Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Holiday Concert | November 18, 2016: McLean, VA

Free Holiday Concert
Tysons Corner Center
McLean, VA
6:30 PM Eastern

Preview:
How fun! Kris is playing the northern Virginia mall I grew up with and had my very first job in! Back in those days, it was pretty simple (although oy, I remember working those Christmas sales). Developers and Kris may call it Tysons, VA, but sorry, that mall is in McLean - just off the Beltway, with a Silver Line metro stop, and it is very nice (and very popular).

The concerts are held in an outdoor plaza next to condo high rises that were recently built. I saw Gavin DeGraw there and it's a cool setup, with fire pits, an ice rink, Shake Shack and bars. The Metro will let you off right into the outdoor concert plaza.  (If you're curious about stage set up after all that description, here's a video of Gavin DeGraw doing that show. Now just imagine a Christmas tree next to that! Although Kris' mall shows have a simpler set-up, since it's Kris and Andrew acoustic.)

It is predicted to be nice weather (I know, right? At a Kris show?), and probably will be in the 50s at showtime. If you are in NoVa and not stuck at work, you should definitely come out for a free, fun holiday show! WASH-FM (97.1) will be broadcasting from the event starting around 5 PM eastern (I'll link them below in the post so you can listen live).

Of course I will be there for Kris! Looking forward to it! I did win my way into the meet and greet (which will be inside in that same set you've seen in the other mall posts), so will cover that too. Hope to meet some of you as well.

Updated after the show: Holy Christmas that was fun! Tysons did a fantastic job. A big shoutout to Dani, who was the mall's fabulous coordinator for the event. My friend and I had a couple of nice conversations with Kris and he was in great voice and energy last night. I think I've got everything up now that's worth getting, and my review is at the bottom of this post, but keep checking back as more gets posted. As always the DMV came through!
UPDATED 7/18/2017 WITH VIDEO!

Monday, November 14, 2016

Writer's Round: Two Story Road and Friends, November 16, 2016: Nashville, TN


Kris will be joining his friends in Two Story Road and some other singer-songwriters on November 16 for a sold out writer's round at the Nashville venue the Bluebird Cafe. If you are in Nashville, some limited seats will be available first come first serve (doors open 5 pm).


Updated after the show: Reflecting the last-minute nature of the show (and the lack of advance publicity), there isn't much media, but Kris' street team did share a picture and the set list:

Photo by @Team_Kris
Photo by @Team_Kris
Set List for Kris:
  1. Monster 
  2. Way Up High 
  3. Mommy, Is There More Than Just One Santa Claus
  4. Venice 
  5. Live Like We're Dying

Friday, November 11, 2016

Holiday Concert: November 13, 2016: Freehold, NJ

Free Holiday Concert
Freehold Raceway Mall
(Between Brio Tuscan Grille, LL Bean and the Cheesecake Factory)
Freehold, NJ
5 PM Eastern

Preview:
Kris continues to bring holiday cheer to the east coast by visiting the mall in Freehold, NJ, about 50 miles from New York City and about 65 miles from Philadelphia, and known for being Bruce Springsteen's childhood home. Kris performed a successful show here in 2014, with one of the best full band versions of Out Alive we've ever gotten (mashed with a pinch of Springsteen's Secret Garden).

Updated: Coldest show and biggest list yet for the Christmas mall tour, and this mall gave us a livestream of most of the show (if you went, please check my setlist for order and correct me if needed)! Full set of videos and more after the break, earning Freehold the #gavegoodlist award!
UPDATED 11/14/2016

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Holiday Concert: November 12, 2016: Danbury, CT

Free Holiday Concert
Danbury Fair Mall, Danbury, CT
Lower Level, by Lord and Taylor
November 12, 2016
4:00 PM Eastern

Preview:
Kris returns to the east coast to give the people of the northeast a holiday treat, with the latest of his free mall appearances. This one is in Danbury, CT, about 70 miles from New York City and an easy train trip away. Even better, this mall is large and has been promoting the concert, plus we have some regular listers going!

Updated after the show: Another successful mall appearance in the books, and thanks to our friend Ang, we've got video, set list and more after the break!
UPDATED 12/11/2016

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Holiday Concert: November 10, 2016: Rosemont, IL (Chicago)

Free Holiday Concert
Thursday, November 10, 2016
Fashion Outlets of Chicago - Food Court
Rosemont, IL (Chicago)
7:30 PM CST

Preview:
Kris continues his holiday concerts at malls with this one in Rosemont, a suburb of Chicago near O'Hare airport. I've been surprised that I haven't found many people going, but I do have a good friend (her twitter is locked but she promises to report) and her friends on this list. :)

Updated: This show may have been a victim of a remote location and poor publicity as it wasn't as well attended as it should have been. That's too bad. I suspect things will perk up quite a bit, though, with the next three mall shows as they are east coast, and two of the malls are large and do social media well. Plus it's a big shopping weekend sales-wise. As for this show, my friend and her friends really enjoyed the show and had fun talking to Kris both before and after. We've got some IG videos this AM, a full set list and some good pics this morning, and some videos this evening, so Chicago, those of you who went have earned #gavegoodlist!
UPDATED 11/13/2016