The Philadelphia Orchestra - August 2013

It's summertime and the maid's been busy!! This time of year I always like to take advantage of the various events Saratoga has to offer. I love my little town and I'm so thankful to live in a hub that brings talented musicians and bands to the area each summer. SPAC hosts the New York City Ballet in July, for two weeks, and the Philadelphia Orchestra in August, for two weeks also. Last night I took my honey-pie to the Orchestra for what we thought would be a relaxing evening of classical music. I researched a bit and made sure to buy tickets for a night with a theme that would appeal to both of us. When I saw last night's docket stated The Songs of Elton John & More, I figured I couldn't go wrong.

To our surprise, and delight, not only was the Philly Orchestra there but a 5 person band including lead singer, Michael Cavanaugh, who is known for his lead role in Broadway's Movin' Out! Our night consisted of high energy, singing at the top of our lungs, classics by Sir Elton, the Eagles, Paul McCartney, and Lynyrd Skynyrd and more! The marriage between the orchestra and a rock and roll band was overwhelming and atypical. The performance really captured the similarities and differences between the two genres of music.

Now, not only was this night special because I was with my super-stud boyfriend, who is a really good singer, but also because the drummer in Cavanaugh's band was the drummer from my favorite movie Almost Famous....which made Elton's 1971 hit, "Tiny Dancer," come back to life and resurface 13 years ago! Johnny Fedevich played Ed Vallencout, the drummer of Stillwater!! Although, fictional, still super bad ass.

John, pictured all the way in the back.

"Why is this important?" Funny you should ask. "This Is The Maid Speaking," this blog ya'll are reading, was inspired from this movie! "This Is The Maid Speaking.," is a line from the movie and the quote at the top of this page is another line from the movie, as well.

As you know, I would love to be a traveling, yogi, band-following, gypsy, but since I haven't embarked on that journey yet, I made this amazing blog to review all the shows I attend. William, the main character in Almost Famous, had an unwavering passion for music and he made his dreams come true. This fictional character lead me to start spilling my musical adventures to the interweb and almost 2 years later, I'm still going!  I kind of love how it all came full circle last night, and not even to my knowledge beforehand! (mmm lack of research, another reason why I'm still only a blogger and not a profesh )

Regardless, last night was a perfect way to spend a beautiful summer night with my lovah. His smile was so big and I'm grateful to have found someone who shares a love for music as much as I do. We decided we're gonna start a band...I hope when we're famous you'll come to our show. JOHNNY!!!!!    \m/

BEYONCE - August 3rd, 2013.

This day will go down in history and live in my heart, FOREVER.

I will not review Beyonce, because she needs no review. My words of praise and excitement cannot be expressed to the degree to which I believe she should be praised. If anything, I would feel unsatisfied and discouraged because I cannot match words to the feelings I had that night. There are no words.

I just love her...


That is all.

SO UNBELIEVABLY THANKFUL!

Of A Revolution - July 2013

Although I'm a tad more removed from my college days than I'd like to be, I'll still jump on an opportunity to jam to the bands that got me through those gloomy winter days in upstate NY at SUNY Albany.  My roomie, well old roomie, had a spare ticket, which I'm so thankful for because they were FRONT ROW. Hot diggity! I had the best of both worlds, the music I loved from college, with the "adult" experience inside. Typically, when I saw them in the past I'd be 4-5 sheets to the wind in SPAC's Lawn. It was a perfect concert experience.

OAR did not let down their dedicated fan base for their Sounds of Summer tour. The two and a half hour set, ya heard me right 2.5 hours, was packed with classics that infused brass, keyboard and guitar into an up-beat tempo. The blues/reggae influences had us dancing throughout the night and let me tell you, when Ryen VanHall dances you KNOW it has been a good night.

Our night was all about 'paying it forward.' So while we didn't stay till the end, we left content knowing that 2 other fans we gave our tickets to, got to share in the excitement of the front row. This was my first show at SPAC where I was in the first row and now I feel spoiled. At one point, I waved to Marc Roberge and he waved right back! I instantly fell in love all over again, and it was hard to bring me back to reality. Hay Marc, hayyyy. Although, Marc doesn't have an outrageous stage presence, his warm heart and genuine love for his fans can heat up a crowd any night. Luckily, what Marc lacked in funk, his trumpet player, Jon Lampley, made up for with sweaty and seductive dance moves. (real sexy.) I digress...

Listening to the roar of a crowd, full of pre-collegiate/collegiate swooners, was proof that OAR is on the right track, despite how they seem to fly under the mainstream radar. I'll always have a special place in my heart for OAR, because the first time I heard, "Hey Girl," I was with one of my college crushes. #awww. They're a perfect summer show and I'm stoked that they consider Saratoga Performing Arts Center a necessary stop each year.

The Cold War Kids - July 2013

This review will be short and sweet, just like The Cold War Kid's performance in Albany on July 11th, 2013.

Three so called 'kids,' graced the capital region with their brilliant, musical talents for about 40 minutes, playing mostly songs from their newest album, Dear Miss Lonelyhearts. This set was softer than what you typically may hear from a show or on the radio, and not just because of the acoustic nature, but because of how chill their demeanor's were. I anticipated rocking my face off, but instead I was caught off guard by how entranced I was. Their engagement with the crowd wasn't even that worthy, but their presence was captivating.

I started listening to these kids back in the day when Robbers & Cowards was released and my favorite song to this day is still, "Hang Me Out to Dry." They didn't play it but I was still thankful to get the invite to this private showing. It was a blip on the band's radar but something EQX Land will always remember.

A little punk and a lotta soul is what keeps the fans happy. Nathan, Matt and Jonnie were in the zone and brought down The Hollow Bar and Kitchen on Pearl Street that evening.

Thanks EQX and Cold War Kids for visiting to ensure that our city stay cool as ice this summer. :)