Bill Hughes
The Joy Formidable’s Ritzy Bryan
Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2011 | 4:20 p.m.
Book & Stage scores points for mid-casino quirkiness, but the Cosmopolitan’s newest free music venue—the Boulevard pool’s side stage—provides more bang for your nonexistent buck. I caught The Joy Formidable’s September 15 set there, and the scene could hardly have been better—perfect temperatures, an enthusiastic but under-inebriated crowd (see: people actually there for the band), solid sound.
Sure, the raised platform was sorta small, but that’s not why drummer Matt Thomas’ kit faced sideways (it was the same way on a massive Coachella stage in April). And it didn’t stop singer/guitarist Ritzy Bryan and bassist Rhydian Dafydd from getting rowdy as they jammed out the noisier portions of their alt-rock anthems, especially underground hit “Whirring,” which found all three members of the Welsh trio bashing away at drums before the song closed out the 45-minute performance.
No slots. No TVs. And if anyone had a stinky cigar, the smoke dissipated into the glorious fresh air. Let’s do this again soon, Cosmo.
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