The
Perishers
Live at the Metro
Review and photos By: Dennis M. Kelly
The
crowd, young and mostly female, steadily fills the Metro
for this all ages show with Tracy Bonham, Sweden’s The Perishers,
and Aqualung. I stand waiting up in the balcony for the
show to begin and can’t help but think how wonderful the
Metro is and how much history it’s had over the years. Countless
bands have played here and now tonight The Perishers will
make this storied room their first Chicago performance.
Tracy
Bonham started off the night with a great acoustic set,
playing the violin, piano and yes, an acoustic guitar. Having
her on the bill was a great idea especially for an all ages
show since a lot of the people around where I was standing
did not know who she was and that she’s been playing for
over a decade already. A few people recognized her hit song
“Mother Mother” when she played it, but the rest of her
set consisted of her latest material from “Blink the Brightest”
(Zoe).
Tracy’s set completed
and The Perishers kicked off their set at 7:35 with the
song “My Heart” which starts off with a melodic guitar and
immediately sets the tone for their show. The stage was
soaked in a deep, moody, blue light for the first few songs,
almost signifying a transition from night to morning. Considering
how their latest album is called “Let There Be Morning”
(Nettwerk), it almost seemed intentional. The lighting really
captured the essence of The Perishers’ music more so than
in most concerts.
The Perishers
had two additional performers on stage with them to add
more texture to their music and it sounded wonderful. Though
their music is quite mellow for some people, I have to confess
I, too, found myself pleasantly surprised that at least
a few songs were a little more up-tempo than on their album
and it gave the songs a slightly different feel, which was
refreshing. Thomas Hedlund’s drumming was pretty energized
though and I am sure that had a lot to do with giving it
that slightly heavier rock sound. Ola Kluft, who is on vocals
and guitar, Martin Gustafson (keyboards and backing vocals),
and Pehr Astrom (bass) all maintained a calm presence on
stage, keeping in style with the mood that filled the Metro.
There are those
bands you would expect a lot of flash and action with, but
The Perishers are not one of those. You wouldn’t want to
see it with them and it just would not be appropriate. But
the crowd was welcoming and seemed mesmerized by their show
as I watched their reactions change from mild appreciation
to full on applause as the show neared the final songs.
I, too, get pleased to see an audience turned on to a band
they may not have known before seeing them live. You know
that The Perishers have to love that too.
The Perishers
played a nine track set and ended it off with their title
track “Let There Be Morning”, ending a great show from our
new Swedish friends. We sincerely hope they come back to
play a longer set next time.
To find out more
about The Perishers, please visit their official website
at: www.theperishersmusic.com
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