Words and photos by Scott Rowe
As a general rule of thumb, I walk into a music venue hoping the artist has every intention to outperform their recorded tracks and to make their live performance absolutely special. With artists such as Muse, IDLES, Slipknot, et cetera, this especially holds true and their live shows are dynamically better than their recorded selves. But in walks Greg Gonzalez, the creative mastermind behind the band Cigarettes after Sex, a band known for their minimalism and dreamy, romantic soundscapes. Having seen this band perform live before (in the same venue, four years earlier), I know exactly what I'm walking into. I know I'm walking into a sold out show. I know I'm walking into a show that is kissed with a gentle amount of production and an excess of emotion. I know this show is going to be great.
As one would expect with the previous paragraph's preface, this show is all about replicating the band's recorded work with precision and sincerity. With a sound draped in longing, heartache, and every other aspect of love, it would be cruel to ruin those same sentiments with a live show that detracts from their original arrangement. Flanked by a drummer and bassist, Gonzalez serenades the 1,000+ in attendance in near darkness with songs from their two studio albums, Cigarettes After Sex and Cry. From his first note of "Crush" until the final notes of "Dreaming of You", the audience is the fourth instrument within the theater, as they belt out every lyric of the show's set list. The show is as straight-forward as it gets, but if you love this band and their catalog, you wouldn't want it any other way.
Photos of the show are below:
enjoy.
Cigarettes After Sex @ Granada Theater, Dallas, TX
Reviewed by Scott Rowe, Editor
on
September 26, 2022
Rating: