Wyld Stallyns! Remember them? The band whose music saved the world back in 1989. We owe this band a lot. When humanity needed them, they rose to the occasion. Sadly, it seems they’ve broken up, and Ted Theodore Logan has joined a new band, Dogstar, leaving Bill S. Preston Esquire behind.
Of course, I’m talking about Keanu Reeves. You know Keanu; Ted Theodore Logan, Johnny Utah, Neo (Mr. Anderson), Jack Traven, John Wick!!! A bona fide movie star! And I’m told, an all-around nice guy. He was in Connecticut on August 16th with his band Dogstar. I would’ve preferred Wyld Stallyns but I had to check it out.
First was a band called Archer Oh. They were ok. Young dudes, decent guitar playing, semi-unique voice, ok songs, but nothing spectacular. There were no catchy tunes to get stuck in your ear, but they were entertaining enough. The dancing was a bit lame, but…let the music move you, I guess.
In between bands, the crowd was starting to get hyped, especially the drunks. One drunk loud woman was trying desperately to start a “Neo! Neo! Neo!” chant. That didn’t work so she yelled a few other things including, “Yeah! Johnny Utah!”
It was cool when the band took the stage. I mean, c’mon! Keanu is a mega movie star! 3 Bill & Ted movies, 2 Speed movies, 4 Matrix and 4 John Wick’s I believe! With a resume like that, of course the crowd was excited. As soon as the lights went down, the crowd got loud, the band took the stage, and they went right into their first song. Now, do I know their songs? Nope! And most people there didn’t either. People were there because it was Keanu. This is what the band has going for them. They have Keanu and he sells both movie and concert tickets.
As a band, they’re a talented trio. Keanu is on bass, and then some other dude (Bret Domrose) sings and plays guitar, and then they have their drummer (Robert Mailhouse). The playing was decent, the vocals are decent, and the songs are fine…though a bit boring. Their style is quite mellow, and I’d say that their songs don’t really have much of a hook in general. Glimmer was a decent tune, and a tune I actually recognized surprisingly. But overall, they were quite boring. They just kind of stood there. Not much movement, not much energy, and little interaction with the crowd or each other. Even the stage was boring. While it was a smaller theater, there was just nothing. Not much of a light show, no backdrops, no videos playing behind them, and obviously no pyros. It was kind of like watching a band rehearse in their garage.
A night out is always great, and I love live music so I won’t say it was a waste of time. But they were boring. Keanu is cool, but I like his movies better. There’s an opportunity here to go bigger, and infuse some Hollywood production into the stage show. That’s just my opinion anyway.
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