Super Bowl visitors looking for local charm? How about Mark Cuban, cowboy boots and mink coats? Why yes, the Bud Light Hotel – as they are calling Aloft Hotel these days — rang 100 percent Dallas last night. The Fray and Lifehouse pitched a tent behind Aloft, which became home to hundreds of attendees willing to face the iced-over roads. Out-of-towners mingled amongst the skirted, cowboy booted Bud Light girls, and early Super Bowl fans, already sporting their cheese heads, rallied as they waited for the bands to begin.
Bottles of Bud Light rose into the air as the audience let Lifehouse’s Jason Wade coax them into an arm waving, lighter flicking following. Lifehouse capitalized on old school favorites, starting with “All In,” but still allowed bassist Bryce Soderberg his fifteen minutes of fame as he sang “Wrecking Ball” from their new album. Ward’s vocals were crystalline, shooting straight through the audience, although he should have saved his acoustic guitar for another time, as the crowd lost momentum with “Take Me Away.”
As Lifehouse left the stage, even more people piled into the tent. The Fray’s lead singer Issac Slade lifted his Bud Light into the air before planting his hands onto his piano, letting his fingers glide like water across the keyboard. Whether the audience had grown in size or dedication, the echo of enthusiasm rang stronger in the white tent as Slade sang, eyes closed, into the audience.
On stage Slade kept singing, off stage Soderberg joined Ryan Cabrera in the VIP area. Between being bombarded with picture prodding fans, and shaking hands with passing football players, Soderberg took a minute to tell me how much Lifehouse loved coming to Dallas, “even if they had to put on their skates.” Caught up in the spirit of the weekend, he said his one wish was to see the Dallas Cowboys in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Photo: Lifehouse
