Last night, I went to the Highline Ballroom to see one of my favorite bands: Ludo. I first saw them perform senior year of high school, when they opened for The Spill Canvas (yeah, so I have a bit of a love for emo-rock...don't judge me) and their energy and fun songs won me over immediately. The second time I saw them was when they headlined The Knitting Factory, in winter of my freshman year here at NYU. This was exactly my kind of show: quick openers, followed by a long set by the headliners, in a small setting. I don't like going to huge shows; I much prefer a smaller club, and I like that even at this point in their careers, the guys from Ludo are still playing relatively small shows.
I've got to say, though, last night's show was probably one of the best concerts I've ever been to. It was the first one I'd ever gone to alone (which was my own fault, since I completely forgot to tell anyone about it until the day before the show), but it actually was more fun than a lot of shows I've gone to with good friends. I always get self-conscious at concerts, about dancing and singing loudly, but this time I was with a bunch of people I will never ever ever see again in my life, so I just went all out and let myself go crazy.
I got to the Highline at about 7:15 (the show was scheduled to start at 6:30, but I've never been to a concert that began on time, and there were four openers scheduled). I missed the first opener, Tommy and the High Pilots, but I saw The Graduate (who I really liked), Jet Lag Gemini, and There For Tomorrow (whose cover of Ice Box I actually have on my iTunes, and they played). Finally at about 9, Ludo came out, and the crowd went wild.
Now, a side note. I really, really, really like this band. A lot. I think they're very talented, and the members have a great way of interacting with the crowd, even at a slightly larger show like this one. But some of the girls at this show...they were just crazy. I never really understood that whole "OH MY GOD HE'S A SINGER AND I LOVE HIM AND I'M GOING TO MARRY HIM AND HE TOUCHED MY HAND! I'M NEVER WASHING THIS HAND AGAIN!" mentality. Is there something really sexy about a guy standing up on a stage, completely rocking out and making awesome music and obviously doing what he loves most? Absolutely. But these girls that began sobbing when Andrew Volpe walked up to the microphone...they kind of scare me.
But anyway. They opened with "Go-Getter Greg", which has been one of my favorite songs by them for ages, and they didn't have a bad song all night. They played all the classics I wanted to hear: "Love Me Dead" (probably their best-known song), "Good Will Hunting By Myself", "Drunken Lament", "Lake Pontchartrain", "Topeka", "Hum Along" (probably one of my favorite songs of all time), "Save Our City", "Broken Bride"...and on and on it went.
They also played quite a few songs from their new album, which I'm not as crazy about as their older stuff, but which is still pretty kickass. The highlights were "Anything For You", an incredibly sweet love song; "Rotten Town", which is about pirates and is therefore automatically awesome; and "Whipped Cream", their new single. For "Whipped Cream", they had everyone in the audience do the dance from the video, and it was hilarious.
For me, though, the best moment of the evening was when everyone in the band took their break and Volpe stayed on stage, playing "The Horror of Our Love" with just a guitar. It was gorgeous, and with the singing along from the audience, really quite haunting. I wish the show had been taped, because that was one of the most beautifully creepy moments I've ever experienced.
As the evening ended with "Girls on Trampolines" (the encore, for which they brought out tons of people from the other bands, playing tambourines and cowbells and whatever else was around), I danced and sang and screamed and felt fully happy. I always forget how much I love concerts until I go to one, and am reminded of how wonderful it feels to just let go and completely release yourself to the music. It's a moment of catharsis that I never really find anywhere else (since I'm almost always too wrapped up with what's going on in my head).