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The Cab, Cafe du Nord, June 2009
The What Happens in Vegas... tour, featuring Las Vegas-based band The Cab, came to San Francisco Monday night. San Francisco was the third stop in the fifty-one date tour, and Cafe du Nord on Market Street was sold out for this Father’s Day event.
A large staircase led down from the entrance to where the stage was, and where the opening band - Anarbor, a band from Phoenix, Arizona - was setting up in the dim light of the venue. As soon as they began playing, everyone in the room was completely captivated by their performance. The reaction was much more than I expected, just based on the fact that the band was the opener. Vocalist Slade Echeverria’s passion came through so clearly, and, even with the short set, I have to say that their performance was the best of the night, if only by a small margin. The way the crowd reacted to their music, and the cheerful way they responded to the audience during their set, was amazing to watch.
Next up was Orange County’s Eye Alaska. The heat was too much for snger Brandon Wronski, who had to take his jacket off after the first song, revealing the backpack he wore underneath. With their hip-hop beats, and Wronski’s dancing, it was hard to tell if the crowd was feeling it. Some were very into the performance, while others seemed frightened of Wronski’s theatrics. Overall though, their performance went flawlessly - they did a wonderful job of mixing their old tunes with new songs from their upcoming record. Closing with their new single “Walk Like a Gentleman” was what won over a lot of the crowd, most of which was swaying along and snapping pictures of the band members.
Like Anarbor, the third band, The Summer Set, are from Arizona. They were definitely closer to pop music than the previous bands, but the crowd ate it up. Everyone in the room was dancing along to The Summer Set’s energetic music, and guitarist John Gomez did a great job of pumping the crowd up with his vigor. He was all over the stage, making sure that everyone in the audience had their eyes focused on his antics. Singer Brian Dales’ voice stood out over the music, and the sweetness of it shone through. Their cover of “Love In This Club” by hip-hop artist Usher had everyone dancing along.
The Secret Handshake was the fourth band to play that night. Luis Dubuc, a Dallas, Texas native, was quite obviously the only person in the band that mattered from the start. His backing band was just that - back up. Dubuc came out wearing a light-up red heart pinned to his shirt, which immediately drew everyone’s attention to him. But it was his amazing energy that kept the audience interested. Even if his synth-filled music is not your style, his on-stage performance is completely captivating - his energy was contagious. Everyone in the room could not help but dance along to his beats, and their eyes remained glued to him the entire time. I had to actively look around the stage to see who else was up there because he was so enthralling. When he mentioned Full House, it was over - he was the most loved performer of the night. So far.
After setting up their equipment along to the screams of countless girls, The Cab emerged to the perfect opening tune. Hide the key cause I’m coming over to settle the score, don’t forget how well I know you, stop asking, keep dancing - after the opening lines of “Risky Business”, the crowd was already going wild with excitement. Singer Alex Deleon created such a lovely atmosphere as he teased his band members and explained their goal to only make songs that are cheerful and inspiring. They continued through many of the songs on their hit album Whisper War, and the crowd continued to dance and sing along. Deleon thanked everyone for buying tickets despite the state our economy is in, and said that they would be sticking around after to meet every person that wanted to talk to them. His affection and appreciation for the fans was easy to see, and that made the show even better. When he slowed it down for the song “Vegas Skies”, it was one giant sing-a-long. After a quick break (during which the band stayed onstage with their backs turned due to the effort it would take to leave and reenter the room), they played a two-song encore, featuring their cover of Rhianna’s hit song “Disturbia” and their own hit song “Bounce”.
Overall, this was one of the most exciting shows I have ever had the pleasure of going to. Every band seemed to put everything they had into making the night enjoyable for everyone in attendance, and their passion for their music was refreshing to see. Next time any of these bands come through San Francisco, it would be well worth your time to check them out.
Anarbor, Eye Alaska, The Summer Set, The Secret Handshake, and The Cab.
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