I arrived with photographer David Endicott at Chain Reaction this warm October 23rd night (I know, warm night in October, ridiculous) to a crowded venue full of hipsters and fashionistas all eager for The Mile After Tour. We scheduled an interview with Straylight Run’s Sean Cooper for about halfway through the set and settled in the venue just as Camera Can’t Lie started playing.
Click here to listen to the interview with Sean Cooper, bassist for Straylight Run
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Camera Can't Lie, Eric Arjes, by David Endicott
Camera Can’t Lie
This three-piece from Twin Peaks, Minnesota, Eric Arjes, Josh Bendell, and Kyle Lindsay, took hold of Chain Reaction’s tiny stage and rocked it like they owned it. Their showmanship never faltered and by the way they played, you never would have known that these guys were the opener on the bill. They played an awesome acoustic song, something to the effect of “going home,” but most of their songs were more rock-heavy leaned more towards the influence of bands like This Providence and Train. Their song with the chorus “what’s on my mind” was upbeat and had a funky bass groove. The guys were great performers and gave us a great set. And we were only getting started!
Anarbor, Slade Echeverria, by David Endicott
Anarbor
Anarbor is a funky four-piece with a dance-y drum beat whose debut EP Free Your Mind I acquired last spring totally impressed me. These young dudes, Slade Echeverria (vox/bass), Mike Kitlas (rhythm guitar), Adam Juwig (lead guitar), and Greg Garrity (drums), had girls were screaming for their songs like “Where the Wild Things Are.” They informed us that “You and I” is about “a dog, Skippy Doo and Shaggy.” They offered their EPs, normally on sale for $5, for as much as a fan could afford. Even if it was just a kiss or a hug. This display of kindness was followed by a sad story: that day, their merch guy “Video Matt” had left his keys to their van while they went to grab food and took off without saying goodbye. It was a sad story and got lots of “awh”s from the crowd (especially the ladies). They closed their set with “Sober” which they clarified is “a song about getting drunk and waking up lonely” and they can’t be too lonely because the crowd was full of young girls clapping and singing along.
Lydia, Leighton Antelman, by David Endicott
Lydia
I must admit that Lydia was my favorite band of the night. Initially they sounded a bit experimental with lots of noise and reverb. This sextet of guitars (Steven McGraw, Ethan Koozer), bass (Jed Dunning), percussion (Craig Taylor), keys (Mindy White), and a male(Leighton Antelman) and female (Mindy) vocal duet was like a sweet lullaby hovering over impeccably crafted rock songs. When the set started, I had trouble hearing Mindy’s back up vocals, but by the time they played “This Is Twice Now” with Mindy’s haunting old piano intro, the sound guy had the perfect mix and everyone was singing along loudly. Frontman Leighton grinned huge as if this was the first time any crowd had ever loved his music so much. Leighton’s voice reminds me of a more breathy Anthony Green (Circa Survive, The Sounds of Animals Fighting) or a brighter Dave Elkins (Mae) complimented by the angelic airy tones of Mindy. My favorite song of the night was “All I See,” a love song whose vocal parts complimented each other immaculately. The crowd was spellbound by the set and the band earned tons of applause but sadly, after their set was over, more than half the crowd filtered out of the venue not to return.
Straylight Run, John Nolan, by David Endicott
Straylight Run
I have to start off my review of Straylight Run’s set by saying that Straylight was a great band, their releases Straylight Run and their Prepare to be Wrong EP are excellent, and they are still that great band. John Nolan (vocals, keys, guitar), Sean Cooper (bass) and Will Noon (drums) really work as a three piece and even though it was sad not to have Michelle DeRosa’s lovely vocals in the band anymore, it didn’t necessarily feel like the band was lacking. It really broke my heart to see so many people leave after Lydia’s set and not stick around for Straylight. The band played one of my favorites (and one of their most popular) “Existentialism on Prom Night” early on in the set and later thanked the crowd for “staying after ‘Existentialism’” which got a number of chuckles. John Nolan’s vocals seem even more calculatedly strained than normal on songs like “Another Word for Desperate” and “Your Name Here (Sunrise Highway)” had an awesome reverb-filled breakdown. “Ten Ton Shoes” was a folky tune with cool percussion and heavy bass and they rocked all their songs in their (what seemed like a very long) set as a great band should.
Straylight Run, Sean Cooper, by David Endicott
My biggest gripe with the set was Straylight’s lack of interaction with the audience. This didn’t hinder the fans from singing along with the songs, but it did make the show feel a little disconnected. It wasn’t until more than halfway through the show that John played a gorgeous acoustic “Mile After Mile” before which he joked sarcastically about how sexy he is with his shirt off (which lead to a fan screaming for him to “Take it off!” of course). Finally, the last song of the set “Hands in the Sky (Big Shot)” everyone’s arms shot up and we clapped through the whole song. It was like the entire set had just come together. I was glad the show finally got this last burst of energy, I only wish it had lasted longer.
We left the venue feeling satisfied and a little sad. It was a great night full of awesome music, I only wish everyone would have stayed to hear Straylight Run. Maybe they would love them.
More photos…
Camera Can't Lie, Kyle Lindsay, by David Endicott
Anarbor, Mike Kitlas, by David Endicott
Lydia, by David Endicott
Lydia, Mindy White, by David Endicott
Lydia, Steven McGraw, by David Endicott
Lydia, Jed Dunning, by David Endicott
Lydia, Mindy White, by David Endicott
Straylight Run, by David Endicott
The night opened with a sweet british lad named Greg Holden. A decent minstrel, he seemed really grateful to share the stage with Ingrid as he explained that he left England for New York in the hopes of making it big and Ingrid Michaelson happened to catch him play there and snag him for her tour. Lucky break, eh? His set was good and his songs were sweet. His vocals remind me like Joshua Radin with an English accent, which, if you know Joshua Radin’s music, is a HUGE compliment. He also had a healthy dose of “young man” as he made some drinking jokes and hints about gather some beautiful ladies on his arms after the set. My favorite of his set was a beautiful cover of “walking on sunshine” which I wasn’t quick enough to capture, but you can watch it on AOL video 
He also managed to get Ingrid’s entire band on stage for a sing along of a drinking song whose chorus sung, “If makes no difference what city I’m in/the drinks cost the same and they do the same thing/ I know it won’t stop till I start up again/ and I’ve got no intention of giving up.” I’m pretty sure that I’m going to buy his album “A Word Edgewise,” maybe you should too.
Now, about Ingrid Michaelson… I could sit here and rave about Ingrid’s flawless vocals or her original music. Her beautiful use of the ukulele or the mandolin. I could go on about the set, the songs on her new album, Ingrid’s solo ukulele version of Radiohead’s “Creep,” all of my favorites on Boys and Girls and her Be OK EP, her “reimaging” of “The Way I Am” (aka, “Ice Ice Baby” and the “Fresh Prince” theme song) or my favorite song of the night, “You & I.”
I could tell you that her sense of humor is almost as awesome as her vocals, even though her manager doesn’t want her to talk about “balls and poop” anymore. But really, you can see here I’m not an objective observer. I am a fan. I think Ingrid Michaelson is probably one of the most talented female musicians touring today, right up there with Regina Spektor. So take my word for it. She is fantastic. And I’ve embedded a few of my so-so videos from the night to prove it, including a duet she performed with Greg Laswell that has yet to be released (are they together? I saw a ring on that left ring finger, Ingrid!).
For no reason other than to make it an all-day event (and maybe to snag some limited edition merch), my friend Jimmy and I were the first to arrive at the Irvine Meadows Amphitheater on September 17th. After a long day of sitting in lawn chairs under umbrellas and chugging gallon-bottles of water, the line condenses, security gets tighter, and finally the gates swing open.
Next on the docket: Taking Back Sunday. These guys are one of those bands that I’ve always known, always heard around, I even know a couple of songs, but I never really got into. They put on a good stage performance, with lots of mic swinging. Adam Lazzara must practice with the swinging a lot because he was quite a trickster and there were multiple times I thought he’d hit guitarist Matthew Fazzi in the face, but didn’t. They played the song of theirs that everyone loves—“Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut From the Team)”—and half the crowd sang it at the top of their lungs. After a rockin’ and sweaty set, Taking Back Sunday relinquished the stage to Weezer in a big round of applause.
It seemed as though the entire crowd (at least those sitting) were on the edge of their seat because the moment Weezer took over the stage, everyone was on their feet. Cheering at a stage full of men in white track suits seemed a little odd, but the moment they started playing, the scene fell into place. Their set choices could not have been better. They played an excellent mix of old and new, including all of my favorites.
About the music, Blink has never sounded so good and the set was amazing. Have you ever been to a show where every song you thought, “OMG this is my favorite!” Okay, so I may have dorked out a bit but the best of Blink—“Rock Show,” “Damnit,” “Violence,” and so on—would be hard-pressed not to do the same. Near the end of the show, Travis did a drum solo while his kit ascended, swung from the ceiling, and rotated until Travis was at a 90-degree angle with the floor. And, as always, his performance was still flawless. Blink’s music seemed to only benefit from their years apart, as they all refined their skills and cleaned up their sound in +44 and Angels and Airwaves. The show was fantastic.
As we were all fleeing the stadium in hopes of escaping the parking lot in a reasonable amount of time (which I didn’t) we were stopped to make way for the tour vans to leave. Out of one leaned Mark as it drove by and he waved at everyone and shouted “thank you.” Talented and nice. The perfect pair. An amazing trio.
