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GREETINGS FROM A heavy mist hung in the air the night of Sept 13th. The inclement weather didn't stop about 300 Roanoke College students from coming out to see Better Than Ezra. They packed into the Bast Athletic Center for a night of music and fun. It was a well organized event complete with a professional security team. They were prepared for any possible situation, including a medical emergency, because they had a few trained paramedics on staff. Complete Circle, a band out of Fayetteville, PA, kicked off the show. Made of two sets of brothers, they played a string of original songs. They ended their roots-rock set with a cover of the Proclaimers, "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)." BTE once again proved why their fans would travel "500 Miles" for one of their shows. Known for their ability to reach their audience with a well balanced mix of humor, sincerity and especially their extraordinary musical talents, BTE makes their shows worth the price of admission. This show was no different.
A reference to the movie "Old School" helped draw the crowd into the show. KG shared that the band had watched the DVD earlier that day. Imitating a scene from the movie, Jim assumed the role of "Frank the Tank" and had everyone cheering him on. The laughs didn't stop there. A slight mishap in the midst of "King of New Orleans," led to one of the evening’s funniest moments.
During the breakdown portion of the song Tom walked over to Travis and started talking to him. Travis was playing his drums and nodding as Tom talked. It was obvious that Travis wanted to contribute to the conversation by what happened next. As Travis opened his mouth to speak, he forgot to bring his drumsticks down and froze as he realized his mistake. Travis had a classic "Oh Sh*t" look on his face. This look didn’t leave his face until he was able to get back in rhythm. He probably missed only 3 or 4 beats, but his drums were silent long enough to cause Kevin to glance back at him with a classic "WTF?" look. Tom and Jim just died laughing, and Travis was able to laugh also once he regained his composure. Travis continued to entertain the crowd with the inaugural installment of "Travis' Words of Wisdom." At one point, Kevin announced that he was starting a new tradition, but that he was the only one that knew about it. KG said that this was the part of the show where he gives his mic to Travis. As Travis rose, he took the mic from Kevin, and said, "People think I don't talk, but I want you guys to know that everything we do comes from here" as he pointed to his chest. After this he handed the mic back to KG. However, Griffin wasn't satisfied and asked Travis for some words of wisdom. Travis took the mic back, paused, and responded: "In Roanoke they don't give a sh*t about college football." (Roanoke College doesn't have a football team.) Kevin took the mic back and said something about them going to LSU where they actually have a football team.
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Continuing the humorous stage banter, Kevin had the audience in stitches when he told them about their first DVD, which would be coming out in November. He said the special features of the DVD would be "the pinnacle of bad taste" and provided a few reasons why. First, there would be "Cheesy Video Moments You Wish Would Go Away." To illustrate KG did the robot dance after saying this. (KG got some mad skillz. Once again, Justin ain't got nuthin on KG!). Second, there would be "Song Commentary" where they just f**k with each other. Finally, there would be "Going to the Strip Club with Better Than Ezra"...enough said. (We bet Rick was happy...) Later, KG asked Jim to play Edelweiss from the "Sound of Music." The request caught Jim off guard but he obliged haltingly for a few bars. He refused to go any further and to ensure this he started to play the next song. The band also doesn't hesitate to bring their road crew into the fun. Kevin's mic stand was not cooperating and it kept falling and smacking him in the mouth. Guitar tech, Mike Keel, came to fix it during a song and Kevin chased him around the stage with his guitar. They were like two kids playing tag. KG also does very good impressions. While fans enjoy his Axl Rose and Bruce Springsteen impressions, the fan favorite is clearly Dave Matthews. Roanoke College unwittingly fed into this by playing the entire "Under the Table and Dreaming" CD before the show. This must have been in Kevin's mind as they began to play "In the Blood." "This is 'In the Blood' as sung by Dave Matthews, " he proclaimed with a wry grin. As the rhythm section played, KG sang the first verse of the song with a dead on Dave Matthews style. He cracked the audience up and even made Tom double over with laughter. Even with all the laughter, the tragic events of that week did not go unrecognized. The death of music legend Johnny Cash and the untimely passing of John Ritter garnered a moment of tribute during the BTE set. The crowd was treated to a rare display of Jim's vocal range when he sang Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" solo. A respectful applause rose from the crowd after this. Immediately after that KG started to sing the "Three's Company" theme to pay his respects to John Ritter.
All of these special moments enhanced the already amazing BTE show. Their sound was tight. They played every song with conviction and their music spoke to the young crowd. They sprinkled in a few covers such as Beck's "Debra," Outkast's "Ms. Jackson," Snoop Dogg's "Beautiful," The Ramones' "Sedated," and Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper" which demonstrated the wide range of their musical talent. While their long time favorites were eagerly received, the new songs seemed to capture the crowd's attention as well. Of the two new songs played, "In a Little While" appeared to be the favorite. We've been to several college shows this year. They all appear to have a recurring theme. BTE comes to college shows with three strikes against them – 1) they are from the 90's 2) they are not featured on TRL 3) P. Diddy hasn't sampled one of their songs. Students often say things like, "Why did they get BTE?" "Aren't they old?" or "I remember that ‘running through the wet grass song’," but the students always leave saying things like "they were awesome" and "I want to see them again." How many bands today can honestly say they can do that? This only proves what many critics and loyal ezralites already know. Better Than Ezra is an incredible band. Nuff said..
Another awesome review from AmEmPbdy and Bolony7 (aka Woodward & Bernstein). |
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