Photos: CAKE at Grinders KC

The first of two sold out nights at the outdoor venue featured advocacy, rants on online rage, and a tree giveaway intermission.
Allison Scavo,
Photo May 14 2024 11 33 26 Pm 2

Cake. // photo by Allison Scavo

Cake
Grinders KC
Tuesday, May 14, 2024

Cake night one of two in Kansas City came in hot with essential songs and covers alike. During “Sheep Go To Heaven,” Cake frontman John McCrea included the crowd for almost half the song. This was a no cell phone show, advocating for the experience of a concert without screens lighting up the venue.

Speaking of advocacy, Cake has a booth set up at each show to register to vote and have your voice heard. Having been quite vocal on the need for progress in America, this alternative rock band created an entire album around it and sell merch for the cause. If you’re a casual fan who likes “Long Skirt/Short Jacket” on the radio but hasn’t branched out to their deep tracks, you’ll find yourself in the midst of a high-energy concert that uses its platform to encourage deep-rooted change.

In an interview with The Pitch, John McCrea discussed the specifics of their new album and political philosophy by stating “It’s an opportunity to step up and be the kind of people we hoped we could become—the type of person we admire—because it’s not every generation that gets this kind of clusterfuck.”

You also get to hear a solid chunk of the band’s Fashion Nugget, along with an audience member named Claire winning a fig tree during a giveaway at the set break. They’re a band that contains multitudes.

All photos by Allison Scavo

Cake setlist
Set 1:
Frank Sinatra
Sheep Go to Heaven
Sad Songs and Waltzes (Willie Nelson cover)
Opera Singer
Meanwhile, Rick James…
Stick Shifts and Safety Belts
Long Time
Sick of You

Intermission to give away a tree

Set 2:
Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps (Osvaldo Farrés cover)
Love You Madly
Shadow Stabbing
Ruby Sees All
Walk on By
Never There
—
Short Skirt/Long Jacket
The Distance

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