Photos and words by Cortney Armitage
By the time the doors opened, the line for entry was already around the block. The mandate of this night at the El Rey was let your hair down and have fun and with a new self titled album and fresh off their performance on Conan, Jukebox the Ghost, treated the near sold out crowd to some much needed indie pop fun. The young crowd danced and sang along with Ben Thornewill as he pounded on the keys of his piano and belted out songs. The onstage chemistry with Tommy Siegel is undeniable. Siegel also shares vocal duties and plays guitar, but it was down right adorable when Jesse Kristin stepped out from behind the drums and did a little singing solo before dashing back behind his kit. Highlights of the set came back to back with the songs “Static” and the ridiculously catchy “Somebody” but the fun only intensified when the boys invited Secret Someones to the stage for an encore and all shared singing duties on The Bangles classic “Walk Like An Egyptian.”

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Tumbling in from Nashville, the folk rock band Twin Forks, fronted by Chris Carrabba (of Dashboard Confessional), charmed the El Rey, playing tracks off their self titled album. The harmonies were solid and the camaraderie on stage was fun to watch. At one point, Carrabba prompted a shy Suzie Zeldin to go to the front and center for a mandolin solo. Twin Forks brought the goods with tunes that are infectious, even parents were seen singing along in a call and response portion of the set.

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Secret Someones started off the night, taking the stage looking like the artsy-cool clique in school you want to be friends with because you know it’s about fun and no drama.

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