That picture is one I snapped this past Saturday night at Raleigh Amphitheater of Art Alexakis of Everclear and Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray. I posted it to my Facebook page, with this caption:
Mark McGrath looks old. Therefore, I feel old. Art has alway looked like a grandpa though, so he doesn't make me feel AS bad.
It's true, though, that they looked old to me because they're getting old. And so am I. But, for one glorious night this past weekend, it was the 90s all over again. Marcy Playground, Lit, Gin Blossoms, Sugar Ray and Everclear came and entertained for hours on Saturday, and I have to say: they definitely embraced the fact that this tour was a nostalgia tour for many people. 90s music was played in between sets; Sugar Ray came on stage to the Saved By The Bell theme, and left it to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme. Mark McGrath even stayed out to rap a little with the crowd. ("Innnnnn West Philadelphia, born and raised...on the playground was where I spent most o' my days...." but, I digress.) My point here is that they get it. That's how you do a reunion tour. Almost none of the bands tried to force some of their new music on the crowd. I had said earlier, "just play the hits. Just do it!" And most bands obliged.
I was most impressed with Gin Blossoms; I hadn't seen them before, and didn't know what to expect. What I got was that they were arguably the best band of the night: a real legit live band who has so many hits you continually find yourself saying, "oh! I forgot about this song!" Their lead singer, Robin Wilson, has been with the band since 1988, and took over lead vocals early on after Doug Hopkins was fired, but I hadn't heard him sing live before so I wasn't sure what to expect. The Gin Blossoms took me so far back, I actually found myself texting my college roommate, asking her if we were together somewhere, making bad decisions, and it was 1993 all over again.
Unfortunately, though, for as great as Gin Blossoms and Sugar Ray were, Everclear, who headlined the night, were just terrible. Art Alexakis' voice is just shot, and he would sing-talk a line and let the crowd do the next line. I'm not sure if this is because Art just isn't used to being on a tour of this scale in a while and his voice can't handle it, or it's permanently damaged. Either way, I found myself leaving the show early because, while Everclear is technically a good band, it was painful, at least for me, to watch.
All in all though, I have to say: the night was great for me. Plus, I had a 6 year old and an 11 year old with me...both of whom jumped up on their chairs, screamed, and put their rock 'n roll fingers \m/ in the air, loving every minute of it. And that, I think, was the most fun of all.
Alli
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