The Heyday with Tickle Me Pink, The Autobiography and The Simple Discussion June 30, 2007 The Marquis Theater Better than: Waiting to see The Heyday until it starts filling arenas.
I have seen the future, and it is The Heyday.
Hyperbole? Maybe, but it’s hard to overestimate a band that’s been around just over a year, hasn’t released an official album yet, and can still almost fill the Marquis and send the crowd into paroxysms of exuberant joy within minutes of taking the stage. The make up of that crowd says a lot, too. During the three openers’ sets (The Simple Discussion, The Autobiography, Tickle Me Pink) I had to be the oldest person, by at least ten years, paying any sort of attention. Looking around after The Heyday took over I saw a much more diverse group staring raptly at the stage. Sure, the kids were still the nucleus of the crowd, but I saw a lot more folks who could get into the bar area without asking for an MIP ticket.
The Heyday’s performance was tight, polished and incredibly self-assured for a bunch of guys that still only need to worry about shaving on a weekly basis. The songs were full of instantly memorable melodies, well-crafted turns of phrase and fist-pumping choruses. Stylistically, it’s pretty straightforward rock and roll straight out of the late-90s school of MTV alternative. That could be an indictment, but these guys mean it, and do it so damn well it’s hard to find fault, even for a crusty old bastard, like myself, who finds the esoteric fringes a lot more captivating than the well-scrubbed mainstream. If there was any doubt left in my mind about the potential these guys held, it was erased during their last song, when about a third of the audience spontaneously rushed up onto the stage and formed an impromptu troupe of dancers and backup singers. The Heyday? They took it in stride, as if they knew it was their due.
As for those openers, none of them were bad, but none of them did much to impress me, either. The Simple Discussion featured a singer with a voice so clear and high and pure, you’d swear he was a woman if you closed your eyes. As pretty as his voice was, the set was held back by a guitarist who seemed at times to think he was in a different band. The Autobiography thrashed out one of the more rocking sets of the evening but haven’t yet developed strong enough material to leave much of an impression. Tickle Me Pink’s best moments came when they dropped the emo-lite act and became a rock band, especially the instrumental tune they played near the end of their set. More of that, please!
If it seems I’ve given the rest of these groups short shrift, I apologize, but the night belonged to The Heyday, and the rest of us, openers included, were just there to experience it. -- Cory Casciato
Critic’s Notebook Personal Bias: Stylistically, none of these bands were particularly my thing, but The Heyday had the skills to overcome it in a big way. Random Detail: I loved the degree of enthusiasm the audience expressed for all the bands. It was a nice change of pace from the usual sullen hipster stance on display. By the Way: If The Heyday doesn’t become the Next Big Thing, it won’t be for a lack of talent.
