Ahh, the Ting Ting’s at the Varsity Theater. There can be no better small time venue. There is nothing quite like waiting for a show in a comfortable easy chair. That and the decorations of the theater. Even the Ting Ting’s remembered it. “We’ve played here before, and we remember the town because Prince is from here, and it looks like Prince decorated in here”. But enough about the locale, this is about a show.
What a show it was. First off, let me give a quick shout out to the opener. A three-female-MC’d group called Hottub was great. Whether you enjoy a synth bass beat, or crunkin’, they did exactly what an opener should do. Get on stage. Entertain, jump around and get you excited. Then promptly end and mill with the crowd. Fantastic.
So after a brief pause. The Ting Ting’s. Let me just say on the front end that never before and i most likely never again, will i be this positive of a two person group’s live show. Arguement can be made by some people that there were samples involved, but those people need to shut up and enjoy just how talented these two are. Katie White, performing vocals, guitar, and for a brief instant a giant drum, is spunky, upbeat, and exuberantly moves about the stages even though it is her job to also keep up half of the rhythm. Let’s however, take a moment to look at the other Ting. Jules De Martino is the poster child for any music prodigy that wants to also be cool. I have never seen anyone open a show playing drums, guitar, and sing, SIMULTANEOUSLY. With only two musicians available, Jules selects with almost surgeon like skill which instruments need to be included and which don’t to give the best live sound.
The show was great. It ran what might have been considered short to some, running at a little over an hour, but for an all ages show with a $15 price tag, it was worth every cent. They moved seamlessly through the songs, pounding through nearly every song, never giving you a moment to get down off the high. A, and i do mean A slow song was nicely slipped in to let you breathe, revel in their awesomeness for a second, then get ready to go another round. They smartly ended their show with hits “Shut Up and Let Me Go” at the tag, and new breakout smash “That’s Not My Name” to close out the encore. And as a last note, i’ll admit, any band of this level that comes out with a sampler and throws down a mini-mash up medley of Aerosmith, Sugar Hill Gang, and, wait for it, The Ghostbusters theme, will always get a few points in my book. They’re great live and you’ll love the album. The album “We Started Nothing” is available in stores everywhere, on iTunes and Amazon.com. The album may say they started nothing, but this is certainly something else!
Additional: I would love to have a few pictures of the show, but the camera wasn’t working up to snuff from the vantage point i had.
