Mame! and Matchbox 20

Back to back Saturdays couldn't have been more different. First up we saw Mame which was one of our "surprise" shows at the 5th Ave. We didn't have any idea what we were getting in to but we both loved it! As part of our season tickets we got an extra "bonus" ticket so we took a friend who just started a neat new job. She loves Mame and was very excited to go. Over dinner she was telling us about a reviewer who called it dated. Fie I say! As a younger theater goer the costumes were amazing (so sparkly!) and I already know all about what it's like to live today. I find it to be enjoyable to have a peek back to the past. I loved the idea of the young nephew following his aunt and her friends around learning all kinds of new vocabulary words :)

The following Saturday we caught Matchbox 20 at the Key. The show started promptly at 7pm (which is always nice). This was the third time for us and they put on a fantastic show as always. The crowd was really diverse- we saw 'tweens with their families, young twenties, guys without girls, girls with out guys, and couples of all ages.

The opening band was from New Orleans and called New Math. They only played for 20 minutes but the amount of energy they used was phenomenal. It was like Sting (in his Police years) mashed with Stomp. At the end all the musicians were on the drums while the drummer was standing on a drum on top of the piano and then he jumped off! That must have been some seriously reinforced musical equipment. I would see them again and wouldn't be surprised if they make it big.


Next up was Alanis Morissette and she played for about 45 minutes. I'm not a fan, but I usually like what they play on the radio. I was really impressed with her performance. She seemed so genuine as she sang. And she sounded amazing! You know how sometimes you buy the CD and see a show live and think "wow, they sure digitally enhanced that performance". Alanis did a great job warming the audience up and I really liked the way she introduced her band members one at a time in between songs so they each got a moment of glory.

And then...there were up! And for 2 glorious hours Matchbox 20 played. It was a 5 hour show with all three bands (and the breakdowns between sets). One of the things we love about them is the light show and they did not disappoint! The start was a giant spaceman complete with countdown clock. The Exile in America Tour was mainly old material with a smattering of new songs thrown in. Post reunion, it was nice to notice that Rob Thomas highlighted his band members better and each of them had solo spots. What was really cool is that they have USB bracelets that you can order with a sound recording of your particular city, so soon we'll be able to relive the magic. Now if only they would release the video....

We saw Matchbox 20 on our honeymoon so we always see them when they come to town, and luckily for us it always hits around our anniversary. As we sat there in the audience waiting for the show to start we had that moment where seven years may have passed by but it felt like we'd barely left that first show.