Last week saw the Christmas season kick into gear, as a few events got me out of the house and into Austin. Of course, one of my daughters had several public dance performances that I needed to see. She was great. Tuesday of last week had my other daughter and I hopping between La Zona Rosa and Emo’s to try and catch as much of each competing show as possible. Some promoters were either clinically insane or just up for a maddening challenge (or they just didn’t know), as one show near 4th Avenue and West Street featured August Burns Red, Emery and Underoath. It was packed with kids, who got blasted with incredi-metal for hours. A couple miles away, near 6th and Red River was Haste The Day, All That Remains, Story of the Year and The Devil Wears Prada. It was also packed with kids, sold out and enough sweaty kids in one outdoor location to make one forget that it was nearly freezing.
Since La Zona Rosa was closest to the freeway we were driving in on and I really wanted to see August Burns Red play, we stopped there first. We got their just in time as ABR took the stage to the delight of the crowd, which surged forward and packed in against the barricades tight. There was crowd surving to pay attention to as I flicked away with my mighty but small digital camera during the first couple of songs. They were as tight and precise as ever, if not more so, barely stopping for a breath between songs as they slugged out song after song from Constellations and Messengers. They even threw in a tune from their outakes album, Lost Messengers (Carol of the Bells), just for the Christmas season. Like most metal bands, they perform on stage and move about a fair bit, but each member also spends his fair amount of time standing still as they focus in on the massive amount of notes to hit at just the right time. From front to back, the band had everyone’s attention.
As we headed out the door, we saw a few stragglers outside either smoking or catching a rest after their more melodic favorites played (Emery). We headed over to Emo’s to catch The Devil Wears Prada. I’d heard TDWP would go on at 9:50, so we hurried and hoped for a close parking space. Indeed we found a good one and made our way in. All That Remains was still on stage. If these two clubs were closer together I would have backtracked to catch some of Underoath, but the show was running late and I’d had such bad luck seeing TDWP in Austin (with two sold-out Saturday shows the last two years in a row at SXSW), I’d made my choice and stayed for the six-piece band from Ohio to tear it up. When they finally took the stage they wasted no time in wiggling those fingers all over the two guitars with a drummer and bassist doing more than just keeping up with the beat. They were crazy fast and tight. The crowd was packed, crowd surfing and several were taking turns getting hoisted up high enough to grasp one of the wooden cross beams near the roof for a monkey bar exercise put to metal. The band shared their love for Jesus on stage in the same lowkey way that Underoath was probably doing at about the same time across town, which received a roar of approval.
Even if this crazy choice between two hot headliners was a competition between mad promoters, it probably ended as a draw — at least by my estimation. Both bands played a little over an hour, played encores and left the stage and the crowd spent. As we drove by La Zona Rosa we got a text message that Underoath had just finished their set with “Writing On The Walls,” so we knew we could get the absolute best of both shows, but we experienced a good one nonetheless.
The next night I got a pass from KISS FM in Austin to see the sold-out show at Austin Music Hall, which was hosting the Bobby Bones Christmas Party. IYAZ and Jason Derulo shared the billing with Owl City and The Fray. It would probably be a safe assumption that the show sold out on the exploding popularity of Owl City alone, but judging by the middle (and later twenty-something) age of the crowd, it was probably the reach of the popular radio personality that sold this one out.
Owl City came on and maybe half of all of the 4,400 voices inside screamed approval. I noticed a new person in the band right away. Next to the cello player was a violinist, which adds what could probably now officially titled as a “string section” to the live band. Being in a bigger room and on a stage about 20 times the size of the little postage stamp they played on a month and a half ago indoors at Emo’s obviously added a different feel to the show. It was still electric and bubbling with joy, but the “magic” of their live show didn’t translate as immediate and intimately as that smaller show did. Without a smaller venue show to compare it to, however, it was a grand experience. With electric guitar in hand for a third to half of the songs, Adam Young and his mates still stop on a dime and accent beats with a precision that the album’s electronic sounds would demand, but sounded all the fuller with the keys, drums, guitar and strings.
When they said they had one more song to play and they went in to “Hello Seattle,” I think a little sigh went through the room amid the cheers. The band smartly wove “Fireflies” into the song with a smooth segue and left the crowd ecstatic as the stage quickly was struck for the next set. The crowd sang with great volume and joy as they stretched out the notes and words: “I’d like to make myself believe… That planet earth… Turns S-L-O-W-L-Y…”
After some stage banter with Bobby Bones (apparently his show is kinda racy … at least that’s what my 13-year-old daughter informs me), and he had tennis star Andy Roddick take his shirt off for the crowd in some sort of misogynistic craziness. Then it was time for The Fray to add their adult rock to the party mix. They strolled onto the stage like serious and somber musicians as soap suds like snowflakes fell from the ceiling. The crowd sang along with gusto to “Over My Head (Cable Car),” which sounded distinctly more mature than the voices I heard earlier singing along to “Fireflies.”
More snowflakes fell as the band settled into “Silent Night,” which the crowd slowly got into. They transitioned right into “How To Save A Life,” creating a high point to end the show on.
The weekend prior to this busy week found us in Temple to see the Mistle Tour, with Bradley Hathaway, Poema, Darcy, Levithepoet and about 200 million other bands play at a pretty big church. The attendance was low, but there was some good performances to be had. This band from Denton, TX called Darcy was awesome and creative. Kind of a rock blend with piano and guitars, bass, drums. Levithepoet did a few dramatic poems in between sets. Poema showed off their beautiful voices … and the songs started off with great promise, but seemed to putter out midway through. With a good producer these gals might make a really good album.
Bradley Hathaway came on like a grumpy old man, muttering a bit and wearing an oversized sweater. But once he got in the mood and feel for his songs, they started flowing out beautifully. I had almost forgotten how great some of his musical compositions were. There’s some real gems on his last two albums, like the utter sweetness of “So Do I Love You” and the quickness and urgency of “Look Up” and the stark bluntness of “Samuel.” The song “Mama” ain’t too bad live, either. A super special moment came at the end when he performed a rarity (gasp): one of his poems! He did “That Annoying Hardcore Dude That Goes Too Far” and he paused a few times for effect, letting the audience deliver a punchline here and an inside joke there. One such tip of the hat was a reference to prayers “bouncing off the ceiling” and “wondering if God’s really there,” and then pausing to reference his tribute to Levithepoet – one of a few beat poets that’s seemingly taking the mantle of slam poetry from this Christian scene pioneer. It was cool to see that.
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