I devoted the past two nights taking in the music of Barcelona at the Columbia City Theater in Seattle. The record release shows were the start of their tour to promote their new album, Not Quite Yours. For the May 18th show, I drove directly to the theater from work, braving the Friday rush hour traffic. This would be the first time I would be taking advantage of my VIP guest list privileges, courtesy of Barcelona's Kickstarter campaign. The concert started a bit late, but I didn't mind...it only heightened the anticipation. There were two opening acts who like Barcelona, were also based in Seattle. The first was Lucas Field, a pop-soul artist with an infectious energetic style. The following act was Motopony, a band that can be described as indie-pop, who recently had their music featured on the TV shows House and Cougar Town. I thought Lucas Field was pretty cool, but couldn't find myself connecting with the second act. But, really, I was just getting more and more fidgety waiting for Barcelona to take the stage.
When, Motopony finally finished their set and broke down their equipment, I watched as the Barcelona guys set up theirs. It wasn't something I was used to seeing. Having been to dozens of Five For Fighting shows, I was conditioned to the sight of road crews doing all that. But, when you haven't reached that level of stardom yet, you do everything yourself. It makes you respect even more all the hard work and dedication to craft that bands such as Barcelona toil through to put on a great show. And, it was worth the wait. They started things off with Hanging In A Void, and it only got better and better as the night rolled on. Lead singer Brian Fennell alternated between acoustic guitar and keyboards, accompanied by Chris Bristol on electric guitar, Rhett Stonelake on drums, and Brian Eichelberger on bass.
The band played songs from their new album, and a few from their last one. The audience really came alive when they performed their hit song, It's About Time, and also a couple of cover songs which I'm embarrassed to say I knew nothing about. Hey, I don't follow the pop charts stuff! The funniest moment of the show was Brian Fennell's acknowledgement that he was wearing a flannel shirt and was pretty darn hot because of it! If you're reading this, sorry Brian, I thought it was too good NOT to share! After the show, I said my goodbyes to the guys and made the long drive home. By the time I hit the sack, it was 4:00 am!
Yesterday, was Round Two of my Barcelona concert experience. Once again, I traveled down to Seattle, but with a different friend. I thought it was important to expose as many people as I can to Barcelona's music with hopes they will buy their music and likewise spread the word. I was lucky to have a chance to talk to the guys before the show, which allowed us to get to know each other better.
For their second Seattle show...which was again at Columbia City Theater...the band played a few different songs from the new album and changed up a couple from the old. And, I can happily report Brian Fennell did NOT wear a flannel shirt for this show...lessons learned from the previous night.
At one point, Brian announced that Chris wouldn't be traveling with the band for the rest of the current tour due to the impending birth of his first child. Congrats to Chris and his wife! The highpoint of the night came when instead of performing It's About Time the usual way, the band invited members of the audience to the stage to sing the chorus. The reward for their bravery...a free Barcelona T-shirt! The three volunteers did an awesome job, and it really made things fun.
When the show came to an end, I managed to get my hands on a set list from the stage, thanks to Brian Fennell who happened to be walking by. The guys were available for the customary meet and greet, and I asked them one by one to sign the set list. It was pretty cool to see the two Brians staffing the merch booth, something I would never see Mr. Five For Fighting John Ondrasik do. I had fun with Brian F. trying to decide which Barcelona T-shirts I wanted to buy...I ended up getting two. I ended my perfect Seattle Barcelona experience with a pic with the two Brians, joined by my friend Tiffany, who by the way loved the show!
Barcelona continues their current tour as they head on down the West Coast...next stop Portland, OR on May 22nd. Visit their Not Quite Yours tour page for future dates. If you want to hear some awesome music, check them out...you won't be disappointed! A HUGE thanks to Brian F., Chris, Rhett and Brian E. for making my first Barcelona concerts happy ones! And, I'll see you guys again soon...very soon!
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