Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers - Miramar Theatre - Milwaukee, WI - March 22, 2007
Posted by Samuel Berman on 03.27.2007
I guess UMass' favorite sons really can feel at home in the Brew City.
There is a difference between being a good band and being a good live act. On Thursday night at a small theatre in Milwaukee, WI, Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers made sure that an audience of 125 knew they were seeing both. If you’re used to packed arenas and pounding, relentless rock shows, then this show probably would have come as a surprise to you. With nearly as much banter and shtick as music, you might think that the intimate crowd would have grown restless during Kellogg’s 100-minute set of acoustic rock. You’d be wrong. I guess that’s what happens when you’re “en fuego” as bassist Kit Karlson noted.
The Miramar Theatre crowd was more than willing to indulge Kellogg and his Sixers in as many stories and gimmicks as they wished. At one point early in the set, someone from the crowd called for the band to play Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Freebird”. Kellogg’s response: “Oh, yeah, we’ll totally do that…” Sense the sarcasm. Though they shockingly didn’t end up playing the Southern rock anthem, they did perform a fantastic cover of Billy Joel’s “Piano Man”, though they curiously chose to not use the band’s ever-present piano during the course of the song, deciding instead to stick to their guitars.
Not to be outdone by others’ work, the band did a sizeable set of its own material, including “Flower In Rain” and “Such A Way”. Kellogg discussed one of the band’s top songs (“Anthem of Our Discovery”) before starting to play by saying that he had once gotten drunk and sang it under a girl’s window in college, only to be subsequently beaten up by her boyfriend (who was either a Rugby player or a La Crosse player, I can’t recall). With the crowd in a sufficiently good mood from the story, the Sixers went into a particularly lively rendition of the song, transitioning the end of it right into “Start the Day Early”, one of the group’s most popular tracks.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the sheer number of local references that the band made during the course of the evening. It’s easy to make insider references and neighborhood jokes in New York City and Los Angeles, but it takes a special dramatic flair and connectivity with one’s audience to pull of that trick in Milwaukee. I must admit that Kellogg pulled it off with some real panache, though it bears noting that he probably had the crowd from the first Pabst reference. It certainly didn’t hurt, though, when the band played the aptly-titled “Milwaukee”, one of the first cuts from their new album Glassjaw Boxer, due out in June.
Another fun moment came with Kellogg’s introduction of “See You Later, See You Soon”, where he relayed that the original title had been “People at Hollister are mean and can eat my ass…” The title was changed, of course, when the band realized that such a… umm… long title would probably affect the song’s radio-friendliness.
Worth noting is the band’s instrumental versatility, as at one time or another guitar, drums, bass, piano, accordion, kazoos and keytar. Yes, that’s right, a keytar. The piano, bass and keytar work were all Karlson’s doing. Further, he impressively ended the show by stripping down to his boxers and doing an interpretive dance around the stage. I promise that it was far funnier live than it may seem reading about it later.
The first set ended with “Days”, which had been called for by the crowd for most of the show, though for some reason, they had continually referred to it as “The Medley”. The reason became instantly clear, as an interlude during the song provided an opportunity for the Sixers to sing lines from over 20 other songs, including everything from “Jessie’s Girl” to “Let’s Get Physical” to Pearl Jam’s “Jeremy” to the theme from Ghostbusters. This was coming on the heels of another song where the band had taken turns interjecting movie quotes (including the Wayne’s World gun rack rant and the “7-Minute Abs” bit from There’s Something About Mary).
The encore began with the previously mentioned “Milwaukee” and then concluded with the band’s landmark single “Thirteen”, written, supposedly, for Kellogg’s youngest brother as a testament to his having made out with a girlfriend at a movie when he was, you guessed it, thirteen. It was towards the end of this song that Karlson did his semi-nude dance around the stage to end the night on a fun, if not bizarre, note. Bows were taken by Kellogg, Karlson, lead guitarist Chris Soucy, and drummer Boots Factor and the night came to an end. For their part, Soucy and Factor were also great performers, with Factor’s vocals adding fantastic harmony to Kellogg and Karlson. Soucy impressed as well, with numerous solos (most notably on “Piano Man”) and excellent bass work when Karlson moved to the piano.
The evening had begun with the talented Sara Bareilles, whose stripped-down piano and guitar sound was instantaneously reminiscent of Norah Jones. She performed with Javier Dunn, a guitarist whose work was understated and truly well done. Two of the songs that she performed shined above the others, those being “Love Song” and “City”. From the latter: “It’s clear this conversation ain’t doing a thing / ‘Cause these boys only listen to me when I sing / And I don’t feel like singing tonight”
Bareilles 40-minute set seemed not to be predetermined, which added to the casual atmosphere of the evening. Also, though she claimed to be losing her voice, it was hardly noticeable as she went through her set. The crowd sat politely for her in a scene that mirrored what one might expect in a coffee shop or piano bar. All-in-all, a pleasant, subdued start to the evening.
For more on Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers, please visit stephenkellogg.com. Further information about Sara Bareilles can be found at sarabmusic.com. A complete list of events for Milwaukee’s Miramar Theatre is available at themiramartheatre.com.
The 411: It's hard to find fault with this show, especially with a cover charge topping out at $12. Kellogg and The Sixers have as good an act as any touring band going these days, and impressively brought their A-game to a small Milwaukee venue, proving that not all bands save their best for the big city lights of New York and Chicago. As they continue to gain momentum, they will most certainly begin to increase their popularity and draw, much like Everfine label-mates O.A.R., for whom they opened in Milwaukee last October. Bareilles is another rising star whose talent will no doubt shine through as her stage act continues to become more polished. A fantastic night of music that more should have taken advantage of.
