Aside from an opening slot for Barenaked Ladies, Better Than Ezra had not played a headlining show in Los Angeles in over nine years, so it was great to have the BTE drought ended last Tuesday night at the El Rey Theater. Playing on the day their latest single “Mystified” was released from a pending new album, the veteran band brought back their old school party energy to the venue with a fun, goofy set of originals and covers.
Opener Chaz Cardigan is associated with the new generation of TikTok artists, but from his songs to his performance, it’s clear he is a fully-formed artist despite his young age. Playing his first live show in a very long time, as he has been shut away preparing his first proper album, the young artist flew to Los Angeles on the request of his “song dad” Kevin Griffin to open for BTE, and unable to get the full song backing tracks to his liking, came out with just an acoustic guitar and his affable personality. It was more than enough.
While his acoustic rock/guitar pop sound could draw comparisons to artists like Shawn Mendes, Cardigan carries a much deeper pocket of clever lyricism and rock-focused song craft than the more pop-oriented Mendes. Songs like his latest single “Blame”, written following his bipolar diagnosis, are both topical, personal and wry, playing off peoples’ penchant for blaming their personal behavior on external causes instead of looking inward to form an upbeat nugget. Currently unreleased tracks like “Roshamon” gave some insight into Cardigan’s songwriting process, while great older tracks like “S.O.S.” became fun crowd singalongs. A skilled and charming songwriting, Cardigan has me certainly looking forward to the release of his coming album.
I had been wanting to see Better Than Ezra for a long while, and had heard only good things about their live set. While I tempered my expectations of what songs would likely get played (I definitely have some deep cut favorites like “Our Finest Year”), the band wasted no time in getting into some hits. Opening with “In the Blood” and “Rosealia”, they warmed up the audience with some of these beloved tracks from their early albums. Frontman Kevin Griffin greeted the audience, commenting on the long break between LA headlining shows, and assuring the audience there was good reason for the long break. Whatever it might be, he didn’t waste much time talking and instead went into their 2018 stand-alone single (which we did a Comeback Alert on) “Grateful”, a beautiful track that led to Griffin dropping the guitar and showing off his performance chops, as he got down on his knees for the dramatic bridge.
With nary a breath, BTE would move from one of their songs right into a cover. Some were familiar, such as their beloved cover of James‘ “Laid”, but they also threw in some new ones, like INXS‘s “Never Tear Us Apart”, which they teased a recorded version done for an upcoming movie. Their version of Violent Femmes “Blister in the Sun” was so spot-on one might think they wrote it, and if Kevin’s story about bassist Tom Drummond was to be believed (note: it isn’t), he was responsible for writing The Proclaimers‘ massive hit “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” which they also covered.
While these moments added a sense of fun spontaneity to the evening, the crowd was there for the band’s deep catalogue of tracks. “Daylight” and “A Lifetime” from Before the Robots were moving, nostalgia-filled gems, while the moving “I Just Knew” was sung upon request. The group threw their biggest hit, the alternative #1 “Good” into the middle of the set, allowing for a “your guess is as good as mine” feeling about the remainder of the set list.
There was the groovy “King of New Orleans”, and one of the first live performances of new single “Mystified”, which with its “Topeka” hook, could land the band back on the Triple A charts. The main set was ended with a passionate “Desperately Wanting”, bringing the rock energy back to the room. When Griffin reemerged for the start of the encore, it was just with an acoustic guitar and a sharing of his own gratefulness for the audience sticking by the band for thirty five years. He then went into a touching “Porcelain”, before bringing the band back out for another new track, “Live a Little”, co-written with opener Chaz Cardigan, who came out and joined the band for the performance.
While I was still opening for “Extra Ordinary”, “Absolutely Still” or “Our Finest Year”, the band ended their set on the funky “Juicy”. Not my favorite track by the band TBH, but it certainly has a fun vibe to it in the live setting. While Griffin said he and the band would be coming out after to meet with fans and sign copies of his book, this plan unfortunately changed so I didn’t get a chance to say hello in person. Well, maybe next time as this is a band I would gladly see again.
Take a listen to their latest single “Mystified” now!
The Indy Review 
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