Powerpop Review: A Fragile Tomorrow @ Motorco, Durham
I’d never been to Motorco and it’s not likely that you’ll find me there on a Sunday night any time again soon. However, I had wanted to see and hear A Fragile Tomorrow every since the release of “Be Nice Be Careful” and this would be my opportunity to do so. “Be Nice Be Careful” is catchy, melodic powerpop with contributions from the Petersons (Debbi and Vicki of The Bangles) and Mitch Easter among others. We reviewed it here back in March. I suggest you pick up a copy if you’ve not already done so.
Setting foot in the old Durham section of the city for the first time, I was pleased to find that the venue was easy to find and parking was readily available on the street. It was a Sunday night crowd – Sunday may be the least desirable evening of the week to play a gig as it often proves difficult to get folks to show up, what with having to work on Monday morning and all.
The band didn’t seem to be at all affected, launching into a spirited mini-set of eight songs and appearing throughout to be genuinely enjoying themselves. Sean Kelly, Dominic Kelly, Brendan Kelly and Shaun Rhoades treated the faithful who assembled at Motorco to new songs and old, and even a Beatles cover. Antigone Rising joined them on stage for a great rendition of “Helter Skelter” near the end of the set but, as good as “Helter Skelter” was, it by no means overshadowed the originals, delivered with conviction and, by the way, great harmonies.
Mixed in with the familiar fare from the last LP were two new compositions, “Tie Me Up Again” and “Waning”. I hope we’ll be hearing them again on the next AFT LP.
The only negative was the exclusion from the set of the best song of 2013 imo, “Kernersville”. But the selection of “Helter Skelter” to take its place helped to temper my disappointment.
In summary, A Fragile Tomorrow put on a great show – one I would highly recommend you experience should they play anywhere near you. I will be keeping an eye out for future shows in my area, that’s for sure.
