November 4th, 2008 
James Shotwell Copeland with Lovedrug
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
The Blind Pig, Ann Arbor, MI
From the second we arrived in Ann Arbor, we could tell that the show was going to be sold out. Kids were wrapped around the block in weather where you could see your breath in. After we waited 20 plus minutes in line, while the show was going on, people were asked to leave the line to get in the door if they did not already have tickets. The show was beyond shoulder to shoulder tight inside of the venue, creating a few visual difficulties. Luckily, the Blind Pig has mirrors that line the walls allowing for slightly better visuals.
Lovedrug was the first band that we were able to see. If Anthony Green and Craig Owens had a child, it would be Michael Shepard. Live, his voice sounds just as good as it does on any album. Fans almost overpowered their set by dancing and singing along. Every once in awhile Shepard would turn the microphone over to the fans, and allowed them a small part in the show. He even joked with the drunk kids in front, and received a shot from one of them. Overall, their set was pretty energetic for the lack of space they have to move around.
The second the papier-mâché lights were turned on behind stage the crowd fell silent in anticipation for Copeland. Before the show, we could hear chatter of the fans about their worries over what tracks Copeland would be playing that night. People wondered weather this show would be all about their new album, You Are My Sunshine, or their older albums. After the first few songs they started to play tracks from older albums. Everyone was screaming the lyrics, including the lead guitarist. I’ve often wondered why it seems that only fans of the band sing lyrics at shows. If you really love the song that you’re playing, why would you hesitate to sing along with the words?
Later in the show, when the band played the song Brightest, Courtney pointed out that the bassist was crying. It was refreshing to see some emotional attachment to the lyrics they write. Artists sometimes seem somewhat disconnected while on stage, however Copeland has unified emotions with every lyric they construct. Copeland has been a band since 2000, as they grow older, it’s nice to see that they still really love the music they create.
At the end of the show, Copeland walked of the extremely small stage but was back on with-in seconds, because the crowd was chanting, “one more song, “over and over again. Aaron Marsh, the lead singer joked about how they could not do a regular encore since they had no back stage to run to. Fans all around us were praying that Copeland would play California. The second the guitar started into the song the fans went nuts. Their prayers were answered, Copeland was indeed playing their favorite song. Half way through Marsh stepped away from the microphone since the crowd was singing along so vibrantly. He had the biggest smile of appreciation on his face. Once he came back to the microphone you could not hear him over the crowd. At the end of the show he expressed his thankfulness to the fans for the second year in a row.
Bottom line if you have the opportunity you must see Copeland live.
*Written By: Sarah Rodda and Courtney Sullivan [The Murder Mitten Twins]*
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