What's Better Than Free?

Ohhh, summer. How I love it. Without the stresses of classes and homework I have been able to spend my time doing the things I do best. Taking naps, playing XBox, ultimate Frisbee, watching PTI and a string of VH1 reality shows, and going to concerts. A lot of concerts. I listened to the classic sounds of the Eagles at the beautiful Rio Tinto Stadium. I endured the darkened confines of the Urban Lounge in the name of The Helio Sequence. I even partied with thousands of teenage girls at the Pussycat Dolls/Britney Spears concerts at ESA. (If you have a problem with this I have three things to say to you: My little sister invited me, I had a great time, and deal with it.) To top all this off, in a week I will be in Chicago for the massive music, beer, and sweat-fest known as Lollapalooza. Aside from being totally awesome and sardine-esque, these concerts had one thing in common: Expensive.

Being a concert junkie and living in a town without concerts can be a pricey habit. Between gas, food, merchandise, and tickets (blast you, service fees!) it is pretty easy to spend between $30 to $100 for a show. That's of you don't care where you sit. (Grand total on the Rihanna concert expenditure of last summer was around $400. Worth it.) Luckily this summer has blessed me with the discovery of the free concert. The Twilight Concert Series (TwiCon, anyone?) at the Gallivan Center has been a revelation. With bands like Bon Iver, Jenny Lewis, Black Keys, and the incomparable M.Ward, the music has been top-notch and the crowds are energetic and entertaining. The outdoor venue provides a great setting as the sun goes down and with the shows wrapping up around ten, it is easy to get back to Logan Land at a decent hour. I've loved it so much I am considering driving to Vermont and performing a commitment ceremony to it. That was a weird thing to say.

Continuing on with my free concert high, my bro Marcus and I drove out to Park City on Tuesday for the MLS All-Star Jam featuring Soulive. Our main purpose was supporting Mar's brother, whose band, Shaky Trade, who opened the festivities. Shaky did great (I will blog about them some other time. I have seen them multiple times and they can really wail.) and after they finished, Mar and I debated on whether we should stay for this unknown (to us) band or get back home. To make a long story short, we stayed and were rewarded ten-fold. Soulive is a jazz/funk trio consisting of a drummer, guitarist, and organist. With very few vocals, the three combined to create a beat that seemed to far exceed the abilities of only three people. The highlight of the night came when a power surge cut power to half the lighting and part of the organ. Instead of waiting around for a fix, the three quickly went into improv mode and continued to tickle our collective jazz bone. To make things even sweeter after the show we joined Shaky Trade backstage for a little meet and greet with the band. I even talked to the organist. It went down like this:

Me: Hey, great show.

Mr. Evans: Thanks, man.

I wish I could have held on to that moment a little bit longer. First of all, if your jazz bone needs tickling, I highly recommend a little Soulive. Second, free concerts are wonderful. Third, have I learned my lesson and stopped spending so much money on concerts? Absolutely not. As I write this, I simultaneously have a few hundred dollars invested in Lolla, Killers, and Elton John/Billy Joel tickets. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I think it all evens out somehow. But free is definitely more fun.

Here is a short clip of Soulive to give you an idea of what I got to see: