I’ll tell you what, I do enjoy a good visual live music show! And on Tuesday night we got just that and more as L.A.-based funky indie-rockers Saint Motel stopped by the Newport in support of currently released The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Part 1.
Spawned out of film school in the late noughties, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise to know the Saint Motel live performance is as much part of the experience as the music. A collection of TV monitors and Hollywood pacing added the flair behind a smartly-dressed A. J. Jackson who played cheerleader to a packed crowd of willing sing-along-ers.
Broken down into three “scenes,” the Saint Motel live show brought a cinematic twist to the usual live music performance that included a narrator, a flaming torch and Jackson taking off on a makeshift spaceship over the heads of the Newport crowd.
Jackson, along with members Aaron Sharp, Greg Erwin, Dak Lerdamornpong and a couple of touring musicians, pulled out all the band’s top tunes from their decade or so together, and while I admit to never actually listening to a Saint Motel CD, I can honestly say that I had many a ‘I-know-this-song!’ moment throughout the band’s set, including set closer ‘My Type’ that’s been a staple on CD102.5 for a good while now.
Glitter rock opening couple, KOLARS, almost stole the show with a superbly captivating set of stripped-down, sexy rock-and-roll featuring a tap dancing drummer, a slight whiff of 70s glam-rock and a frontman that just wants to make sure you’re having a good time. Highly recommended.
Expect more from Saint Motel as 2020 rolls on.
Matt Ellis is a freelance photographer who covers bands that visit the city and the Columbus Crew MLS team. More about Matt can be found on his Instagram.
All photos by Matt Ellis
