It's All about Who You Know

For several years Dad and John home-taught this one woman in our ward. They became good friends with her, and besides the fact she's an amazing person, she also has some pretty sweet connections. Barbara Slade just happens to be the aunt of Isaac Slade, the lead singer in one of my favorite bands, the Fray. The Fray just released a new album and are preparing to go on tour this summer, and as part of that preparation the band rented out the Broomfield Events Center to rehearse all week last week. To top off their week of intense rehearsal, they held a family-and-friends-only "dress rehearsal," and all of the invited family and friends were allowed to invite their own family and friends. I felt pretty cool knowing Sister Slade.

So Saturday night Marilyn Fowler (another family friend), Barbara Slade, Emily, John, and I all headed up to Broomfield for our VIP concert. When we arrived we went in through the area backstage and each had to put on this wristband indicating that we're legit concert attenders. Isaac Slade got up on the stage about forty-five minutes before the concert began and asked anyone who could to come down and stand on the floor to make it seem as much like a big concert as possible.

There were only a few hundred people in attendance, so it was a much more intimate performance, but the intimacy did in no way inhibit the grandeur of the show. It was a big show with a big bang.

This was Emily's first concert since she went to an N*SYNC performance eight or nine years ago--she was pretty excited for this one!

The Fray have been one of my favorite bands for a long time now (I saw them in concert a few years back), and while some bands or people aren't as good live as they are via recording, the Fray are phenomenal live.

We were only about ten feet away from the stage, so we could see everything: their faces, their instruments, their communication as a band.

The show was run primarily by Isaac and Joey (the two founders of the band). They interacted well with the audience, bringing the performance to a more personal level. Some of the performances were big, with big light choreography and intense sound, and some other songs were toned down and emotionally intense.

I did have a run-in with a particularly drunk girl, but she was just obnoxious. Fortunately she was the only drunkard I encountered at the concert (another perk of a quieter, private concert--not nearly as many wasted people).

They sang all of my favorite songs including "Syndicate," "Say When," "Cable Car," and "All at Once." I've been listening to the Fray a bunch since the concert, wishing I could see the concert again. I would totally pay to see it again, but alas, Denver isn't on their concert docket, except for the Mile High Music Festival, and I don't want to pay for that.

Saturday night was all about who you know, and I felt pretty lucky to know Barbara Slade!