Somehow Cake was one of those bands I just never caught live – the closest I came was Summerfest last year, when they were playing on one of the free stages. Unfortunately it was scheduled at the exact same time as Tom Petty, so I missed out yet again. The new Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas at the Linq opened two weeks ago and was kind enough to schedule three straight nights with John McCrea, the incredible trumpeter Vince DiFiore and the rest of the gang – all for the low, low price of $40.
How could I refuse that rock and roll lifestyle?
The venue was very nice – I got my ticket scanned first and received a wristband that allowed me to wander freely. I’d heard that the fried chicken by Blue Ribbon wasn’t to be missed, so I hit the bar in the restaurant section and ordered up a vanilla malt and the half chicken dinner (mixed). It was very good – big portions of spicy, juicy chicken at a very reasonable price (with great service).
Doors were listed as 6 p.m., with an 8 p.m. start (which I thought was pretty early for Vegas). When I walked over to the music area, it was pretty much empty. The setup is multi-level and kind of reminded me of the old Glam Slam (but with better sight lines). At 7:15, I decided to stake out a claim at the front of the stage. They had the usual artist monitors facing one way and a few floor speakers pointed towards the audience (including one directly in front of me). Sound was good and I didn’t even notice the full floor of people behind me all night – my own private Cake show!
John McCrea was three feet in front of me all night, with Vince DiFiore a few feet to my left – his distinctive trumpet a highlight of the evening (and something I never realized was such a huge part of the Cake catalog). Guitarist Xan McCurdy also plays a number of memorable hooks and bassist Gabe Nelson and drummer Paulo Baldi were both solid (even if they seemed a little bored most of the night).
The band played two sets with an intermission between, along with a two song encore of Short Skirt, Long Jacket and The Distance (hurray!). Lots of songs from the 2011 release Showroom of Compassion: Federal Funding, Long Time, Mustache Man and Sick of You. They opened with Frank Sinatra and played a wide range of songs, including Wheels, Satan is My Motor, Mexico and an awesome version of Sad Songs and Waltzes (after McCrea broke a guitar string and needed a song with no guitar for him).
The Cake Forest expanded to Nevada, which was pretty cool. One lucky woman from the audience is now the proud owner of the desert willow that you can see in the picture above. Speaking of pictures, the “house rule” of no photography or video is dumb – I know some people ruin the experience by holding up their giant phones for the whole show, but this policy isn’t social media friendly and just isn’t enforceable these days. Especially when you have people bowling off to the left, drinking at the many side bars and have staff members shooting photos for their own social media accounts.
Up next: Drive-By Truckers at First Avenue on 3/27.
