Event Tegan and Sara • Cake City Los Angeles State California Venue The Wiltern Date January 31, 2006
by Jason Vaughn
Being a big fan of Tegan and Sara, I was eager to see them on the Unlimited Sunshine tour, opening for Cake. Unfortunately, during Cake’s heyday, I was listening to a different style of music, so I wasn’t as familiar with their material. I did, however, remember some of their more popular songs so I was also excited to see their live show. After arriving and getting my photo pass, I also found out that comedian Eugene Mirman would be performing between sets. The most interesting thing I noticed, before the show even began, was that each band had brought their own audience to the Wiltern. I spoke to one person who had bought tickets to see opening band Gogol Bordello without knowing that either Cake or Tegan and Sara were performing. That band brought a more punk audience to the show, Tegan and Sara brought indie girls, and Cake brought an array of new and old fans, ranging in age and styles.
Eugene Mirman had appeared on Conan O’Brien and interacted well with the audience. Some of his jokes were about his life as a secret FBI agent, the harms of smoking pot, and recorded conversations of Christian phone company telemarketers. He also brought multi-media to the night, with some of his bit being on film. It was the first time I had seen a comedian at a rock show, and I thought it was an interesting twist.
Gogol Bordello was a new band to me. I had no idea what to expect. But when they came to the stage, they got an immediate response from the audience. Once I saw their outfits, I knew it was going to be a punk show, but I didn’t expect the good show that I got. Like most punk shows, the lead singer ran around the stage and jumped into the audience. But they also had two women come out during the performance, throw various objects into the crowd, and let the lead singer dip them into backbends and shove the microphone into their mouths. Overall, it was an entertaining set.
Next up was Tegan and Sara. I am a fan of So Jealous and was excited to see them again, having seen them only once before, opening for the Killers. Since then, I have become more familiar with their older songs and was looking forward to hearing a blend of new and old material. When they began their performance, I was impressed with the wide range of styles that the Unlimited Sunshine tour incorporated, from the wild frenzied energy of Gogol Bordello to the more laid-back stylings of Tegan and Sara. They played their usual hits, including my favorite song “Monday, Monday, Monday,” title track “So Jealous,” “I Know I Know I Know,” and of course the recent single “Walking With A Ghost.” You can’t really go wrong at a Tegan and Sara show. They ooze personality and have great harmonies. During one of the later songs in the set, Sara stopped her singing to swat frantically at a bug, and Tegan looked over to find out where her sister had gone. I also found out that I have a crush on Sara.
Like I mentioned, I was not as familiar with the songs of headlining act Cake. I did notice, though, that audience members both old and young were singing along to all of the lyrics. I believe that is a testament to Cake’s long career and their ability to appeal to their original fans while winning over new fans constantly. They had a backdrop of an out-of-focus mountain range, and once the band came out the audience erupted. During the night, the band played new songs like “Wheels” off of their new album Pressure Chief, as well as older songs like “Sheep Go to Heaven” which allowed all the fans to sing along to the familiar chorus. Also, during “No Phone,” the lead singer demanded audience participation, breaking up the audience to have men sing one part of the chorus and women sing another part. Overall, I think that all of the Cake fans got to hear a good selection of music across the band’s releases, and hopefully everyone got to hear at least one song that they were hoping the band would play.
I hope the Unlimited Sunshine Tour is the kind of tour that we’ll see more labels and venues supporting. Instead of seeing three versions of the same band, the night brought a wide range of music, all of high quality. Including the comedian between sets not only introduced potential fans to a new artist, but also introduced a new element into the typical rock bill. Both quirky and well-planned, this tour is definitely one to catch.
Tags: cake, tegan and sara, wiltern
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