Serena Ryder - November 1, 2007

I must admit that I was not super stoked on going to this show, but a friend of mine had an extra ticket. So I decided that I might as well check her out one last time.

It's not that I don't like SR, it's just that she is played on Top 40 radio stations and I have lost a lot of respect for her. Now that she has a band and a pop album, she's just not as good as she used to be. Maybe I'm being an indie snob and I know that it's good for her, but I miss the way it used to be: just Serena, her guitar, her attitude, her love to sing, and her amazing voice.

The first time I saw her was at Lydia's back when smoking was allowed in bars. She had the crowd hanging on her every note. It was an amazing thing to watch in such a normally loud venue. When I saw her for the second time, also at Lydia's, I got to interview her for the local university newspaper. So I showed up really early to get the interview in before the show started. I walked up to her and told her who I was. She took me upstairs where the bands hang out. We chatted about where she grew up and how she got here while she chain-smoked and drank some sort of alcohol. It was the best interview I've ever been a part of. She was very laid back and cool. I could see that part of her on this night, but I couldn't help but think in my mind that she was too cool for the passive crowd that barely even bopped their heads at the Lakeview Church. I wish I could re-interview her now about how she feels about her newfound "success."

I must admit that we were very late for the show and had missed half of her set by the time we got there, but I couldn't believe how deadpan everybody was. If it wasn't for the unmistakable sound of Serena Ryder's voice, I would have thought we were at the wrong place. Her band is pretty all right. However, her drummer messed up noticeably twice and the organ has GOT TO GO! It made her sound like the kind of easy listening that is only heard in elevators... not good. I mean, she has such an amazing voice... why let an ORGAN drown her out? It was disappointing to say the least - and I came into it with low expectations.

So all-in-all, a predictably disappointing show for me.
Crystal's rating: 3/10