Eternal Sunshine Tour 2006: Cake, Tegan and Sara, Gogol Bordello, and Eugene Mirman: House of Blues, Cleveland, OH 1/22/2006

The last word that comes to mind when someone mentions Cleveland in January is “sunshine.” Lake-effect snow, black-ice covered roads, and a patented “Lake Erie grey” colored sky consistently dominate the landscape of this industrial-themed metropolis. It’s so dark and murky that Cleveland residents and visitors alike are often overheard envying the black bears of Pennsylvania, Ohio’s neighbor to the east – at least they get to sleep through the deep freeze. Yet, alt-rock heavyweights Cake didn’t flinch at the chance to turn a typically shivery Sunday night into a carnival of sights, sound, and sunshine. With support from gypsy punk rockers Gogol Bordello, up-and-coming songstresses Tegan and Sara, and the comedic stylings of Conan O’Brian’s comrade Eugene Mirman, Cake took over the House of Blues with a show so exothermic it thawed through the harsh conditions and truly brightened up the faces and hearts of all in attendance.

Eugene Mirman is no stranger to the concept of warming up a room. This man’s reputation as a top-notch funny man was put to the test as a sold-out and seriously wall-to-wall crowd faced his opening jokes with typical rock fan skepticism. Yet, no more than 2 jokes and thirty seconds into his set, Mirman had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand. With a hilarious routine of advice for life (including the classic observation ‘Don’t start a band named Huey Louis and the News – there is already a band with that name’), political insights, and perhaps the most hilarious recorded phone call in history (the ‘anti-gay phone company’), Mirman got the room ready for the ensuing musical heat wave.

Gogol Bordello was up first and blasted back the bitter cold still attempting to follow the late-arrivers inside. This collective is perhaps one of the most avant-garde bands to ever mix gypsy music, Cossack, klezmer, punk, dancehall, and so much more into a constantly morphing, yet strangely cohesive display. Well, quite honestly, they may actually be the only band to ever attempt to create such a diverse and ambitious musical stew, however, their success indicates imitators might soon lurk around every corner in their native Bulgaria. Their steamy sounds were the perfect call for the opening slot, as their core group of musicians was soon joined by dancing girls who would scream and faint on command one minute, then don a bass drum and join a percussive explosion the next. Singer Eugene Hutz was clearly the leader of the group, and, along with the fiddle player and accordion/dancer/rapper, got the point across quickly and profoundly with such sweaty and stomping songs as “Start Wearing Purple” and “Punk Rock Parranda”. The boreal Cleveland night was starting to glow, and, by the end of their set, the audience was not only simmering, but was beginning to boil.

This smoldering sensation created the perfect atmosphere for the bubbly Tegan and Sara, who seem to have taken America by storm lately. The past few months have seen their album So Jealous rise up the charts and their video for “Walking with a Ghost” has gotten prime real estate in some of the most sought-after plots around the industry, including airplay on MTV. Their legions of predominantly teenage fans were percolating with excitement as the twin troubadours took the stage. Although some of their songs and their stage antics (such as begging the audience to wave their hands from side-to-side during “I Know I Know I Know”) were clearly out of the Total Request Live book of performance, these two sirens are much more than just another shallow songwriting team. The ladies pushed new ground and deviated from the pop-friendly pattern with more mature material like “Speak Slow” and some of their stories, including one about growing up in their mother’s neighborhood surrounded by crack-heads, indicated a lighthearted yet deeper side and a potential staying power. And it didn’t hurt that each of the ladies could simply smile and brighten any room – it seemed like the females in the crowd were enamored with their vibe and music while the males were just simply smitten with the two gorgeous guitarists. Their set gave some of the close-minded a chance to take a breather and cool off, but, judging by the audience applause as they finished, the ladies and their backing band had again raised the temperature. The room was nearing a point of spontaneous combustion. The last frosty faces faded away, and the crowd was gleaming.

Finally, with the sweat pouring off the walls and the effulgent cyber beam sunlight streaming off a perfectly-placed disco ball, John McCrea, the “guitar man” himself, led Cake onto the stage. The faces in the crowd were beaming, and he had to comment on how beautiful everyone was before kicking a leg in the air and ripping into “Wheels”. Although Cake’s most recent album Pressure Chief was released in 2004, the band offered most of its material as if they were showcasing a new release. The crowd began to sway, sing and dance with an intense spirit that illuminated the room. This was clearly what the tour’s namesake, the “eternal sunshine”, was all about. Trumpet and keyboard player Vince DiFiore and guitarist Xan McCurdy were absolutely on point, filling out the bands trademark sound with incomparable refulgence. The highlight of Cake’s set was clearly the sing-along anthem from Chief called “No Phone”. The audience was clearly in McCrea’s control as he again commented on how everyone was shining like a beacon before encouraging a call-and-response to his refrain of “no phone, no phone…I just want to be alone today”. One thing is for sure – no one at the show wanted to be anywhere but in an intimate venue with their favorite band and their new florescent friends. All night long bassist Gabriel Nelson guided the journey to the center of the sun with scintillating slides and devastating drops. Cake’s take on the classic Bread song “Guitar Man”, which has an undeniable flambeau and flare that no other band in the world can capture, summed up the evening in its reinterpreted lyrics. The anthem served as a perfect transition between the splendor inside and the sleet outside. The audience chanted along “When the lights begin to flicker and the sound is getting dim, the voice begins to falter and the crowds are getting thin…he never seems to notice he’s just got to find another place to play”. Everyone in attendance agreed – wherever and whenever Cake plays next, the radiance of the sun itself will follow.

By January 22nd, Cleveland is normally buried under several feet of snow and socializing slows down to a crawl. It almost seems as if the dreary clouds overhead and the slush covering the ground below serve as the arms of old man winter himself, smothering the city in a glacial grip. While most Clevelanders are spending their winter snuggling under blankets in flannel robes and long underwear, the House of Blues proved to be an oasis of light and heat courtesy of Cake and its renowned, hand-picked guests. After a thaw courtesy of Eugene Mirman, Golgo Bordello, and Tegan and Sara, Cake’s volcanic showmanship erupted in a flurry of funky rock-infused beats that created a ray of sun so concentrated it might lead to Global warming. In fact, with the tour heading to Japan and Australia, an international warm-up is guaranteed. As long as the Eternal Sunshine Tour continues to travel the country every year, Clevelanders can look forward to a night out filled with scintillating sounds, smiles, and, of course, plenty of sunshine.

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