Frightened Rabbit – April 24th – Ogden Theatre

Estimated read time 4 min read

Frightened Rabbit - 2016-7292
Photos by Tim Dwenger

The Scene: Let’s face it, Sunday nights are tough nights for those of us that love to see live music – the weekend is wrapping up and the work week lies in waiting – in fact Sunday’s may well be the toughest night.  At least on a Monday you’re already through one day and looking ahead, but on Sunday…no such luck.  That said, the crowd that slowly filtered into The Ogden on Sunday night may have started out tame and mellow, but slowly ramped up as the night went on and, if Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchison’s ramblings were any indicator, gave the band one of their best receptions in a long-while.

Opener: Caveman. This six piece Indie Pop band from New York kicked the night off with a set of sing-songy melodic rock that seemed a good fit with the headliner.  Early in the set frontman Matthew Iwanusa revealed that despite the beautiful day we had all enjoyed in Denver, Caveman almost didn’t make it to town as weather had threatened to close the highway.  He then went on to explain that the band had a new album called Otero War coming out in June so they were going to play several songs from it.  The set was highlighted by the recently released single “Human” that showcased a very 80’s sounding low-end.  In fact, a friend leaned over to me mid-way through the song and mentioned how much he thought it reminded him of Huey Lewis – high praise in my mind being a huge Huey Lewis fan.  The band closed their set with “In The City” from their second record and received a very warm send-off from the Sunday night crowd.

Frightened Rabbit: It’s been years since the last time I saw Scott Hutchison and Frightened Rabbit live.  In that time I had kept up with their releases for the most part but I have to admit that they haven’t been in heavy rotation.  Well this show changed that for me.  Seeing these Scottsmen live and in the flesh brought back all the reasons that I loved this band so much back in the later part of the last decade.

Songs like “Modern Leper” and “Head Rolls Off” filled my head with memories as the lyrics came rushing back into my mind clear as a bell.  Instantly I was struck again by Hutchison’s incredible songwriting ability as the rambling and pounding “Living In Color” from The Winter of Mixed Drinks had me singing along with a song I hadn’t heard in years.  When the band slipped into “Things” from the same 2010 project they mesmerized me as the song built to an anthemic peak that left Hutchison breathless and blaming the altitude.

Though the band was all dressed in black from head to toe, they lit themselves and the stage dramatically with strobing lights and stark flashes of color that seemed to perfectly compliment the throbbing bass lines and thundering drums.  Between songs, Hutchison’s excited banter was infectious as he responded to requests with quips like “I love this very direct feedback I’m getting, but I can’t even fucking remember how to play that one” and, as he started in “Nothing Like You,” “all right, this one’s for you young man, and you better fuckin’ like it! You better!”

After more than an hour and twenty minutes, the guitar tech brought out an acoustic and the band launched into a sentimental favorite of mine “Old Old Fashioned” and the foot-stomper got the crowd whipped into a frenzy as we handled the chorus for several measures.  As the mayhem died down Hutchison said they one more and started the brilliance of “Keep Yourself Warm” that built to a cacophonous climax of sound and light.

That would have been more than enough, but after a brief encore break to “freshen up drinks” Hutchison emerged on his own for an acoustic take on “Die Like a Rich Boy” that featured a verse of Prince’s “Purple Rain” as the introduction.  It was a fitting tribute to The Purple One and showed yet again that Prince had impact far beyond the world’s of Funk and R&B and far beyond the coasts of his home country.

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

Overall: A

tdwenger http://www.listenupdenver.com

Music has always been a part of my life. It probably all started listening to old Grateful Dead, Peter Paul & Mary, and Simon & Garfunkel records that my parents had, but it wasn't long before they were taking me to concerts like Starship, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and Huey Lewis & The News. I got the bug to write about music after reviewing an Eric Clapton concert for a creative writing project in high school but didn't really take it up seriously until 2002. Since then I have published countless articles in The Marquee Magazine and done some work for Jambase.com, SPIN Magazine, and various other outlets. I started Listen Up Denver! as a way to share the music information that is constantly spilling out of my head with people who care. Please enjoy!

More From Author

+ There are no comments

Add yours