Independence day review 2007, lenox, MA

Review by Kristen Hilliard (Switch to
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7/05/2007

It has been about 6 months since last seeing the New Cars. Last night, in spite of the weather, was magical. Set in a natural setting this is a venue that is paradisical. The attending staff were laid back and pleasant. The crowd was a bit quiet, but still a good turnout for hard driving rain to get to the show. Also a great venue for me, I was a short hour away, which is quite close to see my hero, TR and band.

Tonight, kasim was on bass. My first show with kasim on bass for the new cars. It was such a perfect fit. The CD mix, imo, is too heavy on kas’ vocals, and they are not a good blend. But tonight, the blend was delicious. Even elliot and greg are starting to look more relaxed and confident that we love them too. For me, the cars music is part of the theme of my wasted youth ;) and I was never able to see the Cars perform (plus I despise stadium venues, so now that they have lost some of the spotlight, it is absolutely divine to hear and see this music performed. And to have TR filling the shoes of Ric O, heaven must have seen my wish list.

Sometimes I try to analyze my devotion to mister R. why do I love him so much? What is the thing that I need that only he can give me? Well, last nite, it was clear. Here we have a man, who is close to his 60th and he had as much energy as anyone else on stage. His music has always been more than “looove songs”. Helping me to remember that, love is the answer. Todd is a brilliant, sexy man who has used the talents he was given more than most any person I can think of. He has remained true to his vision, and been flexible and forward thinking. We used to say , todd is god. But for me, he has helped me stay close the god inside me.

As I mentioned, elliot is starting to open up more on stage and it is great. Before seeing a live show, it was unclear to me, who was making what sound… what I found was that elliot was making some incredible, beautiful and unique guitar sounds. Just lovely. Greg hawkes on keyboards is consistently professional and 100% right there with the music. The whole show is very professional and tight. No one could leave that show and not be satisfied that all 5 musicians played their hearts out. Can’t overlook the heart beat of the band, prairie prince. As usual, charming, happy, and full of energy. What a doll he is!

Also, changes in play list that were awesome… ‘all mixed up’, sung by Kasim Sultan was GREAT!!!! ‘Warm’ is still in the lineup… THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU. This song brings me images of war zones and frightened lonely people looking for love and human comfort amidst the horrors of humanities cruelties. It evokes a future world… where our creature comforts are gone, and we must live closer to the bone and to the nature of life. It reminds us that people can be close, physically close, and it is not always about sex.

At the end of the show, in spite of some rain, fireworks were enjoyed by all. For me, one of the best fireworks shows in a long time. Easy viewing, not too much gratuitous booming. Hey Todd, can we make this a tradition to play tanglewood for july 4??


Other reviews for The New Cars
7/04/2007 - Tanglewood - Lenox, MA

Other reviews for overall The New Cars

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