Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Bastille at the Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco – A Concert Review

Bastille at the Rickshaw Stop
     Last night, Bastille performed at the Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco. Our three conclusions are:
  • The members of Bastille are genuinely good guys and are appreciative of fan support.
  • Even when the lead singer (Dan Smith) is at less than 100%, Bastille is better in concert than in their recordings, which is not an easy task.
  • Bastille is well positioned to explode in the United States, similar to their explosion in Europe.
     Almost sheepishly, Dan Smith explained that he “blew out” his voice during a festival in Spain (Recinto de Festivales) the previous Saturday. He apologized at different times, and once mentioned that he could pay for everyone’s tickets. There were no takers. Smith continued on, and not without risk, since Bastille is scheduled to make its first U.S. late night appearance on Wednesday (July 24 on Conan). The other members of the band helped as much as possible and asked the crowd to do the same.

     We tested our camera (Canon SX280) for the first time. In low lighting, the compact camera performed well for its primary task – taking pictures. But as we were told, when we went to video recording, the microphone struggled. Maybe it was just sympathy pains for Dan Smith, since it was only a problem during the power vocals. The recording of "Pompeii" is embedded below.

     We look forward to seeing Bastille a second time at the Great American Music Hall on September 19.
Little Daylight
     The opening band was Little Daylight. Their performance was solid. Going in, we were familiar with “Overdose” and “Name in Lights.” In the final three songs of their setlist, the two familiar songs sandwiched one that we didn’t recognize, but it was our favorite of the performance. Mistakenly, we didn't make a mental note that would allow us to identify it today.
     "Overdose" by Little Daylight

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