Keane
May 17, 2007
Riviera Theatre - Chicago
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Keane is a decent band from England that forges a good sound without any guitars or bass, just two keyboardists -- one being vocalist Tom Chaplin -- and a drummer. Their two albums both hit #1 in the UK and their latest, last year's Under the Iron Sea opened at #4 in the US, so they arrived at their sold out show at the Riviera with a good bit of stateside renown. They were originally booked -- and then rebooked and again cancelled -- for a show at Chicago's Auditorium Theatre last fall, on tours that feel through due to Chaplin's rehab stint. Led by the ruddy-faced Chaplin, an energetic and gracious though less than captivating stage presence, the band played fine but largely unspectacular renditions of good but mostly not great songs, which were met with ovations far beyond their merit. It's probably wrong to hold crowd reaction against a band, but this was the loudest I've heard a crowd in quite some time. BS or not, Chaplin told the crowd it was "a night he would never forget." But though worthy of a look and listen, Keane at this point are far from unforgettable.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Friday, May 11, 2007
Concert Review: The Killers
The Killers
Sears Centre - Hoffman Estates, IL
May 10, 2007
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OK, so the Killers aren't British and they're not exactly "hidden," as they're on a tour of large theaters/small arenas that brought them to a nearly full Sears Centre in Chicago's Northwest suburbs. But the show was good enough to serve as an illustration -- perhaps well-heeded by many of the personality-challenged Brit-bands cited on HiddenInTheIsles.com -- that there is a difference between playing a concert and truly giving a performance. Though not quite U2 or Springsteen, the Killers put on a highly enjoyable show featuring the kinetic energy of lead singer Brandon Flowers, an impressive lighting display and loads of good songs from both of their two albums (their latest, Sam's Town, being substantially better than I originally thought). And with only 2 albums to draw upon, the Killers made 100 minutes go by fast, unlike the Kaiser Chiefs, Arctic Monkeys and Razorlight, who made 60-70 minutes go by somewhat slowly, despite also touring behind sophomore albums.
The show could've been a @@@@@ performance, but lost momentum after Flowers left the stage briefly, leaving the band confused and causing the drummer to believe he should speak to the audience. Rarely a good idea.
Sears Centre - Hoffman Estates, IL
May 10, 2007
@@@@1/2
OK, so the Killers aren't British and they're not exactly "hidden," as they're on a tour of large theaters/small arenas that brought them to a nearly full Sears Centre in Chicago's Northwest suburbs. But the show was good enough to serve as an illustration -- perhaps well-heeded by many of the personality-challenged Brit-bands cited on HiddenInTheIsles.com -- that there is a difference between playing a concert and truly giving a performance. Though not quite U2 or Springsteen, the Killers put on a highly enjoyable show featuring the kinetic energy of lead singer Brandon Flowers, an impressive lighting display and loads of good songs from both of their two albums (their latest, Sam's Town, being substantially better than I originally thought). And with only 2 albums to draw upon, the Killers made 100 minutes go by fast, unlike the Kaiser Chiefs, Arctic Monkeys and Razorlight, who made 60-70 minutes go by somewhat slowly, despite also touring behind sophomore albums.
The show could've been a @@@@@ performance, but lost momentum after Flowers left the stage briefly, leaving the band confused and causing the drummer to believe he should speak to the audience. Rarely a good idea.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Concert Review: Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys
Riviera Theatre - Chicago
May 8, 2007
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When the Arctic Monkeys' debut album came out in January 2006, setting sales records in England and some (though much lesser) buzz in America, I checked them out and liked what I heard. In part, they inspired my exploration to find other "Hidden In The Isles" bands, and I subsequently found bands like The Fratellis, The Kooks, The View, Maximo Park and Art Brut, all of whom I like better than the Monkeys. The AMs' are now on their second album, also a monster seller in their native England, and they sold out this show at the Riviera. They sounded strong and the crowd was really into them, and their best songs were great to hear live. But overall, they need to all some melody, and distinction, to their songs for 70 minutes (as they played) to be any better, or perhaps even not worse, than just 10 minutes. Though I've read comparisons between them and the early Jam, the Arctic Monkeys have a long way to go before deserving such praise.
Riviera Theatre - Chicago
May 8, 2007
@@@
When the Arctic Monkeys' debut album came out in January 2006, setting sales records in England and some (though much lesser) buzz in America, I checked them out and liked what I heard. In part, they inspired my exploration to find other "Hidden In The Isles" bands, and I subsequently found bands like The Fratellis, The Kooks, The View, Maximo Park and Art Brut, all of whom I like better than the Monkeys. The AMs' are now on their second album, also a monster seller in their native England, and they sold out this show at the Riviera. They sounded strong and the crowd was really into them, and their best songs were great to hear live. But overall, they need to all some melody, and distinction, to their songs for 70 minutes (as they played) to be any better, or perhaps even not worse, than just 10 minutes. Though I've read comparisons between them and the early Jam, the Arctic Monkeys have a long way to go before deserving such praise.
Concert Review: The Kooks
The Kooks
Caberet Metro - Chicago
May 5, 2007
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I'm too old and fat to stand at concerts anymore. But much to my feet, legs and back's chagrin, I still do when there's no other choice and the artist I'm seeing is worth it. At the Metro, England's fun pop-rock band, The Kooks, were worth it. Fortunately, for me at least, they only played for an hour, as they are still touring on their debut album, Inside In Inside Out, which is infectious throughout and came off as so -- though without much variance -- on stage. And the other songs they played to round out an hour, whether new songs or B-sides I didn't know, still seemed tasty enough to speak of this band's promise. Though they sold out the Metro and got Q101 promotion, I don't know if they'll ever break big enough in America to play a place where I can sit down (at least in a reserved seat; unlike Metro, I usually find someone to plant myself at the Vic and Riv), but if I can tolerate it, I would love to see them after they have a couple more albums under their belt.
Caberet Metro - Chicago
May 5, 2007
@@@@
I'm too old and fat to stand at concerts anymore. But much to my feet, legs and back's chagrin, I still do when there's no other choice and the artist I'm seeing is worth it. At the Metro, England's fun pop-rock band, The Kooks, were worth it. Fortunately, for me at least, they only played for an hour, as they are still touring on their debut album, Inside In Inside Out, which is infectious throughout and came off as so -- though without much variance -- on stage. And the other songs they played to round out an hour, whether new songs or B-sides I didn't know, still seemed tasty enough to speak of this band's promise. Though they sold out the Metro and got Q101 promotion, I don't know if they'll ever break big enough in America to play a place where I can sit down (at least in a reserved seat; unlike Metro, I usually find someone to plant myself at the Vic and Riv), but if I can tolerate it, I would love to see them after they have a couple more albums under their belt.
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