Hot damn, OK Go! Seriously, hot damn.
By lucky chance, I befriended some superfans up at the barrier who gave me a heads up of what was about to ensue. In the briefest of descriptions, there would be a white screen, Q&A sessions, and confetti…lots and lots of confetti. I have been to a multiple Flaming Lips shows, and would consider myself an experienced confetti receiver, but “lots” of confetti turned out to be a colossal understatement!
As predicted by my OK Go informants, the show started with the band behind a semi-sheer white screen. After projecting their into video on the screen, the band played a few songs behind it while psychedelic patterns and images were projected in front of them. Soon after, the screen dropped and fans screamed as they were showered in their first wave of confetti.
OK Go played many songs from their most recent album Hungry Ghosts, as well as the old crowd pleasers. Lead singer Damian Kulash periodically put the show on pause to allow fans to ask them questions. Regardless of whether they were serious or goofy questions, the answers were witty and had the whole place rolling. Damian also went into the middle of the crowd for a song much to the delight of the people who didn’t quite make it up to the front. In a spectacular magic act put on by bassist Tim Nordwind, he made the entire band and stage disappear in an instant (cue the reappearance of the white screen). Given his talents, I suppose we can forgive him for wearing that L.A. Kings hat in Blackhawks territory. The band played with unending energy and kept the crowd highly involved. At one point, they recorded the crowd stomping their feat, clapping, or making noises with their mouths which ended up being the percussion in a brief interlude. They also did a wicked cover of Led Zeppelin’s Black Dog. Led Zeppelin is my favorite band of all time, so this was mind-blowingly exciting for me! After returning for the encore, the boys were dressed in white jumpsuits and performed the dance from A Million Ways in its entirety. We all know these guys make incredible music videos, but to see them recreate one live was hilarious. A blacklight brought their plain white jumpsuits to life and bubbles spewed out of a bubble machine. During their final song, fans were invited to dance on the stage with the band, and one youngster clad in large earmuffs made it all the way on top of Damian’s shoulders.
OK Go does a phenomenal job of making their shows a personal, unique, and interactive experience. The band played like champs, and the atmosphere at Metro on Friday night was how that of a New Year’s Eve party SHOULD be. Exciting, euphoric, and electric! Who can we talk to about making that happen next year in Chicago?
Chicago Music News 