Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band performed at Messiah College Friday night. Here's what I thought:
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention one thing in my message. It seems that more and more when I go to concerts, people spend a majority of their time watching the show on the screen of their digital camera or cell phone.
All the photo-taking kinda cheapens the show, not to mention the cameras block people's view. I mean, how many pictures do you need of Conor Oberst hunched behind a microphone anyway? We get it. You were at the show.
Kweller and Oberst were stellar. The crowd and Rig 1? Not so much. It is a drag when 4 tall kids with skull caps stand listlessly throughout the whole show, shouting "Lua!" in between songs. It makes you want to ask them, "Why didn't you stay in your dorm and save yourself 10 bucks?"
And Rig 1 was odd and illfitting to the whole scene. I listened to some of their recorded stuff and they sound much better. They seemed to lack identity, or have too much of it; I couldn't tell which.
All in all though, I think you have to mention more than the cell phones when you talk about that crowd. I mean, calling Bright Eyes songs for them to play? Wrong band.
This was B- show: Great music, lackluster crowd. Take out the crowd and you have two of the best songwriters of our time and a great show. Do they teach music appreciation at Messiah College?
Kweller and Oberst were stellar. The crowd and Rig 1? Not so much. It is a drag when 4 tall kids with skull caps stand listlessly throughout the whole show, shouting "Lua!" in between songs. It makes you want to ask them, "Why didn't you stay in your dorm and save yourself 10 bucks?"
And Rig 1 was odd and illfitting to the whole scene. I listened to some of their recorded stuff and they sound much better. They seemed to lack identity, or have too much of it; I couldn't tell which.
All in all though, I think you have to mention more than the cell phones when you talk about that crowd. I mean, calling Bright Eyes songs for them to play? Wrong band.
This was B- show: Great music, lackluster crowd. Take out the crowd and you have two of the best songwriters of our time and a great show. Do they teach music appreciation at Messiah College?