Kay Hanley

Hatch Shell; Boston, MA

Kay Hanley from Letters to Cleo playing a free show at the Hatch Shell? Why not, it'll be fun. And it was — a nice night outside listening to good music. Opening band Pete didn't offer anything new — to me, it just sounded like the typical sounding-hard-but-deep-down-we're-really-sensitive-guys alterna-metal that's on the radio these days.

Kay (without Letters) sounded good and played mostly stuff off her upcoming solo album. She threw in a few Letters to Cleo songs which the crowd definitely appreciated, and they probably wanted more. (I know I expected a few more than the handful that she played.) The main problem with the show was the tempo — she played an odd mix, ending the show with a several slow songs which seemed to leave people deflated instead of wanting more. (In fact, when she started her last song — another slow tune — many people started leaving early.) But hey, what do you want for nothing?

Updated summer 2001