Mayer Hawthorne

A few months back, I won tickets at an Ann Delisi's Essential Music Listening Party to this show. I'm really glad I did, too, because both Mayor Hawthorne and their opener, The Stepkids, were quite good.

First some general notes: The concert sold out. That was actually a bit of a surprise to me. I didn't realize Mayor Hawthorne was that well known. The Majestic Theatre is a pretty nice venue. It actually reminded me a bit of Showbox Market, only smaller.

The Stepkids had a cool light show. They were wearing all white with a screen set up behind them, and the light show made it look like they had splattered paint all over themselves and it kept changing. Again, sorry for the distinct lack of photos. My phone died before the show, so unfortunately, I can't show you what I'm talking about.

Fellow attendee Lauren B. from Chicago described their sound as "groovy and psychadelic." She also mentioned that they had something of a Lenny Kravitz vibe. I'd say I agree with both of those assessments.

Before Mayer Hawthorne came on, I asked another concert-goer, Kirk T., how he would describe Mayer's music. He said, "Seventies soul music from Philadelphia or Motown," which, based on what I had heard before the show, I would agree with. Some of the songs he played were a little more rock, but he definitely had a big doo-wop or swing type vibe going on. There were multiple songs where I wanted to snap along. I almost think the best way to describe his music is to say the band were all wearing suits, and that they dressed for the part. He also had on a bow-tie. I'd say he dressed a bit like Buddy Holly.

I think my favorite part might have been the bassist's LMFAO hair, though.

ADEMLP - May 2012

I'm kind of bummed my phone died before this show, because it means I had no camera. Which is mostly disappointing because we were on the balcony this month. It was the first time Ann Delisi hosted a listening party on the balcony, but hopefully, we'll be outside most of the summer. It was a lot of fun, and it was really nice to be outside. Plus, the food was excellent :)

The music was also really good. Unfortunately, I didn't quite catch the names of a few bands she played. I'm not sure if that was a result of being outside, or me just not paying close enough attention. Or something else. I don't really have a ton to say about most of them, except that Destroy This Place was a bit too punk for Essential Music. Also that it seems Fiona Apple and Neil Young have new albums.

I'd say my favorite bands were Of Monsters and Men, and Fiona Apple probably. The Generationals were also good. They reminded me a bit of Foster the People. My favorite band name that I heard was definitely Surgeons in Heat. They weren't bad, either. I feel like I was just in a good mood yesterday. I ended up "Yes"'ing a bunch of songs that I doubt I normally would have. That probably had something to do with the being outside and the sunshine.

Kate Monaghan was pretty good. She was fun to watch. The music was generally mellow; there were some songs that were less than others. I also felt like it fit well together, as in the words fit well with the music, and the different instruments' parts melded well. She did play a cover of Coldplay's "Yellow". It was kinda cool to hear someone else singing it, and it was cool to recognize a song, but otherwise I wouldn't say there was anything particularly stand-out about it. I'd probably see her again. She does have good music. And it actually really worked quite well in a small-ish outdoor venue.

One thing that surprised me a bit was the number of people that showed up to watch her play after Ann Delisi finished the discussion part of the party. Just as a side note.

One other side note: Over the past few weeks, and while looking up a lot of these bands, I keep coming across bandcamp, which is amazing for researching bands. It allows you to play any music that the artist has put up for their listeners and allows you to purchase the music directly from the artist, optionally paying more than the minimum for an album/song purchase as a donation to the artist. I looked into their fee structure, and it's really nice to the artist. It works out really well. If I ever make music, I'll definitely use it. I used it to research albums I don't have by a couple bands I know, and I researched Kate Monaghan on bandcamp before the listening party this month.

List of bands that Ann Delisi played this month:

• Mynabirds
• Neil Young and Crazy Horse
• Kate Monaghan
• Generationals
• Polica
• Volcano Choir
• Dirty Projectors
• Smoove and Turrell
• Destroy This Place
• Fiona Apple
• Of Monsters and Men
• Mayer Hawthorne
• Santigold
• Surgeons in Heat
• Slackwax
• Dr. John
• Animal Kingdom
• Patti Smith
• Passion Pit
• Best Coast
• (I missed this one)

I'll post the ones I missed after Ann Delisi lists them on her Facebook page. Actually, she's a little behind, so I don't know when they'll be up. I wanted to double check some of last month's names, too.