Gwen Stefani and Jakob Dylan Surprise, Lumineers Impress at KROQ Acoustic Christmas: Concert Review

The bill wasn't all that acoustic (or Christmas-y), but the alt-radio powerhouse proved its rock resilience with a mostly-strong first night that featured Linkin Park, Garbage and Bush.

Gibson Amphitheatre
Los Angeles
(Saturday, Dec. 8)

Other than Garbage singer Shirley Manson's abrasively sung “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” as the coda to one of her own band's numbers and the likable hee-haw singalongs of ascendant roots-rockers The Lumineers, there wasn't much acoustic or Christmas-y about the first night of KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas.

The annual two-day station-run blowout serves as both a giant party and a state-of-rock-radio union and is celebrating its 23rd year in 2012. A booking, like a station add, can be a godsend for an up-and-coming band, especially one hoping to emerge from one-hit wonderdom; likewise, legacy acts can cement their longtime fan base's loyalty by blasting them with a barrage of reminders of why they're so beloved in the first place.

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So it's a testament to the eclectic nature of the current state of radio to look at this lineup objectively, especially considering that night one has long been a parade of heavier acts to offset the more Coachella-friendly indie-type sounds that traditionally mark night two, which starts Sunday at 5 p.m. This bill, however, saved the metal-influence to the end, with early acts like the L.A.-based co-ed electro-rock sextet Youngblood Hawke (whose current hit, “We Come Running,” was a high-energy blast of “whooa-aaahs,” though the young band's enthusiasm still hasn't found a way to lock into the audience at large venues) and “Anna Sun” hitmakers Walk the Moon -- a far more polished group that explores the same time-honored, synth-drenched sounds of New Wave with killer hooks throughout.

The smaller act that likely benefited the most, however, was the aforementioned Lumineers, whose rapid rise from tiny clubs like the Hotel Cafe to larger stages like this one has been bolstered by the addictive “Ho Hey” -- not to mention a Grammy nomination. They acknowledged their odd placement on the Linkin Park-headlined bill (“We don't exactly fit into this lineup,” said singer Wesley Schultz from the stage, “but thanks for giving us an open ear”) before a set that could have been described as Mumford & Sons-esque only with a girl in the band and slightly different strumming patterns. That's not an insult -- the Lumineers' propensity for the same sort of country-tinged sounds (not to mention a similar knack for earworm melodies) could mean arenas for the Colorado-bred band.

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Elsewhere on the newcomer end of the bill were The Gaslight Anthem, who, despite an appearance from the Wallflowers' Jakob Dylan, didn't quite connect with the audience beyond their Springsteen-like single “45”; Two Door Cinema Club, still not pushing past Anglophile ears; and AWOLnation, who can't seem to decide whether they're plumbing the depths of weirdo metal or if they'd just rather write pop-radio grooves (to wit: “Kill Your Heroes”).

As for the veterans: Garbage proved they're still powerful (and Manson, now 46, no doubt gave every other cougar in L.A. county a run for their sex-kitten money), Rise Against blasted through genre-mode mosh-pit metal, and Linkin Park, at the top of the bill, were surprisingly versatile. But the moment of the night belonged to '90s hitmakers Bush, who at one point seemed like they'd have faded as grunge afterthoughts but have had a shockingly successful second run propelled by 2011's comeback single “The Sound of Winter.” It was the now frighteningly classic-rock singalong “Glycerine,” though, that elicited audience wails -- thanks to a one-off duet between Bush singer Gavin Rossdale and a surprise appearance by his wife, No Doubt's Gwen Stefani. The duo looked gorgeous, sounded great and clearly are still in love, with goofy looks (and a quick kiss!) exchanged onstage.

Rock trends may come and go (and from this night, it's not quite clear in which direction the genre is headed), but if that sweet moment is any indication, there's hope for all these kids, after all.

Twitter: @THRMusic

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No Doubt Plays Surprise Set at Night 2 of KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas

Midway through Neon Trees’ set during Sunday’s night two of KROQ’s 23rd annual Almost Acoustic Christmas, singer Tyler Glenn marveled, “This is the best lineup ever." While that might have been a bit of an overstatement, the multiact charity concert was, to borrow a song title from surprise special guests No Doubt, hella good.

After recently wrapping their own seven-night stand at the same venue, Gwen Stefani and company were shoehorned in between third-billed fun. and second-billed Jack White and had the crowd so jazzed that you had to wonder if anyone would have any energy left for the former White Stripes frontman and headliners The Killers. Yet both acts managed to hold their own.

CONCERT REVIEW: Gwen Stefani and Jakob Dylan Surprise, Lumineers Impress During Night 1 of KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas

White came out with guns blazing, leading his all-male combo in a squealing blast of guitar noise that began just as No Doubt left the stage -- before his introduction and the turntable stage was put in motion to reveal him and his five-piece band. It continued as he ripped into "16 Saltines" followed by "Freedom at 21," the two most-rocking songs from his Grammy-nominated solo debut, Blunderbuss. Throughout his 45-minute set, White played selections from his varied career and various projects -- including The Dead Weather’s "I Cut Like a Buffalo," The Raconteurs’ "Steady, as She Goes," his Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi collaboration "Two Against One" -- and was one of the only acts on the bill to embrace the "almost acoustic" tag, with The White Stripes’ "Hotel Yorba" and "We’re Going to be Friends." He wrapped things up with a furious version of the Stripes’ "Seven Nation Army" that had you convinced, amid a night full of posing and preening, that he’s nothing short of the real deal.

The Killers took the stage following a brief break but also managed to make quite an entrance, doing their 2005 hit "Mr. Brightside" with the lights on. The Las Vegas quartet, led by frontman Brandon Flowers, seems to still aspire for that holy crossroads where Bruce Springsteen meets U2, and on that unattainable quest they’ve managed to crank out quite a catalog of hits. That was made clear in their 45-minute set, which ran the gamut from the goofy but infectious "Human" (sample lyric, "Are we human or are we dancer?" Is Flowers singing about a reindeer?) to the current hit "Miss Atomic Bomb." Nearing the end of the set, Flowers noted that the show had run beyond its originally scheduled six hours, saying, "I know you’ve been here a long time and seen a lot of bands, but do you have one more song left in you?" The Killers answered with their 2006 modern-rock chart-topper "When You Were Young," and the crowd obliged.

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Third-billed fun. is the breakthrough act of 2012, recently racking up six Grammy nominations including the big four of album, record and song of the year and best new artist, and they didn’t disappoint. The trio, augmented by three support musicians, is led by frontman Nate Ruess, who has the pinup-boy looks of Mark Wahlberg and a voice at times reminiscent of Queen’s Freddie Mercury. The band reached its full stride at the conclusion of the 30-minute set with the back-to-back blasts of their hit anthems "We Are Young" and "Some Nights," hitting an emotional chord with the mostly young crowd going through the pains and joys of growing up.

In general, these types of radio station-sponsored festivals are only as good as that station’s playlist at any given time, and for fans of KROQ, it’s been a good year. The station, which prides itself as being cutting edge (at least, as cutting edge as a major-market commercial outlet can be), has embraced two burgeoning trends at seemingly opposite ends of the musical spectrum -- electronic dance music and acoustic-based folk rock -- and both genres were represented Sunday night.

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French act M83, the night’s other recent multi-Grammy nominee, fleshed out its electronic-heavy sound with guitar and bass but rocked just as hard when the band members put the guitars down and jammed on keyboards and electronic drums. And they retained their human touch with Anthony Gonzalez’s ethereal but warm vocals, a mix of traditional and electronic drums and the sax solo in signature hit "Midnight City."

Boston-based electronic prepsters Passion Pit weren’t quite as successful, but the quartet showed chutzpah in starting the set with its current hit "Take a Walk." Despite a technical hiccup that clipped their "Moth’s Wings," the band were able to maintain the momentum throughout its set.

On the acoustic side, Icelandic indie-folk act Of Monsters and Men showed that it’s primed to follow the success of Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers with a sweet mix of male and female vocals, acoustic instruments and tasteful accents of trumpet and accordion. Although its set was marred by a technical glitch that sounded like the air-traffic control room at LAX has been patched into the P.A., the band was able to win the crowd over with its hit "Little Talks."

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In the more traditional alt-rock vein, Neon Trees’ ultra-commercial, new wave revivalist sound left some hipsters doubting the band’s authenticity. Unquestionably, the Provo, Utah, quartet isn’t breaking any new ground, but it’s hard to deny the catchiness of hits "Animal" and "Everybody Talks," and frontman Tyler Glenn has a voice that at times sounds like Billy Idol’s and some moves like Michael Jackson.

L.A.-based quintet Grouplove managed to be more fun than fun., thanks to the exuberance of singer-guitarist Christian Zucconi and singer-keyboardist Hannah Hooper and brilliants songs like the hit "Tongue Tied."

Openers Imagine Dragons and Alex Clare have yet to prove they’ll advance past one-hit wonder status, though the former put on an energetic set, highlighted by the hit "It’s Time." Electro-soul singer Clare wasn’t as successful, with his cover of Prince’s "When Doves Cry" coming off stilted. Although he turned things around with his monster hit and Mircosoft commercial theme "Too Close," at this point he seems likely to join Matisyahu -- the other recent Orthodox Jew pop star -- as a cult act.

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