• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Crushing Krisis

Comic Books, Drag Race, & Life in New Zealand

  • DC Guides
    • DC Events
    • DC New 52
    • DC Rebirth
    • Batman Guide
    • The Sandman Universe
  • Marvel Guides
    • Marvel Events
    • Captain America Guide
    • Iron Man Guide
    • Spider-Man Guide (1963-2018)
    • Spider-Man Guide (2018-Present)
    • Thor Guide
    • X-Men Reading Order
  • Indie & Licensed Comics
    • Spawn
    • Star Wars Guide
      • Expanded Universe Comics (2015 – present)
      • Legends Comics (1977 – 2014)
    • Valiant Guides
  • Drag
    • Canada’s Drag Race
    • Drag Race Belgique
    • Drag Race Down Under
    • Drag Race Sverige (Sweden)
    • Drag Race France
    • Drag Race Philippines
    • Dragula
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars
  • Archive
  • Contact!
You are here: Home / Personal / off-topics / music / concerts / In Review: Phoenix, Jenny and Johnny, & Wavves @ The Tower

In Review: Phoenix, Jenny and Johnny, & Wavves @ The Tower

October 25, 2010 by krisis

Saturday night E and I were excited to score a pair of tickets to see Phoenix at The Tower from awesome XPN local music blog The Key. The seats were prime – slightly forward of the soundboard, just off the left aisle.

Unfortunately, the concert was less than prime. Way less. (For a more positive spin, check out the review @ Phrequency, which includes some killer photos.)

The Tower, as shot on my phone this June when we saw Conan there.

Opener Wavves may have been dreadful – we couldn’t especially tell under the muddy, unspecific mix that obscured just about every element of their performance except for occasional super-cool falsetto wailing from the bassist.

From hearing a sample of Wavves on record, the mix seems to match their lo-fi noise pop aesthetic. I’m all for lo-fi, but in a huge concert hall cleaning up the mix a little probably would have doubled their pull of new fans. Wavves did have a certain post-Pixies charm similar to Nirvana’s radio-ready moments in that they were playing hyper-catchy – almost bubble-gummy – melodies beneath the layer of reverb and noise.

Sub-headliner Jenny and Johnny were solid and enjoyable. The Jenny of the band is Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley, who is perhaps my current favorite live female vocalist for power and tuneful consistency. That was present in spades at The Tower, as was J&J’s “harmony is melody” aesthetic, wherein almost every part of every song layers both of their voices with equal precedence in the arrangement. It’s a throwback and a bit alt-country, but I really like it – Lewis is wasted relegated to backing vocalist, but the band has to somehow distinguish itself from her solo efforts.

Not relevant in the context of the review of her music, but Jenny Lewis is smokin' hot.


Jenny and Johnny’s mixing was rather impeccable, especially considering every standing member of the band traded off their instrument at least once – meaning a variety of playing styles on the same axes and amps. I was impressed that their riffs and lyrics stood out despite my only know a couple of songs in the set. While they’re not up to Rilo Kiley levels of awesomeness yet, I’m pretty excited to hear their record post-show. Maybe more hooks will jump out at me than did when I previewed it.

After J&J we were reasonably excited for Phoenix (having forgotten about Wavves entirely). E is the Phoenix fan, not I, so I only know tunes from the Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix disc. I made a conscious decision not to cram their other material into my head prior to the show so I could just absorb their music with a fresh set of ears.

The band came out swinging hard – a one-two punch of an intense “Lisztomania” and “Lasso,” followed shortly by a fantastic version of “Fences.” Vocalist Thomas Mars was a little lost in the mix against the heavy tom-focused drumming (two sets of them!), but it’s not like intelligibility is a trademark of the band. “Fences” is what made me most excited, as its subtler, trance-ish elements translated perfectly from the record.

With the opening salvo completed the Wolfgang fans in the crowd were quickly placated, but this is where a few things went awry.

Phoenix, from MerchantsofRock.com

First, Phoenix just doesn’t DO anything. That’s not to say I was expecting choreography, but a stationary band can still be interesting to watch. I was completely arrested by Paper Route last year without knowing a single song, because they were just so damned compelling on stage. Phoenix were seriously lacking in the charisma department outside of Mars, and he was ineffectual in holding space in the middle of the staging. The lighting didn’t help – almost entirely bright, piercing whites that alternately silhouetted the players and blinded the audience.

After a few more songs, I gave up on watching and sat down to close my eyes and absorb. Nothing wrong with that – it’s what I do at Radiohead concerts.

At some point the band shifted to moodier instrumentals (totally cool with me), but accompanied that with dropping a white scrim in front of them so they were reduced to literal silhouettes and nothing more. I didn’t note this, since I was absorbing with eyes closed, but E was still standing and not a fan of the minimalism.

Still, both of us were still mildly entertained at this point. I was enjoying meditating on the unfamiliar songs.

Then came the low end.

I can’t even describe it. A word that enters my mind is “punishing.” At some point the bass turned from springy supporting tonality to an industrial grade weapon. It wasn’t just low or loud – it was distorted and wobbling the entire room in its wake. I could feel it in my chair. It completely obscuring any tonality above it in the mix. If the bass player stopped for a moment, the mix got awesome – and then he’d come back.

I thought maybe it was just for a specific song, but it kept going on and I was getting increasingly fidgety and uncomfortable in my seat. Even with ear plugs to minimize the crushing volume I was starting to feel a little ill from the assault. I felt more ill in sympathy with the folks beside us, listening sans ear plugs.

Suddenly, E leaned down and tapped me on the shoulder: “Do you want to go?”

Still somewhat committed to toughing out the low end assault, I replied, “No, I’m fine sitting here, I’m not bored.”

“That’s fine, but I really want to leave.”

Halfway puzzled, I collected my jacket, squeezed out of our row and walked out to the lobby with E.

It turns out that the she was having the same low end issue I was. She couldn’t hear anything but bass, and I quickly discovered that it had actually messed with her equilibrium, because she was just as wobbly on her feet as I felt in the chair.

The Phoenix show marks the first time I’ve ever left a concert before the encore when I was there to see the headlining act … and I’ve seen a lot of concerts. The performance itself was okay – nothing special – but I honestly don’t know how we could have possibly survived any more of that bass.

I’m not sure if it was a bum night of mixing, faulty equipment, bad acoustics in The Tower, or some other circumstance, but if not for the interlude from Jenny and Johnny it would have easily qualified as the worst big concert I’ve ever attended. If the band meant it to sound that way they’re idiots.

Much thanx to The Key for sponsoring this trip, even if it didn’t turn out as awesome as we had hoped. They’re a great blog! Read them!

Related posts:

  1. Song of the Day: “Head Underwater” by Jenny Lewis
  2. Song of the Day: “Happy Birthday, Johnny” – St. Vincent

Filed Under: concerts, reviews

Previous Post: « Philly Music Monday: Joshua Popejoy
Next Post: Things To Do In Philly, 10/26 Edition »

Primary Sidebar


Support Crushing Krisis on Patreon
Support CK
on Patreon


Follow me on Twitter Contact me Watch me on Youtube Subscribe to the CK RSS Feed

About CK

About Crushing Krisis
About My Music
About Your Author
Blog Archive
Comics Blogs Only
Contact Krisis
Terms & Conditions

Crushing Comics

Marvel Comics

Marvel Events Guide

Spider-Man Guide

DC Comics

  • It’s gonna be May! Oh, wait, it’s ALREADY May…
    Hello, friends! Unfortunately, my non-CK life and […]
  • Drax GuideDrax Guide – now available to the public!
    Learn how the MCU merged several incarnations Drax into Dave Bautista's hyper-literal warrior with a vendetta agains Thanos in my Drax Guide! […]
  • Guide to GamoraGamora Guide – now available to the public!
    My Gamora Guide will help you find every Marvel comic starring Thanos's adopted daughter and the most dangerous woman in the galaxy! […]
  • Drag Race España Season 3, Episode 2 – “Drag Vision” Review & Power Rankings
    The queens of Drag Race España Season 3 make a collective stumble in this "Drag Vision" choreography challenge, earning the ire of the judges (though it's the kindest ire you'll ever see). […]
  • Star-Lord GuideStar-Lord Guide – now available to the public!
    Get ready for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 with my Star-Lord Guide, including every comics appearance of Marvel's TWO distinct Star-Lords! […]
  • Drag Race Sverige Season 1, Episode 8 – Sweden Grand Finale, “Queen Delicious” runway, & season retrospective
    It's the Drag Race Sweden Grand Finale! Our final three queens put their spin on an original song and walk a final "Queen Delicious" runway alongside their eliminated peers. […]
  • Adam Warlock GuideAdam Warlock Guide – now available to the public!
    Find the comics that inspired the plot of James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in my Adam Warlock Guide - now available to the public for the first time! […]
  • Monica Rambeau: Photon (2022) #5 released by Marvel Comics April 26 2023New Comics & Collected Editions: Marvel Comics – April 26, 2023
    Catch up on newly-released comic books and collected editions from Marvel Comics April 26 2023, with guides to every title & character! […]
  • New for Patrons: Guide to Spider-Man 2099 (+ Guide to Marvel 2099!)
    Does Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse have you ready to read some Spider-Man 2099 comics? Use my Guide to Spider-Man 2099 to find every issue! […]
  • Updated: Guide to Exiles
    My Guide to Exiles is newly updated with an improved reading order, ISBNs, digital buy links, Marvel Unlimited reading links, and more! […]
  • Guide to Rocket RaccoonNew for Patrons: Guide to Rocket Raccoon
    Want to brush up on the comics origin of Rocket before the MCU tells their version? My Guide to Rocket Raccoon covers his EVERY appearance! […]
  • Drag Race España Season 3, Episode 1 – “Spain is Different” Review & Power Rankings
    Drag Race España Season 3 debuts by showing off its 13 queens (yes, we've added one) with a Supremme Talent Show and a "Spain is Different" runway. […]
  • Drag Race Sverige Season 1, Episode 7 – “Diva Assoluta” acting challenge Review & Power Rankings
    The Final 4 queens of Drag Race Sverige Season 1 bring their best performances to a Diva Assoluta acting challenge and a Drama Queen runway. […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 11th Annual Secret Ballot Results & Mappings
    Want to know the 61 books that ranked on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 11th Annual Secret Ballot? I've got them all fully mapped! […]

Content Copyright ©2000-2023 Krisis Productions

Crushing Krisis participates in affiliate programs including (but not limited to): Amazon Services LLC Associates Program (in the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain), eBay Partner Network, and iTunes Affiliate Program. If you make a qualifying purchase through an affiliate link I may receive a commission.