Meeting the Band

From left: Better Than Ezra lead singer Kevin Griffin, Kristin Stonestreet, Brandy Richmond and Andi Young.

What can you say that conveys your admiration while maintaining your cool? What if the famous person turns out to be, well, kind of a jerk? While the idea of having a real conversation with an actor, musician, writer or other famous person you admire might be thrilling in theory, real-life encounters have the potential to be significantly more awkward and brief.

At least, that was my theory before I met my favorite band, Better Than Ezra.

The first time I really paid attention to Better Than Ezra was in 1995, when their single "Good" hit the local airwaves. My friends and I were driving around after school, or "cruising," as any current or former Putnam County teenager well knows, hitting familiar spots like Dairy Castle or pulling in curbside for "Free Coke Day" at the Double Decker. Favorite songs blasting from the car radio seem to embed themselves into memories like a soundtrack, particularly at that age.

It was the summer of 1997, between high school and college, when my friends and I first got to see Better Than Ezra live as part of the X-Fest music festival at what was then Deer Creek Music Center (now Verizon Wireless) in Noblesville. Better Than Ezra's popular hit at the time was "Desperately Wanting," and while we loved their songs when we listened to them in the car or in our rooms at home, their performance that evening electrified the crowd. It was our last major group activity that summer before heading off to college for the first time, splintering off into our own individual directions.

In college, my friend Bev and I co-hosted an award-winning radio show called "The Sponge Bath," and while we introduced listeners to all kinds of new music that came through the doors of WVUR, Valpo's student radio station, BTE was always in our rotation. When the single "At the Stars" was released, the band toured through nearby Chicago in 2000, and several of my college friends and fellow fans piled into the car for a Better Than Ezra field trip. Friends only remotely familiar with the band instantly loved Better Than Ezra, whose members always make a point of engaging concert goers through humor, an unexpected mingling of their own songs and current radio favorites, and audience participation. While the occasional dance contest would land an audience member up on stage, both the band and the crowd were wowed when a guy about our age joined the musicians, picked up a guitar and played one BTE song after another.

With graduation came "the real world," and opportunities to get together with old friends, not to mention disposable income, grew sparse. But back in my Banner-Graphic days, I was thrilled to come into work one day and find photos of Better Than Ezra on my computer and snapshots next to my keyboard. Then Assistant Sports Editor Carey Fox and Tim Trigg had been snapping photos at Carb Day prior to the Indy 500, and BTE's performance was part of the 2002 lineup.

Since then, I've been to a handful of other Better Than Ezra concerts, one in Bloomington and several at the Vogue in Broad Ripple. Each time, whether it's been a particularly trying few months or just a long time since I've gotten together with my friends, listening to my favorite band from just a few yards away brings back a rush of great memories, simultaneously energizing and relaxing me. My most recent concert experience was no exception.

In December, I joined Kristin and Andi, two friends from college, at the Chicago House of Blues for another Better Than Ezra concert. The floor was packed, we'd been standing in high-heeled boots for more than an hour, and we seemed to be surrounded by a group of tall men who were liberally tossing their drinks about and emanating a not-so-aromatic odor. Just as I started wondering if I was getting too old to go to concerts, BTE members Kevin Griffin, Tom Drummond and Michael Jerome stepped out and my friends and fellow concert-goers were thrilled and revived by the mix of new songs, older favorites, covers and even a couple holiday classics. Confetti and guitar picks were tossed about liberally, and even after the usual encore, the band continued to play, taking requests and joking with the fans.

In spite of a long evening (it was closing in on 1 a.m. at this point), the band hung around after the show, and we stood in line, nervous and excited, unsure of what to say without sounding completely ridiculous. Andi had secured a set list from someone standing near the stage, and she passed it on to Kristin since our concert trip was part of her 30th birthday celebration. Our turn came, and our nervousness over what to say was completely forgotten. The members of BTE were as charming and personable in real life as they appear to be on stage, asking us if we'd had a fun evening, signing autographs and posing for snapshots with us.

Instead of giving a cursory hello and looking past us to the next person in line, or acting as tired as they must have been by that point, they showed genuine interest in each fan, and it made meeting our favorite band that much more memorable and special for each of us. In our snapshot, we look a little wild-eyed as we pose next to lead singer (and prolific song writer) Kevin Griffin. In spite of our red faces and semi-crazed expressions, it's a treasured souvenir of another great Better Than Ezra experience.

While my friends and I were glad we splurged for the special occasion, ticket prices, and specifically associated fees (fees were $11 apiece in addition to the $25 cost per ticket) are on the rise. In an economy where consumers are forced to make more budget-friendly choices, residents of Greencastle and the surrounding area have a unique advantage when it comes to live music. Whether it's jazz, bluegrass, alternative rock, classical, a cover band or something in between, professional and amateur musicians and members of the city and university communities offer an array of free live music options at local bars and restaurants, on DePauw's campus, at the Walden Inn, at Roban Park in summer months and on the square during the seasonal farmers' market.

To learn more about Better Than Ezra, go to www.betterthanezra.com.

For information regarding music performances on campus, go to www.depauw.edu.

To search for published information regarding local music events, go to www.bannergraphic.com.