Rilo Kiley

Phillip, Jen and I went to see Rilo Kiley on Saturday night at The Joint. The place was only half full which was nice for us because you could get a beer without waiting in line for 20 minutes and you could actually move freely and not spill said $6 beer. Those of you that know me well know about my massive girl crush on Jenny Lewis. There is just something about her! I don't know if it's a natural affinity for redheads and natives of Vegas or what but I know that if we ever met we would totally be friends. I picture the two of us drinking beers and listening to records. It would be awesome. I explained to Phillip that if it ever came up I would absolutely leave him for her. When I explained that to a friend I bumped into at the show he said, "We would all leave him for Jenny Lewis." So I guess I'm not the only one. Anyway, she was adorable as always and gave her birthplace a nod by saying, "It's good to be home!"

The set list was ok. I would have preferred more songs off "The Execution of All Things" which I think is a nearly perfect record and Rilo Kiley's best, but understand that of course they are going to play music mainly off their newest album. They did play my all time favorite song, "With Arms Outstretched," and that was where the lack of a full house really affected the performance. This is a classic sing along song, but it was obvious that the crowd was filled with mostly Johnny Come Latelies that didn't know the words to a song three albums old. When Jenny moved the mic towards the crowd and let us sing Phillip, Jen, and I belted the words out at the top of our lungs, but it was a pretty mediocre crowd performance overall. I wanted to slap the crowd around for that.

Interestingly enough the band played only one song that wasn't a Rilo Kiley song. Blake Sennet introduced it as being a cover and called it "Snowball's favorite song EVER!" (I found out later that "Snowball" is an affectionate nickname for Blake's brother who works as a roadie for the band) before they broke into "Rise Up With Fists" which is from Jenny Lewis' solo album last year. With all the press coverage of the rivalry between Jenny and Blake over her solo project being more successful than his side project (The Elected), I imagine it must be a thorn in his side that hers is the only non-Rilo Kiley song they play! I guess we ultimately know who holds the power, right?

I was enjoying the show to an extent but then the encore blew. I was hoping they would come back out and do at least two songs and was praying for "My Slumbering Heart" which has beautiful imagery while still rocking and is Phillip's favorite song. Instead they played only one song, "Does He Love You?" which although has a raucous ending music wise, is a cheating/broken hearted downer when it comes to the lyrics: "Let's not forget ourselves good friend, I am flawed if I'm not free and your husband will never leave you, he will never leave you for me." Not exactly the lines to instill that elated feeling every show should end with! And Jenny made a quick exit with no bow, no thank you, and no moment for the audience to applaud her. Bummer.