Keane is the hand up Mona Lisa's skirt.
The piano-centric quartet from East Sussex say yay to skinny jeans and nay to guitars. But this is insignificant. Before a backdrop of primary-colors and patchwork, the British babble stopped and the real deal began, despite reservations of any kind. Somewhere in the initial swirl of the opening number 'Lovers Are Losing', you almost forget that this kind of beguiling happens without strings.
And thank heavens. It's about time teenagers used their allowance for a good cause. Under the chandeliers of the Hollywood Palladium, we all gathered for reasons other than the pop devastations of our time. Keane is the best of both worlds: a mix of roof-raising kitsch and brilliant layers of piano and perfect pitch. Frontman Tom Chaplin's onstage assault of crowd-pleasing antics cut the overwhelming power of his vocals. At times it was a wonder how he pulled off his super-human falsetto, which translates impeccably on their albums and even better in the flesh. Songwriter and piano man Tim Rice-Oxley seemed comfortable making mad dashes from one corner of the stage to the other in Chaplin's shadow, pounding out the band's signature element.
The crowd went into a dancing frenzy during 'Spiraling' and 'You Haven't Told Me Anything,' the techno-twinged singles from their 2008 album Perfect Symmetry. For 'Early Winter,' Chaplin credited Gwen Stefani as the co-writer, reminiscing about a certain moment close to his heart: driving down Sunset Boulevard one day and happing upon Stefani and husband Gavin Rossdale in the car next to them. Chaplin was also deliberate in his praise of the states, championing the election of Barack Obama and thanking the crowd for "welcoming them back."
You were smart if you stayed on through their two encores, 'Is It Any Wonder' and 'Bedshaped.' For both of these, Chaplin did his best to engage the crowd, reaching as far as he could without falling off the stage.
Keane might not be everyone's cup of tea, but even if they are remotely yours, it might be a challenge to find their fatal flaw. Coldplay fans take cover -- Keane is coming to town.
Keywords: Keane, music, british, pop, palladium, tom chaplin, piano, los angeles
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http://www.la.com/music/ci_12340615
