08/04/24
The Truman, Kansas City, MO
Damien Verrett, the soul behind the solo project So Much Light, took the stage for the first time in Kansas City, inviting the audience into his music. Pop/Indie Rock mixed with soundscapes and electronic sounds, So Much Light set the stage for the rest of the energetic evening ahead.
Remo Drive brought pure Minnesota emo-rock to the stage, a shifting in tone from So Much Light, emitting high energy from the very start as lead singer Eric Paulson bounced around on stage, exploding into the mic with an unbridled spirit of angst and emotion within their lyrics, along with raw, infectious melodies.
As many others, I found Hobo Johnson a few years back with their Tiny Desk performance of “Peach Scone”, and I’ve been quietly enamored with the unfiltered honesty and almost-focused scatterbrained consciousness that fills the lyrics and performance of Hobo Johnson and the Lovemakers. Not as deeply familiar with their music as many of the younger generation in attendance, I was excited to hear music off of their first album, namely “Romeo and Juliet”, “Sex in the City”, and “DeMarcus Cousins and Ashley” (which unfortunately didn’t get played), but also “Happiness”, “feb 15th (alone forever)”, and “I Want to See the World” (again, didn’t get to hear it). The rest of the audience got loud and excited to hear “Subaru Crosstrek XV”, “Jansports” and “Jordan’s House”. And it’s that kind of energy, that fandom that really solidified the show and made this artist feel more and more relatable and humble. Throughout the show there were shout-outs to the people making pizza, bartenders, audio and lighting crew, literally everyone on the tour with them, giving them credit where credit was due, making sure that the audience gets the coolest show they could possible put on.
Closing out the main part of the show, Remo Drive returned to stage for an incredible rendition of “Peach Scone”, bringing the crowd to a concussive climax for the evening. And then…they took a break and I couldn’t help but watch people heading for the doors without waiting for the eventual encore. They missed out on quite the encore as there was a calling, an uncanny need for “Jordan’s House”, and despite it not being a part of the setlist, despite it not being planned or Frank not remembering the lyrics, they obliged the crowd. There was one catch, however, as Frank needed someone’s cell phone to be able to get the lyrics, which, to everyone’s surprise, two phones flew from the crowd in his general direction. “You’re phone was completely black, why would you throw a completely black phone?” Then was the issue of a passcode, not even having the right phone of the person he was talking to, and eventually getting things sorted out, they finally got around to a chaotic rendition of “Jordan’s House” all while laughing at the whole situation as it unfolded, and hopefully everyone got their phones back.
