When a band goes through an emotional struggle like The Naked and Famous did, it can be hard to rebound and create a new record without a complete band break-up.  The new album reflects upon the relationship between Alisa Xayalith (vocals and keyboards) and Thom Powers (vocals and guitars).  After eight years, the two co-founders decided to put their relationship on halt, leading to a possible band split.  Luckily, the band was able to stay together and pour their passion and pain into their newest album, Simple Forms.  The beauty of this concert was seeing that the two could still handle singing together on the same stage and create a happy presence.  Their passion for music seems to hold the band together as they lead the crowd in synth-heavy indie pop sing-alongs.  Big hits were played throughout the entire concert, starting off with their newest hit single "Higher".  The songs that stitched the hits together pushed the concert forward, with progressive beats included in "All of This" and "Rolling Waves".  The last few songs really hit the ball out of the park for me, including two of my favorites.  "Girls Like You" and "Laid Low" got the audience revved up for the imminent encore that they would get.  Similarly to their lyrical videos, the blue and red lighting often created an atmosphere of raw heartbreak, but also love through a purplish blend.  With a sell-out crowd, The Naked and Famous was prepared to calm the audience with a blissful ending.  "No Way" showed the instrumental abilities of the band, while soothing the audience as a last song for a recently heartbroken band.  

Setlist:
1. The Water Beneath You
2. Higher
3. All of This
4. Hearts Like Ours
5. My Energy
6. Punching in a Dream
7. Rolling Waves
8. The Runners
9. A Stillness
10. Losing Our Control
11. I Kill Giants
12. Girls Like You
13. Laid Low
14. Young Blood
Encore:
15. Last Forever
16. No Way

Image credits: 
By Nan Palmero from San Antonio, TX, USA - All Alone with Thousands of People, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31421908
​By http://www.flickr.com/photos/globalite/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/globalite/6011882232/sizes/o/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22487673

Winning 11 Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize, Hamilton brought new life to Broadway.  Broadway has always been a popular entertainment venue, but it has been a long time since tickets sold as well as they still do for Hamilton.  What does Lin-Manuel Miranda's creation have that is different to offer?  There are so many musicals out there and they all differ in music and story.  However, Miranda's musical is completely different, using a hip-hop and rap to explain the story of one of America's founding fathers.  This is a musical that strives to be unique, and succeeds in doing so.  The documentary adds quite a bit of depth to the creation, giving audiences a background for the creation and some of the fictional aspects that go along with putting a historical figure at the forefront of a musical.

In the documentary, Miranda acts as a tour guide showing us his upbringing and background.  As an actor, Miranda got involved more and more on Broadway.  As a modern poet, Miranda found himself at a slam poetry presentation at the White House.  In the presence of President Obama, Miranda performed the first song in the modern musical.  The song was followed by audience amazement, and the idea for a founding father musical was born.  The documentary vastly discusses the process of creating Hamilton, giving light to the behind-the-scenes story.

Hamilton's America also discusses the connections between Miranda and Hamilton himself.  Both of them have immigrant backgrounds and felt a disconnect from the general populations.  Yet, both ended up being creators that appear to the public as prodigies.  Where Hamilton helped to construct the American economy, Miranda has constructed a new musical format.  These mirroring figures were/are crucial to the development of America's culture and the documentary gives us the full weight of each of their products.  While Hamilton passed away a long time ago, Miranda still has a lot of work to come in his already inventive career path.  I cannot wait for what is still to come!

The Bottom Line:  Anyone interested in Hamilton and Miranda will learn something that they did not know about them in this documentary.

Score: 7.6/10