Doing things solo #5

My seventeen year old cousin introduced me to Pandora, an online music player where you type in a favorite band and then it plays songs that it thinks you’d like based on that band.  Typing in “Wilco” has introduced me to tons of great new artists, one of whom is Mason Jennings.  And as fate would have it, a few weeks after I had been digging Mason, I randomly decided to check his tour page and lo and behold, he was coming to Chicago around the corner!  So my solo tour continued with a Mason Jennings concert at the House of Blues (where I hadn’t been since my Missed Connections incident there, a few years ago).

AMAZING concert!  I forgot what a nice venue HOB is – acoustics, size, proximity to the El, ease of entering/exiting.  I was perturbed by the $9 service fee charge when I first tried to buy online, so decided to just cross my fingers and buy at the door.  Fate stepped in again, and for some reason I found myself looking at the ticket website for a second time, it just so happens on a Wednesday, which just so happens is the day Live Nation waives its service fees, so score!  Got my ticket ahead of time, for a reasonable price.

7PM show was packed.  He seems to have a young following, I definitely was on the older side.  Enjoyed his set, both the songs I knew and those that were new to me.  Not much banter with the audience but came across as being very appreciative of his fans and of just enjoying playing music.  The band was skilled and fun to watch.  They did a killer cover of The Weight, where each member sang a verse, even the non-singer drum player.  The audience was mostly there to listen to the music as opposed to talking throughout the show, a nice change from other recent shows I’ve attended.

When I got out at 10, I debated going to my friend’s improv show, but had such a nice time with Mason, I decided to call it a night, ending on a guaranteed high.  I couldn’t stop smiling out the window of the Brown Line on my way home, and even as I got soaked running the two blocks from my stop home.