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To the powerful wail of a locomotive, Grammy Award winning Train railed into Stir Cove Thursday night. From their very first note and throughout their performance, both the band and the crowd was energetic, enthralled and elated.
I think you guys have been listening to me – cuz nearly everyone was on their feet for the majority of this hour and a half (almost) concert. See, I knew you could do it, and I knew you would like it!
Train put on a really great show. Patrick Monahan, lead singer, endeared fans by bringing ladies to the stage for back-up vocals, routinely encouraging the crowd to sing along and he even did an audience walk through that circled the amphitheater and had the ladies swooning. Train was there to entertain and to engage and they surely succeeded. It wasn’t only the night that was clear, the sounds coming from these musical engineers were pitch perfect. In a moment of fun and games (which seems to be part of their allure), they noted that they are now on the Country Music Network, and broke into a rockin’ country rendition of “Hey Soul Sister”. I just didn’t expect such high energy – from either the band or the audience, but it was most definitely fulfilling. Monahan was perpetual movement, even scaling a few steps on the light towers on either side of the stage; and yet he never missed a note. While I loved hearing all the hits like “Calling All Angels”, “Meet Virginia”, “Hey Soul Sister”, I couldn’t wait to get to a computer to print out the words to “Save Me, San Francisco”, which had a really catchy rhythm. The song writing skills of Train should not be ignored. Their alliterations and cadences are clever and intriguing, and when you read through the lyrics, you’ll become even more captivated by this San Francisco quartet. I hope they pull into this whistle stop again soon, as I’d love to take that ride again.
Opening for Train, was Needtobreathe, a group I first heard just a couple weeks ago on my XM radio. I am captivated by a song off their third album, both titled “The Outsiders”. They led their performance off with that song so I was in their web from that moment on. sp; While they definitely fit into the Alternative Rock genre, these guys have been hot in the Christian Rock arena for several years, winning Dove awards and scoring high on the Christian Rock charts. Their aptitude is not to be brushed off, these guys are very talented. I had a chance to shake lead singer Bear Rinehart’s hand after the show and let him know how much I appreciated what I heard. This won’t be my last Needtobreathe exposure.
As I said earlier, the crowd was one of the most fun crowds of the season. I don’t know if the cool night cleared everyone’s head and made them a little more upbeat, or if was just a great combination of music and fans. I’m betting on a little of both. It was a surprisingly date-like crowd. I had expected a lot of single ladies, and while there were plenty, it was great to see the guys and gals swaying to the tunes hand in hand, beaming from ear to ear. Despite the soggy ground from early in the day rain, hundreds of people surrounded the stage and the vibe for the entire amphitheater was so happy and positive. Hmm….could it be because they wore the right shoes for a change?
Can’t wait til next Thursday – guess who is coming? It shouldn’t be ‘news’ to you if you’re paying attention….let’s see if we can sell out the Cove once again and all have a good time on September 9th with Huey Lewis and The News. I think you should be there!
