The Really, Really Ridiculously Good Looking Tour featuring Cobra Starship on 2.13.08

I've been planning on arriving early for the Cobra Starship headling show of the "Really Really Ridiculously Good Looking" tour at Slim's in San Francisco on February 13, 2008. However, one wrong bus later, I was in The Mission and figured I was pretty much going in the wrong direction. Fast forward twenty minutes later on the phone with my friend Maricel, I get to Slim's where I was greeted by a ridiculously long line that stretched over the corner. Trace Cyrus (half brother of "Hannah Montana"), the part-time vocalist and guitarist of emo-electro band Metro Station, was in front of their tour bus snapping photos with fans.

Once I got in the doors, I took position about seven rows back on the floor, which was still farther back than I prefer. The show started at 7:30 p.m. with the latest band to join the Fueled By Ramen/Decaydance family, The Cab.

Their set was the shortest out of the four bands, but the lead singer Alex DeLeon arguably had one of the better rock voices overall. He even sang a cover of Edwin McCain's "I'll Be" for the Valentine's Day lovers. The band has some really catchy songs, including "Singing Myself To Sleep" and "Take My Hand". I'm excited to see what these kids come up with when their yet unnamed debut album comes out in April.

The ended their set with their current single and Friss Zene's current #1 "I'll Run". By then, I was somewhat squished -- but not to the extent I would experience later in the show.

The intermissions are interesting at Slim's. Prior to each band's set, a projector screen is lowered in front of the stage area so the audience can't see the changes. In between performances, the most random stuff were played, like "The Pink Panther" cartoons and "?" singers from the early 1990s. What made it even more odd was the music played, which was inconsistent with the images on screen, since they were playing "Low" by Flo Rida and stuff from LCD Soundsystem.

Next up was We The Kings led by Travis Clark. They started with "Stay Young", and prior to singing the next song, Travis took off his jacket and revealed an *NSYNC fan shirt as a "dedication" to the band. They later followed with the first single off their self-titled album "Skyway Avenue" and their new single which they said a video will be premiering soon on MTV and Fuse, "Check Yes Juliet". And because it was the night before Valentine's, it was appropriate that they play "Sweet Valentine".

The third band was Metro Station led Mason Musso. They started off with "Disco", then "Wish We Were Older", "Seventeen Forever", "California", "Tell Me What To Do", "Kelsey", "Now That We're Done", and lastly "Control". I overheard someone saying "Seventeen Forever" is "so controversial" and another girl was spouting out how much she loves "Hannah Montana" in a sarcastic tone. Anyway, their set was really good and as I mentioned earlier, Mason is also one of the better lead vocalists. Taking the whole electro element away from their live performances, they work just as well as emo/punk rock songs.

The last, but certainly not least, band of the night was headliner Cobra Starship. The wait for the band was longer than the other sets. The crowd grew restless. Heck, I grew restless. It that point, my throat was dry, my energy levels have been exhausted, and I was about ready to collapse. Then at 10 p.m., Cobra went on.

Lead singer Gabe Saporta was in his signature violet purple hoodie but with his glasses for the opener "The City Is At War". He soon ditched the glasses for the remainder of the set, which was about a little less than an hour and a half. Among the songs Gabe sang were "Prostitution Is The World's Oldest Profession", "Send My Love To The Dancefloor", "The Church Of Hot Addiction", "Smile For the Paparazzi" -- which Gabe boasted of its use of Spanish words, "My Moves Are White (White Hot That Is)" (which is apparently about keytar player Victoria), and one of my favorite songs off of ¡Viva La Cobra!, "Kiss My Sass". Here's a clip:

Immediately after "Kiss My Sass", Gabe went into "Damn, You Look Good And I'm Drunk". And for Valentine's Day, Gabe sang their "only love song", "The World Has Its Shine".

The pretty apparent flirting between Gabe and Victoria made me question if they were an item or not. At this point, somehow I got pushed enough that I was on the left side of the audience. The band performed "Snakes On A Plane" while everyone made the "Cobra Starship" sign with their hands.

Cobra came back for the encore to play "Guilty Pleasure". Post-concert, I met with Metro Station's drummer Anthony and got an autograph pic of him and the band. Travis of We The Kings was also there signing and meeting fans but there was a long queue I was unwilling to enter. Overall, it was a great show! I have the bruises and the interestingly intimate experiences with the fans as good souvenirs, but ultimately the music made it worthwhile.