1. The show was supposed to start at 9:00. It started at 9:45.
2. The first set was very encouraging. It was nice to hear "The Surf Talks," "Drive," and "Hit Me Like A Train." I was glad he let Kasim sing on "Trapped." The first set ended on the worst rendition of "Worldwide Epiphany" I have ever heard. During the set, half of the time the microphones, Todd's guitar, or John ferenzik's guitar did not work.
3. They decided to switch sets after 1 hour of playing. Between Julie Christianson's laborious sets -- hey you can't do 6 songs in a row with no backup vocals -- and jiggering with the stage setup, it was over an hour between the first and second Todd sets.
4. The second set was a "With A Twist" rehash. It was novel the first time I saw it. Now it's just like the guy who yelled out described: "It's like music from the Holiday Inn in New Jersey." I really couldn't wait for the set to end, so I could just go home. I actually considered leaving before the end of the show.
I bought tickets in advance for Tuesday's show. My plan was to see Tuesday's show, evaluate it, and then get tickets for Wednesday's show. Even if I had bough tickets for Wednesday's show in advance, I would not have gone. I considered getting tickets (they were only $20) and just going for the first set. I decided to blow it off.
There was one point which highlights the problem: During the Jazz rendition of "Born To Synthesize," Todd was supposed to hit a high note. He didn't, waved his hand, and said, "Boy this is too much work;" however, he proceeded to belt out the line "You were born" with such emotion and feeling that it was the highlight of the night. But that was all. For the rest of the vocals, he was just going through the motions. Imagine if he'd do an entire show with the intensity of that one moment.
