Girl at the Rock Shows

Tuesday night’s show was a bit of a wild card for me. I was excited to get a taste of the 90s- the music I grew up on- but was also afraid that the band playing wouldn’t give me the feeling I wanted. I wanted the feeling of sitting next to the pool with my mom and brother. I remember spending summer after summer playing around at the local pool called “Holiday Pool” while the radio blared 90s hits. It’s such a small part of my life, but certain songs instantly take me back there, and the songs of Blues Traveler are some of those songs. Was Tuesday night going to transport me back to when things were a bit easier? Or would it be a show of a bunch of washed-up rockstars?

Before I get into whether Blues Traveler impressed me or left me wanting more, let’s talk about the absolutely stunning opener- Vanessa Collier. Vanessa is a saxophonist, singer, and songwriter from Texas. Her southern sensibilities instantly flooded the iconic First Avenue Mainroom as she and her two bandmates played through their set. It was one part jazz, one part blues, one part soul, and all heart. I’ll be honest, it wasn’t my normal kind of music, but on a week where time seems to be moving too fast and I still have so much to do before departing for Riot Fest in Chicago, it was just what I wanted. Vanessa took her time with her songs and the individual notes of said songs, letting them ring out for just the right time while giving each song a very organic feeling. I really can not put into words how soothing her voice was. Sure, her sax playing was amazing, but her vocals really sealed the deal for me.

At one point in her set, Vanessa took the time to introduce her two bandmates with all of their accolades that they absolutely deserved. Unfortunately, I didn’t catch the name of the brilliant bluesy guitarist she had on stage with her (**EDIT**– it was the amazing Laura Chavez), but I did catch the name of the bassist- Scot Sutherland. This name rang a bell, which turned into an alarm. She explained that the man was from Des Moines, Iowa. I know Des Moines isn’t a super small town, but I grew up there, and my dad is a bit of a figure in that town, so I do know a bunch of people, if only by association with my dad. I wracked my brain- how did the name Scot Sutherland sound familiar? After a quick email to my dad (because he is the one human on the planet who still doesn’t have a cell phone), he helped me fill in the gaps. My little brother actually took bass lessons from this guy back in the day. I quickly texted my brother, but he remembers very little from that time, being that it was so long ago. I wish I could share some embarrassing story about Scot, but I just don’t have it, as I only ever met him in passing when dropping off or picking up my brother with my dad. That being said, it was so cool to see a hometown local legend on the stage that I call my home away from home these days, even though it’s hundreds of miles away from my original home.

Okay, let’s call myself out before I get into this. Although I refer to Blues Traveler as a 90s band, I acknowledge that they have been hard at work putting quality music out since then. Honestly, this band has been grinding, having released fifteen full-length albums since their start in 1990, including ‘Traveler’s Soul’ which just came out last year. I may refer to them as a 90s band, but that’s just because that’s how I know of them. Honestly, their music isn’t quite my normal thing and, to be quite frank, they were a bit of a three-hit wonder in my mind but, again, I do not want to diminish all of the work that this band has done and do not want anyone to think I am blind to the fact that, although I fell out of their world, they never stopped giving their die-hard fans what they wanted– more music. And, yes, there are die-hard Blues Traveler fans out there– who knew?

Let me set the stage for you– the house lights at the legendary First Avenue mainroom went down, and the screen concealing the stage flew into the sky, giving the packed audience their first glimpse at this band. The crowd roared, but it was this almost muted kind of roar. I thought this was interesting because, at first, I wondered if this meant that the audience would be a bit lame and tired. The answer is no– that is not at all what it meant. It was more of a sign of respect, and as the band leaped into their set, so did the audience. It was pretty surreal to watch. I could feel the energy of the band as I snapped a couple of photos but it was the energy of the audience that seemed to make me lose my footing in a way. They sang along with a smile on their face to every song with a sense of gusto that left me smiling from ear to ear. Sure, I was only able to sing along to the hits (and, thankfully, the band opened with their hit “Run Around,” so it instantly plunged me into their world so perfectly), but just feeling the joy everyone else was feeling was more than enough to have me sold.

As mentioned, I only knew the hits, so, of course, I was singing along to “Run Around” and “Hook,” but that didn’t stop me from enjoying all of the other songs that the band played. If there’s one thing I learned about this band, it is that although the 90s may have stopped for most of us, it didn’t stop for them. Their harmonica-driven tracks wreaked of the 90s in all of the right ways. Frontman John Popper had this almost larger-than-life vibe about him, but, at the same time, he was approachable. He and his bandmates welcomed anyone and everyone into their world just by playing and jamming to the tracks as if they were just good friends dinking around on a Friday night around a fire. There was something oddly informal about the set, yet everything was done perfectly and sounded absolutely flawless.

For the entirety of Blues Travelers’ set I had this feeling of being by the side of Holiday Pool with the burn of sunscreen in my eyes, the taste of FunDip in my mouth, and the thoughts of my mom and brother by my side. I know it’s 2024. Life isn’t as simple as just having a pool-day summer anymore but dang it was so nice to escape back to that place in time if only for one night.

Line Up:

Vanessa Collier

Blues Traveler

Venue: First Avenue

Smell-O-Meter: A few whiffs of weed

Average Age of the Crowd: 48

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- 0

Mosh-ability- 0 out of 10

Amount of Beer Spilled On Me While Walking Around- $0

Broken Bones- None Spotted

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None Witnessed

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 2

How Many Times I’ve Seen These Bands Before (or at least how many times I can remember)-

Vanessa Collier– 0

Blues Traveler – 0

Celebrity Sightings –None

Overall Score – 8.2 out of 10

Show on Deck — Riot Fest 2024!

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