Somehow both Alissa and I entirely missed any announcements that Toad The Wet Sprocket's ex-lead singer, Glen Phillips, was coming to the area, finding out about it only hours before the show on Thursday. We decided to throw caution to the wind, be wild, and just go. After August when the Unknown Johnson arrives we likely won't be able to just do these spur of the moment things anymore. I'm glad we did go - Toad is a shared band between us, and as I've said a few times before, Glen's new solo album, Winter Pays For Summer, is one of the year's best albums (and yes, I will continue to hype and link to this album until you buy it.)
Opening act Blue Merle was entertaining with their unusual blend of bluegrass and pop with mellow vocals that mimic Coldplay's Chris Martin. And they were given a generous length of time to woo new fans with. Between sets, I noticed a number of people returning to their seats clutching copies of their debut album, bought at the merchandise desk. This band is likely going to do pretty well, especially after their upcoming support-slot on the summer Dave Matthews Band tour. DMB fans will eat this stuff up.
Glen Phillips took the stage in an unassuming button-down shirt, tucked into jeans, sporting a recently cropped-short haircut and glasses. Looking like he'd just gotten off work, one of his band members would comment later how studious Phillips appeared. Studious he may have looked, but his demeanor was as laid back and comfortable as anyone could expect of someone on stage.
Glen Phillips is a real showman, engaging the crowd with just the right amount of humor and chatter, pulling material not just from his two studio solo albums, but also a lot of material from his better-known days with Toad, and even inviting one audience member on-stage to play drums during one song. What really blew me away was how absolutely, perfectly identical Glen's voice sounded live compared to what is usually the more "polished" studio versions found on his albums. He's blessed with a clear, distinct and, most importantly, natural voice, which he put on display, flawlessly, throughout the entire performance, even tossing in a spot-on cover of Bjork's "Hyperballad," which he carried with impressive skill.
Article comments
1 - lono
Thanks for the piece. I am a huge fan of Glenn. I probabaly won't see the show (he is coming here too) because I am tired of tithing to Ticketmaster. I'll definately pick up the disc though. The reviews I have seen all intimate that it is better that Abulum (which is only decent).
thanks,
Lono
2 - Rob
you can download the entire show here
the new song he played is a track called "One For The Many", it's mislabeled on this copy of the show as "Carpenter" for some reason