Venue: The Aragon Ballroom (4/5) The most beautiful venue I've ever seen. The pictures on the site don't come close to doing it justice. Originally a legit ball room in the twenties, the Aragon is a larger venue than most (Holding up to 4,500 people, compared to the House of Blues at 1000people ). The entry way is a little cramped, and has an appearance of converted movie theater. there's one bar as you walk in across from the merch booth. You walk up the stairs into a beautifully painted and molded dance floor with balconies and little towers ornately carved and painted in oranges and creams. Each turret has intricately carved windows. I'm neglecting however, the most breathtaking element.
The ceiling is high and arced a little giving the place avery airy open feel. It is painted like a night sky with swirling blue clouds and a white moon toward the stage. The top of the stage is framed with swords. If that wasn't enough, when the houselights go down, little stars appear, winking in and out alternately. The orange windows in the turrets reflect onto the ceiling reminiscent of citylights. The total effect transports you to a Spanish plaza, rather than a concert venue jammed in the bar district.
There is a coat check, i didn't use it, nothing to report on that or the bathrooms.
The bars were irritating. Rather than wristband you when you enter, they wrist band you on your way to the bar, thus creating huge lines, and causing those of us who just want water undue amounts of hassle. The bars are also more like kiosks than real bars. And I was charged $3 for an 8oz bottle of water. Irritating.
There were only two problems with the floor itself. The first was minor, That being because there is very little variation (no steps, et.) and its a larger venue its very hard to see from the back. I'm five foot one so I'm use to this problem.
However, they are in desperate need of fans, and better ventilation. I'm a stubborn concert goer once I'm in the crowd and the main act is on i break for nothing except illness. I had to go out for water, after already having some at the start of the show. It was ridiculously stuffy.
The crowd: (2.5/5)The problem of such a large space is that the crowd varies wildly and I didn't get as much of a chance to weave through as I had a wonderful group of friends with me. For being such a great band, the crowd was tame. They were amicable, but very relaxed. However, I was in a bit of a dead zone for part of the show. I find just standing there bored absolutely rude, especially when you're over six feet and toward the middle of the crowd.
on to the show.
First Act: Frank Turner (3/5) All the way from Manchester, it was just Frank Turner and his guitar for this show, though according to his myspace he has a backup band. I have to confess, for part of his act I was distracted by the gorgeous venue. His music was enjoyable with the occasional lyric that made me grin and a few others that I sympathized with. A little relaxed for what was to come, with a more ethnic engish feel to it, Turner's music was a perfect warm up for a band like Flogging Molly.
Second Act: The Architects (2.5/5). There are three bands easily found on the internet with that name, and if your forming a band in this day and age it pays to check these things. It made them harder to track down. Not that I especially wanted to. While they significantly improved over the course of these set, they were out of place in that they sounded much more like mainstream rock/metal than the Irish flavored music of the evening. They were thrashy, hard to understand and the numbers of theirs that caught my attention were either covers, or stylistic rip off of other bands. They aren't half bad recorded however, with some decent lyrics. On stage, they were discordant and inarticulate. Worth dancing to, very much not worth buying a CD from.
The Main Act: Flogging Molly (3.5/5) Great live show, good solid sound. For those of you who may be new to this band they are about two parts traditional Irish music. This band manages to keep to their Irish roots, while still engaging with modern politics and more importantly a modern audience. These guys may be in their late fifties, but they still no how to rock without coming across as clinging to their younger days. The sound they make is insane, and unmistakably their own. Even front man, Dave king, doesn't quite know what genera to put them in, nor does he care. I would have been happy indeed with the guitar work with the mandolin and banjo work, but then the fiddle came in.
And let me tell you something, you've never seen or heard anything quite like an electric fiddle player rocking out, let alone one dueling with a guitarist. It was intense. The lyrics are serious and at times irreverent. Its wonderful to see a band that's been around as long as they have keeping the edge sharp politically and musically.
While predominantly thrashy, they do have their share of ballads that are equally strong and more articulate.
Where they lose points is that they are a bit of a one trick pony. Most of their stuff sounds similar weather its from 2002 or 2010. However, it's quite an enjoyable trick and a lot of fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment