As you may know, we've been dying to see the Counting Crows live ever since we narrowly missed their performance at Farm Aid last year. Last night, we finally got our chance: we had tickets to see them play at the Nissan Pavilion about half an hour away.
They were playing with Maroon 5, a band we both like, and we actually managed to get pretty decent tickets for about $35 apiece (plus, of course, exorbitant booking fees from Ticketmaster...). And, we were actually able to score much better seats by the time the Counting Crows played, because the house wasn't full. We didn't realize until we got there that the opening act was Sarah Bareilles, a name I wouldn't have recognized but who has a song or two that I did.
I thought she was great. While her onstage banter was a little silly, it was also pretty minimal and what she lacked in depth, she made up for with a big, beautiful voice and fun, catchy songwriting. At the end of the Counting Crows' set, she joined in for a huge, sloppy, lots-of-fun extended version of "Hanginaround" and held her own pretty well. She was really good live and somebody I wouldn't mind hearing more of.
Maroon 5 was intense and energetic, if just one hard-rock guitar riff away from basically being a boy band. Neither Matt nor I realized that lead singer Adam Levine was so...pretty? His voice, lovely and versatile, is several notes higher than I'd realized, and his stage persona struts and prances like a show pony. He claims he's not gay but sometimes thinks it would be simpler if he were. Anyway, he was entertaining and engaging, something that's valuable in any performer, and we enjoyed the show (if not the piercing screams it elicited from the teenage concertgoers).
The Counting Crows were simply breathtaking. They're one of the few bands left who are musically competent enough to let loose and make each performance completely different than the last. Adam Duritz was wild, spontaneous, and wonderful, and gave a really heartfelt speech about supporting local charities at the end. It was right up our alley. The songs played were mostly old favorites, extended and improvised, which made us really happy. We wished we could have gotten more (and clearer) pictures, but our camera died in the middle of the show.
Things I wished there were less of:
1. Screaming.
2. "Dancing."
3. Standing.
4. Those absurd babydoll/empire waist shirts that seem to be in fashion right now.
Below, I managed to capture all 4 in one picture, seated right in front of us. How lucky.
I actually didn't take notice of the shirts themselves until I said out loud to Matt, "Why are there so many women here who look like they might be pregnant?" For obvious reasons, I have pretty sensitive pregnant-belly radar, but I felt like my signals were getting scrambled by so many women women with completely ambiguous midsections. Finally, I realized that they were all wearing one of those shirts that make everybody look pregnant. Just. Not. Flattering.
Otherwise: a magical evening.
They were playing with Maroon 5, a band we both like, and we actually managed to get pretty decent tickets for about $35 apiece (plus, of course, exorbitant booking fees from Ticketmaster...). And, we were actually able to score much better seats by the time the Counting Crows played, because the house wasn't full. We didn't realize until we got there that the opening act was Sarah Bareilles, a name I wouldn't have recognized but who has a song or two that I did.
I thought she was great. While her onstage banter was a little silly, it was also pretty minimal and what she lacked in depth, she made up for with a big, beautiful voice and fun, catchy songwriting. At the end of the Counting Crows' set, she joined in for a huge, sloppy, lots-of-fun extended version of "Hanginaround" and held her own pretty well. She was really good live and somebody I wouldn't mind hearing more of.Maroon 5 was intense and energetic, if just one hard-rock guitar riff away from basically being a boy band. Neither Matt nor I realized that lead singer Adam Levine was so...pretty? His voice, lovely and versatile, is several notes higher than I'd realized, and his stage persona struts and prances like a show pony. He claims he's not gay but sometimes thinks it would be simpler if he were. Anyway, he was entertaining and engaging, something that's valuable in any performer, and we enjoyed the show (if not the piercing screams it elicited from the teenage concertgoers).
The Counting Crows were simply breathtaking. They're one of the few bands left who are musically competent enough to let loose and make each performance completely different than the last. Adam Duritz was wild, spontaneous, and wonderful, and gave a really heartfelt speech about supporting local charities at the end. It was right up our alley. The songs played were mostly old favorites, extended and improvised, which made us really happy. We wished we could have gotten more (and clearer) pictures, but our camera died in the middle of the show.
Things I wished there were less of:
1. Screaming.
2. "Dancing."
3. Standing.
4. Those absurd babydoll/empire waist shirts that seem to be in fashion right now.
Below, I managed to capture all 4 in one picture, seated right in front of us. How lucky.
I actually didn't take notice of the shirts themselves until I said out loud to Matt, "Why are there so many women here who look like they might be pregnant?" For obvious reasons, I have pretty sensitive pregnant-belly radar, but I felt like my signals were getting scrambled by so many women women with completely ambiguous midsections. Finally, I realized that they were all wearing one of those shirts that make everybody look pregnant. Just. Not. Flattering.
Otherwise: a magical evening.
1 comment:
:O
I'm so jealous right now.
Did they do "Kid Things"?
Post a Comment