Concert Review: Men at Work, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Shohen Knife Prove Eclectic Mix at Cain Park

This was my first time catching a show at Cain Park, the comfortably large outdoor stage in the woods of Cleveland Heights. Somehow Cain Park feels like a more middle-aged Blossom, if you can even imagine. People ate ice cream cones around us and the smell of campfire burned through a wet summer night. (I never saw a fire. I’m not sure where that was coming from, but it was quite pleasant)

Shonen Knife opened the show. The all-female Japanese band plays power pop in the vein of the Ramones. They wore matching Piet Mondrian patterned dresses, head banged in unison, and threw metal horns between songs. It was straight out of the KISS handbook and cute as hell. Debated buying their record but ultimately decided to pass.

Toad the Wet Sprocket was up next, a band that I confuse with the Toadies but the Toadies actually rock and sound nothing like the Wet Sprocket. Glen Phillips’s voice is spot on from the two songs I that actually knew. I imagine that he’s taken care of himself over the years. However, and a big however, he played barefoot, which I just can’t get behind and honestly creeps me out to be frank. If a band blows my mind live but the singer performs barefoot, I’m out. They are a very safe band, but they played well and folks were surely into it. They feel straight out of ’90s-era college radio. Absolute highlight of Toad the Wet Sprocket’s set was an INXS cover that almost made me forget that the singer was barefoot.

Next up was our headliner for the evening. Men at Work from the Land Down Under. Pretty early in the set I realized I only know their hit single “Land Down Under.” I always thought this band was Australian, but the singer is actually Scottish. I guess the mate moved to Australia in his teens solidifying the coolest accent that one can acquire.

They opened with a bluesy little rock number that swelled tambourine, cow bell, saxophone and one funky ass bass line. Scattered folks from Gen X stood and danced exactly as they probably did at Lollapalooza in 1993. Judging solely on the appearance of the band, I imagine the drummer and both guitar players are the only original members. They look much older than the rest of the band. Colin Hay’s voice is unique and powerful while the instrumentation in the band is phenomenal. Everyone around me was captivated by the pretty multi instrumental lady that absolutely ripped on brass instruments. All around me I heard voices over the music talking about how great this lady was but I mostly found myself wondering how the band got their name through most of their performance. I imagine the singer showed up at practice like “alright mates hear me out… men at work, it’s like when we’re playing we’re working so when people see us live it’s like they’re actually watching men at work… anyways, we left before they played “Land Down Under,” which is absurd I know, but I was tired and full of non-alcoholic beer.

This is music for people that own boats and still smoke cigarettes — you know the type. I don’t mind it. I’d probably pick up their record if I ever come across it in the used bins.

As we walked out of Cain Park, they started playing “Who Can it Be Now” and I realized that I actually know two Men at Work songs. Nice.