On Sunday, October 9th, The Temper Trap brought a diverse crowd of fans to 3rd and Lindsley. Throughout the show they catered to their audience, delivering a bit of everything to the diverse crowd. With several balconies, multiple tables and multilevel seats, as well as a pit, there wasn’t a bad spot in the house.
The band got a classic Nashville warm welcome from the crowd as they opened. They went right in to playing the title track of their newest album, “Thick as Thieves,” with full raw energy. “Love Lost” was the next song that brought passion to the crowd.
“Fall Together”, the band’s most recent single was well received, and those in the pit seemed to know every word as they sand along. Just following the song, lead singer Dougy Mandagi revealed to the crowd he was nervous because the show was being broadcasted live on Lighting 100. Bassist, Jonathon Aherne, felt quite the opposite saying the concept was making his playing so much better.
“Summer’s Almost Gone” was one of the songs where they band truly shined. The lead guitar was turned up and the riff in the chorus was so much more infectious live. Chimes in the back added to the idyllic sound of the song. The most unexpected part was the moment where they sort of “broke it down” and introduced the song in a sort of trap style. It was really cool and well received by the crowd.
The live version of “Resurrection”, off of the Conditions album, was stellar. The bass line was very quick and sound somewhat galactic. Green and blue lights showered the band and audience, further adding to the outer-space feel. The feathering guitar riffs and following ferocious drop took the crowd from outer-space to a desert road in New Mexico driving in a convertible with dust everywhere.
“Drum Song” was the pseudo-finale song of choice. Had the show ended right there, I wouldn’t have felt let down at all. They put their heart and soul into that song. The bassist, Ahern, played as if his life depended on it. “Drum Song,” had no words and was a massive percussion fest featuring strong western guitar riffs and the shacking of tambourines. Mandagi moved the drums to the front of the stage so he could participate in the fun too. Everyone in the audience was uniformly clapping or nodding to the beat.
In the encore set they played “What If I’m Wrong”. While the song was off of the new album, the crowd responded as if it had been a song they’d known forever and got emotional with it. People threw their hands up and started swaying as if it was something spiritual. They closed their eyes and sang with their heads up to the sky.
Lastly, “Sweet Disposition” was played to a crowd all to eager for it. From those on the balcony to the men at the door, all were shouting out “A Moment. A Love. A Dream. A Laugh.” At one point the crowd was so loud, Mandagi pointed the microphone out and let them sing the entire chorus while the other guys did backing vocals. Mandagi then jumped into the crowd with his mic and had a big singalong with all of the people.
The Temper Trap is one of those bands that has to be seen live to show the music at its full potential, and that is something all music lovers should get to witness. Their energy at their Sunday night show is easily what will get me through this upcoming week.