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Mae
The Academy Is...
JamisonParker
Days Away
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Lo-Fi Cafe
Salt Lake City, UT
5/18/2005
By: Meagan Rockne
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This was a show that I had been in geeky anticipation for -
we're talking about crossing off the days on my calendar
kind of geeky. So, when I found out the show was at eight, I
planned my day and travel time accordingly so that I didn't
show up too early because, although I may have been a
geek about it, I did not want to appear that way to others by
showing up very early. However, when I go there at ten to
eight, the music had already started and I had missed Days
Away set (thanks, William of The Academy Is... for telling
me it was their last song.) This was a band whose music I
was unfamiliar with but who had been highly praised and I
was disappointed to have missed them because of the time
confusion on the part of the venue.
The first band that I saw was JamisonParker - two boys, one
name. Parker looks like he's still in high school, which was
really endearing and made me want to take him home and
feed him cookies and milk. Jamison looks like the bastard
love child of Robert Smith and Conor Oberst, and together
(with an additional bassist and drummer) they play pop
rock/indie rock depending on your definition. They played a
short set featuring mostly new songs accompanied by a
smoke machine. The smoke machine was a little much and
the set was unexpectedly short, but they managed to keep
the crowd entertained in the sweltering heat.
The Academy Is... took to the stage with an uproar of
applause from the audience. I'm just gonna come out and
say that I love The Academy Is.... I am a sucker for their
catchy hooks, MTV-ready looks and lead singer William
Beckett's Mick Jagger-like stage posturing. So, yes, to
answer that question in your head, I love them so much I
would marry them. By the chorus of their opening song,
William had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand.
However, by the third song, the heat was taking its toll on
me and I felt as though I would throw up. So, I used my
feminine wiles and camera (so I would look official) and I
secured myself a spot on the side of the stage, where I had
escaped the mosh pit and the heat. Plus, I had an excellent
vantage point of watching William strut up and down the
stage with his shirt open and watch the subsequent removal
of said shirt due to the heat. (I'm pretty sure that I could go
to jail for thinking about William sans shirt. Ok, maybe not
jail since he is over 18, but I'm sure that all my friends will
now look at me like a pedophile.)
After The Academy Is..., the heat was really becoming a
problem. The staff was handing out water and the "no re-
entry" rule was lifted to allow people to get fresh, cool air.
But with the combination of the heat and the "sit and relax"
music styling of Mae, my attention to detail was spent. So
after Mae's set, I stole their set list to give you, the reader, a
descriptive synopsis of their set or at least a run down of
what songs they played. They played six songs off their
current album, The Everglow, including my
favorites "Breakdown" and "Suspension," and played a total
of 14 songs, plus two encore songs. Along with my brain not
functioning, the keyboardist, Rob Sweitzer, also distracted
me. I have never seen a non-lead singer keyboardist have
as much energy and entertainment value as he did. It made
me want to go back in time and actually pay attention to my
piano lessons. Mae's set was incredible. They suffered
through the heat to put on an amazing set and make the
near-capacity crowd feels as though it was an intimate
setting.
However, Mae's set was not the end to that night's musical
endeavors. For those in the know, The Academy Is...'s
William played an acoustic set at my behest. Ok, it was more
like I blackmailed him into playing an acoustic set, but he
didn't fight me on it. He was very gracious to succumb to my
annoying demands - and subsequent blackmail - for an
acoustic set. He played three songs off the album, pausing to
explain lyrics, give dirty looks at people talking and answer
questions. This was my favorite performance of the night.
Therefore, I would like to extend an extra special thank you
to William for being shanghaied into it. (I really didn't have
any blackmail-worthy information on him, but I made him
believe otherwise at a prior encounter.) I also need to thank
Benji, the merch guy for Mae, for letting me cut through all
their merchandise so that I didn't have to fight through the
crowd.
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