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Of all the summer/radio festivals, Red White and Boom draws a crowd that seems completely un-self-conscious and not so worried about things like sound and pace. As long as a familiar song is playing, everyone tends to be happy, even if it's a song they've heard 100 times this month.
Saturday night, the station known as Mix 93.3 threw its 12th annual RW&B. The festival has put together some memorable lineups (I'm pretty sure Billy Idol, Lionel Richie and Ricky Martin were on the same one a few years ago). This one wasn't that memorable; but it drew as big a crowd (about 17,000) and stirred up as much fun.
It didn't help that one of the lineup's biggest draws, Hello Goodbye, canceled its appearance at the last minute. Instead of letting each performer play longer, apparently the organizers decided it would be better to leave a big 65-plus minute hole in the middle of the show and fill it with recorded music. And everyone seemed completely fine with it, especially during the "Cha-cha slide"/"Cotton-Eyed Joe" interlude, when the place went nuts.
The headliner was the band Daughtry, led by former "Idol" Chris Daughtry, who was in town back in April at the 21-and-over VooDoo Lounge. The rest of the lineup: Gym Class Heroes, Augustana, teen R&B star JoJo, former "Idol" Katharine McPhee and local hero Casey Todd.
Todd earned the right to the opening main-stage slot by winning a local band battle sponsored by the Mix. He deserves to be heard. His best songs bear the better traits of bands or performers like the Goo Goo Dolls, Counting Crows, Pete Yorn. In a tough spot -- opening a show before a huge crowd -- he generated plenty of sincere cheers and applause.
Unlike Todd, who brought his band, McPhee sang to canned music with help from two backup singers. Live she comes off as someone with a good voice and appealing personality (in a Goldie Hawn way) who needs some direction musically. I'm not sure whom she's being peddled to, but not too many girls younger than 16 seem too interested. Maybe she just needs a good song; most of what she sang was in that nebulous R&B-pop style, except for her cover of Alanis Morrissett's "Mary Jane."
JoJo is a high-schooler with more polish and panache than McPhee, who is in her late 20s. JoJo's youth serves her well: She seems older, which means she'll be around for a while, assuming she picks the right songs, fashions, stylists, etc. She sang her hit "Anything," which samples the Toto hit "Africa," covered SWV's "Weak" and performed her own big hit, "Touch A Girl."
Augustana was next. They were this year's alligator in an igloo: out of place. They're an indie/roots slightly alt-country band that should be playing to college kids at the Bottleneck (with Casey Todd). They got some polite applause until the lead-in to their last song, "Boston," which has been on at least one soundtrack ("One Tree Hill"). It was oddly refreshing to see 8-year-old girls appreciate this style of music.
From the end of Augustana's set to the start of Gym Class Heroes', a lot of time passed -- more than an hour. Mix 93 personality Cabana Boy broke the tedium with some original Weird Al Yankovic shtick of his own. It was amusing. Otherwise there was lots of music over the PA and lots of T-shirt launching and other gimmicks to pass the time.
The Gym Class Heroes are like a mix of Sugar Ray and the Roots: poppy and catchy live hip-hop. Good stuff. Their best bits: "The Queen," "Cupid's Chokehold," which samples Supertramp's "Breakfast in America," and a cover of the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations."
Then Daughtry came out to close the show, looking like a hybrid of Glenn Danzig and Michael Stipe. Though one of the main performers had canceled (which could have meant everything started earlier), he came out almost 30 minutes behind schedule. He pretty much reprised the show he did at the VooDoo. This time, however, it was in front of more than 16,000 screaming fans, not 1,200. He seemed pretty awed by it. He gave the crowd the two songs it wanted most, "It's Not Over" and "Home," plus one it seemed really disinterested in, Pearl Jam's "Black." He didn't sound as impressive out in the big arena as he did in the swanky club, but frankly the sound wasn't all that great during his set. It was tinny and trebly. And it's not like they didn't have time to sound check.
Timothy Finn, The Star
JoJo is a high-schooler with more polish and panache than McPhee, who is in her late 20s.
When did 23 years old become "late 20's?" And again...Kat gets knocked for the canned music. Good voice and is appealing but...she doesn't know what she is musically and doesn't have a live band so it isn't any good.
And again...Kat gets knocked for the canned music. Good voice and is appealing but...she doesn't know what she is musically and doesn't have a live band so it isn't any good.
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