an acoustic set.

Her music has a very has a singer-songwriter quality to it that raises its standards from the normal “girl pop” you hear on the radio. Having been impressed by LIGHTS’ acoustic performance, it makes seeing her live with her full band much more intriguing. Neither would be a show to be missed.