OZ Beat: Music That Matters

Trail Of Dead (TOD)

TOD took the stage last Thursday to a sold-out Metro crowd. It was a big step for them to sell out this venue. They brought some of their own lighting and amid lights and smoke (dry ice to keep them cool in a very warm room--not full smoke effect) they immediately felt the love from the crowd.

Trail of Dead

From: demhopkins
Date: Mon Jun 3, 2002 5:41 pm
Subject: Trail Of Dead--Chicago show

Well if it wasn't a sold out show it was as close as you could have gotten without selling out the room. Great crowd--lots of energy, especially the front 2/3 the room. Completely different feel than the Empty Bottle just two months ago (900-1000 people instead of 250-300). The band seemed to really enjoy the room and the lights. They mentioned the barrier between the stage and the crowd seemed a little less intimate--but they overcame it and spent time in the crowd. The set list was pretty similar to Empty Bottle but the sound was in a different galaxy. Chicago has truly embraced TOD. They sold out of posters--as I was waiting to get shirts I noticed a lot of people buying all 4 CDs on sale. I thought the Empty Bottle show was the best of the year--but this was it. I talked to some people who had seen them with me a couple months back--and what stood out was the incredible versatility this band has to offer in terms of songwriting. The venue really helped get it across live. The band was kind enough to open water bottles and hose down the crowd. It was a cool evening but very heated up inside Metro. It will be hard to top this show anytime this year--but The Hives and Mooney Suzuki are playing the same venue Wednesday--so who knows. I can't imagine a better gig than this. Radio has been talking about and playing TOD
all day, especially our college station WLUW out of Loyola University.
TOD---job well done!
--Dem