Matt & Kim Summer Tour feat. The Thermals – REVIEW

On their summer tour, Matt and Kim, came to The Vic Theater. With them came supporting act, The Thermals. You can check out our review after the break!

I’ve always found the Vic Theater to be an interesting venue. The location and acoustics of the building are second to none in the city of Chicago, but the layout leaves me scratching my head every time I’m there.  The general admission floor has plenty of room but is divided into three elevated tiers making it very hard to feel united with the rest of the crowd at a sold out show, like the Matt and Kim performance this past Saturday. Now I’ve heard plenty of good things about the experience that is a Matt and Kim show so I was extremely excited to check it out.

After the local duo, The Hood Internet, opened the concert with a bang next up was indie punk band The Thermals. These Portland, Oregon natives have been making music similar to early-90s Green Day mixed with Pinkerton-era Weezer and fit the bill well. The three piece got the crowd’s blood pumping right away, powering through three straight up-tempo songs before saying a word to the crowd. It was clear these three were having an awesome time playing to the sold out crowd and the audience reciprocated that emotion back to the band. Their entire set was very catchy and I would not be surprised to hear one of their songs on the soundtrack of the next Michael Cera movie.

After a drawn out set change, Matt and Kim made their triumphant entrance with the “Rocky” theme song, and the sold out crowd went nuts. I was very curious how a keyboard and drum duo would make their sound full enough for such a big room. Right of the bat, it was clear to see the duo made up for the lack of a full band sound with a stage performance I have never before witnessed. The on stage antics and familiar interludes such as Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend” sent the crowd into chaos mode time and time again. Kim Schifino had the most humble and amazed grin on her face throughout the entire set, and it was clear to see how much fun she was having watching the 1400 attendees go ballistic. Their set consisted of songs from all three studio albums including crowd favorites “Good Ol’ Fashion Nightmare,” “Cameras,” and “Daylight.” By the end of the night, every single person left the show still laughing at the endless amount of raunchy jokes and reminiscing on an unforgettable live performance. If you’re for a night out full of balloons, booty shaking, and jumping around non-stop, I suggest you check out Matt and Kim the next time they roll into your town!

Information about the review…
Tour: Matt & Kim Summer Tour feat The Thermals
Bands: Matt & Kim and The Thermals
Date: June 25, 2011
Venue: The Vic Theater in Chicago, IL