Pick What You Pay Tour feat I Can Make A Mess – REVIEW

The Pick What You Pay tour featuring I can Make a Mess Like Nobody’s Business, came to the Beat Kitchen in Chicago. With them came supporting acts, Into It. Over It. and Mansions. You can check out our review after the break.

The first band up was Mansions, a three piece from Kentucky. My first thought was curiosity or maybe even a slight bit of nervousness about the lack of drummer, but it worked for them. Fronted by Christopher Browder, this indie band took me by surprise. They reminded me of Silversun Pickups in their sound, although Browder’s voice is unique. They are very angsty, but in a good way. The other two members, an Ellen Page-esque female bassist and keyboardist who does the robot, were fun to watch. You could feel the passion of the band, which I find refreshing because it seems as though many bands these days just go through the motions.

The second artist, Into It. Over It. is an acoustic project involving Evan Thomas Weiss, who has been in Damiera, The Progress, Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start. All of the songs he played were about situations or stories that he has experienced in his life. His personality came across in the stories he told as well as the songs he played, which made his set that much more enjoyable. The names of the songs reflect the location in which the situations happened, such as “Pilsen,” “Brenham, TX” and “Wicker Park”. I couldn’t quite catch the whole story, but he was born in Pennsylvania and lived in Chicago for a while (hence “Pilsen” and “Wicker Park”). I enjoyed his set very much, although I had to warm up to his sound. Once again, you could feel the passion of the artist on stage, and his songs are more obviously personal because they are about real situations that he experience.

The last artist, I Can Make A Mess Like Nobody’s Business, is a solo project of Ace Enders (of The Early November and Ace Enders & a Million Different People). Having been a huge The Early November fan, I was excited to see him. He played new songs, old songs, and a few songs of his different previous projects. Although I’m biased, I believe he is the epitome of a talented musician. Using a looper, he created the songs, beat and all, right on stage. Ace has developed his own music style that can only be described as perfection (once again, this might be a bit biased). I personally believe he has one of the most talented voices in music. Even if Enders made a mistake, it would be hard to tell.

Information about the review…
Tour Pick What You Pay Tour feat I Can Make A Mess
Bands: I Can Make A Mess Like Nobody’s Business, Into It. Over It. and Mansions
Date May 26, 2011
Venue: Beat Kitchen in Chicago, IL