Last Night, Miami was treated to one of the best music performances I have seen in quite awhile. Los Angeles based indie-electro duo, Capital Cities, gave Miami a performance to remember, and left the crowd wanting more.
Singer/songwriters Ryan Merchant and Sebu Simonian of Capital Cities pulled up to Grand Central sand exited their tour bus and took to the stage to an overly excited crowd. I have never been to a Capital Cities concert, but I have heard that their shows are amazing. Perhaps these fans have been here before and know something that I don't.
The band takes the small, but adequate stage and the audience explodes with cheers and fist-pumps into the air. Singers Ryan Merchant & Sebu Simonian, bassist Manny Quintero, trumpeter Spencer Ludwig, guitarist Nick Merwin, and drummer Channing Holmes played the first of seventeen songs, starting with 'Tell Me How To Live". "Chartreuse", "Origami", and "Center Stage" followed before the band went into performing their well-known cover songs. Michael Jackson's "Remember The Time", Madonna's "Holiday", Sinead O'Conner's "Nothing Compares 2U", and the Bee Gee's " Stayin' Alive" were the cover songs that were played this night.
With every song that was played, the audience sang along and danced their cares away to the rhythmic music. Capital Cities showed me that they are masters when it comes to lulling their fans into a frenzy. It has been a long while since I have seen a crowd react so favorably to a performance. The master-showmen also played their well-known hits "Safe And Sound", "Kangaroo Court" , and "I Sold My Bed But Not My Stereo" which blew the roof off the joint.
After the show, we were fortunate enough to meet the entire band. They were very cordial and took photos with us and signed our all-access, backstage passes. I urged them to come back to Miami again soon and they said that they are planning to. With a crowd like that, I cannot see why they wouldn't.
If you have never been to a Capital Cities concert, do yourself a favor and log on to their website at www.capitalcitiesmusic.com and check out their tour schedule. Their show is not one to be missed.
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Many thanks go out to publicist Ken Phillips for making this review possible. Thank you to Capital Cities Tour Manager Rob Mirhadi for accommodating us at the venue and introducing us to the band. Without you both, none of this would have been possible.