(a week and a half ago)

What better place to see Rilo than at First Avenue, the setting of Purple Rain?

The show was, once again, really fun — extra fun to see them with Jamie and Erin. The only downside was that they played the same setlist as the previous night. The upside was that this show included a blacklight. And new outfits – well, at least for the females.

I have to say once again, that I’m loving Smoke Detector, Breakin’ Up, and Fifteen live. Also, Jenny refers to Give A Little Love as an ode to LL Cool J. As much as they tried to do a more rock live version of the song, there were still clearly some slow-jam head bobs from the band with accompanied slow jam expressions on their faces (read: confident, sexy, smooth, a little attitude — pursed lips and near squinting).

I also wanted to note that I thought the opening band Grand Ole Party was really good. Their album, Humanimals was produced by Blake Sennett. Check it out if you get the chance…they have a MySpace page where you can hear a few songs. The lead singer has a strong, distinctive voice, and she plays drums. There are also two guitarists named John Paul and Mike. They’re from San Diego and their songs are pretty catchy and danceable in a rock way.

Awesome. They always put on a good show. Jenny’s got some new moves for their new songs – especially Smoke Detector, which follows in the tradition of The Frug in its celebration of random (and made-up?) dance moves. There were lots of smiles; the band looked like they were having fun and the crowd was into it. They played a good mix of old and new stuff. I totally forgot about the song I Never and it was great live. Jenny’s voice sounds better than ever. I think she has acquired more range; loved hearing Close Call and her vocal stylings near the end of the song.

Hearing the new songs live makes me like them even better. The disco/cheesiness/ballad/beats/performance/fun vibe really works in a live setting — so much better than on the cd. There was a definite dance party going on during Breakin’ Up, and Fifteen is a really fun, lively song, especially for being about creepy internet stalkers preying on underage girls. There’s all this talk about the 70s influence and Fleetwood Mac, and while I can definitely hear the 70s influence, the record is also very 80s to me. Some of it could really be the result of hitting the “demo” button on an old Casio…and this band has never disguised their love of the 80s. And I don’t think it’s an ironic/tongue-in-cheek kind of love either, it’s the real thing. That’s what I love about them. That was a bit of a digression…just on my mind.

Greetings in Braille (which I’ve been listening to a lot lately even though it’s years old…it really is a good song) and Rise Up With Fists were thrown in there. They opened with It’s a Hit, closed with Does He Love Her? and had a bunch of good songs in between, including Portions for Foxes, Spectacular Views, Wires and Waves, and With Arms Outstretched (always a crowd favorite, sing-a-long style).

I’m heading to Minnesota tomorrow, where I get to see them again with my sisters – reunion! I’m excited. More to come.