Visual innovators OK Go played to a nearly sold out show on Saturday, Nov. 4 at the UCLA Royce Hall. The band, celebrating 19 years together, embarked on a family friendly music video and Q&A tour with a stop in Los Angeles.
OK Go synchronized their lively performance with 20 of their most popular music videos projected onto a large screen behind them. After every couple of songs, the band took a few minutes to answer questions from the audience. Fans young and old reveled in the chance to ask OK Go questions about their music, creative videos, personal life and more.
OK Go opened up with a brief introduction about their very first “music video” and how they formed. Throughout the night, they chronicled their growth as a band and as inquisitive science/visual art nerds by giving brief introductions to each music video. From dancing on treadmills to performing acrobatic moves in a zero gravity plane, the band and audience members delighted in the concert’s nostalgic mood.
True to their playful and quirky nature, the concert also included copious amounts of confetti and a surprise for the audience. Before the concert began, fans who had smart phones were asked to download a special app and to await further instructions. Halfway through their set, the band came out to play a song with musical bells. They then asked the audience to take out their phones and open the app. The app consisted of three buttons with a background that varied in color. When pressed, each button made a different sound, and corresponding colors were projected onto the screen. OK Go asked fans to press each button when it appeared on the screen. UCLA Royce Hall chimed with music as OK Go and fans played a song in unison.
At the end of the night, the band came on for an encore. With no more music videos to play, they ended the night with a cover of Blur’s “Song 2.” Fans under the age of 12 were invited on stage to “go bananas,” and one lucky fan was picked to play a one-stringed guitar with a capo so anyone playing it could effortlessly hit the right notes to the song’s main guitar riff.
The entire concert was truly a lively and unique experience for all. In addition to playing songs in sync with their music videos, OK Go performed dance numbers and even made special instruments to mimic the sounds in some of their music videos.
Throughout the night, the band encouraged fans to be themselves and to explore their interests with fervent curiosity.
“We celebrate diversity here,” said Damian Kulash, the band’s singer.
OK Go’s positive and humorous demeanor made the night enjoyable for fans of all ages, and their recent tour seems to be an ode to all the fun they’ve had as a band over the years and as a thank you to their supporters.