Civil Twilight lead singer, Steven McKellar
The week of the Bobby Long shows (April 1), one of my best friends, Andie, came in town. That Thursday that she FINALLY got here, we went out to have drinks and watch some hockey at Taco Mac in Virginia Highlands. We had the cutest server. I believe her name was Michelle. The restaurant was pretty slow so she stood at our table and talked to us for quite a while. We explained to her about going to see Bobby at Vinyl. She told us that the following Thursday (April 7) a band called Civil Twilight was playing at the venue next to Vinyl called The Loft. She said they sounded a lot like Muse/Coldplay.
I was sold.
Not only do I love both of those bands, but I love checking out new music. Even if they sucked, what did I have to lose. I made plans and enlisted a friend to go with me. At first we were a bit confused about the opening bands. We thought that there was a silent film being shown. Little did we know it was a BAND called A Silent Film. When we arrived the opener for the opener was on, Eyes Around. Unfortunately since we were confused, we didn’t listen to them very much. Plus we missed about half their set. But what I did hear was pretty good.
A Silent Film came on second. Since we were still confused (and had never really listened to any of the bands performing) we thought they were Civil Twilight. This band was really quite impressive. The lead singer reminded me a lot of Chris Martin (perhaps that was part of the added confusion). He danced around the stage and was very interactive with the audience. I always enjoy musicians who will chat with the audience during their set. It makes you feel more connected. The rest of the band was very talented as well. Once I figured out that this was indeed NOT Civil Twilight, I made a note to check them out more once I got home.
After A Silent Film finished their set, we finally figured out that they were not who we thought they were because people were still standing around waiting. Oops! That’s what we get for not paying closer attention.
Civil Twilight finally came on.
I honestly had not heard one song by them until they started playing. Once I saw that the lead singer was playing piano, it was all over for me. I fell in love instantly. Their sound is very reminiscent of Muse or Coldplay. They are from Cape Town, South Africa (hello accents!) Again, they were also very interactive and chatty with the audience, which was filled with fans. I had a blast dancing around even though I did not know one song. They were highly entertaining.
To me this band is still up and coming. I think they have a few songs that are played on the radio and possibly featured on a TV show or two. They are playing a few festivals, including the Hangout Festival in Gulf Shores, AL. If you are going or want to check out some new music, I definitely recommend this band as well as A Silent Film.
Just goes to show that it is worth going to see bands that you may have never heard of before because you never know what you will like.
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