"The dark days are through." - The Black Keys, Everlasting Light
I don't know the Palladium like I know most other LA venues. I've only been there once before and while the sound is amazing, the space doesn't make much sense to me. So, rather than finding a clear view of the stage either on the upper levels or on the floor, we found ourselves towards the back and to the right standing behind two girls who created their own "dance circle" around their purses infecting all those around them with their messiness. They were entertaining.
They didn't hold a candle to The Black Keys, though, whose just over an hour set was raucous and wonderful. Patrick and Dan performed as a duo for the first 20 or 30 minutes going through classic Keys tracks showing off their incredible skill and energy on their respective instruments. It was when Dan announced that they were going to bring up some other players and perform "some new songs" that the show really took off, though. A disco ball rose from the stage as they kicked off Everlasting Light and the crowd was set ablaze. That frenetic feeling wouldn't dissipate until the lights came up after the encore nearly an hour later.
Bonus for me, amongst the general fun of gawking at the hipsters, fashionistas, and weird beards that came out for this show, was learning about Nicole Atkins & The Black Sea who wowed during their set. They are back in LA at the Echo next month. I will be going.
Today, though, I'm going to tighten up.