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25,000 people packed into the Tweeter Center on Sunday night to see Mae, Ok Go and The Fray. Judging by how many people were there, I'm sure that some of you readers were there as well. I had a night that won't soon be forgotten. Treated like a royal, I was a escorted back to Mae's tour bus for an exclusive interview (look for it soon). I chatted, in the back of the tour bus, with the incredibly humble musicians, Jacob Marshall and Rob Sweitzer, but there was no pomp and circumstance involved. Even when they casually strolled on stage about thirty minutes later, there were no fireworks or crazy antics. In fact, no one in the audience noticed. But when they played the first chord of their hit single, "Summertime," the audience's attention was immediately refocused to the stage.
As they continued their set, floods of people - whether they were buying their hot dog and beer or The Fray's new red concert T-shirt - poured into the amphitheater from every side. Mae made it known they were a band that needed to be listened to. The audience paid attention.
Throughout the set there seemed to be a bit of a problem with the vocal levels. I'm not sure if this was due to the lead singer, Dave Elkins, having issues, or if it was the sound booth's problem. Either way, it didn't take away from their spirited seven-song set, which showcased four new songs from their upcoming album, Singularity. Their new stuff has a definite edge in comparison to their previous, subdued Everglow tracks. Since more than half of their set was music that no one had heard before, it was hard for the audience to truly "get into it." (Even a lot of Mae's fans hadn't heard this stuff, unless they downloaded the single on iTunes or listened off the MySpace page.) Their recognizable tunes definitely had screaming fans singing along, but for most of the audience it was their first introduction to Mae. And it wasn't a bad one. Their songs are well-written with great melodic contour and lyrics that promote hope that is genuine and unpretentious. I think I'd prefer to see Mae play in a smaller, more intimate venue, though. (Look for them at the North Star Bar in August. It will be worth it.)
After a brief rearranging of the stage (and the appearance of an enormous gong), Ok Go was ready to perform their lively, energized dance-rock music. Damian Kulash, Ok Go's lead singer, had me on my feet screaming by the end of the set. It wasn't because I wanted to stand up and make a fool of myself (it was still light outside at that point, which caused Kulash to liken rock stars to vampires). But Kulash's charismatic personality can make you do anything. Hell, the entire crowd participated in the "wave" at Kulash's request. I haven't done that energetic of a wave since 7th grade. This was how he unified the crowd after telling us he couldn't decide whether to call us "Philadelphians" or "New Jersians."
After about three songs, he decided he wanted to know the demographics of the crowd. "How many young people are here tonight?" he screamed into the mic. The crowd erupted with a roar. Then he asked, "How many old people?" After a few people answered, he quickly redefined what an old person is. "In this crowd, you are an oldie if you're over twenty." Damn. Once again, I was old. To my surprise, the audience erupted with a louder cry than the initial response. Hell yeah, this time I wasn't outnumbered by adolescents.
Toward the end of the set they performed Electric Light Orchestra's famous song, "Don't Bring Me Down." Halfway through, Kulash jumped off the stage and ran into the pit. He continued running to where I was sitting (which was the back of the orchestra), got on top of the chairs right behind me and finished the song. Literally, I had the best seat in the house.
Right before his last song, someone screamed from the audience and asked when he was going to play the gong. Kulash then commented, "You know you are a rockstar by two things. First, they give you an airplane that circles the earth and you only land for rock concerts. Second, they give you a gong." For the final beat of their set, Kulash hit that gong like the true rock star that he is.
By the time The Fray came on, the entire place was packed. I'd forgotten how much I liked The Fray. With the introduction of so many new bands this year, The Fray had been long forgotten on my iPod. With the amazing success of their album How to Save a Life, they have reached millions. Having several of their songs on hit TV shows like Grey's Anatomy and Scrubs didn't hurt. And they're even better live than recorded. Both Issac Slade and Joe King have incredible vocals. The audience was relieved to hear that Slade was okay after he spent most of the day at Cooper Hospital. He apparently had an allergic reaction that caused his throat to swell up. Disregarding the doctor's orders, Slade decided the show must go on and that he would perform. The original set order was mixed-up and for several of the songs King sang lead vocals, but the changes were mostly unnoticeable, though they did lead to a middle-of-the-set sing-a-long to "How To Save a Life." What an amazing, memorable moment. Truly. Everything after that was just a bonus.
All pictures taken by the author
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