The Evan and Jaron concert started out badly when the Newport didn’t open the doors till 7:00 p.m., when many people had pre-show tickets for half an hour earlier.
Then, there was the torrential downpour of rain on the waiting crowd also making them a little more wet and grumpy. But once inside the small concert venue, and after an hour wait, it was a welcome surprise to see the modern rock of Bliss 66. The Detroit group played loud and strong in front of some 800 fans. They played music from their debut album “Trip to the 13th,” released Tuesday.
The second opening act, Athenaeum, upstaged Bliss 66 with their better musicians and songwriting. Athenaeum is more of an adult rock group, and didn’t fair well with the 13-and-under crowd who like Evan and Jaron. The North Carolina based Athenaeum played songs from their 1998 debut album “Radiance” and some songs from their upcoming CD, which is due in August from Atlantic Records. They played incredibly and every song was instantly likable and entertaining.
Overall, this band sounded like seasoned veterans compared to Bliss 66’s rookie sound.
Around 10:00 p.m. Evan and Jaron finally took the stage and opened up with the first song of their new album called “Outerspace.” Played live, the song sounded weak and flat, and it lost some of the edge that the single has on the album. Evan and Jaron both sing on their albums and sounded very good live. At the Newport their band members guitars and drums were turned down so low, that all you could here was them singing.
No matter though because the majority of the crowd, mostly females, came to see Evan and Jaron and not listen to them. The front row crowd was full of middle school girls throwing training bras and necklaces to the twins.
The band seemed to enjoy the praise and played along with it. It was like watching TRL on MTV, live and fifteen feet in front of you. It was a great experience.
The band played the first five songs with two acoustic guitars and one electric guitar, the sound was very soft and muted except for the singers. Once the band busted out playing three electric guitars the show really started to pick up the pace and it felt like a real rock concert.
Then came the hit single “Crazy For This Girl.” It really brought the crowd to life. The entire audience sang along. It was the highlight of the entire show, especially when one lucky female fan got to go on stage and sing a verse with Evan and Jaron. That was the only extra-curricular activity the group did with the audience.
The rest of the show was straight-forward singing and featured no audience participation.
Evan and Jaron played a good show, but nothing spectacular. It felt rushed maybe because all the little middle school girls had stayed up past their bedtime. Still, they’re the ones who buys this band’s records and they know how to play to the group of people that make them rich.
