Boys Like Girls

Boys Like Girls garnered the most energy of the opening acts at the Hedley concert at the ACC, despite being the most depressing and angst ridden. Within seconds my view of the stage was obscured by the enthusiastic bouncing and all-hailing of the adolescent enthusiasts. They had a more fine tuned stage presence than either of the other headliners, Stereos or Fefe Dobson. With the amount of estrogen being screamed their way, I think it’s safe to say that they are the Emo heartthrobs of the moment.

The live performance gave their music an edge that makes their songs almost complex. Live is the closest they are going to get to sounding like a real alt-rock band. Their set was a veritable sing-along. The ten-year old behind me was blasting me with her tone deaf rendition of "Thunder". I tried to sing along to the only song I’ve heard in passing, "Two is Better Than One", in a feeble attempt not to age myself. Instead, I managed to age myself more by proxy as the PG 13 chaperone beside me was also only singing at the same parts. It looks like we both listen to Chum-FM at work.

The lead, Martin Johnson, in his eyeliner and bed head, exuded the kind of heart-sick anguish that only 15 year olds can empathize with. He maneuvered the stage with the temerity of a fledgling beefcake, bedroom eyes at front row and posturing for the cameras. Wherever he moved on stage a trail of adoring fan drool would trace where he had been previously. The front rows received a hailing of guitar picks that the band kept chucking. This and their running monologue was the only actual connection they attempted with the audience. Not that the breast beating, hair pulling fans minded the unidimensional nature of the stage-audience relationship, they were already entranced by the band.

As with Fefe Dobson and Stereos, Boy Like Girls’s music also lacked creative range… depth… meaning. The theme of Boys like Girls’ music is totally expressed in their brand name. They have slotted themselves into the distressed-relationship rock ballad category which makes them perfect for this vapid age group as Hedley headliners. If relationship woes, "Two is better than One", and messianic fantasies, "Hero/Heroine", are the defining ideologies for teens why should BLG bother trying to produce anything that promotes genuine musicality or social messages? The girls already love them and they've lived up to their name.