The Hives haven’t been a headliner on a show in Denver in nearly four years.    Regrettably, I missed the last show they played at the Ogden and subsequently they were named to Spin’s “Bands You Must See Live” shortly after the fact.  Sure, other opportunities have come and gone but The Hives were playing in support of bands I have little regard for.  Consider me excited upon hearing of a new tour in support of their new album, “The Black and White Album.”  The anticipation and appreciation for the band had waxed a bit since then but the general enthusiasm for the band and their on-stage antics ensured I would see them play live.

O f course this show would mean seeing an old band I have little stomach or taste for.

The last time I saw The Donnas it was for about 5 minutes at Lollapalooza in August of 2003. Skipping them this time wouldn’t really be an option. In a certain sense, the female foursome provide a formidable energy.   They seemed to fully embrace the grrl power rock and work off of the enthusiasm.  To me, it seemed like they were more interested with imitating tired rock cliches than embracing a formidable, all-female spin on rock music.  The music from the set ranges from bad to worse.  The songs themselves seemed to sit at a hybrid between manufactured  pop music and a nominal three piece rock band.  The lyrics for all of the songs they played would not seem at all out of place in the pop trash of say Ashlee Simpson or Avril Lavigne.  It’s kind of offensive The Donnas try to promote this music as something it is not.   Still, there seemed to be a palpable amount ofappeal and the majority of the audience responded well to the music and to singer Brett Anderson’s stories and general interaction with the crowd.  In fact the band’s overall enthusiasm for their fans  prevented the show from being a complete and tepid exercise of pop/rock music.

Once The Hives took the stage it became appparent how odd the pairing of The Hives and The Donnas really turned out to be.  Hanging at the back of the stage was a large red, neon The Hives sign.  When the band comes out, they come out snappily dressed as if they came from some European boarding school.  The attire is a fitting show of the brand of self glorified arrogance the band seems to exude.   The band comes onto stage and for the next hour and a half proceed to rock like it’s going dangerously out of style.  The set consisted of about an even mix from the new album, “The Black and White Album” and their earlier hits from “Veni Vedi Vicious” and “Tyrannosaurus Hives.”  It didn’t take long before Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist had command over the crowd.  He demanded for the audiences participation and wowed the crowd by frequently jumping into the pit and even at one point letting the crowd carry him about.  The crowd itself quickly degenerated into a mess of moshing and jumping about even extending it out of the turbulent sea of human bodies in front of the stage.   Other band members added some more weight behind the show.  Nicholaus Arson constantly twirled his guitar about himself as he played, stopping to strike a pose and point at the crowd although sometimes his drawn out stares as he pauses in the song border on sex offender creepy.  Chris Dangerous at drums proved to be the real standout as he managed to hammer away at those drums at furious pace throughout the set.  The music may not appeal to everyone especially the band’s latest offering.  Nevertheless, the quality and energy of the live show demands to be experienced by any music lover.   Pelle Almqvist will tell you The Hives are the greatest band in the world and at least for one night you will believe him.