Morning Benders, Twin Sister, Cults
The Kessler Theater
Saturday, October 9
Better than: Just about any show I've seen in several years.
The National played House Of Blues. Devendra Banhart played at South Side Music Hall. It left The Morning Benders, Twin Sister, and Cults to pick up the leftovers at The Kessler Theater. Even with the Gorilla vs. Bear logo slapped across the top, it was definitely the underdog show of Saturday night, but you wouldn't have guessed it based on the raucous crowd that all but rushed the stage during Morning Benders' set.
When Morning Benders picked up their instruments and hit the first
notes of "Promises," there was an expectancy in the air from the band
members as well as the audience. The Grizzly Bear-influenced song went
over energetically but mechanically--almost like they needed time to
shake off some cobwebs. Their performance at The Kessler was billed as
the first show on the
tour, but it was evident that the band has played each song from their
2010 record Big Echo hundreds of times.
So it
wasn't too surprising during a few brief moments early in the set when
it felt like they were going through the motions, and were even bored at
times. But it didn't take long for the complacency to wear off.
The
breakthrough happened on "Stitches." The slow build into a huge release
riled the excitable crowd into somewhat of a frenzy. Then on "All Day
Daylight," a full-blown dance party broke out in the first few rows of
the audience.
Lead singer Chris Chu asked for
some audience participation on "Excuses," the last song of the set. He
got rid of his guitar, walked to the edge of the catwalk, and led the
crowd in a fun bar room sing-along.
By the end
of their set, they had put a smile on the face of almost everyone in
the room with their sunny California pop. But they made one
mistake--having Twin Sister in the support slot. They are a nearly
impossible act to follow.
The Long Island
quintet played an electrifying set of indie soul. Magnetic lead singer
Andrea Estella sang confidently on the catwalk with her distinguished
breathy vocal. The tight backing band emitted a full wall of sound
augmented perfectly by Eric Cardona's impeccable guitar plucks. Their
set pulsed with understated grooves, big releases, and dreamy guitars.
It was a truly transcendental performance--the highlight of the evening
to be certain.
Unfortunately, the same cannot
be said for blog darlings Cults, whose performance was underwhelming
until the very end when it was almost salvaged by their two singles "Go
Outside," and "Oh My God."
Critic's Notebook
Personal Bias: I came to this show expecting the least from Twin Sister, but came away as a huge fan.
By The Way:
This was my first time to visit the Kessler Theater, and it might be my
favorite concert venue in town. The sound was mixed perfectly all
night, the foyer was filled with the work of local artists, and the
venue smelled like burning incense.
