Concert: Ben Kenney and Brandon Boyd at Irving Plaza, 1/30/14

Ah, the morning after a great concert. I'm on a bit of a musical high.

Last night, I saw Brandon Boyd perform at Irving Plaza. Technically he was billed as his side project, Sons of the Sea, but he played plenty of songs off of his previous solo album, The Wild Trapeze.

You know, I've been to so many concerts at this point in my life that I don't get as excited about them as I used to in high school. But as I waited in the crowd last night, I felt butterflies in my stomach, like I was 15 again. Brandon and his band sounded amazing, as I knew they would. And they played so many good songs. Since this was only their third show ever, I figured I'd save the set list, in case anyone was curious:

The Wild Trapeze
Jet Black Crow
Space and Time
Dance While the Devil Sleeps
Come Together
Untethered
Runaway Train
Courage and Control
Avalanche
Here Comes Everyone
Last Night a Passenger
Lady Black

Encore:
The Great Escape
Where All The Songs Come From

Also, I don't want to overlook Ben Kenney, the opening act last night and the bassist for Incubus. I haven't listened to his solo project before (Why? What kind of fan am I?) but he killed it. Usually at Incubus shows, he hangs back and doesn't say much (he is the bassist, after all). But when he got his moment in the spotlight, he turned out to be funny, entertaining and a pretty spiffy dancer. Plus he covered City and Colour's "Of Space and Time" which made me absurdly happy. If you're an Incubus fan who hasn't checked out any of his many albums, I'd definitely recommend looking into them.

And I need you on repeat, all the time. How in the world did you get to be so fine?

I met Brandon Boyd (again)

How about that new Sons of the Sea album?!? I wrote before about the new solo project from Brandon Boyd of Incubus back when he was releasing an EP, but now the full-length is out. And I am in love! I haven’t wanted to listen to anything else since I got my copy last week. It’s much poppier than his previous solo work, The Wild Trapeze, but I’ve always admired how each Incubus album sounds different, and I’m glad that Brandon is continuing that tradition. My immediate favorite songs are probably “Untethered,” “Come Together,” and “Avalanche,” but really, it’s all great.

As if new music wasn’t great enough, I also met Brandon last night at a signing event at Looney Tunes CDs for Sons of the Sea and his new book (which is also fabulous!) I’d met him at an Incubus meet ‘n greet last summer, so I guess I was sliiiiiiiightly less nervous this time around?

All I could think about in this moment was "BRANDON BOYD IS HOLDING MY HAND."

The man has been my musical hero since I was a young teenager, so I don’t think I’ll ever really stop getting butterflies in his presence. But he was as gracious as ever when I thanked him for making such a difference in my life.  What a gentleman. I’m pretty sure he’s as close to perfect as a human can be.

Be sure to check out Sons of the Sea. Or else!

More Brandon Boyd worship

I am just in love with Brandon Boyd. He is a god amongst men, and everything he does is magic. (Yes, I’ve written about this before. And before that. And before that).

Honestly, he could probably record an hour-long album of burp noises, and I'd still love it. Thankfully, he decided to make actual music for his upcoming Sons of the Sea project. Here’s the first taste, “Where All The Songs Come From”:


I can already tell this is going to be one of my Summer 2013 anthems. Years down the road, I’ll hear this song and instantly be slammed back to this point in my life. But for now, I’m just enjoying blasting it on repeat as I enjoy the warm NYC sun. I can’t wait to hear the rest of the Compass EP when it drops on June 25.

Update: Of course, as soon as I posted this entry, USA Today premiered another new Sons of the Sea song. Now that's perfect timing.