By John Connor Coulston // Assistant A&E Editor
The Kills kicked off their 2014 tour at Nashville’s Cannery Ballroom to a sold out crowd last weekend.
The night began with an opening set by Oklahoma rock band Nuns. The group played tracks off their recently released debut album, “Opportunities.”
Since the group is relatively unknown, the set could have easily been written off by the sold-out crowd of Kills fans. However, the five-piece band played an ear-catching set that had the crowd nodding along throughout.
When The Kills took the stage, they wasted no time getting started. Guitarist Jamie Hince and vocalist Allison Mosshart burst onto the stage opening with an amplified rendition of their 2008 track “U.R.A Fever.” The duo was accompanied by two drummers that helped drive the group’s bluesy rhythms throughout the night, especially on the second song of the set “Future Starts Slow.”
Hince manned stage-left with his guitar, lending vocals as well as energizing the crowd. Mosshart, who some might know as the vocalist for Jack White’s side-project The Dead Weather, worked every inch of the stage, moving to the rhythms provided by Hince and the percussionists with an aura akin to rock icons Jim Morrison and Mick Jagger. Mosshart also played guitar on tracks such as “Heart is a Beating Drum” and even pounded a drum on some tracks.
The only snag in the set came as the group started to play “Tape Song.” The group started the track twice, with Mosshart stopping the track both times. However, she played it off with ease as they barreled right back into the set playing fan-favorites such as “Baby Says” and early cuts “Fried My Little Brains” and “Monkey 23.”
The night ended with The Kills performing their ballad “The Last Goodbye,” off their most recent album “Blood Pressures.” Hince manned a piano while Mosshart delivered one of her strongest vocal deliveries of the night.
The Kills’ first stop on their North American tour was as remarkably solid, showing that the band’s knack for grimy blues rhythms and rock and roll attitude hasn’t gone anywhere and isn’t bound to disappear anytime soon.
Follow John Connor Coulston on Twitter at @JCCoulston.
