I got to catch two shows this past weekend. I’m on a small mission to see more concerts this year, so this was the big kickoff. Kind of late in the year, but whaddaya goin’ to do.
3/31 - Franz Ferdinand + Death Cab for Cutie at the Nokia Theater
I almost pansied out of going to this show but decided there would be no shame in going to a concert by myself. Music is music and I love it either way. Everything I saw said the show would start at 8:00pm so it was to my surprise when twenty minutes after eight, a band hopped on stage and it wasn’t the opener. Opener played a little after seven. I was not disappointed in missing them, mainly due to the fact that my spot in the pit was not a comfortable one. It’s great to be close to the stage but not when there’s a trio of tall high school girls that made it a point to not let smaller girls pass. But I digress.
I’ll be honest, I hadn’t checked out Franz’s newest album until an hour before the show and I don’t listen to their self-titled album regularly, but their show made me an instant fan. The lead singer oozed rockstar sex appeal and the band had genuine fun. Except the bassist, the only member I could see for the most part. He just seemed to do his job plainly, but I was strangely attracted to him. I think it was the mad beats. The crowd didn’t match the band’s energy which was a bummer. Highlight of the show was when they had three members drumming on the same set at the same time. Fancy schmancy! Favorite songs: “Walk Away,” “The Fallen,” and , of course, “Take Me Out.”
In college, the most I heard about Death Cab was through the college radio station. And you’d be surprised, I wasn’t as into KTXT-FM as much as you’d think. If I had been, maybe I would’ve caught on to Death Cab a lot earlier than mainstream did. It was strange to see a bunch of high school kids pumped up about them, but hey, it’s good music and high school kids are entitled to enjoy good music too. It was strange to go from Franz’s highly energetic rock to Death Cab’s chill tempo, but musically, I was impressed. I think I’m falling in love with Ben Gibbard’s musical abilities. Nerd.
Started out with Ben on piano and ended with Ben on piano. In between was, excuse the cheese, a “musical journey.” They played a lot of older songs I had never heard of before but, of all places, at the concert I started to really listen to their lyrics. You’d think as a writer, I’d listen to the lyrics first, but nope, just everything else. “The glove compartment is inaccurately named and everybody knows it.” Abstract thoughts arranged beautifully. Jealous.
No complaints minus the tall girls who had a horde of small girls behind them sadly tippy-toeing, trying to catch a glimpse of Ben. It wasn’t until a 4′8″ girl decided she wanted to see at least one song towards the end of the show that I used her body to drill through the others and I got to see the last two songs up close and personal. However, the highlight of Death Cab’s set came earlier when they set up a second drum set and Ben played in addition to the other drummer. I don’t know what it is about experimenting with drums, but I won’t complain. Favorite songs: “Different Names for the Same Thing,” “Title and Registration,” and “I Will Follow You Into the Dark.”
Bed time, will recap Saturday night tomorrow.
