210 -- Jimmy Eat World -- Tuesday, July 18, 2017 -- Xfinity Center -- Mansfield, MA

I was furious when I found after buying tickets that J.E.W. would be the opener, not the headliner.  This meant fewer songs, fewer fans, and fewer chances to make a connection.  This was especially frustrating because K (Erik Kastman) and I had spent many days coordinating a Boston visit to see them.

Luckily, I had no reason to be angry.  Jimmy Eat World’s performance was better than any opening band I’ve seen.  They seemed to take the built-in disadvantage as a challenge.  They threw more energy into this performance than any previous show.  It felt like a mission: You may not have come here to see us, and you may not get to hear everything you want to hear, but we WILL leave our mark.  

--- “Bleed American”!!!!  The fierce red backdrop and immediate contrast with the lackluster “Sure and Certain” gave it a power it's never had before.

--- “Big Casino”: yay at “New Jersey success story”!  Bruuuuuce.  The song reminded me of the times Bruce came up during the drive and during the pub dinner.  (Other satisfying pre-show moments included fitting in every Jimmy/Incubus prep track in time, and K nearly convincing me that Dookie was better than American Idiot.)

--- This guy to the right of me has his arm in a sling…yet he’s pumping with the other arm!  K: “I've got two arms, so I've got no excuse!"

--- “I Will Steal You Back”: meh, like the rest of Damages.

--- “Lucky Denver Mint”: better.

--- Cool new guitar solo intro to Hark's “Futures.”  Maybe because I've never been so close before, but I like that Jim Adkins looks like a maniac.  He’s not phoning it in for a second!  The fact that he keeps amping the crowd for Incubus is great too.

--- Hahaha at me calling the absurdly creepy departure “Pass The Baby (Here)” right before they play it!!  K can verify.  I had not known about the rhythm shift halfway through!!

--- “Pain”!!!!

--- “Work”: “Get out of this place while we still have time.”  No -- never leave!!!

--- “Hear You Me”: K cracking up at the Hark “ANGELs lead you in” section.

--- “Always Be”: not the strongest song for a short set, but points for originality.  Apparently it fits Molly Ringwald.

--- Gah at a new one, but “Get Right” does have some creepy baby-passing charisma.

--- “A Praise Chorus” into surprise “Sweetness”!!!!  Best opener ever.  Solves the “Middle” problem!!  Joy.  So glad for K.

Grade: A

209 -- Dispatch -- Friday, July 7, 2017 -- Merriweather Post Pavilion -- Columbia, MD

I have wanted to share Dispatch with people since the first time I heard “Elias” at a Oaxacan bus stop.  This time I got to share it with more people than ever before: with Hark, Anna Hickman, Alex Shiroma, Tom Swindell, Steve Busch, and (in electronic spirit), Ben Marzouk, Kevyn Allgeier, and Lisa Allgeier. Would the band be able to satisfy such a big group of fans? YES.  They said they were “gonna take it to the people,” and they definitely did.  
--- Chad Urmston casually walks on in a skirt that he never references during the show.  Was it a sign of solidarity with trans people after Texas tried to enact a new bathroom law?  If so, right on, Chad. 

--- “Be Gone”: smoky start!  Hark yelps, “Yes -- the catchy one!”  Awesome whoosh section three quarters through.  Best new song opener I've heard at a concert.

--- “Circles Around the Sun."  Lights cool -- song still mediocre.  So long, mediocrity -- harmonica brings it up!

--- “Passerby.”  Yay for Steve Busch.  “What a little child” is a catchy chorus I'd somehow missed.  Jam!!  I am excited for a song I barely liked in the past.

--- “Windylike” and “Fallin’”: meh.

--- Anna Hickman transforms “Bang Bang”!!  She’s on point with her hand motion, head bobs, and RAP LYRICS.  The tambourine’s cool too.  Anna's self-described “15-year-old coming out” is worth the price of admission.

--- The atmosphere in “Curse + Crush” is first-rate.  Love the Band of Horses “Funeral” vibe -- especially in enunciation on “shiiine”!

--- “Open Up”: Hahaha at Alex's literal “relax man off your back” on Anna's back.  For at least the fourth time tonight, they've taken a song I barely knew from the albums and made it so much better.

--- “Cover This”: too soft for me, but cool hand-held maracas and ukulele.  I also like how the drummer becomes singer.

--- “Rice Water”: “This song is about parents from Central and South America who put their kids on trains north in search of a better life.”  Another unexpected love.  I want to look online and read more!

“Flying Horses”!!!!!  Glorious.  The crowd got louder at each chorus, Anna and I auditioned for Dancing With The Stars, Hark ran Hark In Charge, and Alex cracked up the entire time.  So. Much. Bouncing.  Our CALVES.



--- Kiss at the end of “Bound By Love.”

--- “The General”!!!  I do not owe Tom Swindell an eaten bongo.  (Before the show, Tom had not been sure they would play “The General.”  I was sure they would – I said I would eat a bongo if they didn’t.  The only thing I ended up eating was [quality] Columbia pizza at Tom’s place afterward.)

--- “Bats in the Belfry”: jam city!!!

--- “Skin The Rabbit”: yet another strong song from the new album.  Props.

--- “Here We Go”!! This show has been a perfect mix of their new and old albums.  Interesting addition of the opener Marco Benevento on piano.  Aww, he's so excited to play.

--- Awww at our gut clasp during “Out Loud.”  There are ten made-up riffs in the middle, but the vocal in the last one is strong.

--- 20 year bandmate Pete Francis is off tour due to depression, and they offer a uplifting message.  Good for them.

--- “Only The Wild Ones.”  Gah for it sounding like Givers' “Up Up Up,” but wooo for it as a song.  Different band members playing the trumpet and clarinet?!  For Hark, they need to bring out a clarinet!

--- “Elias”!!!!  No need to mess with a classic.  Body summary of the rest of the show.

Grade: A