Like at many concerts, the crowd in front of the stage was pretty sparse for opener Blue Giant. To be perfectly honest, this reviewer had never even heard the name Blue Giant before (we later found out that the two main vocalists are a separate act on their own, the Barsuk darlings Viva Voce). The group walked on stage looking more like 1970s Woodstock meets the American South than anything befitting of the crystal chandeliers and gold couches of Royale.
With a smaller audience fairly unsure of what to expect, Blue Giant jumped right into things like the pros that they are (all members of the group have extensive resumes of touring and recording in bands like the Decemberists). In a short amount of time, it was clear that these guys know what they are doing, and do it well. Blending country, rock, psychedelic, and the improvisations of a jam band, Blue Giant is a complete surprise (if just for this new blended genre they seem to have pulled out of nowhere).
As their hour-long set went on, Blue Giant proved that they were worth the price of admission alone. The group switched in and out of instruments, playing harmonica, standing guitar, and--to the delight of at least one very vocal concert-goer--a banjo. By the end of their turn on stage, Blue Giant had not only gotten every skeptic in the house to dance and rock along, but they also had blown everyone away.
The Dandy Warhols were the main act of the night, but they had a lot to live up to after their friends Blue Giant walked off stage. Not surprisingly, the veterans of indie pulled off this feat with what looked like complete ease. In and out of familiar songs like “Horse Pills,” “Bohemian Like You,” and “The Last High,” the audience was captured immediately, and the Warhols refused to let go.
The most surprising part of the show was not the excellent performances, but rather how casual and familial everything felt. From the minute the Warhols walked on stage, audience members began talking to them about various things - what songs they wanted to hear, the last time they played in Boston - and the band was more than happy to keep the conversation going. The show felt less like an organized event by a nationally recognized band, and more like going to see your friend play a few songs at your local pub.
Always blazed and fully on (especially when Zia McCabe got a chance to shine and turn the whole place into a dance floor), the Dandy Warhols’ performance might not have been the most unique, but the entire experience of their show truly was.
