Alexz Johnson, Jared and the Mill, Patrick Droney @ Radio Radio — Indianapolis on October 30, 2014
Three acts with music that comes straight from the heart, and all of it is being performed in one of the most intimate of settings. Seriously, this is just this reviewer being able to have his cake and eat it.
Supporting her brand new record, singer/songwriter Alexz Johnson is hitting the road as part of her “Let ‘Em Eat Cake” Tour, and bringing along Jared and the Mill and Patrick Droney. This featured a stop at Radio Radio October 30.
It seems like a relatively quiet night here in Fountain Square, but inside some of these buildings, it’s a different story. Over at the Murphy Art Center, the Velvet Underground-inspired Pizza Underground (that’s Macaulay Culkin’s band for those keeping track) is performing at the Hi-Fi. I love pizza, but I feel like cake for a change tonight. So it’s off to Radio Radio I go.
First, it’s over across the street to La Revolucion for a nice little chat with Alexz, then it’s back over to Radio Radio. It’s a modest crowd, with a few people trickling in and the rest finding spots at some of the tables. As the clock ticks closer to show time, I make my way towards the bar to stake out a spot, while our first act takes the stage ready to go.
Patrick Droney is first up, and for the most part, this looks and feels like a warm-up/opening act, but don’t let that fool you. There’s plenty of heart and soul to go around during his brief set. Armed with only his guitar, his voice, and a backing keyboardist, this is a musician that relies on true grit and passion rather than gimmicks to tell a story. On another note, I’m more impressed they’re able to keep everything going without the help of percussion.
Because it’s still early, the crowd isn’t too responsive, but there also aren’t many attempts to try to connect with the audience. Whether this was from nerves or otherwise remains to be seen, but they do eventually warm up to him. Actually, this kind of reminds me of one of those intimate coffee shop performances. One act pours their heart and soul out on stage while the rest sit at tables and politely give him their attention. Except instead of coffee, replace it with booze.
Overall, not a bad way to kick things off. Having never heard of him before tonight, I’d be interested in seeing where things take him somewhere down the road.
A few more people have started trickling in. While that is happening, I’m seeing a lot of stuff being moved to the stage: a mandolin, a washboard, several guitars, a keyboard, and of course, the six people who make up this band.
It takes a little bit longer for this band to go on (sound checking this many people is a process), but anything that takes this long is worth the wait, right? When talking with Alexz earlier this evening, she offered some kind words about them. Now I’m excited. Bring on Jared and the Mill.
First order of business, no one is standing around the open space in front of the stage, so they encourage everyone to come up. Not everyone does, but a handful do, and they proceed to dance along and move to the their blend of indie folk. At one point, one even orders drinks for everyone on the floor. Our first act may not have made much of a connection with the audience, but this one seems intent on doing just that, and one-by-one, more people are getting out of their seats to come see this band.
As for their performance, Alexz was right in what she said earlier. Every member is on the same page, their four-part harmonies sound great, they encourage participation (and get it for the most part), and to top it all off, they look like they’re having the time of their lives on that stage. Also, shout-out to their drummer, who seemingly does it all, moving from behind his kit to the front of the stage with a washboard strapped to him and then back to the kit and doing backing vocals on a few songs. Jared and the Mill might be a supporting act on this tour, but they embody everything you want to see in a headlining act. Much like our first act, let’s keep an eye on these guys.
Now we’ve reached our main event. As I noted on Twitter, Alexz was a delight to talk to, so naturally, I’m anxious to see what she can do on stage. I’m not alone in this. One table is full of people wearing an Alexz Johnson VIP laminate, and naturally they get up and move towards the stage. So far, they’re the only ones.
Alexz and company look ready to go, and much like our previous act, she encourages everyone to move to the front. Slowly but surely, everyone gets up and moves. There may not be many of us, but that may have added to the performance. It’s a very intimate setting, and even the band performs like that. Alexz takes time to respond and joke around with a few people up front, and there seems to be a lot of camaraderie in this place. We may not know each other, but everyone is here for the same thing.
As for the performance itself, the claims in that press release I received about Alexz Johnson were absolutely true. She performs with with a kind of passion and heart that you don’t normally hear from many contemporary folk/pop acts – let alone during a live show. While maybe not an overwhelming figure on stage, she is fun and has a very likable personality. As the set winds down, almost everyone is dancing along to the music, and some sing along. No, it’s not a large crowd, but this is always a cool scene to see when you go to shows.
This goes on for close to an hour before Alexz thanks everyone for coming out and closes out her set. Some people ask for an encore, but there isn’t one tonight. Instead, the band packs everything up and moves it off stage before making their way back to the merch table to meet anyone who comes around. A lot of people are buying CDs or getting pictures. Meanwhile, I bid one last farewell to everyone before heading back to my car.
Now here I am at my desk with only a blowout of a college football game going on in the background and my thoughts. So, final verdict?
What the show may have lacked in size, it more than made up for in soul. To put it another way, it was a night of real emotion inside one of the most intimate settings in Fountain Square (outside of the Funkyard, maybe).
And besides, who needs pizza when you have cake?
The Good:
An intimate setting, three acts that perform with as much soul as you could ever want in a show, and a small-but-mighty crowd. You don’t always need the largest audience, just the right one.
The Bad:
If there was ever a nitpick, it may have been during Patrick Droney’s set. There’s a lot to say about his talent, but not much of an attempt to get other people involved. However, I do still view him as a “person to watch.”