Islands – Landlocked in the Midwest

On the stage at Lincoln Hall in Chicago, the band Islands looked like a throwback to a simpler time, wearing all white suits and nearly outnumbered by their keyboards. Poised to host a killer episode of I Love the 80s, Islands opted instead to play a solid set for the somewhat lacking crowd. Brought to you with a soundtrack straight from the ironic 2000s indie scene, the set was pop-tacular and fun. The kind of music you put on your iPod that first warm day in spring.

You’d probably want one of those popsicles, too.

Despite the amount of space open to them, the crowd pushed hard to get to the stage, creating the image and feel of a packed house. As Islands geared up for “Where There’s a Will There’s a Whalebone,” the seasoned fans cheered on their old favorite, and the band didn’t disappoint.

The lighten design, however, left something to be desired. With their white ensembles, the band made the perfect canvas for the alternating red and blue lights during “Whalebone,” but the overall effect was a little unnecessarily epileptic. The blinking to the lyrics “turn your lights out” seemed a bit obvious.

Not quite the same effect…

Another glitch came when the keyboards really got going. Either a bad sound guy or just poor balance, the keyboards overwhelmed the rest of the band. The thick keys overshot your standard indie rock out and landed in a borderline preschool sing-a-long.

Things seemed to be on an upswing when the sweet sounds of a singing saw rose up to the rafters at Lincoln Hall. My inner country girl frantically scanned the stage for a redneck with a hacksaw, but was disappointed to find only one of the ubiquitous indie rock computers whirring to a southern beat. By the time “Swans (Life After Death)” was fully ramped up, the singing saw was a distant memory.

Closing with an old school marathon guitar solo, Islands wrapped up a solid, if poorly engineered, set with a simple “good night.” The eager, if unmotivated, crowd waited expectedly for the encore, without bothering to cheer or scream for it. The appreciative, if tired, band apparently wanted a little more effort for an encore. And after a few minutes, the production guys were cleaning up gear and the crowd was turning, shoulders slumped, probably wishing they had tried a bit harder.

Islands were somewhat cursed by poor lighting decisions and (potentially) warped sound, but the set was a fun burst of indie rock. I just wished the rest of the crowd had tried a little harder for that encore.

*By Jesy,  who is stoked for her much needed yoga class tonight.

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