Last night my wife and I went to The Vic Theater in Chicago to see Wolf Alice. Although I didn't really know anything by them, my wife really wanted to go. Because I trust her taste in music and I really enjoy seeing live music, I decided to play the good husband and tag along with her. Not surprisingly, I had quite a good time.
The opening band was called Willy Mason. They were fine. They were a little boring for my taste but they weren't bad for an opener. The singer's voice reminded me of Mark Knopfler from Dire Straights. Although they had a female drummer, I was a little surprised the opener didn't fit more with the show's theme of women front person. The crowd was about 70% women (which meant the men's bathroom was the least crowded I've ever seen at a show). I think I could count on one hand the number of men there who did not come with a date. So I would have expected to see a woman lead opener... which I thoroughly enjoy. They only played for about 40 minutes during which I downed my two INCREDIBLY overpriced Bourbon and Cokes ($28 for a double... not a misprint).
Once Wolf Alice took the stage, the crowd was energized. As a guest at Wolf Alice's fans' show, that is all I really needed. Even though I was hearing many of the songs for the first time, I fed off the true fans' energy. My wife, who is one of them, really seemed to be enjoy herself.
I have been to a ton of shows and clubs. I love to dance so it was really not difficult to pick up the beat and dance a bit. In case you don't know, Wolf Alice, an English Indie Rock band, is fronted by Ellie Roswell. In my opinion, she IS the show. She has an incredibly beautiful voice. It is the type of voice you could imagine singing Opera or on Broadway. But she finds a way to make it work with this unique band. What is most unique about them is that I cannot describe their sound. last night's show didn't have one distinct sound or genre. It was almost like being at 4 or 5 different shows. At some points the band was playing hard rock while Ellie wailed like Axl Rose. At other points, it was full on disco and she sounded like Frida from ABBA. It would change again and the next song sounded like the Cure. Then there was some Garbage and Smiths worked in. There was even a song that sounded like Killing Joke (that was my favorite). It was actually quite impressive as I didn't dislike any of it. And this is because Ellie's voice is so impressive. I think I could listen to hear sing a phone book and I'd enjoy it.
The only complaint I had was that the acoustics at the Vic were terrible. I normally love that venue when I am seeing my favorite Industrial Bands but those bands don't make their money on their voices. In fact, most of them run their voices through a vox so it doesn't matter at all. But a band with such a talented singer really should have been able to highlight her voice. Even with that limitation, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I don't think I will be adding them to any of my playlists, but if my wife ever wants to see them live again, I would definitely go.
Any Wolf Alice fans out there? Ever see them live?