Tobias Jesso Jr.—is he an a** or great talent? Might be both.
Last Friday, I saw Tobias Jesso Jr. at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. I was visiting my brother in Lincoln Park, and we knew we had to buy tickets for this festival for at least one day, and with Mac Demarco, Panda Bear, and Wilco and Chrvches, this day seemed the best choice. And of course, the arrogant Tobias.
Before I elaborate on his a**hole-ness, I need to give credit where credit is due. This guy is a super talented songwriter, and I still really like him for that. His music somehow captures a sense of familiarity while sounding fresh. He's a quintessential pop songwriter in the most traditional sense of the word.
With his snarky comments and goofy smirks, it really doesn't take much to see this dude his full of himself.
Musically though, the quick, hour-long performance, was precise and clean.
But after his questionable response to his saxophonist's " sexy sax solo", we began to wonder -- is this guy a huge d*ck? Introducing his band, he ends saying "and I'm Tobias!" in a tone suggesting he is obviously the most important of the crew.
"I'll tone it down for Panda Bear over there," he said in a condescending tone, maybe suggesting that their electronic, synth tunes are a joke in comparison to his piano ballads. And he goes on to say, "I'm not actually going to do that," laughing at his own sarcasm, with the same cocky smirk on his face.
"Not to be a diva," Tobias said to his tech crew, "but could you please turn the piano down a bit."
15 seconds later.
"Actually, (laughs to himself) now it's too loud."
He made the dudes start the song over three times. He was definitely just trying to be funny here, but it still came off as super cocky.
At the end of the day, Tobias seems like kind of an a**, but if I'm being honest with myself, I thought some of his jokes were pretty funny.
It makes sense, if you look at musical history, though. Not to say Tobias is a musical genius, but other self-proclaimed musical talents throughout the years have been known to exhibit hints of egomania, douchbaggery, and extreme narcissism: Bob Dylan, John Lennon, and Kanye West, just to name a few.
Still, the guy is a phenomenal musician and songwriter. He ended the show with "Hollywood," the first song I ever heard of his, and possibly my favorite. He's got a strong career ahead of him—dude just needs to grow up a little, I guess.
