I arrived at the Troubadour a half hour early and planted myself in front of the stage. For the first hour or more, I endured the mediocrity of the Virgins, an O.C. Group who looked like the victors in a Napoleon Dynamite look-alike competition. At 10 PM, after The Virgins relinquished the stage, the lights went out in an attempt to build suspense. Then, suddenly, an array of stage lights flooded the room, and the sundry members of Jet came running and jumping on stage. They gestured to the crowd, urging them on, while strutting across the stage with palpable arrogance. When Nic Cester (lead vocals, guitar rhythm and lead) grabbed his guitar, the first order of business was to jump up on the monitors and hold it out above the outstretched arms of the wild fans.
Nic Cester's antics didn't stop with his opening act. Many times throughout the set, he jumped up the on bass drum and once succeeded in knocking it over. The entire band drank large quantities of beer, and as Nic whirled, jumped, and climbed his way through song after song, I became increasingly sure something would be smashed or snapped. Drum kits, microphones and guitars were all pushed, bumped, and swung in a flurry of over-exuberance. At one point, Nic Cester, after drinking through several songs, climbed the railing on the balcony of the V.I.P. Lounge. Balanced on a few thin metal bars, he continued playing the lead in a musical interlude. Guitarists Nic Cester and Cameron Muncey swung their guitars through the air as though they were chopping wood, and Chris Cester (drums and vocals) actually threw his drum sticks into the crowd with stereotypical rock star flair. In short, the members of Jet are everything we've come to expect in rock stars: arrogant, flashy, and more fun than a barrel of monkeys.
Nic’s vocal cords must be made of rawhide. He can scream and yell all night. “Shine On,” Jet’s newest album, ranges from “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is” with its mix of falsetto and screaming to the melodic and gentle title track. Nic’s strength is his ability to preform such a wide range of music, but Nic is not the only competent vocalist in the group. The band sets itself apart with Cameron Muncey and Nic and Chris Cester, all skilled vocalists who back up their lyrical talent with solid instrumentation. Jet's combination of vocal talent and its raw entertainment muscle makes it well worth the $20 a head.
