Concert Review
By Stacy Sardelli
Editor in Chief

Bands: Kings of Leon, Snowden,
Philpot, & The RedLine
Location: The Rave, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Date: 05/17/07

Chicago's The RedLine opened in The Rave Bar. Unfortunately, I missed the first couple of songs. They had great energy on the stage, great interaction with the crowd, were a lot of fun, and have a lot of charm! Fantastic facial expressions from the lead singer too throughout the performance! I enjoyed every song I heard and loved 3 or 4 of them. The crowd responded quite positively to The Redline's show as well.

It's crystal clear that the band totally believes in themselves and the music they make - and that is something that a lot of really great bands don't possess. People believe in those who believe in themselves.

Free singles for their song 'Get Yourself Away' were handed out to the audience. I really support this idea, especially when the CD label is professional and clearly states the band's name, the music titles, and the website addresses. Theirs did all that.

The next band on the stage was Philpot. They hail from Indiana. I really, really liked their set. I was unfamiliar with them previously so it was exciting to hear something new that I totally dug. A couple of songs they played that still stand out in my mind are, 'Got It In' and 'Waiting In The Rain'.

They have some really fantastic tunes that have somewhat unusual melodies. I swear at some point during their performance I was reminded of a more mellow Motley Crue meets Oasis. This would definitely not apply to their whole set but I felt the same way later two different times. So, if I was crazy I was crazy 3 times. Which, is quite possible.

The only negative thing I took with me was that they had a little too much attitude. I never saw a smile from any of them, not once. One of the Philpot 5 constantly had a lit cigarette hanging out of his mouth throughout the whole show and there was limited eye contact with the crowd. Who am I to judge? It's just that I didn't quite connect with them despite loving their music.

Somehow I missed all but two songs from Snowden. They were on the main stage at The Rave and I think Philpot and them may have overlapped a bit. Otherwise, I was abducted. One of the two.

When Kings of Leon hit the stage the crowd went fucking nuts. To be expected! I was excited myself. They opened with 'Taper Jean Girl'. Next were: 'King Of The Rodeo', 'My Party', and 'Soft'. Some of the other songs played in their 20-or-so set were: 'Molly Chambers', 'The Bucket', 'Milk', 'Four Kicks', 'On Call', 'California Waiting', and 'Knocked Up'.

They sounded great! I am not a fan of the sound system at The Rave, so I know they would've sounded better at a different venue. I must state though that The Rave is a cool place regardless. A lot of guitar picks were thrown into the crowd and they also seemed genuinely appreciative of the audience's enthusiasm. The only thing that surprised me was that for such an amazing group of young rockers I expected a little more energy and movement on the stage. However, you know those whiskey nights!

Links:
Official Kings of Leon