The Fray, Cary Brothers, and The Damnwells do 9:30

Yesterday, Mr. Trash sent out a very last minute concert announcement. His co-worker had extra tickets to see The Fray that night for $5-10. Back in December, I heard about The Fray from some guy who was sitting next to me on a flight to Denver. He had said to me, "You're from Boulder and you've never heard of The Fray. They're awesome!" So, taking the advice of some stranger, I decided that it was time to see The Fray in concert.

On this blog, I have mentioned how much I hate it when people talk at concerts.* I don't understand why people go see bands when they'd rather chat with their friends. Even though talkers drive me nuts, I still go to shows hoping that whichever concert I am at will be the one where people are respectful. Now, on to my recount of the show.


The Damnwells
The first band was pretty damn good. Even though the 9:30 Club was sold out for the show, the venue was less than half full when The Damnwells began their set. The space made it easy for me to move around and, thus, avoid the talkers. I'm sure The Damnwells sound like plenty of other bands, but I really enjoyed watching them play. Plus, from a distance the lead singer kind of reminded me of Jeff Buckley, and that's never a bad thing.


Cary Brothers
By the time Cary Brothers started playing, the club was pretty full. Luckily, I found a quiet spot in the very back just in time for Blue Eyes. Before beginning the song, Brothers said in a bitter tone, "I'm glad that a song that is so painful to me has caused you all so much happiness." (Paraphrased. I couldn't remember/find an exact quote.)**


The Fray
I came to the 9:30 Club to hear Blue Eyes and to see The Fray. I should have left before The Fray's set even began. Even though the headlining band was playing, the audience talked through every song. People were talking so loud that I could make out some of their words over the music. It was ridiculous. One thing I can say, though, is that I was sad I never got to see Coldplay in concert at a small club. Now I feel like I have. Can someone please explain to me why I shouldn't consider The Fray a cheap Coldplay imitation?


* In case you didn't get to read this one, my dad hates talkers too.
** I've been listening to Cary Brothers as I've been writing this post. Ride is another amazing song. You can here it on Brother's aforlinked website.***
*** I don't think that "aforlink" is a word but it should be. It's the 21st century version of "aformention."