"Lets go Lets Go Lets GO!" The agitated pleas of fellow Volcano City blogger Joal and I filled the stifling Chicago hotel room. The two girls continued to do their makeup or whatever the hell was taking them so long. Always with the makeup.
After the fourty minute train ride and fifteen minute walk, we flashed our bracelets at the Lollapalooza entrance. I sprinted to the stage Miike Snow was playing at, I was through waiting around for those two. I was dismayed to see they had already started their set, but i thought, I was here now so its okay. Wow, they're really killing it. I wonder if I've misse--
"Thank you Chicago!"
I hung my head. God Dammit. God Fucking Dammit. MANDI AND MIRANDA, YOU FUCKING TAKE FOREVER TO GET READY!
Last night was their first Portland all-ages show, having come to the Doug Fir back in October. Neither of us had had enough money to buy tickets, despite knowing about it for months, until it came up to bite us in the ass by being sold out. We decided to just try and buy an extra one off of somebody out front and showed up before doors opened. Nobody had any.
Miike Snow, expanded to six men for their tour with Delorean, was milling around their tour bus behind the Hawthorne Theater. One of them had a kid and wife in tow. The debate began towards the pros/cons of going straight to the horses mouth and asking the band to get us in, and soon our decision was made for us as they walked past to enter the venue.
We asked them if it wasnt too much of a longshot, because we really wanted to see the show and its all sold out, if they could possibly swing two extra tickets our way. Two of them looked to each other and said "Just two? Sure, what are your names?"
I was pretty stoked. We thanked them for being nice guys and awaited the concert.
I'm a big fan of Delorean too, and they definitely brought it but you could tell by the unmoving crowd that they were just there to see Miike Snow. The Hawthorne was half-empty for their whole set.
Miike Snow was huge. Absolutely huge. They choked the room with smoke before they went on wearing plain white masks. Each song was a singalong - everybody in the crowd was feeling it. Hightlights of the show were Plastic Jungle - the lead singer paused, thanked the crowd, and resumed playing with a crash of sound and white light. The entire encore was only three songs lengthened and reduced(expanded?) to stripped down rave versions about ten minutes long each.
Their performance of singalongtrack of 2009, Animal, was the song to see. Miike Snow played the whole thing accompanied by the crowd and then played the whole song again without any singing, playing faster and faster and faster until it was thrashing madhouse frenzy -- simply dope. Great performers.
A big thanks go out to the dudes of Miike Snow for being really cool about putting us on the guest list. Do NOT miss these guys at Sasquatch this year.
Mandi and Miranda, we forgive you now.
