It feels like a lifetime ago when the term “pop music” was not solely synonymous with what was ubiquitous. When the label “pop” was slapped on to a piece of music, it was implicit that the music had hooks, at least 4-5 distinct melodic sections, and if the musicians were generous, a potent embellishment of richly layered harmonies. Over time, as curatorial power (at least in the US) grew concentrated in the hands of a few kingmakers (post the rollout of the Telecommunications Deregulation act of 1996), and MTV (the only true counterweight to terrestrial radio’s  opinion-shaping platform) morphed into a proverbial waste-bin for mind-numbing reality television, it appeared that the distributed and decentralized network of tastemakers had started to vanish unbeknownst to music listeners whose primary mode of discovery was via radio in their cars. One of the unfortunate consequences of this trend is that a lot more great music and artist/bands have been relegated to obscurity and this has also made the viability of a career in music quite questionable for a lot of talented performers. In light of this reality, there continues to be a slew of artists that not only persevere through this unfairness, but also aim for the stars (creatively speaking) and by churning out music, that with the requisite amount of exposure, could be modern classics. One of the posterchildren of resilience that define this modern movement are pop duo Great Good Fine OK. As we had mentioned in our review of their infectious single “Breathing” earlier this year, even though this band emerged on our radar with the poptastic “Take it or leave it” around 8 years ago, their new EP titled “Exist” (of which we have featured at least three single on high-rotation on our 24/7 global online radio broadcast) is indicative of a band that is at the tipping point of a creative renaissance and the second leg of their “Exist” concert tour is yet another compelling reminder of that. I had the privilege of my first Great Good Fine OK concert experience ever at an intimate venue in the trendy and artsy Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn (New York City) last night. Needless to say, the dynamic performance of the band dramatically diluted the pessimism that I find myself nursing when I think about the current pop music scene. As someone that showed up early to the venue with the desire for proximity to the stage, I was richly rewarded – to say the least.

Recording studio wizardry and being a showman are two very distinct musical competencies and whether or not it is fair, the latter matters infinitely more in a live environment. The ideal musician is one that can successfully showcase both these attributes with relative ease. Not ever having seen Great Good Fine OK in concert prior to this, I had no idea what to expect of them as live performers but it would be an understatement to say that I was absolutely awestruck. Some of the noteworthy elements of their performance are as follows:

  1. A reverence for a distinct visual brand aesthetic:

Within minutes of the lights turning down before the band appeared on stage, a lady (presumably the band’s photographer) appeared on stage and started tossing luminescent multi-colored wearable rings into the audience and the concert attendees grabbed as many of these as they could with enthusiastic gusto. The stunning lighting arrangement made for an electric backdrop to the performers. The icing on the cake was lead singer Jon Sanders appearing on stage with a sparkly and shimmering jacket and shoes – a not-so-subtle nod to the sartorial excesses of synth-pop’s emergence in the early 80s as exemplified by bands such as The Human League and Soft Cell.

2.  A showcase of unbridled artistry of ALL band members:

It is far too common at a concert for the focus to be almost exclusively on a band’s lead singer while the rest of the members are relegated to the metaphorical backseat. This was NOT one of those concerts. It was no surprise that lead singer Jon Sanders had an enviable ability to lure the audience in by generously indulging his trademark falsetto with an almost deceptive ease and periodically drifting into exhilarating and unchoreographed dance moves. That being said, he was not the only one on stage that commanded attention. I am sure I speak on behalf of others in the audience when I say that producer and multi-instrumentalist Luke Moellman is a visual spectacle in his own right. Flitting between the synthesizer, percussion, the Malletkat (a musical instrument in a class of MIDI percussion controllers) that he would drum on with luminescent and multi-colored drum sticks, and the keytar (yes, the keytar – do you remember those?), the guy is a force to be reckoned with and I am fairly certain that what he showcased last night does not even scrape the surface of this man’s artistic brilliance. No one with even a hint of an attention deficit syndrome could remotely aspire to do what he does on stage. Danny Wolf gave songs that we have associated with a predominantly synth treatment some true sonic bite with his dynamic drumming throughout the show – but his crowning moment was mid-set with a drum solo (another nod to a musical tradition that has never been associated with synth pop but was a mainstay of rock concerts and has become somewhat conspicuous by its absence over time). Guitarist Carey Clayton’s embellishments served as distinct improvements over the songs’ studio originals – especially on “Blame” – the second single from the new EP “Exist”. I personally would love to listen to a studio version of the song with this guitar section.

3. Deviations from the studio originals that benefit from a novelty factor without straying too far from familiarity:

One of the finest examples of these deviations was immediately after the band returned to the stage for their encore. Their re-entry was marked with a dreamy and goosebump-inducing instrumental that brimmed with beautiful synth swells. Not only was it pleasant but it kept the audience guessing as to what it was a preamble to. It quickly morphed into the instantly recognizable “Take it or leave it” (from their album “III”) – a song that won the band scores of new fans (me included – this song was my gateway to Great Good Fine OK). The second noteworthy moment was a mini-mashup of the beautiful and down-tempo “Find yourself” (a collaboration with pop band “Before You Exit”) and “Blame”. Despite the different tempos of the songs, this sonic experiment worked surprisingly well.

The band effortlessly eased from one bop to the next leaving the audience to eat out of the palms of their hands. When the band closed their fantastic set with the mid-tempo “Everything to me”, the audience still wanted more.  In my humble opinion, the finest performances of the night include those of “Blame”, “Breathing” (the first great pop single of 2024), “Take it or leave it”, “Led me to you”, and “So far so good”. A band with an extensive catalog is bound to have some noteworthy omissions. In concert reviews that I publish here, I usually never fail to point those out but since my fandom for Great Good Fine OK blossomed fairly recently, I figured I would lean on the input of a fan and concert attendee that has followed the band since their first glimpse of prominence with their single “You’re the one for me”. This charming and engaging fan (who wanted to remain anonymous) pointed out “Say it all” (an album deep cut) and “Lucky Me” (a colloboration with The Knocks) as the missed opportunities of the night.

For me, the artistry of the band was always undebatable, but without prior context, I never would have guessed what consummate performers these guys are. The radiant energy that they unleash on stage is appropriate for a FAR LARGER venue than Brooklyn Made is (and as someone that benefited immensely from the intimacy of the venue, I mean no disrespect whatsoever to Brooklyn Made and the venue’s amazing staff). One cannot help but think that if Great Good Fine OK had emerged in an earlier era of music, their ubiquity would be guaranteed – not because of the style of their music but because of their artistic versatility and ability to churn out commercially viable musical fodder. Of course, it is not too late for this reality to change – especially given the exciting inflection point that the band is at creatively speaking in this moment.  The longer their lack of ubiquity, the greater the size of the missed opportunity with these guys. I mean, clearly, we have more room in our collective sonic headspace than for only Taylor Swift and Beyonce right?

Despite a plethora of on-demand music streaming options today, there is still some semblance of a pervasive (albeit concentrated among a few music acts) musical monoculture. For those of us whose musical tastes  have drifted (over time) outside the perimeter of the defining sound of this monoculture (which is limited, quite ageist, and sometimes geocentric), music seems to be a rather solitary experience as opposed to the social and community experience it used to be in yesteryear – wherein it was a given that all of us (regardless of generation) knew and appreciated the same music. We could absolutely be presumptuous about the familiarity of an artist/band among members of our immediate community. Nowadays, intimate concerts of the sort put on by Great Good Fine OK are a natural icebreaker for those that feel musically homeless and find kinship among other concert attendees after being surprised by their shared knowledge of bands and artists that they were sure were completely obscure. This sows the seeds for friendship and community – something I place immense value on. That being said, while this is great for fans, I worry that this may not be as beneficial to artists/bands in the long run in an industry where scale and the economies of scale are king. It is my sincere hope that Great Good Fine OK harnesses the benefits of scale as they move into a second decade as a creative entity. They have what it takes to be an intrinsic ingredient of a shared sonic backdrop of contemporary pop culture – and I hope this happens sooner than later. Until then, I wish Great Good Fine OK the absolute best for what comes next for them. After all, it appears that their creative well is far from dry!

Here is a video highlights reel of the concert’s finest moments:

STAR RATING: 5 out of 5 stars

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In case you did not pick up on this earlier, the blog you are reading is affiliated with Radio Creme Brulee – an online radio station that features an eclectic mix of current pop and rock music from both sides of the Atlantic alongside hits, forgotten gems, and rarities from the last three decades. Alongside newer artists, we also play plenty of newer music by bands that rose to prominence in the 80s,90s, and the 00s. Noteworthy examples include Simply Red, Wet Wet Wet, Coldplay, Kylie Minogue, Dubstar, Kings Of Convenience, Tears For Fears, Go West, Duran Duran, Belinda Carlisle, Camouflage, Spandau Ballet, INXS, Depeche Mode, Suede, The Corrs, Jamiroquai, Keane, Johnny Hates Jazz, Simple Minds, and Culture Club.

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