On Saturday night, as I drove to the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, I wasn’t sure what to expect. From the lineup, I had one thought about each band.

1. I love the Miniature Tigers.
2. Who in the world is Jukebox the Ghost????
3. What’s all this hype about Free Energy’s live show anyway?

Well, mysteries were about to be solved tonight. The crowd was filled with mostly college and high school girls, that were trying to be ‘too cool’ for their own good. Mixed in with your average hipster and random frat guy, I was sort of afraid what I was going to get here.

Miniature Tigers were up to the stage first, as singer Charlie Brand sported a very noticable new haircut. The band played songs off their upcoming record, Fortress (Modern Art) that is due out on July 27th. Everytime I see the Mini T’s they seem to get better and better, if that is even possible. Displaying their newest single “Gold Skull,” and old hits like “Cannibal Queen,” they sure know how to get the crowd going. Many new fans were won over that night.

Jukebox the Ghost took to the stage next. I had not a clue as to who this band was besides a name slip here or there. I was completely blown away by them. Singer Ben Thornewill’s voice and piano playing alone is one of the most incredible combinations I have heard in quite some time. The song that really got me hooked was called “Hold It In,” which is the most sugary-indie-pop song ever made. The band releases their new record in September and played plenty of new songs…so they said. I didn’t know the difference at this point. The crowd was into it, clapping and singing every word along with the band.

So far the all of the acts were amazing, and now it was time for Free Energy to take the stage.

Free Energy reminds me of The Guest era of Phantom Planet. Maybe it is because singer Paul Sprangers reminds me a bit of Alex Greenwald in looks and voice. This band is EXPLOSIVE on stage. Free Energy really lives up to the ‘energy’ part of their name. The band was hopping across stage (except for the bass player who never seems to budge), and dancing around. The fans were dancing too. This was a beyond fun show. From their newest single “Bang Pop” to everything else, the crowd and the group did not stop one bit. Sprangers is a charasmatic, energenic frontman who really knows how to work the crowd. The wierd thing is though, it seems to come naturally to him. He doesn’t seem to be working at it.

This is one of the most astonishing show lineups I have ever experienced. I’m still not fully recovered from the mass amounts of fun that I had at that show. We all had fun.

When the show ended I was thinking this about each band.

1. I can’t wait to get the new Miniature Tigers album in my hands!
2. Will there be any Jukebox the Ghost records left at the merch table?
3. Why is Free Energy so awesome?

and lastly…

4. Can we do it all again??!!

FOR MORE PICTURES OF THE SHOW, CHECK THEM OUT HERE