I was pumped to be reviewing and photographing the Broken Bells show at The National last Sunday night. I’m a longtime fan of The Shins, but unfortunately never got to see them live, so I was curious to see the results of James Mercer (vocalist and guitarist for The Shins) having collaborated with Brian Burton (better known as Danger Mouse).
I was pumped to be reviewing and photographing the Broken Bells show at The National last Sunday night. I’m a longtime fan of The Shins, but unfortunately never got to see them live, so I was curious to see the results of James Mercer (vocalist and guitarist for The Shins) having collaborated with Brian Burton (better known as Danger Mouse).
The two united in 2008 to create Broken Bells and, being such a fan of Mercers, and knowing how successful a producer Burton was, I was surprised by the knocks that Broken Bell’s two albums, Broken Bells (2010), and After The Disco (2014), had received.
Disregarding opinions expressed by other reviewers, I’d been listening to their album all week trying to familiarize myself with both albums so that I’d be able to follow along with the rest of the crowd, and by Sunday night I couldn’t wait to hear popular tracks like “The High Road” and “The Ghost Inside” live. The vocals were so good on the tracks that I had to wonder if the live version was going to disappoint, or if these guys were actually just that good.
Before I was even allowed to enter The National, I hit a snag with the staff and wasn’t allowed to bring in my camera. Hating myself (more The National than me) for not keeping up with technology and still only owning an iPhone 4, I hoped that despite the shitty camera option I was now left with I’d still get to enjoy a good show out of the night–even if all I had to show for it was bright blurry lights and objects that looked like humans in the distance.
I didn’t have to wonder whether I was going to get a good show for long, though. Even before Broken Bells took the stage, the energy the crowd was emitting was informing the unsure among us that we were about to see something good.
I’ve been to The National multiple times for concerts, and this was one of the most packed shows I’ve ever seen. Forget that it was 9pm on a Sunday, Richmond was there and ready.
As soon as the guys took the stage the crowd went nuts. Admittedly, I was one of them. The excitement from the fans was infectious. As Broken Bells began their first song, their light show started up behind them, almost stealing the spotlight away. The blank white screen hanging in the background staring at us minutes before was replaced by images of a giant Earth making its way through the atmosphere, passing stars and shadowed outlines of women in heels falling through space.
The music coincided perfectly with the images, in the sense that you never knew what you were going to get next. But odds were you were going to go with it, and enjoy it.
Broken Bells used a range of instruments throughout their songs, which added a futuristic, poppy, but still altogether mellow vibe to their songs. I felt like I was on an acid trip through the galaxy, and I had absolutely no complaints.
The lullaby-like but still powerful vocals, drum solos, electric keyboard, and yes, even horns playing in the background of “Vaporize” were worthy of chills as James Mercer sang out the lyrics, “Darling, we’ve been through this, so if you want to follow me you should know I was lost then and I’m lost now, and I doubt I’ll ever know which way to go.”
When “Angel and the Fool” was played, I was a bit unimpressed with the slow-paced turn the show seemed to have taken–that is, until Mercer reached his whistle solo. I think it’s necessary to say, on behalf of the crowd and myself: Bravo, sir. That was one helluva whistle solo.
By the time we were nearing the end of the show, my friend and I determined that we shouldn’t have worn heels, and took a break from dancing with the crowd to go and sit in the second story balcony. This gave us a bird’s eye view of the stage, the light shows, and the hundreds of people loving it.
From the balcony, I was able to see the full extent of the futuristic vibe that Broken Bells had created onstage, from the white semi-circle shapes of their keyboards to the giant orb-like ball center-stage creating light beams which bounced off of the crowd and back to the giant Earth on the screen.
Visually, it was fantastic from up there.
Even sitting, it was impossible to not bob your head along to the catchy beats Broken Bells produced, one right after the other. I would have felt ridiculous attempting to dance in my seat had I not been able to see that almost every other person up there was doing it too.
It was while I was sitting up there that Broken Bells reached their final song, “The High Road”–the one I, and clearly everyone else, had been waiting for. The band began the intro and was immediately greeted by the screams and cheers of the crowd, followed by everyone on the upstairs level jumping to their feet to sway and sing along to the beat.
When they reached the end of the song and began to exit the stage, the crowd roared with appreciation. Those already on their feet remained standing. As I took my leave, I could hear the audience chanting, “encore, encore!” even as I passed through the front doors of The National.
I think it’s safe to say that Richmond thoroughly enjoyed their night with Broken Bells and the dreamy, futuristic indie-pop journey they took us on.
