June 07, 2016 – Cleveland, OH – Death Cab for Cutie, Chvrches

Venue:  Jacobs Pavilion At Nautica

I've already started writing these concert list blogs entirely out of order at this point, so I figured I might as well write about one show that was fresh in my memory.

This was the fourth concert I attended in 10 days, and a really great time outside at a venue that I have come to really enjoy.  Nautica Pavilion is an outdoor pavilion that's completely covered, but has a cement GA pit and bleachers in the back.  If you are in the crowd, you are facing the Cleveland skyline across the Cuyahoga River.  It is really a cool venue, and has grown to be my favorite in Cleveland.  I only wish they had more decent shows there.

I drove Joe, Chuck, and Alan up and had not been feeling well for most of the day.  I was still incredibly sore from playing kickball two days prior and I ate something that did not agree with me, so I was questioning whether I wanted to go at all earlier in the day.  I have only ever not gone to two concerts that I had bought tickets for, and both of those were because rither myself or someone in my family was in the hospital.  I was incredibly glad that I went.

We arrived just as Chvrches started and they put on a great show.  I may be judged for this thought and opinion, but lead singer Lauren Mayberry is incredibly powerful and incredibly cute, and I mean that in the most respectful way possible.

This was the fourth time that I had seen Death Cab.  I saw them the first time almost twelve years earlier at the legendary 'Vote For Change' Pearl Jam show in Toledo.  They have put on a great show every time I've seen them, but at this point I wish their sets were more varied dynamic.  I would gladly see them multiple times on the same tour, but for most casual fans, there isn't much of a reason to see them more than once every couple of years, because their sets are going to be almost identical.  I'm also just a little bummed that I haven't heard a single song off of my favorite album, 'We Have the Facts, and We're Voting Yes', since the second time I saw them in 2011.

These are criticisms that I feel bad even bringing up, especially considering how good they can be live.  They are full of energy, have near perfect musicianship, and play each song with feeling and an attachment and connection to the crowd.  Death Cab are always really enjoyable.