something new!
Dawes’ sound is delightfully vintage, so maybe it’s fitting that my fan experience since discovering them last year has been surprisingly (and unintentionally) old-fashioned.
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That includes “old-fashioned” photo filters as an attempt to disguise the blurriness.[/caption]
Even though Nothing Is Wrong has had a permanent home in the sixth slot of my car’s CD changer, I was okay letting them remain distant and mysterious by modern standards. Or… normal by pre-Internet-era music fan standards, I guess.
I’d checked their AllMusic biography once and began following their semi-active Twitter account a few months ago, but I didn’t have every band member’s name and instrument down, or really know what anyone looked like. So, seeing them in concert for the first time last night at Infinity Hall felt little like seeing the movie after reading the book over and over.
Musically, the show was fantastic: the one to beat so far in 2012. Totally worth walking half a mile down the road to the car afterward in the pouring rain with my snazzy new Dawes tote bag on my head. (Quite useful.) And the excitement of seeing an artist for the first time adds some extra sparkle, especially because this was the first time in more than a year that I’ve actually bought a ticket to see an artist I’d never seen before.
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organ, delicious organ[/caption]
Live, the band seemed to channel the classic greats even more than on CD. Some of the influences are obvious and sustained, and some are momentary flickers. I hear The Band! I hear Jackson Browne! I hear Neil Young! And there is organ. Mmmmm. Why do so few bands today include an organist? It’s tragic.
The sound was also bit looser and more expansive. We were treated to a couple epic, full-blown 70s-style jams and guitar solos, which was a little unexpected but quite impressive. Each got an enthusiastic standing ovation. These dudes have skills.
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stage angle meant I could only get pictures of half of the band[/caption]
Other highlights:
“How Far We’ve Come” — Nothing Is Wrong’s ultimate singalong song — in the encore, right when I was starting to wonder if/whether they were going to include it, because it’s become a favorite. “A Little Bit Of Everything” with a stronger emotional punch. A couple new songs from a forthcoming third album, which looks like it’ll include, among other tunes, a surprisingly jaunty song (“From A Window Seat”) about taking a plane ride. “When My Time Comes,” with a mic’d guest vocalist turn for the crowd. And, of course, “Time Spent In Los Angeles,” which seems to be That One Everyone Knows More Than The Others.
This venue has quickly become one of my favorites. “I think our music was always meant to be played in places like this,” the band remarked at one point during the show.
The crowd might have been extra vibrant because the concert was taped by a TV crew for a new national public television program. We were instructed to plug the show, so, yes, please call your local PBS station and tell them to carry the “Infinity Live” series!
Several audience murmurs said this is probably the last time the band will play this venue when they’re in the area, because they’re about to become a Big Thing. I hope so! I’m lucky to have enjoyed the tiny-venue experience just in time.
Here’s the setlist. Thank you, guy next to me in the post-show band meet-and-greet line who managed the snag a setlist from the stage, for holding it up and letting me take a quick photo for this blog.
The audience members in front of me (who apparently grabbed beers in the bus with the band beforehand) described them as “real sweet kids,” which seemed to be true at the meet and greet. The line was long, but they were all smiley and gracious, posing for photo after photo with everyone.
And now I really want to go to the Clearwater Festival to see them again. (Josh Ritter will be there, too!)
