Mayer for mayor

Everything was pretty much going according to plan.

We arrived at UMass Amherst a little late, a little cold, a little antsy from the 2+ hour drive - all conditions that were fully predictable and could in no way negate the anticipation of seeing John Mayer live. We were pat down, our tickets were scanned, and we relaxed upon realizing that it was Mat Kearney's voice booming through the walls and we had not missed John Mayer's debut. So we happily weaved our way through the dark up the stairs to our row on the upper left side of the stage, claimed our seats, and sat down...right behind a row of high school freshman girls.

It never fails. I can never be the person who goes to an event and has my seat miraculously located among a group of mature people. No, instead, I get the cherry-vanilla flavored lip gloss, the super low-rise jeans, and a sea of chatterboxes with the attention spans of guinea pigs. And then, of course, there's the nauseatingly graphic coming-of-age PDA. I stupidly thought I could escape these horrors at a John Mayer concert - after all, he's no Jesse McCartney - but apparently, an audience of people there to appreciate his music and not his looks was too much to hope for.

Thankfully, the juvenile antics simmered down when John Mayer finally got on stage. I was pleasantly surprised with the show, which I appreciated in its differences to shows of other genres. For example:

1. There were no theatrics. Some colored lights were inevitable, but there were no smoke machines or explosions of fire or artistically irrelevant videos streaming distractingly on projectors behind the band. There was no smashing of guitars, headbanging or making out with the microphone stands. The craziest it got was at the end when John tossed a few guitar picks into the crowd and his dummer in turn tossed his sticks.

2. He sounds better live. I couldn't believe that this was even possible, but his voice sounded smoother and even more soulful than it does on his record. The sound mix was nearly impeccable and the dynamics were tight and right on.

3. He's not afraid to jazz it up. John has both a saxophone player and a trumpet player, both amazing musicians who provide an irreplacable element to the music. I wholeheartedly appreciate what they add to the songs, and hearing them live was pretty incredible.

4. He lives for this. And so does his band. John is an outstanding guitarist, and when he's on stage he completely lets loose and you can tell that he is having the time of his life just shredding away and getting into the groove. Every one of his band members appeared to have the same mindset, which made it so awesome. Again, no theatrics were necessary, just a man and the incredible connection he has with his music.

5. He's chill. I wasn't going to mention this because honestly, as long as the music's good, an artist can look like Marilyn Manson or come naked for all I care. But John wore jeans and a clean, collared white shirt, and this made me happy. It says he's laid-back and comfortable, and after the show he's going out for a beer and then going to bed.

So that's it, in a nutshell. The best song, in my opinion, was "I Don't Trust Myself With Loving You." Hands down. Next after that I'd say was "Belief". And by the way, if it's physically possible to make out with a drum solo, I am determined to learn how.