Is there anything better than seeing your favorite band totally rock the fuck out on stage, while you stand a mere 10 feet away? Don't answer that. There is only one correct answer.
Rilo Kiley was absolutely fantasmagickal last night, performing to a sold out crowd at D.C.'s venerable 930 Club. I can't remember the last time I was at 930--(I think it might have been to see the Pietasters)It's neat how much U Street has changed, since it used to be so deserted. Now there are all sorts of bars, restaurants and boutiques there, which is great because by the time someone came out to take our money for the carpark, we were starving. After picking up our tickets at will call, Clint and I headed over to Utopia to get some dinner (thanks for the recommendation, Steph!). Everything was very tasty, and the fancy martini was extremely welcome.
Walking up to the club, a crowd of hip young urchins looked as us beseechingly, asking if we had any extra tickets. Is it wrong that telling them "no" made me feel sort of smug? I felt sort of smug. Haha, I thought, you may still be enjoying your nubile teenage years, but I WORK FULL TIME AND CAN BUY THINGS ON THE INTERNETZ WITH MY CREDIT CARD! I WIN! We got a great place on the ground floor, right smack in front of the stage, and planted ourselves there for the night.
Both opening bands were really good, and I'm definitely going to be checking them out in the future. The first, Art In Manila was from Omaha (no surprises there, Rilo Kiley used to be on Saddle Creek before they switched to Warner), and they had a great sound that kind of reminded me of Cat Power, if Cat Power rocked out just a bit more. I believe I classified them to Clint as "Pirate Ghost Music", which would be a great name for an album, or a band. The second opener, Grand Ole Party, was a very cool contrast to Art In Manila. This band consisted of a guitarist, bassist, and a badass lady lead singer/drummer. Seriously, this girl was kicking ass--very sharp vocals and catchy beats. Her voice sort of reminded me of Karen O from The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but the songs themselves almost reminded me of Save Ferris' first album. Anyway, really fun stuff. Still, this was just the build up, and soon enough it was time for the rich, creamy center of the evening...
I'm not going to go into a blow-by-blow of the concert, and I didn't record the set list or anything. Instead, here are a list of things I enjoyed:
- Jenny playing the cowbell, very enthusiastically
- Blake playing some facemelting guitar solos. Seriously, I don't know why that guy has such a chip on his shoulder, he is a fantastic guitar player and songwriter.
- Blake playing the ukulele
- The crazy, under-the-sea style light show when they played 'Dreamworld'
- The giant balloons filled with gold confetti tossed around on 'Silver Lining', specifically when the balloons burst and gold confetti went everywhere
- The crazy light flashes when they played 'Moneymaker'
- 15
- Jenny dedicating 'Give A Little Love' to Blake
As always, their performance was really, really polished and every time I see them, they appear to be genuinely having a good time. Mad props to Pierre de Reeder (Bass) and Jason Boesel (Drums). They might be a bit more in the background than Jenny and Blake, but they are exceptional musicians and 100% part of the RK experience. Thanks for a great show, Rilo Kiley--let's do it again soon!
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