The Fray W/ Brandi Carlile

The night kicked off with singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile making history when she stepped up to the mic for the sixth time in as many months at Cleveland’s House of Blues. The gal from the foothills of Washington was accompanied by a drummer, cellist, and twin brothers on bass and guitar. Brandi’s casual dress in an old pair of jeans and a brown t-shirt matched her casual demeanor and quiet confidence. She opened her set with a sing-a-long of Mr. Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-changing.” Plain clothing, a six string, genuine innocence, and a love for Bobby D: all markings of a typical small town/sheltered life all-American girl.

After engaging in some brief banter with the crowd, Carlile began a string of tunes from her self-titled debut (which was re-released on June 13 via Columbia Records). The most impressive attribute of the 23-year-old is her ability to transition flawlessly from a modern folk song into a revved-up tune with a Western vibe before settling down with a melancholy ballad. Carlile moved from one to the next with seemingly minimal effort and owned each brand as if it were her specialty.

When Brandi introduced “Tragedy “as her song that was featured on the May 7 episode of the hit television series Grey’s Anatomy, it became evident that the young crowd’s affection for the Sunday night sensation plays second fiddle to only their unfaltering love of melodic piano ballads, low-cut shirts, and cigarettes. I’m the only person on the planet who has yet to see an episode of the hospital drama, but I can say with confidence that this track would integrate nicely into any drama scene. Hell, all the tracks from Carlile’s debut (and The Fray’s How to Save A Life for that matter) could easily be dropped into a television drama of one sort or another.

The crowd’s lack of familiarity of Carlile’s material did not hinder them from drowning her out with their own:

“O lord, what can I say
I am so sad since you went away
time, time ticking on me
alone is the last place I wanted to be”

on the easy-to-catch-on What Can I say. This one takes the cake for audience favorite.

A song or two past the mid-point of her set, Brandi made her first deviation from the traditional realm by throwing a curveball with a cover of Radiohead’s “Creep.” As she rounded into the third verse, I anticipated an adverb substitution, but was pleasantly surprised when she belted out, “you’re so fucking special” before her last go-round with the chorus. Maybe this gal does have a bit of an edge after all.

After the well-received Radiohead insertion, the stage lights brightened slightly, and I couldn’t help but notice that Brandi is significantly more attractive than her promotional photos and unflattering album cover suggest.

The highlight of the set for me was the seventh track on her album, “Falls Apart Again,” which brought to light both the power of her pipes and beautiful falsetto.

The first two covers worked so well for Carlile that she decided to go for a third. A no-holds-barred honkytonk version of the Johnny Cash classic, “Folsom Prison Blues” had every hand clapping and half the feet in the joint stomping. Afterwards, the band said good night. Brandi bowed out with an acoustic number.

Her appearance might not stack up with the likes of Michelle Branch or Vanessa Carlton, but the range and strength of her voice tower above the best of the best. Her versatility and small-town/underdog bode well for her appeal.

Long before the Denver-based quartet took the stage, a chant of, “Fray! Fray! Fray!” resounded from the sold-out crowd. The boys started off with “Vienna.” Everybody joined in on the chorus of:

“There’s really no way to reach me
cause I’m alreaeaeady goooooone”.

Quite an odd sight watching the diverse crowd of pre-teens with their parents, wannabe frat boys, the organizers of CMJ Rock Hall Music Fest, and seventeen-year-old girls who operate under the notion that Coldplay fathered the idea of piano-pop in 2001, all singing in unison. Stranger yet is how eerily close it was to being in tune.

Two songs into the set pianist/vocalist Isaac Slade started rambling nonsense about forgetting to do laundry and not having any socks to wear. The response he received would make one think he had announced the second coming of Christ. When people love your music, they’ll love everything else you say and do.

I’ve always been a sucker for piano pop/rock. In addition to adding an extra element of sound, the piano also serves as an unassuming performance prop. Ben Folds can continue to play while performing a handstand and has banged out the guitar solo from “Free Bird” on more than one occasion. Coldplay’s Chris Martin transforms himself into a bobblehead capable of making priceless facial expressions when manning the keys. And nobody rocks the piano like Something Corporate/Jack’s Mannequin frontman Andrew McMahon! Granted, my expectations were high, I was left less than satisfied by Slade’s sit-and-sing style. Yes, The Fray’s music doesn’t have the same rock drive as the aforementioned bands, but a little pizzazz in the performance certainly wouldn’t hurt anybody.

Every song played sounded exactly like the studio recordings. In most cases, this is not a positive remark, unless the album is a gem, and ‘How to Save a Life‘ most definitely is. Good music, great lyrics; near-perfect vocals. Every song on the album could be released as a single. Not one thing was lost in translation from the album to the live show, a feat few bands have accomplished. Did anybody give Maroon 5’s live album a spin? Did you happen to catch Daniel Powter’s live performance of “Bad Day” on American Idol? Check and mate.

The Fray’s impressive set was highlighted by the title-track and “Heaven Forbid” and left no doubt that they are worthy of their quick rise