Junior Boys @ Neptune Theatre (3/11/2016)

So, apparently my new thing is intentionally missing the opening band(s) at concerts.  OK, maybe this is not really a new thing, but I've been doing a pretty good job of it lately.  Despite the late 9:00 PM start of this show, I arrived around 10:30 in a plot to miss the two openers.  I was a bit worried that I would miss some of Junior Boys, especially since (as usual) I had a hard time finding parking around this venue, but my timing was on point - I arrived between the second opener and the main act.

The audience was significantly less crowded than either of the previous two shows that I had seen here, so I took this chance to check out the seating on the balcony level.  The result was that I had a comfortable and relaxing viewing/listening experience.

Musically, there weren't too many surprises.  Junior Boys is a pretty small act, so the stage setup was pretty low key.  They played a mix of old and new, and the songs off the latest album (Big Black Coat) came off a bit better than expected - so far I'm digging the album less than its predecessors.  I did find it interesting that the live drummer had a kit that was a mix of normal and electronic elements - the bass drum being a noteworthy electronic component.  Also, the guy on the keyboard/mixer didn't seem to contribute very much to the music, despite his attempts at rapidly turning his attention among various switches and knobs.

Rating: 3.8/5