There’s a certain amount of energy that can only be created by a group of six musicians bouncing around a crowded stage. Last Friday night, the El Rey was overcome with that very energy as Ra Ra Riot spread their indie love to a packed house.
The group opened with the first track from their self-titled EP “Each Year.” Bassist Mathieu Santos and guitarist Milo Bonacci exchanged looks of approval as vocalist Wes Miles shook his tambourine to the beat and projected his pleasant just-the-right-amount-of-rasp voice.
The crowd was quickly inspired, and began chanting the band’s name, as the group began their next piece, “Dying Is Fine.” Cellist Alexandra Lawn, and violinist Rebecca Zeller added great depth to the set, while drummer Cameron Wisch kept the beat. The string instruments, accompanied by the drums and tambourine, created a very cultured, Beirut-esque feeling, and the crowd was feeding off of it.
Each song built up more and more power, while the artists dancing on the stage to their own music added exponentially to the energy. Zeller and Lawn wore colorful dresses, while Bonacci and Santos sported red and yellow guitars. Miles danced among them in his rainbow-colored flannel button-up. To call the stage colorful would be an understatement, and as the music intensified, so did the dancing until each member looked like a neon blur flying across the stage.
The group continued with “A Manner To Act.” Halfway through the song, Miles was so into his vocals, he threw his tambourine away and devoted himself to the microphone. Lawn took to her electric cello like it was her dance partner, managing to play while spinning and swinging, as Santos and Bonacci jumped back and forth with the music.
As they closed with “Can You Tell,” the entire group chipped in on the singing, harmonizing with their instruments as well as their voices. Each seemed more into it than the next, and the dancing continued, until it came to an abrupt end, and the band modestly walked off stage. The ending could be compared to the end of a tour of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory: After one of the most colorful and playful experiences of one’s life, one is asked to withdraw to the gift shop or, in this case, the merch table.
The audience seemed quite contented by the exuberant, though quick, performance. A few couples took this quiet time to express their affection publicly, which is commonplace though still somewhat out of place in concerts, while the rest herded out to the smoking area, or the lobby. No encore, no extended applause. It was a somewhat dissatisfying end to an almost overwhelming concert.
As I went to leave, I pondered how the vocalist’s butt looked big in his skinny jeans and hoping I didn’t suffer from the same roundness, and cursing the valet underneath my breath for adjusting my seat during the two seconds it took to park my car. Ra Ra Riot’s energy was shortlived, and I already missed it.
– Rob Kadivar