"...and the delights of his chemical smile"

Brett Anderson is back with his new line-up, The Tears (http://www.thetears.org/). Bernard Butler is also part of this lineup. Their album is not available on iTunes (yet), but you can order this cd on Amazon.com. I will be ordering my copy this week.

What's a K post without a spoonful of nostalgia: Brett burst onto the European music scene with a band called Suede in the early 90s. In Germany in 1992/1993, Suede was the shit. For my friends and me in Mannheim, Suede's Nude provided the soundtrack to our lives. It was a timely album that was sexy, glammy, Britpoppy, and often inspired the Baudeliere in all of us. I will never forget the first time I heard a Suede song or saw a Suede video. It was winter 1993 and my parents were out of town. I was working on an art project in the dining room of our apartment and heard Suede's video for "Animal Nitrate" being introduced on MTV Europe. As soon as the first chorus hit my ears, I dropped what I was doing and sat in front of the tv. That weekend I went to WOM, the Tower Records of Germany, and bought Nude. It will always always be a stand out album in my collection.

In 1999, in a restaurant/bar in Huntsville, AL, called the Jazz Factory, I was introduced to a cool guy named M by a mutual friend. I had just interviewed at the same company as those two. A couple of martinis later, the conversation turned to Suede. Suede was liked by some of my friends there, but he was the first American that I knew of who loved and followed this band as much as I did. Just last night we discussed how Suede began it for us. Here's to our friendship, M, and here's to Brett carrying on the dream of eternal youth.

In an attempt to be less wordy than usual, their follow-up cds are fantastic and I recommend a listening. Note: some of them are under the name The London Suede because there was already a band called Suede in America at the time.

Animal Nitrate:


http://uk.sonymusic.co.uk/suede/home/

-K

I Gotta Fevah- My First Live Show Experience.

May is Metal Month on VH1. There is something wrong with with VH1 doing Metal, but I'll take it. If nothing else, it's been a trip down memory lane. Here's an account of my first live show experience.

August 22, 1987 Castle Donington, Monsters of Rock.

In the summer of 1987, my family and I had just moved back to Germany. We were visiting my dad's family in the Midlands in England that summer. My dad hadn't seen his family since 1979 and so it was a homecoming for him. My aunt has a son, J, who is 2 years older than me. He was a metalhead. Me,I was as metal as a 12-year old girl could be, which meant I listened to a lot of Bon Jovi, Skid Row, Cinderella, Kiss and Motley Crue. I was a few months from hearing GnR's Appetite For Destruction, an album that today is still a staple in my music library. In other words, I wasn't very "metal". Basically, I wasn't a new wave fan or a politically-charged fan. If you had long hair and I liked your Metal Edge picture then I was into you. My cousin on the other hand, was into the gritty UK metal like Motorhead and Black Sabbath. He loved making fun of my pansy bands. For all his grit, he was way into Def Leppard, which I always felt was more a show of patriotism than taste in music.

My aunt got us all tickets to the Monsters of Rock festival at Castle Donington. Through whatever connections she and Uncle G had, she knew that some of the bands were lodged at a nearby fancy Nottingham hotel. We got dressed up and went there for dinner on August 21. At some point my mom and I went to the lobby and ran into Tom Kiefer from Cinderella. He was a looming, lanky figure. He posed for a picture. I don't remember anything about that encounter. The picture is not anything I would ever want to publish because I was a geeky kid with braces. Nonetheless, it is my first photographic account of an encounter with a rock idol and so I will always cherish it.

The next day was the festival. My aunt was supposed to go, but she and my dad had stayed up all night drinking and reminiscing. Her feet had swollen to the size of footballs and she was in no shape to walk. So, my dad, my mom, my Granddad and I got in the car and went to the festival. My cousin had gone with his friends. In no way did he want to be seen with his family. I never saw him at the show, but when we met up later we both gushed about how fun it was.

There were no other 12-year olds there, just a lot of Lemmy and Ozzy clones. They were rough, dirty, and mean. Since they were all stoned or drunk, and had been for hours, they were belligerant, too. I was scared. For the first time in my short life, I knew fear! Aside from the glossy glares and comments, there were objects constantly flying through the air. What I remember seeing thrown: bottles of piss, mudcakes, and potatoes. At some point, I was sitting on my Granddad's shoulders and got smacked in the back with a potato. I had a tender spot on my back for some weeks after that. I have to say, for every one mean metalhead, there would be one muddy beast who would stand up and offer me a bit of protection. Even in this brutal atmosphere, English decency prevailed and I was able to watch the show almost unharmed.

On a side note: having been to concerts in Germany, the UK, and in the states, I have come to realize that UK metalheads mean serious business. My dad always said that English audiences are serious about concerts because it's an escape from the harsh realities of life there. Most English struggle economically every day, and so for them a concert is like church. It reminds them that life can still be good. The band has to earn the audience's respect, but when they do, the audience will show you their passionate allegiance for years to come, long after an act has been deemed cheesy or "so last year" in America. It's beautiful.

Back to Donington. I remember that Jon Bon Jovi had a close beard and looked haggard. Ever the showman, he still put on a helluva performance. In the end, Paul Stanley, Bruce Dickinson, and Dee Snider joined BJ onstage for some jams. They covered CCR's "Travelling Band". I remember thinking that this must make my dad happy, since he is the biggest CCR fan I've ever known. I'm sure my dad didn't even notice- he was probably too preoccupied with (1) keeping his family alive and (2) figuring out the best exit strategy. For me, it was a baptism by fire and a beginning. It not only opened my eyes to that kind of world, but it made me appreciate what a reaffirming experience a live show could be. (It also further strengthened my love and respect for my Granddad. The day before the show, he bought me a blue regatta raincoat so that I wouldn't catch my death in the mud. At present, it's the only raincoat I own and still wear.) Today, I'm battling a fever which may explan why I'm waxing philophical about my chosen form of worship. Fuck it. In a few days, J and I will be in front of yet another stage. Life is good.

On the stage that day:
Bon Jovi
Dio
Metallica
Anthrax
W.A.S.P.
Cinderella

-K

Coffee, Tea, or RHCP

I have to travel quite a bit for work. Air travel for work is such a solitary experience, as I sit among leisure travelers at the gate, voyeuristically listening to their conversations, I get a little introspective. This hits me especially when I am flying at night and it is just me, the window of the airplane, and the overhead light. That overhead light, like a little spotlight on my person, makes me question everything. Who am I? Where am I going? What’s the meaning of life? What bad decisions have I made lately? I can’t take it. If I sit like this for too long, I’m thinking of ways to pry the emergency exit open to make a clean getaway. Therefore, I distract myself with music. Then my mind wanders to questions that are not so heavy, like which one of my favorite songs do I wish I would have written.

I prefer people watching to being distracted by other people’s conversations, so I put on my headphones and watch people with my own soundtrack. I am including a few songs that I like to use as my soundtrack for air travel. Try it, you’ll like it.

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Around the World
If I am sitting at the gate in the terminal, and it is an especially busy travel day, I like to listen to this song. I play and rewind the beginning of this song over and over again. The beginning of this song is proof that humans are animals. I think this is especially appropriate for business travelers because you know they are all a bunch of freaks but in the airport they’re all buttoned up and pretending to be normal. Deep down, all of them want to scream like Anthony Kiedis.

Frou Frou – Let Go
This song was on the Garden State soundtrack and that movie had such a great scene with an over-medicated Zach Braff sitting calmly on a plane with heavy turbulence, while everyone around him freaked. I don’t think this song was playing during that scene, but whenever there is turbulence, or I am feeling nervous about travel I put this on to relax and just go with it.

Quarashi – Stick ‘Em Up
This song cracks me up. It is part of the Orange County soundtrack and Quarashi is an Icelandic rap group that never really got any notoriety in the States besides this one song. Partially the notoriety was due to the video for this song which was a parody of the film Snatch, which played quite a bit on MTV2. I like playing this song during the beverage service. Here’s just a sample of the lyrics that make this song ultra-entertaining:

Like Darth Vader I surprise you with my skills.
I knock your ol' ass out like a bag of sleeping pills.
I got to rip things up like my name was Jack the Ripper.
There's a party at your house cause your mama is a stripper

Darth Vader, really? --J

TH and the Coattail Riders in Chicago

I love our trips to Chicago shows because that means we may be staying with beautiful Aunt B. It also means we'll do shit like introduce new music to each other via our iPods, update each other on the goings on with our respective boys (and I don't mean children), and disguss the fall of tabloid favorites. It's quality time that we don't always get with each other and so I always look forward to it.

The Double Door reminded me of one of those legendary places where famous bands may have gotten their start and fans can reminisce about seeing them before the Behind the Music happens. It's close enough to a metro area where shit can take off, but still so "neighborhood".

I was strangely drawn to the stringy haired Slayer-wannabe guitarist from The Translation. But yes, he was completely misplaced.

When Driveblind came out there may have been ten people watching, inluding J and me. They have certainly honed their chops somewhere. We imagined that they may already have some kind of following in Europe, but their thing just hadn't taken off here yet. A quick google on the band showed me that they do have a humble following back home. I hope they do well. They were awesome.

I have to say I didn't know what to expect from Taylor. His music is typically a little more, dare I say it, jam band than I usual dig, but Taylor could probably make me like anything. Being up front was pretty fucking amazing. I literally had swollen ear drums the next day, but how rawk is that!

White jeans girl was terrifyingly mesmerizing. I'm no prude, but she made me feel dirty and not in a good way.

There was one chick close to me who stretched her nasty ass arm in front of my face and tried to reach for J's newly acquired drumstick. This was after J had offered it back to Taylor. Oh hayell nah! She was not getting that drumstick, by god.

I loved Taylor's cover of "Have A Cigar".

Taylor is so gracious in person. We could tell he was so relieved that the show was over. Not from hating to perform, but from suffering the burden of front man status. I don't know what I said to him, but he hugged me. *sigh* He signed my forearm and made me promise not to get a tattoo of it.

On the detour back through the questionable streets of Chicago, we listened to Taylor being interviewed by a local radio station. The interview was before the show. We know this because during the set, Taylor had commented on how great the pizza is in Chicago. During the interview, he mentioned that he was looking forward to trying some pizza. Do I remember that correctly, J? I just remember you and I giving each other that "mmm-hmmm" look to each other after hearing that and knowing we had figured out the timeline or something. The moments when J and I simultaneously figure out something are so beautiful. -K

Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders - Chicago

Taylor Hawkins, drummer of Foo Fighters, put out a solo album in March which I quickly purchased. They announced a short tour at very intimate clubs so K and I had to go. The closest stop was the Double Door in Chicago on a Sunday in April. The Double Door feels like a neighborhood bar that just happens to have live acts almost every night of the week, so it’s a great place to see a show.

The first band was a local band called The Translation. They were pretty good. The guitar player looked hopelessly miscast though. He looked like someone who should have been in the audience of a Metallica show, not playing for a pop/rock band.

The next band was a Scottish band called Driveblind. We moved close to the stage for this set. They sounded great and the set was enjoyable. K and I think they will break big in the near future. They have an album coming out on a major label in August. During their set, a very attractive brunette in white jeans took to the dance floor to try out her best stripper moves. We had no idea that this evolve throughout the evening.

As the roadies prepared the stage for Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, K and I spotted the roadie we had met and talked to at the Champaign Foo Fighters/Weezer show. The stage was set up a bit differently than most, with Taylor’s drum kit front and center, and the guitarists placed on both sides. K and I moved to be directly in front of Taylor’s bass drum, knowing we may never hear the same again. It was wild to be so close to him playing that when he dropped his drumstick, I was able to reach down and pick it up and try to hand it back (he had already grabbed a replacement). It was such an intimate setting and everyone at the show was loving it. The girl in the white jeans continued to make her presence known by yelling during every break, “Taylor, you’re so fucking hot!!!” It was kind of annoying.

Another annoying moment in the show was a guy named Joe in the audience who was yelling to Taylor, asking for an autograph while he was on stage, making a big deal about driving 5 hours to the show. Taylor ended up saying something like, “I’ll give you an autograph when I finish. It’s not like I’m gonna jump off stage and into a limo”. People like that give fans a bad name. I drove five hours too, but as I stood there in the audience, I knew that I was getting what I paid for. If we got anything else, it was serendipity. But Joe was going to be pushy until he got more.

The encore was “Hotel California” and everyone in the audience sang along. After the show, the musicians just hung out and the place cleared out pretty quickly. So while we waited for Taylor to come out, white jean girl put on a show giving the only lap dance I have ever seen with the guy standing instead of sitting down. Everyone still hanging out was in disbelief.

Taylor came out and signed stuff for everyone who wanted an autograph. I wasn’t nervous until I started talking to him. I told him that we had met him in Champaign and then we posed for a picture and I got out of the way. Looking back, I could have probably talked to him more but the nerves got the best of me. I’m my own worst enemy! -J

Did I have time to waste? Alkaline Trio in St. Louis

My review of the Alkaline Trio show will be short. I think “Time to Waste” is one of the most perfect songs in music right now. They didn’t play it so I was pissed. All of their early stuff sounded the same to me. The one cool thing about that show was because we weren’t crazy about the performance; we scouted out a few different areas in The Pageant to find the best sound quality. There is a difference! -J

HIM, Goth Kids, and a French Fry

Here is where K and I become the yin and yang of our blog. I wanted to support my sister and I have an appreciation for her love of this band but I just can’t get on board. While I think Ville may have a good voice, I don’t like the synthesizers or the guitar parts in HIM’s music. I was hoping Ville would be so charismatic on stage I’d be pulled in. That didn’t happen. Instead I felt a little like he was phoning it in.

However this show supplied some of the best people watching ever. I don’t think I have seen so many pale-skinned goth kids before in one place. You got the feeling as you walked by them that if you stared at them, they would probably lash back with “What are you looking at?!” when actually, that is the kind of attention they crave!

Also in attendance were lots of straight, frat boy guys, who looked way out of place with the others in attendance. These are the guys who would beat up the goth kids if they all weren’t in the same place, loving the same band.

I CAN'T tell you what HIM played except for two of their recent singles and the “Wicked Game” cover. I CAN tell you that I heard one of the single most disgusting stories ever from the frat guy sitting behind us, and he was so taken with his tale that he had to tell it twice: once to his friends on the left, and once to his friends on the right. Me, I heard it both times! It went something like this: “Hey, I just burped and half of a french fry came up in my mouth whole. It wasn’t a dirty burp either, it was wicked. Look I just spit it out of my mouth down there on the floor”. I wanted to turn around and ask him to chew better next time. Ladies, he’s out there, and I am sure he’s single! Go find him.

Aiden, I must speak of Aiden. I think everyone should see this band. Why? Their performance is kind of like one of those “abridged” plays that have become so popular. You know, like “The Compleat Works of Shakespeare Unabridged” where three actors attempt to act out every one of Shakespeare’s plays in two hours, hitting all of the high points with big laughs. Aiden rolls up all the clichés of a genre of music popular today—fast and loud, guitars spun around bodies by their straps, makeup, lots of jumping onstage, a misfit message, screaming vocals, and let us not forget, the black paints worn by every member of the band that are skin tight to the ankle. It’s the new boy band of 2006. I fear for our youth!

I was so worried for K when the meet and great got cancelled but part of me was a bit relieved since I felt a bit like a poser. Here are all those screaming fans at a sold out show, and someone who likes them just a tad is meeting them. Nonetheless, it was a shitty thing for them to do. -J

Alkaline Trio in St. Louis

J and I were looking forward to seeing these Chicago boys for the second time. The first time we saw them open for MCR at the Pageant on September 22, 2005. That night, they were a wonderful lead-up to MCR, with their minimalistic set and punk noir rawk sound. One of my favorite memories is J and I turning to each other during "Mercy Me" and singing "to Chi-ca-go..." On April 24, 2006, Alkaline Trio returned to the Pageant as headliner with Against Me! as opener.

I think I can speak for us both and say that we enjoyed the politically fueled and energetic sound of Against Me! more than we did Alkaline Trio. We didn't know anything about this band, except that they had a presence at the Warped Tour last year. They had the hunger and the energy that we love to see. The pit contained loyal fans and the audience reciprocated the band's energy.

To me, pairing a politically-charged band such as Against Me! with the apolitical Weimar macabre styles of Alkaline Trio was an interesting choice. Nonetheless, the crowd never waned in its energy throughout the night.

Alkaline Trio's set included everything off Goddamnit including "Clavicle" and "My Little Needle". Their acoustic set included "Good Fucking Bye". Hearing "My Friend Peter", The Misfits' "Some Kinda Hate", and "Radio" were definite highlights for me, but that concert was truly a 2-hour show of allegiance to the hardcore fans in the audience. J and I spent most of the time watching the audience and discussing the marriage of rockabilly and punk in the scene. I was disappointed to not hear "Mercy Me", "Time To Waste", and "Sadie".

HIM is Love, Heartache, and Redemption in St. Louis

On May 20, 2006, J and I made our way to the Pageant, a medium-sized venue in University City. It's large enough for popular bands to play while still maintaining a certain sense of intimacy with the audience. Saturday night, HIM headlined with support act, Aiden.

At the Pageant, if you're 21 you can gain access to the attached Halo Bar. This is a bar that allows you to get your pre-show drink on then gain early access. This is what we did. By 5:30 we had made our way down to the Pageant and hurried past the Hot Topic contingent that had been waiting in line all day. We sat down, ordered ourselves a drink and mentally prepared for the night ahead. For sure, it was going to be slightly different from other concert nights as one week prior I had won two tickets to a meet and greet after the show.

Back at the Halo Bar, J people-watched and I, next to her, was somewhere else entirely in my head. As I drank my second whiskey sour and smoked my umpteenth cigarette, I organized and finalized my questions. I was going to ask Linde about the Daniel Lioneye project and beg that they come to St. Louis if they take it on the road. I would ask Ville about the significance of the Finnish folk song "Paratiisi", which he sang with the Agents a lifetime of his ago. I would say "I've read that you superstitiously start your shows 8 minutes after the hour, could you expand on that?" Of course, when it came down to it, whether or not I could form any coherent sentences at all would have to be seen.

We had grand plans to be in the pit that night, as I had a strange desire to see Ville's pores. Briefly, while in the pit J and I met a superfan named Dan who was a very open and friendly chap. He and I chatted about our favorite HIM songs for a bit. Ultimately, as the crowd got much larger around us, we decided to ditch the pit and said goodbye to Dan. It was a good move to settle in our seats up in the balcony. While there is no crowd surfing at this venue, the opening act Aiden, My Chemical Romance wannabes (do not get me started), encouraged moshing and general rowdiness. In fact, one of the guitarists actually stage dived (dove?) into the crowd directly left of center, which is where we had originally stood. We sat cynically and impatiently through Aiden's set and waited for the music that can make my heart drip with innocent love and then in an instant throw me into the quagmire of deviant desires. I came tonight to hear what love and lust sound like live.

When Aiden finally ended their set, the stage crew prepared the stage for the night's headliners, complete with candlabras (how goth). What sounded like Scandinavian ambient music filled the smoky air. It was going to be a night unlike any other concert night.

The music ended and the lights went down at exactly 9:08 PM. As soon as the iconic heartagram lit up in the background, the collective sonic screams could have reached heaven itself. As Ville Valo slinked to the microphone with trademark cigarette in hand, it was not just any lead singer we were observing- this was someone who would, for the next hour and a half, command the swooning audience with the slightest nod of his head. He was suave, laid-back, and often courteous to the audience, bowing and clapping with approval as we sang the songs back to him at his invitation. Excluding the occasional oral introduction to this song or that song and the periodic sight of bras being tossed onto the stage, this paragraph could sum up the entire performance. But it won't.

Setlist (not necessarily in this order)

Soul On Fire
Vampire Heart
The Funeral of Hearts
It's All Tears
The Sacrament (encore)
Play Dead
Killing Loneliness
Wings of a Butterfly
Join Me In Death
Behind the Crimson Door
Wicked Game
Right Here In My Arms
Razorblade Kiss
Your Sweet 666

Each song was a highlight. At no time was there a lull in the performance and the audience sang every memorized word of every anthemic song. And I do mean every song. The heavy "Soul On Fire" (Love Metal) opened the show. With lyrics like: "We are like the living dead/ Craving for deliverence/With a frozen heart and a soul on fire", it is no wonder that much of the audience there was dressed in gothic regalia. The next song was "Vampire Heart" (Dark Light). This one is quite possibly my favorite of all HIM songs. "Right Here In My Arms" (RR), a fantastic rock-out tune, brought everyone to a clapping frenzy. With "Join Me In Death" (RR) and "The Funeral of Hearts", Ville demonstrated his falsetto with the grace and passionate plea of his miserably romantic poet persona. "It's All Tears" (Greatest Lovesongs, Vol. 666) was HIM again exercising its metal roots. Ville's jump from baritone to tenor was well exercised in "Behind The Crimson Door" (DL), but was never more excellently displayed then with "It's All Tears'" simple but effective chorus "I'm waiting for you to drown in my love/ So open your arms". Because this is America, because the latest album Dark Light is the first HIM album to be released here and overseas simultaneously, and because HIM now has these videos playing on MTV2, songs like "Killing Loneliness" and "Wings of A Butterfly" were the most loudly sung by the audience, but didn't stand out as much as the others. HIM's cover of "Wicked Game" (GL666), both live and recorded, makes one ask "Chris who?". Finally, the encore was, appropriately, "The Sacrament" (LM). The song is like a beautiful unholy hymn. It was a perfect, albeit abrupt conclusion to the pseudo-religious experience shared by hundreds.

Because I studied every movement, I thought I would mention that Ville constantly (1) spit on the stage (2) shrugged and rolled his shoulders back as if to relieve tension. We all know how thin he is, but it's something different to behold live. He also wore black slacks, a black blazer, and a Black Sabbath t-shirt. Oh, and the black beanie, god bless him. He was incredibly "covered". He's not a very energetic soul on stage, but he did seem much more stationary than usual. If I heard him correctly, although any speaking he did was so low and warbled I couldn't make out much, he did mention the word "sick". Damn. I knew where this was going.

What was missing was anything from Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights. For me, I consider "Lose You Tonight", "Heartache Every Moment", "In Joy and Sorrow" and "Pretending" to be outstanding HIM songs. Any one of those songs could have fit into the setlist. I would have loved to hear "Sweet Pandemonium" and "This Fortress of Tears" from Love Metal. And of course, "Sigillum Diaboli", a fantastic rock song from Razorblade Romance, was missed. Selfishly, I would have loved to hear Ville perform a non-accompanied version of "Paratiisi", but maybe he'll grant me a private concert someday.

To our disappointment, the Warner Bros representative announced that because the band was very tired and very sick, that there would be no meet and greet after the show.

While the radio station rep and the WB rep struggled to find an alternative to this disappointment, I sat down and lit up a cigarette and absorbed the moment. While watching the crew tear down HIM's set, I came to the conclusion that this was one of those life lessons where you are forced to accept certain truths. What I had been looking foward to was not going to happen, but god damnit if I didn't enjoy the concert more than anything in a long while. Regardless, it was disappointing, but I didn't feel personally slighted. What would have been worse is the band being forced to see people when they clearly weren't in the shape to do so. That is always a tricky situation- that's where you find yourself in an awkward moment subject to the artists' moods. No thank you.

We ended up with two signed Dark Light promos and exclusive t-shirts.

So as I write this, I still struggle a little bit with my feelings, but despite the disappointment, I am listening to my HIM concert playlist, enjoying a cold sweet tea, and smoking my tasty Marlboro Lights (while wearing my Jagermeister HIM t-shirt, I might add). I come out of this having enjoyed the concert immensely. I also feel somewhat thankful for the rotten post-show experience. Why? Because with the money that J and I will make from auctioning J's signed Dark Light poster, HIM will have unknowingly purchased our next concert tickets (though mine is framed and proudly displayed on my wall, thank you very much). Kiitos, boys! -K

Sure, Okay, Yeah - Yeah Yeah Yeahs in St. Louis

It was a dry winter and we were anxious to start out the concert season of 2006. We saw the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs in April at one of our favorite venues, The Pageant in St. Louis. K and I invited our friend, M to go as well. M didn’t know anything about their music but thought it would be fun. I told her they were about to release a new CD and let her borrow my copy of their first, Fever to Tell, to check it out. I must admit, I can’t listen to their first CD in its entirety without a break. Too much of the same thing! M called me a few weeks later to tell me she had gone to the YYYs website and was kind of scared. Scared?! K and I quickly investigated the website and got a good chuckle. The band’s heads are cut off and stuck on spikes. Okay, I get the reaction.

Karen O is a sight to behold. She’s a cross between Chrissie Hynde and the Mary Catherine Gallagher from Saturday Night Live. On the one hand, I give it to her for doing her own thing and not playing up her femininity, but on the other hand, yikes. I have never seen a band interact less with each other than they did on stage. I think I enjoyed the show more than K. I could have done without the opening act, Blood on the Wall, but hearing Maps live, and some of the new material was worth going. However, I didn't walk out saying Yeah Yeah Yeah! Instead a review of the show was more like Sure, Okay, Yeah.