killers & keane @ merriweather

This is a little overdue, being that it has been a full 5 days since the concert. But better late than never, right? :-)

Wednesday night I not only got a chance to see The Killers in concert (finally!!!), and to see Keane perform live again(!!!), but I got to do this UP CLOSE. My coworker and I had scored awesome 3rd row center seats; unfortunately your seats didn't matter at all -- pit was pit and so it was general admission pit. *sigh* While it was wonderful getting to see the bands up really close up, I've gotta say standing for 5 hours straight to do so is not my cup of tea.

The openers: Regina Spektor, Maximo Park, Louis XIV
While it's cool that so many bands were performing, waiting 30 minutes between each band for the staff to set up for the following band was painful. Fortunately we missed Regina Spektor because we got there an hour late. Unfortunately we didn't miss Maximo Park. I mean their music wasn't terrible, I don't think. Well, I'm not sure. We were too busy being grossed out by the waterfall of sweat dripping off of the lead singer's head to really hear what was being performed. I mean it's not their fault it was 90 degrees and they were wearing tons of clothes. Well actually, it sorta is -- note to bands performing at outdoor summer venues: wear less clothing. Next was Louis XIV, who I found to be a really good opener band. They play very energy-pumping music. I only knew two of the songs they performed but it was fun all-round. The only negative I have to say is that the lead singer wore *incredibly* tight pants which showed off a little too much of his package. *shudder* But "Finding Out True Love is Blind," and "Illegal Tender," both good songs.

The mini-headliner: Keane
I saw them back in February in Ann Arbor. And man, they were EXCELLENT then. This time was no different. Plus this time I was all the way up in the front right near them. The lead singer is not particularly good looking, but the pianist is cute. Except he's also married (I was so close I could spot his wedding ring -- yeap, I looked for it!). Not that it *really* matters, but yeah... Tom Chaplin (lead singer) is an incredibly talented man with a beautiful voice. Man, as my coworker would say "love it! love it!" Keane is fantastic on their album Hopes and Fears and amazingly even better live.

The stars of the show: The Killers
I went into the night saying, "My life will be complete when I hear 'Mr. Brightside' performed live..." Well yup, my life is complete. Except for one little thing. Brandon Flowers totally dedicated the song to the guys in the lawn seats. Brandon, you silly man, you were supposed to dedicate it to ME, all the way up front! The performance was solid. Most of the songs were performed to perfection. Some of the songs were actually angrier sounding than I expected (or as some would say, "more raw" sounding). But it was a terrific performance. The unfortunate thing is that I was exhausted by this time because of all the standing, all of the pushing other people out of my "personal space" near the front and in the center. Brandon Flowers, though your name is a lot funny, you are an extremely good looking man. The Killers were great, and totally worth lying in bed for 20 minutes wishing the pain in my feet would subside.