Be More Kind

June 8, 2018

Frank Turner









Be More Kind

Living in Key West, it takes quite a commitment to constantly have to travel to attend things that most of the country takes for granite, and while the expanding musical offerings are a welcome addition to our island there are still some things that just don’t make it here and thus if you want to attend you need to plan for, travel to and basically make sure they are worth the effort.

Four Simple Words

I tend to be much more discriminating in what I will travel to see and which concerts, plays, movies or sporting events are worth it. This week I made the decision sort of at the last minute to travel up to Orlando to attend a concert featuring Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls at the House of Blues on a Sunday night. It involved a 6.5 hour drive each way, a couple of nights in a hotel and getting up well before the crack of dawn on Monday to get back to Key West to go to work.









There are not a lot of bands that I would be willing to make that sacrifice for and even though I had previously purchased tickets, I was on the fence right up until the last minute on whether to go or not. I decided to go and am so freaking glad that I did because it turned out to be one of the best shows that I have seen in ages.





I have seen Frank Turner three times previously, twice at festivals (Coachella and Lollapalooza) and once at the Double Door in Chicago and I am a big fan of his work and his high energy live shows, but even though I sort of knew what to expect, I was happily surprised at just how freaking great the show turned out to be.







First there were some real quality opening acts including the Homeless Gospel Choir, the Menzingers and Lucero. Each of these artists were radically different, but all share a common love for performing and they all put on really great opening sets. Lucero was especially good, playing their entire new upcoming release, “Among the Ghosts” straight through before adding a few of their older songs to close the set. It was a cool and brave move as no one in the crowd had heard any of these songs, yet they pulled it off and the crowd was really in to it. I know I will be picking up a copy when it comes out in August.

The Menzingers



Lucero



The main attraction of course was Frank Turner and his band the Sleeping Souls. On tour in support of their latest release, “Be More Kind”, Turner and the band played an amazing set full of old hits and some awesome new stuff. Turner is British and comes from what can only be described as a Folk-Punk background. He is hugely popular in the UK and much of Europe, but has never really caught on here in the USA other than a very strong cult following.





His shows mostly sell out here, but they remain in smaller venues like the 2000 some seat venue that is the House of Blues. Personally I much prefer the intimate venues rather than the expanse of stadiums like Wembley where he plays in London. The crowd tends to be a mixture of his more punk era fans and newer more moderate fans who like his quieter acoustic stuff. Turner is one of the few musicians who has this sort of crossover appeal.

Make America Great Again

Slam dancing and crowd surfing is pretty common at his shows, even Frank himself participates, but at the same time he admonishes the crowd to not be assholes and not to ruin their neighbors having a good time in their excitement. Somehow it all works and the show is an exciting, energetic sing along with the devoted fans. It is a pretty intense experience that is truly rare in most concerts.







The show featured a full twenty-three song setlist and lasted a full two plus hours and was truly remarkable. The energy, skill and enthusiasm of Turner, his band and the fans was a fusion that created about the perfect setting for a rock and roll show. I am so freaking glad I made the trip and encourage you, if he plays anywhere in your vicinity to go see this guy.

Be More Kind

http://frank-turner.com/