The Rocket Summer - photo from myspace.com/therocketsummer
The career trajectory for The Rocket Summer multi-instrumentalist Bryce Avary has been pretty stunning—from releasing an EP at the age of 16 to three full-length CDs (and another EP), tours all over the US and Japan, and signing to Island Records, all in the span of eight years. Throw in spots on the Vans Warped Tour and support for The Academy Is in the last year (where I first saw The Rocket Summer at the Myth), and Avary was ready to bring his positive, uplifting message to the masses on his first headlining tour, stopping at Station 4 in St. Paul.
But Station 4? Isn’t that the metal bar? Well, yes, Station 4 is still pretty metal, judging from the Helloween, Amon Amarth and Heathen Crusade posters on the wall. But they seem to be making a concerted effort to branch out beyond the metal mold, attracting some shows lately that otherwise might have found at venues like the Fine Line or the Varsity. And why shouldn’t these bands come here? Station 4 has a nice oversized stage and a great sound system in its cavernous hall, with plenty of room for a merch booth as well as hundreds of sweaty bodies. There is a separate bar area for us old folks that need to get out of the fray and bathrooms that were surprisingly clean in spite of the Seventh Street Entry aesthetic. I thought it was a very good space to see a show, certainly worth a mention among other good Twin Cities venues.
Even before the lights dimmed, the throng of bodies pushing up against the stage was impressive, but when the band came out, all sorts of hell broke loose. Avary’s uplifting lyrics have a certain level of spirituality to them, inspiring but never pandering, which definitely strikes an emotional chord with the 14- to 17-year-old set that comprised a majority of the audience. From the first notes of the title-track single “Do You Feel?,” the fans joined right in, singing/shouting the lyrics along with Avary. Musically, it is an interesting mix—lots of guitars and piano played loud, but with a surprising amount of bounce to it. While Hanson is a six-letter word in indie-rock circles, I think it would be a fair comparison point for the hard, hook-filled pop they both play.
Avary even looks a little like a missing Hanson brother—poster-boy good looks with blond hair flying all over the place while he is playing. But he’s no pretty boy, just skating by—he really lets it all out on stage. By the time they finished their third song, “Break It Out,” he was already soaked in sweat from his energetic performance. Switching back and forth from guitar and piano, he guided his band through a majority of his 2007 release “Do You Feel?” as well as several songs from 2005’s “Hello, Good Friend.”
Midway through the first half of the set, Avary showcased his talents on all instruments, creating a song loop that he played drums, keys, guitar and bass on, and when the “song” was finished, he invited his band and the members of Phantom Planet onstage with him to add backing vocals, extra beats (and unfortunately for us, some bad break-dancing from Phantom Planet’s Alex Greenwald). But it was all in good dumb fun, similar to the spontaneous “Sweet Home Alabama/All Summer Long” medley that occurred later, after which Avary begged everyone “Please don’t tell anyone what just happened. I can’t believe I covered a Kid Rock song!”
Other highlights of the night included a solo guitar version of “Goodbye Waves and Driveways,” where Avary played on a little stage way in the back of the room (the same stage riser I had been leaning comfortably against for most of the show) and finishing the show with the orchestral “So, In This Hour.” It will probably be a while before we see The Rocket Summer on the road again, with recording the next album on the horizon, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in a much larger venue the next time out.
