Keane, Abbreviated

This is not quite the post I was planning to write.  I was hoping for photos with the band members, for one thing (they often speak to fans after shows.)  But it didn't quite work out that way...

My friend Mae texted me a month or so ago.  "Do you like Keane?" she said.  As it so happens, I do - I discovered them my last year of high school and bought two of their albums then.  I hadn't thought much about them lately, though.  But I texted back "Yes", and then she said that they were playing in Nashville (first time they've been in this part of the country for about 5 years), and did I want to go with her?

Well, that was a yes. So we bought tickets and yesterday we set off.

The drive down was uneventful.  The venue was less than a mile off the highway - convenient!  We parked just a block away and then walked a few blocks to Subway to grab some dinner.  Then a walk back to stand in the line - we wanted to get as close as possible to the stage.

The weather was gorgeous.  Warm but not scorching, and a nice breeze.

Finally inside!  The venue was a refurbished warehouse -- big and open, with a great vibe.  We ended up pretty close - off to the right side, and maybe 6 or 8 "rows" (loosely defined) back.

The opening act - Patrick Watson.  Piano, vocals, guitar, bass, violin, and the percussionist, who played everything from standard drums to a tiny marimba to the tambourine to a musical saw.  I really enjoyed their music (and also used this as an opportunity to practise my low-light photography.  Results varied.  You're only getting the better ones here.)

Finally, Keane!

Enthusiastic fans.

I have to say this is one band which is better live than on recordings.  Their albums are beautiful, but they can seem a little... aloof?  Distant?  Almost that they're so lovely they're hard to relate to.

Live, this is not a problem!  Tom, the lead singer, is so fully, incredibly into what he does.  You can tell he loves his music and loves to share it with people.  His energy really makes the band!  (I also thought it was fascinating that I could hardly understand a word of the first band, but Keane, though they're English and you'd think the accent might raise difficulties, were crystal-clear.  Every word came through.)

Unfortunately, only about an hour into Keane's set, the microphones and most of the rest of the power in the building suddenly stopped working.  They finished up their song (though you couldn't hear much, and Tom looked really confused.)  A brief consultation with somebody official looking, and they left the stage.  Tom said something but we couldn't hear - I gather it was along the lines of they couldn't carry on, he was sorry, etc.  Security and other people kept shouting things but with no amplification, and several hundred people wondering aloud what was going on, I didn't catch much.  The impression I gained, though, was that something had happened to the transformer - it had broken, or caught fire.  Shortly after this we all got shunted out of the building, and a fire truck arrived.

So that was the end of that.  The band did come out to speak to fans, but they were behind a fence, mobbed with people, and at that point we sort of just wanted to go home.  We did stick around and speak briefly with Richard, the drummer, who was lovely, although seeming a bit frazzled - well, I would be too!  Afterwards we stopped at a gas station for cooling drinks, and then drove home (listening to Keane recordings.)

This was my first "rock" concert (though they almost can't be called that...) and I really enjoyed it!  Of course it's disappointing not to hear the whole concert you've paid for, but it was no one's fault and I'm not upset.  And now I know that if I ever get the chance to hear them again, I'll take it, because I thoroughly enjoyed this!

"Sea Fog", one of my favourites from their new album.

"She has no time" - an old favourite from their first album.