Cold War Kids at The Vic

The Cold War kids chose to make Chicago the last stop on their tour in support of their upcoming EP, Behave Yourself. The sold-out crowd filed into The Vic in the most unorganized of fashions to see just how much gas was left in their tank.

The band took the stage much in the way that the crowd did, but quickly fell into perfect unison with their steady warm-up song, “I’ve Seen Enough.”  Three screens were spaced at the back of the stage with projections of flashing art in perfect sync with cool lighting effects – but this isn’t a Phish show, so let’s get to what matters…

The sound at The Vic was, hands-down, the best I’ve heard from a live show in ages… if not ever!  The level was aimed at clarity rather than distortion and the mix was absolutely perfect, allowing you to appreciate every nuance.  This quickly locked in the crowd’s attention – everyone stood focused and respectful.

It wasn’t long before the band began to offer us a sneak peek at their new material; specifically, a song entitled “Audience.”  Unfortunately, this peek didn’t get me too excited as all signs pointed in a direction of safe sounding, C.W.K.-template tracks.  Therefore, it didn’t take too much time before the fringe crowd (both literally and figuratively) started getting restless and talkative.  This would have been fine had they not chosen to stay at the show to discuss who’s buying the next round or where to go afterwards (when we were only twelve minutes into it).

The band was hardly engaging, but I am not going to place all of the blame on them.  Shortly after taking stage, the audience was treating them like background music at a party – sadly, it seems that this is becoming the norm for live shows today.

Are our attention spans really so short these days…?  Didn’t everyone pay good money to come see this band…? Is this… WAIT!! Their recognizable radio single “Hang Me Up To Dry” comes on…

Everyone stops what they are doing, pays attention, and sings along.  Just as quickly as it starts, it stops… The next song is unrecognizable (to most) and everyone immediately reverts to their loathsome behavior.  Maybe they’re all saying the same dumb sentence: “Hey, let’s not even give this a chance.  Let’s let radio deem if it’s worthy of our time and attention… What are we doing after this?”

I would tell you that – at the end of the day – you know what to expect from this band and their performance, but that simply doesn’t seem to matter today.  Even if that’s truly the case, it’s still a unique ride if you’re willing to shut your mouth and open your ears.

At one point during the show, lead singer/guitarist Jonnie Russell confided to the crowd, “We always felt Chicago was our secret weapon.”  After tonight, I wonder if he still feels the same way…