It seems like the ticket to quick success for a band these days is either getting your song on an iPod commercial or on a popular television show.
The latter seems to have been the case for Swedish electro-pop outfit Miike Snow. Of course they didn't just get their song on one popular television show, they got several of their songs on several popular television shows. The fact that Miike Snow members Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg are Grammy award winning producers who have made music for Brittney Spears and Madonna probably doesn't hurt either.
Miike Snow which is currently on tour in support of its self-titled debut album showed up Saturday night at a sold-out Clubhouse in Tempe. While the temperatures outside the Clubhouse were pretty bad it was nothing compared to the heat inside. Amazingly the members of Miike Snow took the stage one by one all wearing black outfits and matching white masks. Considering how hot the band members had to have been it was not surprising to see that the masks only lasted a few songs into their set.
Despite the overwhelming heat Mikke Snow managed to deliver a solid, hour-long set. The group went through its set at a pretty quick pace. In fact, save for a couple of "thanks" to the audience front man Andrew Wyatt didn't interact much with the fans. Maybe it was the heat. Honestly, this didn't really seem to bother anyone. Most fans happily danced and sang along throughout the night.
While songs like "Burial" and "Silvia" managed to earn good responses from the crowd the song that got the biggest reaction was "Animal." Frontman Andrew Wyatt even managed to earn some additional cheers from the crowd as he dived into the crowd toward the end of the song.
Musically there was little to complain about but overall this was a difficult show to enjoy. Sure, the encore went on way too long and the laser-light show coming from the stage was seizure inducing, but those things are easily overlooked. The biggest problem was the heat. When you combine a hot Arizona night in June with the fact you are packed like sardines in a tin with a bunch of other hot, sweaty people it does not really make for a great concert going experience. And neither does the overly enthusiastic, very large and very sweaty dude dancing next to me who kept bumping into me.
Just the hazards of being a music fan in Phoenix? Probably. But still not a lot of fun.
Critics Notebook:
Last Night: Canon Blue and Miike Snow at the Clubhouse
Better Than: Being locked in a sauna for two hours listening to Passion Pit. Just barely, though.
Random Detail: Miike Snow members Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg produced Brittney Spears' song "Toxic"
