lady antebellum | concert

In case you missed it, I attended the Lady Antebellum concert (with opening acts Thompson Square and Darius Rucker) on Friday at Scotiabank Place.


Before I get started on reviewing the concert (spoiler: IT WAS AMAZING), I'll first say that I'm going to do my best to mostly blog about things in Ottawa that you can do after I blog about them. But this was too much fun not to write about.


My friend Emilie got in touch with me this winter and bought the tickets for me, Sarah and herself as soon as they went on sale. So this has been a long time coming.

me, em, sarah

Emilie picked me and Sarah up; we left Orleans about 6pm and made it just in the knick of time for a 7pm start in Kanata.


I got to hand it to Em, we had aaaahmazing seats: first row of the third section on the sides. This is the ideal spot if you're priority is to have an unobstructed view of the band; we could see perfectly, didn’t have to deal with any small giants and girlfriends on shoulders. On the other hand, this isn’t really where the party’s at. The people around us were older and clearly not down for antics, if you have any planned.

Right away, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the first opening act, Thompson Square, had full lights, stage and sound. I've been to concerts at Scotiabank Place where the first bands seem like background music and get washed out. This is always disappointing when you're just as (or more) interested in seeing them than the main act, such as the case was for me when Taylor Swift opened for Brad Paisley in 2007 and just last year when Gloriana acted for the now-famous Swift. Personally, I think it benefits the headliners to award this curtesy to smaller groups. On Friday, the crowd was very very pumped up by the time the main show got started.


For a duo promoting a debute album, I thought Keifer and Shawna did a great job as a opening act by quickly getting everyone out of their seats. They got things started with I Got You and then seranaded the crowd with my new favourite, Getaway Car. After asking fans to sponsor a child in Africa, they sang their ballad Glass. At the end of that rendition, Shawna and Keifer moved closer to share a kiss; to me, this seemed totally fake a little weird. I know they are a married couple but the song isn't very romantic and the mood just wasn't there. Thank goodness they re-energized us with One of Those Days and their most popular hit, Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not. Unfortunately, the crowd was not familiar enough with their song to sing along when Keifer asked us to.

hadn't figured out that concert photography didn't require flash

Next, Darius Rucker joined the stage. Or if you prefer, Hootie minus the Blowfish. You could tell there was much wider recognition for him than Thompson Sqaure (especially among the aforementionned older crowd). The whole floor was standing and rocking out right away. He sounded great and was clearly very comfortable on stage, like he was just hanging in his living room in jeans, a t-shirt and a few bros. Emilie commented that he had incredible stage presence; I definitely agree. In fact, he made me really like his songs even though he's not my favourite country act.

That being said, I'd like to register two small complaints: (1) It seemed to go on forever... did he really perform 10, 11, 12 songs? By the end, I was getting antsy to see the band I paid to see. I even started checking what people were tweeting about the show. My favourite: "I didn't know Lady Antebellum was closing for Darius Rucker". Hah, good one. (2) What was up with the SUPER cheezy screen graphics!?! AmIright? Looking through my pictures, I still can't believe that my eyeball were subjected to these horrors. I felt like I was in a 1999 screen saver. Whoever is behind that should be sued. And now, for some ridiculous screen graphics courtesy of Darius Rucker:

Which brings me to... an electro pop-rock dance party. Or something. Before the main act, we got to jam to Party Rock and a few more overplayed-at-Ale dance hits while a camera filmed girls in short skirts getting their grind on and a newly engaged couple showing off their bling. Probably a first in country music BUT highly entertaining and got me totally pumped for...

Lady-freaking-A. The best way to describe what this was like for me is to say that this band was the soundtrack of undergrad. I listened to them almost everyday walking to Goodes Hall and back. Over and over, the same songs. Listening to them play live, all these memories came flooding back. It was like a big hug.

Love them

iPhone app ftw 

They were so natural on stage. Often times I figure that artists just same the same stuff at each venue (We love you City X! You guys are the best! Thank you for being here with me): either these guys are great actors or they are extra awesome (pick B, pick B!) because they sounded so genuine. Especially Charles, the lead singer. What a babe. If I was his wife, he wouldn't be allowed to leave the house, let alone perform in front of millions of screaming female fans. Between songs he was making jokes and singing random tunes.

Gorgeous backdrop (Darius, take note) 

BABE.

As Sarah said later, they sounded better than their album. All three of them are so goddamn talented as musicians, songwriters and singers. Hillary is particular... is there a better vocalist in country music right now? She wasn't afraid to really showed off her pipes with an accoustic introduction to Run To You. And when she came on to perform Need You Know for the encore, it was eerily beautiful. Goosebumps I tell you.

The guitarist had two side braids... does that make him more or less bad ass?

Beautiful encore

Impact Statement:
Ticket: $87 (ish, incl. taxes)
Parking: $11
Beer: $8.75 (!?!?)


Bottom line:
I loved it, 'nuff said.


Who else was at the Lady A concert on Friday? What did you think? Did you notice Darius' screen graphic things or is it just me?