In case anyone's interested in how last night's show at the Main Street Cafe went down, our calendar editor, Crystal Wiebe, was there and filed the following report:
I guess Kansas City kids just didn't want to pay $12 on a frigid Thursday night to hang out at Main Street Cafe (3111 Wyandotte). Not even a hundred of them milled around the midtown-loft-cum-all-ages concert venue last night. This was a little surprising, given that the headliner was Aaron Gillespie's side band. The petite, blond Gillespie is better known as the drummer/singer for Underoath, arguably the most popular hardcore act in America.
Three other bands played before the Almost, only one of them overly annoying. The Tide, a four-piece from Grand Rapids, Michigan, opened the show with pleasant Grey's Anatomy rock. Classic Case came on next with hookless, cliche ridden emo pop, including a song about the end of the world that should have been scary but was just boring. It would have been nice to see all the members of the next band, Seattle's Forgive Durden, play with the intensity of the one really tall guitarist, who also played keys and (WTF?) a banjo. He was so into his band's dramatic punk pop that at one point his eyes rolled back into his head and his mouth quivered in such a way I thought he might be having a seizure. I wasn't that moved, but I'm intrigued enough to check out Forgive Durden's MySpace.
In response to the low turnout, Denise, the crazy-eyed woman who runs Main Street, ranted into the microphone before the final act. Her pleas for kids to spread the word about the venue felt like a scold. "I don't have to do this, you know." Fortunately, the Almost didn't punish the sparse crowd with a half-hearted set. When unencumbered by a guitar, Gillespie, backed up by four players, prowled the stage, howling to the heavy rock. And in spite of monitor trouble, he nailed every high-pitched note of songs that ranged from mosh-worthy (the grinding "Say This Sooner") to slow and danceable (one of those classic Christian rock ballads that could be aimed at God or a girlfriend -- it's hard to tell). Overall, Gillespie's demeanor evoked a polite professionalism, no doubt one honed on the road with the forceful but faithful Underoath. That and a reminder to the crowd that Jesus loved them, every one, must have affirmed to the few parents in the room that this music, if occasionally abrasive, was just good, clean fun.
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