The Kooks with The Vaccines at the Hollywood Palladium

The energy around the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles was buzzing on Thursday, March 21st. The room was full of eager indie rock fans from the moment the doors opened, with many filing straight to the barricade to hold their spots. The crowd was already nearly full when the first band of the night, Daisy The Great, took the stage. Daisy The Great kicked the night off with feminine rock energy; one of the lead vocalists, Kelley Dugan, was headbanging on the stage as the whole group electrified the crowd from the first note. 

Though The Kooks were listed as headliner, it was hard to tell from the second band, The Vaccines, who ran out to eager applause.

Their setlist contained a mix of the old and the new, starting off with “Love To Walk Away” quickly followed by “Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra)”. As they continued, the crowd’s dancing continued to heighten with them. Every member of the band brought something else to the stage, in a way that made it hard not to be hypnotized — from the passion of the drummer to the captivating lead vocals being belted out. Towards the end of their time onstage, they played “Teenage Icon”, “I Always Knew”, “If You Wanna”, and “All My Friends Are Falling In Love” back-to-back in a way that awakened something inside all 4,000 indie kid’s souls crowded into the Palladium (all while they strained their voices to shout out the lyrics). 

The crowd’s excitement turned to a restless energy until The Kooks began with one of their classic hits, “Seaside”. The first song started as a solo sung by Luke Prichard, which added an emotional depth to the words; the room was silent as all hung onto every note. The rest of the band came out and brought a new energy with them, continuing the setlist with “See The World”. Given how many songs The Kooks had to choose from in making their setlist, they did a perfect job of balancing the classics with their newer music, hitting everything from “Ooh La” to ending their encore with their biggest hit “Naïve”. While I doubt any fan was “Naïve” enough to believe they could hear every one of the many songs spanning The Kooks’ discography over the course of an hour and a half, I don’t think there was anyone that could have left that venue disappointed. The energy and passion that The Kooks brought to the stage had fans tearing up at their favorites and making new fans out of anyone that had been brought by their friends. 

It was truly a magical night of music: Daisy the Great, The Vaccines, and The Kooks together creating a concert experience that won’t ever be forgetten.

Photography by Ariel Goldberg

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