I'm on such a musical high right now. Friday night, the stars aligned and sent me to two of the best shows I've seen in awhile. First was fun. (for FREE) at the U of U's annual Redfest. I've long admired fun.'s frontman, Nate Ruess, for his live performance in his old band The Format. But this new endeavor has taken his songwriting to new heights, in my humble opinion.
I've always said that I wanted to write a Broadway musical with Nate. His songs have a whimsical quality, they tell a story, they lend themselves well to choreography, orchestration, gospel choir accompaniment, and they're full of theatrical pauses and climaxes. Seeing him live on stage again totally re-ignited that little flame in the back of my head, and I tell ya, if I ever get around to writing that musical, he'll be one of the first that I send my script to.
The show itself was pretty fun (hahaah, I'm punny), but I was a little peeved at their setlist, as they left off two of my favorites: "Be Calm" and "Benson Hedges." However, they are coming to Utah again next month, so I'll give them a chance to right those wrongs. I must admit that I felt a little old in the crowd, which sadly has been happening more and more at shows lately, but alas, I pressed onward! I made it to the second row and befriended two 18 year-olds, and we jumped around and sang to each other for the duration of the set, as the sun set behind the stage.
After a quick stop at Cafe Rio to refuel, we were off to show #2, Stephen Kellog & The Sixers at The State Room. I've never seen Stephen live, but when I saw a mandolin, accordion, slide guitar, and tuba on stage, I knew we were in for a treat of the country/folk/bluegrass flavor. Yummy.
Because my husband wears a bandana every day, like his Grandpa taught him, I of course noticed that all four bandmates were rocking a classic red bandana the moment they took the stage. Pay attention to that detail, it will come into play later.
Stephen is so dreamy. He's happily married and so am I, so I can safely say that it's a music-only crush, but I really did crush on him quite hard throughout the set. His voice has a tonal quality that cuts straight to your heart and you just can't wait to hear what he's going to sing about next: his daughter, his brother, a wild night at the bar, the whiskey on his breath, etc. You can understand each and every word he sings, and he delivers each one with his whole soul.
Their set was varied, energetic, soulful, and each member mastered more than one instrument. It was pretty much musical (instrument) chairs....and I LOVE a band that can show their prowess in that way. After their encore, they came back out on stage and tossed their red bandanas out into the crowd. See, I told you it would come back into play. Guess who caught one?? That's right! Boo yah!
All in all, I left both shows feeling inspired. Fed. Uplifted. So let's hope all of that actually finds an outlet. Today--I'm grateful for music.
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