Lots of songwriters convey their pain and angst through their music. Not many have endured more inner-turmoil than Justin Furstenfeld. The lead singer and songwriter for Blue October is bipolar, a condition has written about and for which he has become a national spokesman.
Blue October has been around since 1995. It has released five studio albums, including the platinum "Foiled" in 2006 and "Approaching Normal," which was No. 13 on the "Billboard" chart the week it was released in 2009. The band has opened for the Rolling Stones and had songs placed in several well-known films and TV shows (including "The Sopranos" finale). And in 2008, Furstenfeld went on a brief solo/acoustic tour with Stephenie Meyer, author of the blockbuster "Twilight" series. Yet his band remains relatively unknown.
Fewer than 500 people attended Sunday's show at Crossroads KC, but nearly all of them were up front and engaged all night with a band they all seemed to know very well. Blue October delivers primarily arena-sized rock songs that throb and quake with excess and energy. It comes off as something like the bombast of Live and the earnest fury of U2 mixed and turned up several notches.
Blue October's music is colored heavily by Furstenfeld's over-arching and hyper-personal lyrics and his voice, which heavily resembles Peter Gabriel's and can slightly resemble Dave Matthews' and Richard Butler's (of the Psychedelic Furs). Some of the sounds coming off the stage were tracked, which may have contributed to the sound, which was as bright and clean as I've ever heard it at this venue. Even Ryan Delahoussaye's violin sounded loud and clear through the band's wall of sound.
The show lasted 90 minutes. The setlist comprised 17 songs and included "Come in Closer," which opened the show, and "Hate Me," the band's biggest hit, which closed it. It also included the dark and creepy "Dirt Room," "Say It," "Blue Sunshine," "X-Amount of Words," "Should Be Loved," "Jump Rope," "My Never" (which Furstenfeld dedicated to someone in the crowd) and "Black Orchid."
Halfway through, a friend seeing Blue October for the first time texted: "I took off; I don't get it." It was my first time, too, and though I'll confess it isn't my thing, I get it: big, heavy riffs; sing-along choruses; a lead singer wearing his heart on sleeve. For about 500 other people, it appeared to be a good start to a week promoting awareness of our minds' health.
| Timothy Finn, The Star
Third sentence "a condition has written" should be "a condition he has written"
Posted by: Keiv | October 04, 2010 at 11:24 PM
Anyone make it to Deadmau5? Quite the show. A DJ about filling up Uptown is rare.
Posted by: Steve J | October 05, 2010 at 09:12 AM
does anyone have a setlist for this show? I can find NOTHING about it.
Posted by: kim | October 18, 2010 at 12:02 AM
Come In Closer
Say It
Dirt Room
Been Down
Blue Sunshine
Picking Up Pieces
Into The Ocean
Congratulations
X-Amount Of Words
Angel
James
Sexual Power Trip
Should Be Loved
Jump Rope
My Never
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Black Orchid
Hate Me
send an email to [email protected] if you'd like a copy of the audio
Posted by: Keiv | October 24, 2010 at 03:03 PM