What may have appeared to be a quiet and peaceful night in Omaha turned out to much different experience for the occupants of The Waiting Room Lounge.

On April 5, Pop band Kero Kero Bonito decided to visit the Midwest on their US tour, stopping in Nebraska for a show at The Waiting Room Lounge. The opening act for the night was Finnish musician Jaakko Eino Kalevi, who played an incredible and groovy set before the main act. After Jaakko had finished his set anticipation filled the air. One-hundred angsty music-lovers eagerly awaited the arrival of the band.

Despite the band having a reputation of being “weird” or “quirky,” the audience didn’t reflect that in any way. From one listen one might assume that the people who would attend one of their performances would be quirky. That’s what I thought of when I first heard the band’s music. The combination of both English and Japanese lyrics mixed with the upbeat catchy nature of their songs lead me to believe that it was for anime enthusiasts. Boy was I wrong. I soon realized that what I was listening to was a new type of music, and that just because other people may associate the band with ideas that seem odd or abnormal does not mean that everyone should think that way.

Seeing such a diverse group of individuals come together to appreciate music they loved was beautiful. After what seemed like hours the band came out and the crowd erupted. People screamed like crazy as Sarah, Gus and Jamie walked on stage. They were then joined by two other members who played guitar and drums. After their first song they greeted the audience and thanked us for coming to the show. They took everybody by surprise by playing what is considered to be one of their more popular songs, “Flamingo,” second. The crowd screamed along to the edgy rock version of the light-hearted pop tune as the song got closer to the chorus. That’s when all hell broke loose.

Now anybody that has been to a concert knows that there are certain unspoken rules that people should respect. For example: If one decides to mosh, it is customary to first form a respectable mosh pit. This extra precaution to protect the audience was not taken into consideration. In the midst of my jamming out, I was suddenly interrupted by a horde of bodies pushing and pulling me in every direction. Before long the entire middle and back section of the audience turned into absolute mayhem. And as much as it hurt, it was also pretty rad. Unfortunately the moshing was sporadic and unpredictable, creating a certain sense of anxiety that stuck with me through the rest of the performance.

The concert carried on and the band played a wide variety of songs, ranging from old hits to more recent releases. People sang and jumped around as the band continued their set. You could really tell that everybody was full of joy. And, seeing so many happy people made the experience that much more enjoyable. When the band finally left a few people started chanting, “Tram-po-line! Tram-po-line!” At first I was confused, but then I realized that they were cheering for an encore performance of “Trampoline,” another one of the band’s hits. After a minute of chanting the band came back out. Before performing one last song the lead singer, Sarah recited an epic prayer from the 2004 movie “School Of Rock:”

“God of Rock, thank you for this chance to kick ass. We are your humble servants. Please give us the power to blow people’s minds with our high-voltage rock. In your name we pray. Amen.”

Every person in the venue jumped along with the song, making for a perfect ending to the show. After people cleared out I got the chance to meet the band. Myself, along with a dozen others, got some merch signed by the band. We congratulated the band on a great concert, and they expressed their gratitude. Unfortunately I didn’t get much of a chance to speak with Sarah, given that she was incredibly tired, but I did was able to speak with Gus for quite some time after the show. Everybody from the band was extremely welcoming and friendly and it made the night very memorable.

The concert was fantastic, the people there had fun and the band was friendly and fun to interact with. As far as performances go, this is the best one I’ve been to in a while and also one that I will never forget. If you have yet to check out Kero Kero Bonito, give them a listen. I think that a lot of people will be pleasantly surprised.