Death Cab, with a Dance from Franz

Yeah, it's been too long since I've last blogged. But looking for a new place and/or job takes up a lot of time. What is sweet, though:

1. Having some wedding things secured, such as date (7/21/07), ceremony place (Green Isle Park), and reception place (The Woods).
2. Going to Chicago with Katie over 4th of July weekend, and seeing the Adler Planetarium, Shedd Aquarium, Navy Pier, fireworks on Grant Park, and being about 1000 ft up in the John Hancock Observatory. Riding the trains, especially the 'L,' and eating dinner at local places was quite thrilling as well.

To the past:

April 20, 2006.

After spotty sun-showers, I ventured over to Northrup to see DCFC. I'm so used to seeing them at First Avenue that seeing them on a big stage actually overwhelmed me. I enjoyed their set, but it was really hard to connect with them from the 2nd balcony level. Still, I got chills when Ben came out and played "I Will Follow You Into The Dark" on his guitar. It's just so powerful, at least for me. Anyway, DCFC had trees and a landscape for stage props, and the band had a lot of room to move around and jump and dance oddly like usual. Definitely enjoyable to watch, but I've seen that enough now, I think. They also had stagelights, which hindered their performance at times (I still don't find them to be a band playing anything bigger than First Avenue, but that's just me.) Most of the songs performed were those I saw last time at First Avenue, but they did manage to musically dress-up a few of the older goodies, which was a treat to see. Otherwise, I don't think I have to see them again.

Watching Franz Ferdinand is like a firecracker going off during a parade; wild, loud, smile-causing, and dance-making (though I don't always dance watching fireworks). It makes sense that they are an arena-rock band, since their music is all about energy and making you move your sweet ass! The lighting and smoke and whatever else worked well for them. The only thing was that they played every song fast; there's a reason the slow-tempo ones are slow!

Openers The Cribs were fun to watch, though they'd be much better in a smaller venue like the Triple Rock, 7th St. Entry or 400 Bar. But they got the crowd going with their energetic post-punk dance music, or whatever the kids are calling it these days.