Milky Chance – April 22nd – Ogden Theatre

Estimated read time 3 min read

Milky Chance
Photo by David Ulrich

The Scene: The Ogden Theatre can be miserable when a show sells out. People weasel to make room for their friends who have yet to show, girls will push through the dense crowds to get to the front, and you’ll feel elbows dug into your sides throughout the night. Luckily, there are hidden gems for shows like these where you can see no matter what, but I can’t share that type of top secret information here.

For their first North American tour, Milky Chance has done pretty well for themselves selling out shows across the nation. Their audience ranged from large groups of 16-year olds to middle-aged CEOs – all equally excited to catch a peek of their new favorite Indie duo.

Opener: Mighty Oaks. The opener for Milky Chance is kind of what I expected Milky Chance to be like. No, I didn’t expect MC to be an antique roadshow Indie band like Mighty Oaks was, but I did expect them to be straight to the point, no distortion pedals, and the lights just…on.  For the 20 minutes they played, Mighty Oaks was good and I found myself enjoying their sound of angst and yearning. They reminded me of a mix between Mumford & Sons and the Gin Blossoms. One thing to note is that there isn’t something that sets them apart from the rest of the acoustic Indie trios out there. They’d fit in great at local festivals like Snowmass Mammoth and Rocky Mountains Folk Festival.

Milky Chance: I’ve read a lot of mixed reviews on Milky Chance shows, and this Denver show specifically. But all I can say is: “Wow” I was in utter shock and awe by this German duo (accompanied by a third member for their tour). While Clemens Rehbein’s vocals weren’t exactly like the sound from Sadnecessary, they were still impressive. The lights were eclectic, the backdrop was adorned with beautiful dream-catchers and Clemens grooved in sync with his producer, Phillip Dausch. There were elements of Rock, Reggae and Electronic genres. The vibe was fun and intense and every time Rehbein pushed back his sweaty mess of hair, the crowd went wild.

Notable songs of the evening were surprises to me: “Fairytale” sounds better live, “Feathery” had a fantastic interlude, and “Loveland” was driven by one of the best harmonica solos I’ve witnessed. By far the best song of the night was “Running.” On the album, this song definitely doesn’t stand out from hits like “Stolen Dance” and “Flashed Junk Mind,” but live it is absolutely unreal. The flashing blue lights coupled with the strobe and shredding of Rehbein’s guitar was unbeatable.

Although Rehbein’s singing is difficult to decipher, their unique sound of Island-Jam-Electronica is extremely fun. I was underwhelmed by “Stolen Dance,” but was brought back to life by their encore choices: “Becoming” and “Down by the River.” All in all, this might have been my favorite show of the year so far and surprises like that are always something to talk about.

Energy: A-
Musicianship: A
Sound: B
Stage Presence: A-
Set/Light Show: A

Overall: A

Lindsay Lynch

Lindsay was born in Georgia, raised in Florida, and moved to Colorado when she turned 18. All Lindsay asks for in life is music, hoppy beer, and the written word. The necessities of family, friends, water, and food naturally follow.

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