The most recent Radio 104.5 Summer Block Party show was held on Saturday July 13, 2013 at the Piazza at Schmidt’s in Philadelphia. The 80,000 square foot open-air plaza is located on 2nd Street and Germantown Avenue in Northern Liberties and is a very sweet venue to see a concert because it is right in the middle of three long buildings which form in the shape of a triangle. Also, the people who live in the residences in these buildings were all out on their balconies enjoying the show with the large crowd outside of their home. Many of the people on the balconies were throwing water balloons down at the crowd and were shooting water guns (this felt ridiculously refreshing because of the insane heat that day).

Now let’s get to the music. The three bands featured in this show were Bad Books, Capital Cities and Cold War Kids. The three bands lit up the stage and made the concert worth standing in the overwhelming heat. Bad Books led off the show and showcased some music that I have never heard from them. Their style mixes a soft alternative style with hard guitar sections and even screaming at some points in their songs. It was entertaining to say the least. Also, you could not help but attracted directly to lead singer Andy Hull’s very thick orange beard. The crowd really enjoyed the bands top hit “Forest Whittaker” which is played often on Radio 104.5.

Cold War Kids were the headliners of the show and took the stage after a long rain delay that came out of nowhere on the hot summer day. The band was really “rocking” excessively on stage. Multiple times, front man Nathan Willet ran off the stage with a tambourine and harshly smacked it with a drum stick. Also, Willet took the microphone with him off of the stage and ran toward the crowd and stood on the guard rail which kept the crowd distanced from the stage. It was very cool. The band really rocked the Piazza with their biggest hits “Miracle Mile” and “Hang Me Up To Dry.” The band was going almost as crazy as the crowd was. It was very fun to watch.

The best part of the show was when Capital Cities performed. The band has gradually been getting more and more popular every week ever since their first single “Safe and Sound” and the release of their debut album “In a Tidal Wave of Mystery” on June 4, 2013. What is great about their sound is the mixing of electronic sounds with and indie alternative rock and the use of the trumpet. The trumpet is what sets them apart from other bands of their sound. When they performed at the Piazza, their live trumpet player really won the crowd over. The band had a very cool sense of style wearing all black with black Ray Ban sunglasses and thick black beards that moved up and down when they sang. They were also very interactive with the crowd by having a part of the show where they danced for everyone and even taught everyone in attendance a dance to go along with their song. The big songs in their set were “Kangaroo Court,” “Lazy Lies,” and “I Sold My Bed, But Not My Stereo.” Capital Cities concluded their part of the show by playing an EDM (Electronic Dance Music) version of their number one hit “Safe and Sound” and it was the coolest part of the entire Block Party. The band was hopping all over the stage and swinging their arms and the crowd suddenly turned from a chill content crowd to insanity as if this concert were a rave and every single person was jumping up and down and going insane. It was the best way to end their set and they really stole the show away from the other two bands.

The show was great and Radio 104.5 does a great job bringing in great bands to play their shows. Also, every Summer Block Party is totally FREE. All you have to do is show up and enjoy the show. The next Block Party at the Piazza at Schmidt’s is on August 3 and the bands featured in this show will be Panic! At The Disco, Alt-J and Walk Off The Earth.