Hanson Rocks Out

by Alexis Colvard

While at one point the two would have been undeniably linked, Hanson has proven itself to be the anti-Ashlee Simpson. There is an irony in the fact that Hanson helped to start the still-reigning regime of pre-packaged, sugary sweet pop stars and now have their hands at the throat of the music industry, but somehow it works. The boys aren’t babies anymore, and they’ve decided that all they really want to do is rock. With strong harmonies, an obvious passion for what they do and a fanatical audience, Hanson proved at their October 18th concert at the Coca Cola Roxy that they will never be found lip-synching or dancing a choreographed routine. Yet nobody can put on a show like Hanson.

The first opening band, Joshua Fletcher and the Six-Shot Romance, was chosen prior to the show by voting fans on hanson.net. Several independent Atlanta bands vied for the position, but in an interesting idea for choosing an opener, Hanson left it up to music fans to decide who would win out. Hanson fans knew what they were doing when they chose Fletcher’s band. While still pretty green, the down-to-earth group of guys played fun, catchy music that the audience loved. Unfortunately, they were ultimately kicked off the stage before the fifth song, due to time constraints, but Fletcher showed his sense of humor about the whole thing and laughed along with everyone else.

The second opener, The Pat McGee Band, held the audience in the palm of their hand. More defined in sound and more comfortable than the band prior to them, Pat Mcgee’s band seemed overwhelming in size. Does one band really need four guitarists, even if one of them plays the keyboard a lot? Who in the hell needs two drummers? Nevertheless, while seemingly redundant in sheer size, the band gave a great rock/pop show. The bongo guy was so involved with playing that it almost seemed like a sexual experience for him, but that made it more interesting to watch. In a move of which more cover bands should take note, Pat Mcgee’s band covered two songs at the end of their set (Tom Petty’s “American Girl” and CheapTrick’s “I Want You to Want Me”) that got the whole audience on its feet. Pretty impressive for an opener- especially at a concert where rabid Hanson fans will happily rip each other to shreds to get closer to their beloved boys.

When Hanson finally entered the stage, the ear-piercing shrieks could have split glass, but obviously, the guys are used to it. They opened the show with a cover of U2’s “Desire”- a good opening song tempo-and-feeling-wise; just kind of a fun, catchy song. From there the band went into three catchier, poppy songs: “A Minute Without You” (from their first album- refreshing proof that Hanson feels no need to abandon their roots), “Hey” off of the new album Underneath, and “Thinking of You,” a fan favorite from way-back-when. While all of these could have been played in a cheesy, DisneyWorld sort of way, Hanson did a great job of really rocking on these songs. Even more impressive was their versatility: Taylor (the pianist/vocalist) went from playing the guitar to the keyboard to the piano without ever missing a beat.

Following the first four pop/rock songs, “Can’t Stop” was played. While not a particularly popular song among fans and non-fans alike, the boys did a great job making it a true rock song. It sounded similar to the version on their 2000 album This Time Around, but in the concert they abandoned the awkward rap- yes, there is a rap on their album- for a much more characteristic guitar solo. In the end, “Can’t Stop” almost had a reggae/rock feel to it and the whole audience was clapping and singing along with the relatively uninspired but catchy lyrics: “Can’t stop thinkin’ about you/Can’t get you off my mind/Can’t stop thinkin’ about you/Thinkin’ about you all the time.” You get the idea.

One odd thing about this song and several others is that Isaac, the guitarist, did not play several of the guitar solos. While he never took the credit for them, it still seemed disturbing that the back-up guitarist came forward for the complicated solos and rocked out for everyone more than once.

“Weird” and “Believe” slowed down the concert, giving a lot of moments for arm-swaying and lighter-holding (had lighters been allowed, that is). “Weird,” from their first album Middle of Nowhere, was said to be one of the most mature songs off of that album, and hearing it live nine years later is quite an experience. Moving right into the song “Believe,” a ballad from Underneath, shows just how much Hanson has grown musically and lyrically since their “Mmmbop” days: “Layers of lies all seem to fold/This kind of life is all I know… Murder wears a friendly smile/Like the perfect end in a plastic vial/No pain.” Sad as the lyrics are, it gives listeners a chance to see Hanson as not just an always-smiling, rollerblading cheese-ball band. They have real feelings, they have deep lyrics, and yes, just like everyone else, suicide has entered their thoughts.

The guys played a new song that was a little quicker than the two before it that had great lyrics and a sweet tune. From there the band moved into an acoustic set with a few songs off of Underneath and, interestingly, “Mmmbop.” Obviously, “Mmmbop” is something Hanson must play at every concert: it is tradition and gives reverence where it’s due. However, it changes every time they play a concert. This time, it was acoustic and the audience finished an entire verse. It was a creative way of approaching the inevitable “bopping,” and showed that Hanson and their loyal (if also insane) fans can still have fun with the old stuff.

The concert picked up more from there when Hanson went back to their electric instruments. Two officially unreleased songs were played- both with catchy tunes, but the latter, “She’s So Lovely,” with kind of a gritty, fun, classic rock feel. “If Only” was next (the switch from harmonica to singing to keyboard always impresses me), followed by the cover “Long Train Running” by the Doobie Brothers, to which even the mo-hawked stage tech was rocking out. The show ended with a mix of their songs, but all had similar vibes: high energy, heavy on the guitar and fun songs to sing along to.

The encore included an updated, funky version of Hanson’s old song “Look at You” and the Traffic song “Feelin’ Alright.” Both included huge amounts of audience participation: clapping, dancing, singing. All of this resulted in a fantastic show and a great note on which to leave the stage.

While some of Hanson’s recent claims about music may seem suspect, the concert they had on October 18th proved them to be talented and passionate musicians. Sadly, such an attitude is a rare commodity in music today. Hanson put on a great rock n’ roll show that had not only the freako fans screaming at the top of their lungs, but the boyfriends they brought with them head-banging and throwing the rock sign. Not too bad for a band that could have easily taken the money of yesteryear and run with it. How refreshing to see Hanson sticking around to play more music, even though they really didn’t have to.