View Full Version : Rae's live music appreciation thread
I decided to start posting all the shows I go to in this thread so that I don't feel bad when I get 15 views and zero replies. ;-) The first couple are reposts.
~Rae
All, right, so we went to this show last night and had a really good time.
John Rauhouse opened and he was an unexpected delight... he had a quartet and they played primarily-- oh, I don't know how to describe it-- old timey guitar instrumentals. I recognized some of the tunes from recordings in my collection by similarly retro-fetishist groups like They Might Be Giants and Soul Coughing, but I'm sure that those sounds are recycled from earlier songs. He brought out Kelly Hogan to sing on a few numbers, and at one point she said "John, we can't do two Johnny Mercer songs in a row!"-- it was that kind of a set. Looking him up on allmusic, it looks like he's a member of the Grevious Angels, who I haven't heard (but feel like I've heard of-- but maybe I'm just thinking of Gram Parsons).
Neko was in fine form as well... the set was heavy on material from Fox Confessor, but she did trot out a few standbys like "Lady Pilot," "Deep Red Bells," and "Favorite" as well as a few covers ("Train From Kansas City," Dylan's "Buckets of Rain," and "Knock Loud," which was the second encore). The highlights for me were a rollicking version of "John Saw That Number" and some great harmonies between Neko and Kelly Hogan on "If You Knew". If I had one complaint, it's the same one that I have about the last record-- too often, the vocals were drenched in reverb. I was actually looking forward to hearing some of the songs from Fox Confessor live in the hope that they'd be a little more stripped down and raw, but no such luck. I don't really mind it, but I'm not sure why it's employed so often when Neko has such a clear, strong, commanding voice on her own.
Anyway, an enjoyable evening! I don't get out to as many big shows as I used to, so this was fun. Next up is Ted Leo at the end of the month...
~Rae
We went to see Ted Leo on his Living With the Living tour at First Avenue last night.
The opening band was Love of Diagrams, who are evidently from Australia. Couldn't be more timely with all the talk we've had around here about early Siouxsie & the Banshees recently; these guys had that sound down to a tee. I was kinda into some of the guitar work and there's no doubt that they'd mastered a particular style, but overall it just didn't hook me.
Ted & the Pharmacists took the stage in a relatively timely fashion and ran through a set that was pretty heavy on material from the new album and Shake the Sheets. It was nice to see that James Canty was back in the band after a hiatus that seemed to have started right before Hearts of Oak. Things went a little awry about halfway through when Ted got a little overenergetic in the middle of the set and accidentally knocked over his stack. Rather than take the time to get the equipment back together, he just finished the set sans guitar. There were a few other technical difficulties, and before the encore, Ted basically apologized for a "bad show" and promised they'd be back soon. I don't think that the audience saw it that way, though, as most everyone was pogoing up & down the entire time. They finished with a fine cover of the Chumbawamba track "Rapaport's Lament" (which is also on the bonus EP Mo' Living that came with first pressings of the new album).
Overall a good time although probably not the most memorable of the 10 or so times I've had the pleasure of seeing the Pharmacists over the last six or seven years.
~Rae
My friend Rayna threw a show at the recently reopened Bedlam Theater last night. It was as much an excuse to go check out the venue as it was to check out the bands.
Nudity was all right. They were a guitar-bass-drums threepiece from Olympia, WA. Most of it was pretty straight-ahead psychedelic jams, somewhat similar to the Sunshine Fix.
Synchrocyclotron played their usual brand of sometimes carnivalesque instrumental prog-punk.
It was a good time.
~Rae
Jim Clark
05-01-2007, 07:16 AM
We went to see Ted Leo on his Living With the Living tour at First Avenue last night.
The opening band was Love of Diagrams, who are evidently from Australia. Couldn't be more timely with all the talk we've had around here about early Siouxsie & the Banshees recently; these guys had that sound down to a tee. I was kinda into some of the guitar work and there's no doubt that they'd mastered a particular style, but overall it just didn't hook me.
~Rae
I've got that Love of Diagrams album and EP. Really thought I'd love it and I just like it. It has it's moments but it really hasn't grown on me too much yet.
And yes, Melbourne, Austraila is where they hail from.
Melbourne,
Crazy, crazy Melbourne.
You've got everything from restaraunts
to kiddie porn.
And would I leave?
Man you must be kidding me
unless you send me to Sydney.
jc
with apologies for the obscure and pointless Wall Of Voodoo reference.
Swish
05-01-2007, 07:43 AM
I decided to start posting all the shows I go to in this thread so that I don't feel bad when I get 15 views and zero replies. ;-) The first couple are reposts.
~Rae
Well, I was going to comment on the Ted Leo and the Farmer's Cysts show, but got distracted and never came back to it. I like Ted just fine, but I haven't seen him live and didn't really have much to say other than something bland and unimaginative. Would you rather I posted something like that or nothing at all? Now I'm just waiting for you or one of my other RR 'friends' to say that all my posts are bland and unimaginative.
Swish
Jim Clark
05-01-2007, 11:59 AM
Well, I was going to comment on the Ted Leo and the Farmer's Cysts show, but got distracted and never came back to it. I like Ted just fine, but I haven't seen him live and didn't really have much to say other than something bland and unimaginative. Would you rather I posted something like that or nothing at all? Now I'm just waiting for you or one of my other RR 'friends' to say that all my posts are bland and unimaginative.
Swish
plus we messed up his whole zero replies thing.
jc
ForeverAutumn
05-01-2007, 12:01 PM
Now I'm just waiting for you or one of my other RR 'friends' to say that all my posts are bland and unimaginative.
Swish
Oh sure, take the fun out of it. :prrr:
Monkey Bones
05-02-2007, 10:47 AM
Nudity was all right.
I hear ya my young friend. Nudity at a party is always all right in my book, too. The more, the better. Well, maybe not at a Rave Recs party, but you know what I mean.
Hood in the sound machine right now. Outside Closer. Unfortunately, never quite the understated masterpiece that was Cold House, but still pretty good.
-Jar-
05-02-2007, 11:42 AM
Well, I'm appreciating live music thru the cd medium. Thanks for the Slint. Beautiful recordings. Man, I always said that if Slint got back together I would drive cross country to see them. Well, the idea didn't match the reality. I don't think they even played in Ohio. Thanks for the memories even though I wasn't there. Were you able to catch any of their shows? There's always hope they'll do it again.
Last live gig I was at? oh lord.. I want to say Braid but I'm not sure. I know I saw my friend's band Quickening a few times. I saw Bob Mould solo, but that was over a year ago. Mastodon and Clutch are playing in the same week in May, Mastodon a day after Clutch. Both are House of Blues shows.. ugh. I don't know if I can even make one of them.. sad very sad..
-jar
ps, it's interesting if you listen to "Kid Dynamite" real close you can hear a chord progression they later used in "Good Morning Captain"
We packed into the Triple Rock last night for a sold-out show celebrating the 13th anniversary of Extreme Noise, a local volunteer-run punk record store. Shot Baker and the Methadones played first, but we hung in the bar for those two (it's in a separate room and you can't drink and watch bands at the same time at an all ages show).
Dillinger Four was in fine form and ripped through about seven or eight classics during a boozy, high-energy set. They don't seem to play that much anymore-- maybe they are caught up with side projects or the workaday world (Eric is co-owner of the club)-- but they sounded as good as they ever did. No new tunes, although it has been rumored that they might be recording this year (it'd be about time as the last thing they put out was 2002's Situationist Comedy).
I sort of wrestled with the question of whether Naked Raygun was going to be purely a nostalgia show or not... no John Haggerty, and the rest of the band is composed of old old men at this point. Unfortunately, they didn't do much to put those fears to rest. For a band that seemed to have made its reputation on live shows as much if not more than on the strength of their records, they seemed curiously unengaged. I've heard rumors that Jeff Pezzati was diagnosed with Parkinson's...? Don't know if that's true or not-- if it was, it would certainly explain the low energy level of their set, if not why these guys are still trying to go out on the road. Still, the crowd was clearly into it (400 inebriated punks can't be wrong) and it was fun to hear favorites like "The Peacemaker" and "Potential Rapist" played live for the first time.
All in all, an evening well spent!
~Rae
Ahh, what a beautiful evening to bike to a show in Minneapolis. This was a pretty casual affair; some of my friends had put together an impromptu band and it was an excuse to drink and socialize out on the town.
Flavor Crystals played first; they owe a heavy debt to Washing Machine era Sonic Youth. The frontman even wears his hair like Thurston Moore. There are worse sounds and hairstyles you could imitate, though.
My friends' band, Black Audience, played only six songs, but it was thoroughly enjoyable. They went for sort of a rootsy, almost gospelly sound. The musicians included members of Valet, the Legendary Jim Ruiz Group, Dreamland Faces, and the Restless Souls, and they played all covers... some Dylan, a Harry Belafonte song, and a couple from Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Good way to spend an early summer evening.
~Rae
Saw Jesse Sykes the other night at a small venue, I was a bit sceptical on what her live sound might be, alt country goth is not my first choice for a live sound, but it was a cracking show. She covered mostly stuff from the latest album with some old favourites from previous albums. The Sweet Hereafter are a great little band with an excellent solo guitarist who really gave them an edgey sound, nice use of effect pedals too.
Special mention to John Tillman who is supporting her UK tour, never heard of him before but one to seek out methinks. He came on unannounced, tuning his guitar like a roadie then just started singing, he had the whole crowd mesmerized you could hear a pin drop. He didn't speak until he had nearly finished his set when in his own words described himself as a 'homeless Charles Mansun'
Cheers
Mike
Audio Girl
05-11-2007, 06:43 PM
I wish I had participated in this thread right after I saw the following artists (too much time now to be specific):
(1) Lindsey Buckingham -- January 30, 2007 -- Bass Performance Hall
(2) Rickie Lee Jones -- March 30, 2007 -- Lakewood Theatre
For those who are fans of these artists, I would highly recommend attending one of their latest concerts, emphasizing that Rickie Lee Jones absolutely blew the doors off the joint in Dallas. She is as amazing in 2007 as she was when I saw her in the late 1970s. Lindsey did a nice job too but the day following RLJ's concert, I was reading everything about her latest release I could get my hands on. That's always a good sign.
nobody
05-25-2007, 08:10 AM
Saw Morrissey this week...great show.
Wife and I were both talking about how we didn't know if he'd still have his voice and all, but he was fine and he's got a nice big catalog to choose from. He opened with the Queen Is Dead (a great Smiths tune) and followed that up with ome of my favorites of his newer material, First of the Gang to Die. Show was heavier on Ringmaster of the Tormented than I would have liked, but the band was absolutely top notch (two full time guitarists plus a third who went from guitar to keyboards to trumpet, etc...and an excellent rhythm section) and he trotted out old hits like Boy With The Thorn In His Side, Girlfriend In A Coma and capped off the night with a killer version of How Soon Is Now. I was a bit surprised to hear him do Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want on one of the encores, and the whole night was a bit special as it was his 48th birthday and the crowd sang to him to get him out for the encore and he was getting presents passed up to him throughout the night.
I was skeptical about springing the $35 bucks they wanted for this show, but did it since the wife is such an old Smiths fanatic. But, in the end, it was a great show and may just have been close to worth it.
Forgot to dash off something about our last Saturday night spent show-hopping... started when I got off work around 10:30pm with an acoustic living room show in Uptown, where we revelled in the sounds of a few amateur Mountain Goats & Wolf Colonel worshippers, then a quick bike trip to the Church, a soon-to-be demolished underground noise venue in an abandoned iglésia where we took in the valleys-and-peaks static of Newport, and then onward to Memory Lanes (the old Stardust Lanes bowling alley made famous on Let's Bowl that is trying to reposition itself as a punk venue alá the Fireside), where we bopped to the Oh Sees, a new project of Coachwhips frontman Jon Dwyer. All in one sentence, no less.
~Rae
My ears are still ringing from this evening's jam session.
IT WAS A SOLD-OUT SHOW! HEARD THE ROAR OF THE CROWD! YOU CAN PICTURE THE (freak) SCENE!
Awesome Color opened for these old guys and kicked out some psychedelic raveups. I was real into the first couple songs but it got kinda repetitive. Still, if you are into unpretentious sixties-style guitar rock, you could do worse.
This was the second night of a two-night stand for the Dinosaurs, and I had heard nothing but bad things about the first night. Frankly, though, I thought they were on fire this evening. They kicked off with "Almost Ready" and ran through a healthy mix of both old and new. Sure, there wasn't much onstage banter (okay, none) and the guys didn't even look at each other (well, J didn't look at Lou or Murph), but they honestly seemed to be feeding off of each other quite a bit. The rhythm section was energetic from the get go, and while J started out with his standard stock-still-hair-in-the-face-mumbling-into-the-mic pose, after a while he started rocking a little bit too. The encore was "Just Like Heaven" into a furious "Lightning Bulb", and the crowd was left reeling from the ear-shattering rock music and gasping for breath. I could've stood to hear "Start Choppin", "Raisans", or "Crumble", but I wasn't too disappointed.
~Rae
We took a risk and checked out this much-buzzed about girl group from the UK. They were pretty much what I thought they would be-- costumes, choreographed hand movement, extremely catchy songwriting... the only aspect of the hype that I disagree with was their harmonizing-- no WAY can these ladies sing as well as classic girl groups. Still, it hardly matters when the melodies are as infectious as this. It's basically standard-issue indie pop playing dress up, which is fine with me. All in all, they put on a really fun live show, but I have no real urge to run out and pick up the record.
We showed up at 10:30pm for the show (which was billed as 'doors at 9pm') and were disappointed to discover that we had already missed the second band, Smoosh. I've never gotten the opportunity to hear this act, but I've heard a lot about them... c'est la vie.
~Rae
Oh dear, I feel I've neglected this. I must've gone to a show since that Pipettes affair... well, maybe not. I did miss out on last night's excellent Tortoise/Make Believe bill at the Cedar Cultural Center, but I wasn't too disappointed since I was able to take in a set by my friends in Hex in some South Minneapolis basement... they manage to sound just like the Melvins with a lineup of drums, viola, and tuba. Go figure.
~Rae
I ran into a friend on the street last night who talked me into spontaneously accompanying him to this show. It was all right. I guess I expected something a little more distinctive from ****ed Up-- I know a lot of people that are into them that aren't normally into hardcore. They're on Jade Tree, which isn't really associated with the genre as a label, they're from Canada, and they've got some ***** politics in their music, but honestly they were pretty straight ahead. It was pretty hard to understand the vocals anyway, maybe if I had been reading a lyric sheet during the show, I would've had a different impression. Still not that bad, though. Pandamonium is fun and has a few members that I know from way back from bands like the Goochers and Freeze Baby... anyway, tonight should be better-- Radio F'n Birdman!!!
~Rae
It bothers me that I couldn't say "*****" in the above post.
It's two days later and I'm still feeling the effects of this show. A little Early Times and a large bottle of Fat Tire made me feel like I was invincible at the time, but that is clearly not the case. Ohh, my aching neck.
Pearlene opened and they were not really my cup of tea. A little too much boogie in their organ-driven punk, replete with vintage guitars and tattooed & bouffanted backup singers.
Radio Birdman is o-o-old. It was hard to ignore how ancient they looked, especially Rob Younger (think Donovan at the end of The Last Crusade after sipping from the poorly chosen cup). Still, they rocked hard and it was hard not to get caught up in the wall-to-wall pogo-worthy setlist, especially the sublime stretch of "Burned My Eye"-"Murder City Nights"-"Maelstrom" and the set-closing "What Gives" into "Aloha Steve & Danno" along with an encore of "Til the End of the Day" and "New Race". These guys are three decades out from freshness, but they still play with an infectious passion that's impossible to resist.
~Rae
Caught these guys again last night and they are getting better all the time. Still no originals as far as I know but a great eclectic selection of covers including "Sweet Jane" and Alberta Hunter's "You Can't Tell the Diff'rence After Dark."
~Rae
Holy **** last night was a blistering rock & roll show. I almost have the urge to break this post out of my lil' live appreesh thread ghetto because I think that the seeds were sown for something you guys will be hearing about. Maybe I'll wait until I pick up the record. Anyway, Vampire Hands headlined a ridiculous lineup of Minneapolis' finest noise/punk/whatever bands in a tiny tiny venue to kick off their impending tour and celebrate the release of their new full-length Virgin Dust, American Lips. At least three of the bands on the bill could've filled up a larger venue than the 200's-pushing-it Big V's Saloon on St. Paul's Midway. Daughters of the Sun were the relative newcomers and played first. Very cool, trance-y, acid-damaged vibe along the lines of Acid Mothers Temple or bands of that ilk. Gay Beast filled the second slot and basically destroyed-- they've now incorporated tenor sax into their live show, and the sax/guitar interplay really snapped some necks. STNNNG played third and were also absolutely devastating. They closed their set with a new cover of a Signal to Trust song that blew me away. Vampire Hands were the dark orchestraters of the evening and ruled supreme over pretty much everyone. After three incredible opening sets, they raised the bar even further. You guys will know them (by their trail of... you'll know them). Psychedelic drugs are back in the midwest and this is their soundtrack. Awesome.
Spaces: Vampire Hands (http://www.myspace.com/vampirehands) STNNNG (http://www.stnnng.com) Gay Beast (http://www.myspace.com/gaybeast) DotS (http://www.myspace.com/daughtersofthesun) oh man.
nobody
09-16-2007, 06:51 PM
I'm listening to the Vampire Hands MySpace stuff right now...interesting. These guys got any actual CDs out yet?
Psychedelics, huh? Not sure I wanna drop acid anymore...maybe a little mushrooms.
I'm listening to the Vampire Hands MySpace stuff right now...interesting. These guys got any actual CDs out yet?
Yeah, 2 EPs and then the new full-length.
~Rae
This show came at the perfect time, considering I've probably listened to every one of Loudon's albums several times through in the last month in preparation for the comps I was putting together.
The opening act for this tour is Loudon's daughter with Suzy Roche, Lucy Wainwright Roche (a heretofore unknown musical Wainwright, to me!). She had an awkward charm-- evidently she quit her job as a second-grade teacher last year to pursue her music career, and at times, it seemed like she was interacting with the audience as if they were a classroom-- and a pretty, slightly airy voice. Her short set was enjoyable, although she has yet to follow in the footsteps of her half-siblings and create a fully-realized sound of her own.
Loudon played a set of decent length that was heavy on material from his new Strange Weirdos (music written for the film Knocked Up with Joe Henry). Most of it sounded good and it was interesting to hear the songs without full production or a backing band, especially the Henry-penned numbers. The catalog stuff was mostly his crowd-pleasing later work (lots of goofily humorous meditations on mortality and growing old). Highlights for me included "White Winos" (sans the intro that he did last time that seemed to make some pretty creepy insinuations about his own son), "Half Fist", and an impromptu honored request of "The Picture". Lucy joined him for a few songs (even singing some Kate McGarrigle parts, which I can only imagine is a weird arrangement for Loudon).
Overall, a very good show. I went with my father, which heightened both our appreciations of the concert, since a lot of Loudon's songs are about family relationships. If you're on the last leg of this tour, I'd recommend checking it out.
~Rae
The show was all right. Much mellower and over earlier than I had expected. I was knocked out by the contact high.
~Rae
Ohh, Jens. This show had such high expectations after the last time that he came through and it satisfied so completely. It wasn't quite the same all-Swedish all-girl backing band, but he did have horns (and strings!) and the set list was just about perfect. "A Postcard to Nina", "Maple Leaves", and "A Sweet Summer's Night on Hammer Hill" were pure giddiness, and the night ended with a cover of Paul Simon's "Call Me Al" (sans chorus- Jens explained "this is a silly song but the chorus is just too silly and I hate it") and a hypnotic, crowd-supported version of "Pocketful of Money" with a hundred or so people channelling Calvin Johnson over and over for what felt like ten minutes. So good!
~Rae
jonnyhambone
11-04-2007, 04:00 PM
^ Glad it was a good show! I was about to go see Jens but got sidetracked by wine, movies, and hangin' mellow...plus I knew I was going to see Richard Buckner at the Turf Club this Tues. I'll try to remember to post feedback on him...
Oh man, I had forgotten that that Buckner show was coming up! I'll see if I can make it. Maybe I can buy ya a beer or something if I do.
Last time I saw Richard Buckner was at the Cedar Cultural Center with Doug Gillard (and Eric Bachmann opening). That was quite a show. Hypnotic, one might say. I'm sure his bar shows are a horse of a different color.
~Rae
jonnyhambone
11-04-2007, 07:36 PM
tell ya' what...I'll have a green hat, either on or in my back pocket. I'd gladly say hi and have a beer...
a different beast - but your 'hypnotic' reference makes me think of a time I saw Will Oldham, playing as Palace, alone at a bar in Portland,OR. He sat with his back to the audience for much of the show but somehow, he remained totally engaged, and not only engaged, but he guided everyone through their evening - through extreme ups and downs, darks and lights, etc. Crazy show!
Hey Jonny, I was there. I looked for a green hat but didn't espy one. I was surprised at how similar the show was to the Cedar one. The steel guitar and more of an emphasis on acoustic guitars on Richard's part gave the sound a little bit of a different vibe, but his demeanor was pretty much the same. Were you there? What'd you think?
~Rae
jonnyhambone
11-10-2007, 10:00 AM
I was there...hadn't seen him before but really liked the show. Liked the looping of his guitar as he switched instruments/songs. It was kinda like a sorbet between courses and added some atmosphere. Plus pedal steel...always cool. I'd been telling my wife about how great his lyrics are but it was kinda hard to hear them clearly.
Yeah, he did the looping thing before, too.
So what's next on yr concert-going agenda? What should I be hip to? I just missed the Minnesota Orchestra doing Arvo Pärt this last week and it looks like I will miss the reunited Meat Puppets tonight...
~Rae
A coupla short capsules...
Last Friday night I shouted in a Minor Threat cover band as part of an all-covers show at my friend Andie's new show/art space. Other performers included Dolly Parton, DRI, ZZ Top, X, The Epoxies (fronted by an 8-year-old!), Lifter Puller, Rod Stewart, The Wipers, Flipper, Sun Ra, and my personal favorite, two drummers replicating the Max Roach/Buddy Rich record Rich vs. Roach.
Saturday afternoon was the fifth annual Lunch Show, annually featuring Signal to Trust and the STNNNG with a rotating third band (Aneuretical, Noise Quean Ant, and Shellac in years past) which this year was FT The Shadow Government. Fun as always! I ate some great vegan chili, made a gingerbread house, and got a cool this-show-only 7" with Signal and STNNNG covering each other on each side.
~Rae
A friend and I drove down to the former Gabe's Oasis to see this reformed Iowa power trio. So fun and boozy, just like I remember it. I didn't remember that I could pogo for that long. I know Stone will remember these guys. One of my favorite live bands, hands down.
~Rae
Rang in the new year with a couple of shows. First we dropped by Stasiu's to see my friend play bass in his band The Darkos (formerly The Donnie Darkos, uggh). It was tons of fun & he's a great guy but I can't hang with their sound. Very radio-ready, Against Me! type pop punk.
The real party was at Medusa with surf-punk kingpins The Mojo Spleens and my very dear friends Jose Bove. The latter is about to go on tour, so if you live in the path of their destruction, please check them out.
myspace.com/josebove (http://www.myspace.com/josebove)
Jan 2 2008 • Bloomington, Indiana
Jan 3 2008 • Columbus, Ohio
Jan 4 2008 • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Jan 5 2008 • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jan 6 2008 • Brooklyn, New York
Jan 8 2008 • Greensborough, North Carolina
Jan 9 2008 • Asheville, North Carolina
Jan 11 2008 • St. Louis, Missouri
Jan 12 2008 • Kansas City, Missouri
Jan 13 2008 • Iowa City, Iowa
My old roommates Eric & Andie both play drums, Jackie and Jonathan play noise guitars, and Tynan and Elyse play some circuit-bent keyboards. All are fantastic people and the music is great. I don't really know how to describe it... kinda rhythmic, grimy, good.
~Rae
nobody
01-01-2008, 06:51 PM
You got a venue for the St. Louis date? I don't see anything listed on the MySpace. But, considering its a Friday night, I may end up checking 'em out.
I don't know off the top of my head but I will consult and get back to you.
~Rae
jonnyhambone
09-17-2008, 07:27 PM
resurrect! yo.
I went out to a pretty great No Age show a few months ago...July I think. Lots of steppin' on looped and fuzzed-out guitar barrage pedals with the most blissful pop melodies laid over. No Age and Jay Reatard (who played the late show at the same spot that night but I was too tired for stickin' around...) both put out a perfect pop/punk mix that not many bands since maybe Husker Du and Wire have hit on in awhile.
btw...I'm going to see Wire at First Ave. on Oct. 17th and WovenHand on Oct. 23rd.
Thinking about driving to MegaFaun on Fri. Sept. 26th in Menomenie, WI...these guys have been playing as the Akron/Family house-band of late and were Bon Iver's band before he went solo last year. Neko Case is here tomorrow with Giant Sand opening...anyone seen her?...I'm debating this show at the moment.
Just saw Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet last night at the Guthrie Theatre. Really great band with Bela Fleck, Casey Dreissen, etc. She plays sorta traditional Appalacian-style bluegrass with alot of Schezuan Province traditional folk songs in the mix. Each member of the band takes the occasional solo that makes it worth the price of admission each time.
I was thinking about bumping this thread after I went to see Grinderman last week (Warren Ellis is a madman) but I had had had to do it for this one.
Superchunk was insanely great! My feet barely touched the floor throughout the entire set. So often, I've seen nostalgia shows that were fun but didn't move me (see: this summer's Pavement show) but I can't conceive of this band being any better in their prime. Hell, maybe this is their prime!
Times New Viking opened and they were okay. I was a little bummed that another touring band was brought into open this show (and it was odd that it was TNV, who just opened for Guided By Voices here about six weeks ago) instead of one of the legion of local bands that would've been a perfect pairing, but they weren't terrible. I expected them to be a little noisier but they were actually really crisp with propulsive drumming, some organ stuff, and razor-sharp guitar lines. The set seemed to get better with each song and ended on a high note.
Superchunk wildly exceeded any of my expectations. I can't even remember what they opened with but "Skip Steps 1 & 3" was what sent me into heaven, and the whole set was a sustained high from there. They hit all my favorite tracks on the new record ("My Gap Feels Weird", "Learned to Surf", "Crossed Wires", "Digging for Something") and ran through a cornucopia of catalog highlights like "Driveway to Driveway" and "The First Part". The encore was "Seed Toss" followed by "Everything at Once" and then an absolutely scorching cover of Hüsker Dü's "Something I Learned Today" into "Slack Mother****er". My only complaint is that they didn't play "Detroit Has a Skyline" (I almost couldn't believe that they didn't play it). They were just so tight and energetic the whole time... man, a show for the ages.
Here's a pic (you can see the back of my head in the front row-- exclamation points added for emphasis):
http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/2077/superchunkfirstave.jpg
~Rae
Just noticed the post above mine where jonny saw Jay Reatard (at the Entry?). RIP.
Also, I went to that Neko Case/Giant Sand show you mentioned, but in Duluth. It was grrreat.
~Rae
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