Sunday, November 21, 2010

Sara Bareillis: Kaleidescope Heart Tour Concert Review in Boise

We had the opportunity to go see Sara Bareillis in concert on Friday night. A good time was had by one and all. And I was quite impressed with one of the opening acts too. I just wish she had played a bit longer.

The first opening act was Holly Conlan. She is a lot like Sara Bareillis in that she plays the keyboard, sings like a siren, and wears large heels. I am pretty sure that the boots she was wearing had about six inch heels. I noticed because as she was walking out I had two thoughts running through my head—how in the world do girls walk with shoes that big, and how is she going to use her damper pedal with those huge boots? I just didn't get it. She started playing on her little synthesizer, and she started with "You and Me," which was a fun number. The rest of her too short set didn't disappoint either, including backups from a member of Sara's band playing guitar and accordion. I also recommend "OK."

I was captivated enough that I cam contemplating adding her CD to my Christmas list this year. I have a feeling that I will enjoy getting to know her better.

The next act up was Cary Brothers. The main singer's name was Cary Brothers; there were no familial relations involved. I wasn't quite sure what to think about this group. While they were pretty good, I couldn't really understand the words (which is a big deal to me when I am listening to music).

The lead singer did a pretty good job, but I couldn't keep my eyes on him because of some of the supporting members of the band. The first distraction was the drummer. He is quite skinny (not that there's anything wrong with that), and came out with a v-neck long-sleeved shirt that showed of his slightly hairy chest. He was in the early stages of balding, but wants to hide it, so his hair just fell over his forehead looking stringy and a bit greasy. We wore a glower through the whole set, sitting on his drum throne with shoulders hunched slightly forward. He really reminded me of Smeagol in the early stages of transitioning into Gollum. It is hard to take your eyes off an angry Smeagol who is getting paid to pound on things.

The second distraction was the bassist. He was the epitome of a dude rocker. Not the hardcore deathmetal rocker, but more of the guy that has shaggy hair that lives down the street that when he plays his music, he looks a bit like a train wreck but he sounds great. He had well-kept hair straight out of the 70s, and had a big grin plastered on his face during the whole concert (when he wasn't pursing his lips while feeling the groove and poking his neck out like a velociraptor). He also occasionally would sing along with the main singer, but here's the kicker—he was the only one on stage who didn't get a mic. Smeagol, the rhythmic guitarist, and the lead singer all had mics, but the dinosaur bassist didn't get one. He was also wearing a shirt with a unicorn on it that was peeing a rainbow that said something I couldn't read on it. I have a feeling that I am better not knowing.

They played a bit too long for me. I think they did about 10 songs. For a show that was standing room only for a group I had never heard of that only mildly interested me, it made for a really long set.

And then The Silence began. We had to wait 30 minutes until Sara and her band came on. I am not sure why. The stage was cleared and set up for her in 15 minutes. Yet we waited...and waited...and waited. It made me not so happy. And I think during the end of the previous set Wifey got a bit of beer spilled on her arm, which didn't help our patience. Luckily she was able to wipe it on the back of the girl who was standing in front of us as she was dancing around.

The Silence offered us some time to people watch and compare notes. Right next to Wifey, we had Tone-deaf Daddy who came with his daughter. He sang throughout the Sara Bareillis portion off key and off beat. Luckily I could sing much louder than him, so I could drown him out. His daughter could have been Narcissus, had she been a boy. She was quite petite, and every conversation I overheard coming from her loud mouth had an undertone of her superiority in everything. She talked about a new sushi place that she loved, and how she was a connoisseur of sushi. And later of wines. And later of business.

Most of her conversations were with a pair of roommates who we have run into before at the Brandi Carlile concert last time we saw her at the same venue. Coincidentally, they were standing in about the same place, as were we. One of these two ladies struck up a conversation before the show started asking if we had been to the Brandi Carlile concert, remembering us as, "that cute, young couple." Speaking of Narcissus, I was glad to know that Wifey and I still have it.

To our left, we had a group of younger college kids. They were the ones that were there for the drinks. I am sure they enjoyed the music, but they were there more for the scene than the music. They seemed like the type to remember how many drinks they had that evening while listening to the music than to actually experiencing the show live. Their conversation revolved mainly around different drinks that they were going to try, or shots that they liked. Not exactly my cup of tea.

And then there was the polygamist teens. There was one unfortunately geeky-looking guy that could have used a haircut that was there with three girls. Throughout the whole night, they were were hugging on each other. The boy cuddled with one girl through the first set, and at the end, he was cuddling with another one. The girls didn't seem to mind, because if they weren't cuddling with the boy, they were cuddling with each other. It was quite awkward, and I wanted to take these kids (who could not have been more than 14 or 15) to their parents and ask them if their kids went to high school or someplace more seedy. These kids were all over each other, and it was quite awkward. If they were this physical in public, I didn't want to think about what happened in private. I was just glad that they were behind us so that we could ignore them while we were watching the music.

Sara et al finally came on stage about 9:45. And she lived up to expectations. There was a lot of audience participation, and she seemed like she was having a ball. I was a bit disappointed that she happened to do an introduction to a song that contained multiple f-bombs, especially because there were children in the front row. I realize that she is an adult, but these little girls look up to her. I know kids hear that kind of language every day at school, but that doesn't mean that they should be hearing it from role models.

Sara has a lot of messages for girls that I think are worth talking about—she is a bit of a feminist in the fact that she wants girls to stand up for themselves. Before singing "Fairytale," she talked a bit about how little girls are often told stories that a prince will come save the day, but that sometimes the princess can save herself. There is a lot to be said about that. Girls are every bit as capable as guys, and I think we need more of that encouraged, especially in the fields of science and technology.

The concert was everything that I had hoped for, and more. There were fun lights, wonderful music, and a lot of energy in the room. We had to take off about 11:00 so that we could go get Munchkin from Grandma and Grandpa's house. No one has ever tried to put her to bed away from our place besides us, so we weren't sure how she would fair.

We arrived to find our little princess passed out on their bed listening to a choral program on the TV. We bundled her up and got her home, safe in her bed. She woke up a bit disoriented, but once she realized that she was in her own bed, she was fine with it. All in all, it was a successful evening. We'll have to do it again some time...

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