The Federalists - Great American Music Hall, San Francisco 8.15.08
Posted by JR Simmang on 09.06.2008
Little known, big sound group from the San Francisco Bay Area thumps the walls at the Great American Music Hall. A Six- man band cranks out the tunes to blast the world with a certain inescapable charm.
The Great American Music Hall has seen its share of artists throughout the decades. That is, throughout the past ten decades. That's right, it's seen everything from women in bloomers (it was a bordello way back in the day) to Duke Ellington to The Grateful Dead. It wasn't until August 15th, 2008 that the Great American Music Hall, with it's elegantly decorated high- tiered balconies and golden filigree, pallisading ballustrades and enormous columns, has rocked so hard.
The Federalists triumphantly dclared the stage the moment they hit the first note of "Explode," an appropriate first song to choose, might I add. The suit-clad lead singer playing the melody, Luke Franks, stepped in and let Clark Abbot strum out the highly identifiable first few lines before the vocals started. It's always impressive to me when I see three guitarists on stage. The last well-known group I remember doing that was America and The Federalists have a little more on the ball than America. And you can tell they can each hold their own. The crowd in the wings, the dance floor, the balcony, and even me with my single whiskey, neat, decided to get up and boogie.
The energy pounded out of those speakers shook all the tables in the hall. And that was just the first two songs. They slowed it down with "Impossible," which was a good thing because I was already breaking a sweat and we weren't even halfway done yet. I sat back down and enjoyed the rest of the show. I was constantly tossed back and forth between an Elvis Costello concert with a special appearance by Lou Reed, an intimate one-on-one with Frankie Avalon, and Spoon (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, not the other one).
These guys plays so incredibly well together, you'd think they had been doing it their entire lives. Luke Franks's voice can melt caramel and the acoustics definitely worked in his favor. The smooth balance between Dustin Smith on the drums and the two lead guitarists never once was compromised. And, I've never seen a keyborder dance quite so much as Chris Cooper. They got the crowd moving and shouting, laughing and I think I even saw a tear out of the corner of someone's eye. There was only one drawback, and I mention this mainly because it was the only thing that just barely, slightly, minutely bothered me, like an itch in the middle of my back. I wanted some harmonizing between the singers. I believe that would have added a little extra depth to an already profound experience.
They ended the set with "Roses," one of my favorite songs now. They tied off the present with a little bow. They chose their progression expertly. A big bang with "Explode" needs an equally offsetting song to end the show. And, they had to clear the stage for the next act, Or, The Whale. To be honest, I think these guys took the cake. I stayed through the remainder of the night, but I felt The Federalists were the highlight of the evening.
1. Explode
2. Dylan
3. Impossible
4. Changing Eyes
5. Such A Blur
6. Tree Song
7. Superball
8. City Girl
9. When It Comes To You
10. Oh, So Sorry
11. No Buy Now
12. Roses
The 411: The Federalists show the world what it was like to rock before the Beach Boys sold out to big music labels. Their unique mix of mainstream indie and West Coast rock bounced off the walls of The Great American Music Hall. They compliment one another. And they're here to prove to everyone else that the South will rise again.
