Reviews: Eagles, Pink, Jack White & More

Brett Schauf – Pink
Pink performs acrobatics during her show at Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kan., March 3.

This week for your reading enjoyment we have compiled critical reviews of live performances from Eagles in Chicago; Pink in Cleveland; Jack White in Los Angeles; The Avett Brothers in Phoenix; Yung Pinch in Columbus, Ohio; MGMT in Washington, D.C.; Foreigner in Ottawa, Ontario; and Weird Al Yankovic in New York.

Eagles @ United Center in Chicago, Ill., March 14 – “While I refuse to go as far as to say that the Eagles sound better without Glenn Frey — that would be pure sacrilege — they certainly went out of their way to compensate for his absence. The number of musicians onstage was enough at one point to make the E Street Band look like a power trio. … The star of the night, however, was Walsh, a slide guitar hero nearly without peer, and one of the most loveably goofy characters to ever make it out of the 1970s intact. It’s actually staggering the chasm that exists in the charisma-quotient between Walsh and Henley.” – Corbin Reiff / Uproxx

Pink @ Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, March 28 – “Mid-way through last night’s nearly two-hour concert before a capacity crowd at the Q, pop/rock singer P!nk apologized for a few ‘technical difficulties.’ … While we did notice a brief lull at one point in the concert, if Pink hadn’t said anything about the mishap, we really wouldn’t have realized there had been a miscue.” – Jeff Niesel / Cleveland Scene

Jack White @  Mayan Theatre in Los Angeles, Calif., March 20 – “There’s the fact that, when he’s away from all those microphones, he plays much of the show with his back to the audience. But he’s not pulling a Miles Davis; he’s getting face time and groove time with his band members. If you ever wondered about the artificiality of a rock band all facing toward the audience instead of each other like they would at a spirited rehearsal, well, White has apparently wondered that, too.” – Chris Willman / Variety

The Avett Brothers @ Innings Festival in Phoenix, Ariz., March 24 – “No pretension. No aggression. No scuzz. Just proficient musicianship, a lot of good songs, and, yeah, a couple of questionable hats. It wasn’t the raging and rollicking some Innings attendees wanted out of a Mill Avenue-adjacent Saturday night in Tempe. But it was a perfectly delightful Avett Brothers concert.” – Becky Bartkowski / Phoenix New Times

John Davisson – The Avett Brothers
The Avett Brothers play the Lockn’ Festival at Infinity Downs Farm in Arrington, Va., Aug. 27.

Yung Pinch @ Newport Music Hall in Columbus, Ohio, March 27 – “Overall, Yung Pinch really surprised me. He has a much bigger following in Columbus than I anticipated. His repetitive lyricism grew old to me after a while, but in today’s hip-hop, he is following the blueprint of a charting hip-hop artist.” – Max Miller /The Lantern

MGMT @ The Anthem in Washington, D.C., March 15 – “The duo’s animated and playful performance showed that, despite being a fixture in the indie scene for over ten years, MGMT has not lost its ability to have a good time through music. Marrying a childlike wonder with palpable musicianship, MGMT refreshingly brought a sense of fun to The Anthem.” – Sarah Cammarota / The Hoya

Foreigner @ TD Place in Toronto, Ontario, March 23 – “What a party this was, thanks in large part to the wiry singer. With his on-stage charisma and a powerful voice that mirrors the range of original singer Lou Gramm, [Kelly] Hansen is a key factor in the success of the reformed version of Foreigner. He was also a livewire in charging up the crowd, which included plenty of couples in their 40s and 50s reliving high-school dances.” – Lynn Saxberg / Ottawa Citizen

Weird Al Yankovic @ Apollo Theater in New York, N.Y., March 22 – “Toward the end of the night, Yankovic allowed some exceptions to the originals-only format. He played a surreal medley of parody classics in new form, including a lounge-lizard version of ‘Amish Paradise’ and a slow, melodramatic ‘Like a Surgeon.’ It was meta as hell: Yankovic delivering parodies of his parodies.” – Zach Schonfeld / Newsweek

Jim Hill – “Weird Al” Yankovic
DeVos Performance Hall, Grand Rapids, Mich.