After falling for The Hold Steady about four years after it was cool to do so, I was terribly excited to go and see them live this past weekend. I’d never seen them before, due to a girlfriend’s birthday, the imminent Florida Bar Exam, and the simple fact that they rarely come down to Florida. So when they announced two nights (two!) at a smallish venue only a short drive from my house, I bought tickets for Saturday immediately, and after some internal debates (that’s a lie: “debates” would imply that there were points and counterpoints, and this would be patently untrue), I decided to get a Sunday ticket too. Who knows when they’ll be down here again, right? Right? You guys?!
There were some very noticeable differences between both shows. On Saturday, it was sold out, the (party) pit was absolutely crammed, it was incredibly sweaty, the crowd tossed a beach ball around for a while, and the atmosphere was amazing. On Sunday night, there were fewer people, it was easy to get a good spot near the front, and the crowd was a little more relaxed. The band probably noticed this: Sunday’s set featured a lot more deep cuts and non-album tracks. It was fun to hear ‘You Gotta Dance With Who You Came To The Dance With” and “Girls Like Status” and “Goin’ On A Hike”, even if only about six people in the house knew the latter. (I’m not one of the six, I’m sorry to report).
Considering many people find the band’s newest record disappointing, the songs from it were received very warmly. On Sunday, ‘Barely Breathing’ had everyone dancing while ‘We Can Get Together’ had everyone swooning. I’m still not sure what ‘A Slight Discomfort’ is about, but it does feature the word “succubae” which is pretty cool, and featured some killer drumming. The place was small enough, and the audience rapt enough, that a lot of times the intro riffs to songs would be obscured by cheering. This may be due to where we were standing, or just because people really adore this band.
I think it’s really cool that the band entirely changed their set over the two nights. Only the three singles from the new record were played both nights, meaning that I saw them play a total of 43 different songs over two shows. Massive kudos for shaking things up, boys!
One thing that was constant over the two nights, was the bloody-minded enthusiasm of the six gentlemen onstage. Again, I’d never seen them before, and it was everything I’d hoped for. Craig Finn is a joy to watch, and he dances the way I do, without all the self-consciousness that I have. As he often says, there is so much joy in what they do onstage, and it’s impossible to see them up close and personal and not feel moved. He thanked everyone for skipping the Lost finale. He introduced the band. He told us that he had been fined that day for smoking weed in his hotel room. Even if he’s starting to show his age on ‘Heaven is Whenever’, he’s still the cool older brother we all wish we had.
And those songs… holy crap. Being in the crowd when everyone’s shouting “Whoah woah” or some variation thereof is just such a fun experience. They didn’t play ‘Chips Ahoy!’ the first night, but did ‘Stay Positive’ and ‘Slapped Actress’ instead. And then, on Sunday, the familiar opening riffs of the love song about a man, a woman and a horse began and everyone went ape.
I’d say that Saturday was the better show, not just because they played more of my faves that night (‘Cattle and the Creeping Things’! ‘The Swish’! ‘Massive Nights’!) but also because I had friends with me on Saturday to share the glory, whereas I was a Larry Loner on Sunday. No matter. Both shows were fantastic – reminded me of how communal and triumphant and spectacularly fun live music can be. Come back soon, The Hold Steady.
Come back soon.
SATURDAY: Sweet Part of the City/Constructive Summer/The Swish/Magazines/Hurricane J/Stevie Nix/Multitude of Casualties/The Smidge/Cattle and the Creeping Things/Rock Problems/Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night/Lord I’m Discouraged/Our Whole Lives/Stay Positive/Sweet Payne/Southtown Girls/Stuck Between Stations/Your Little Hoodrat Friend/Massive Nights/Slapped Actress // Citrus/First Night/The Weekenders
SUNDAY: Positive Jam / Sequestered in Memphis / Navy Sheets / Banging Camp / Rock Problems / Ask Her For Adderall / Hot Soft Light / You Gotta Dance With Who You Came To The Dance With / Charlemagne in Sweatpants / Chips Ahoy! / Hurricane J / You Can Make Him Like You / Barely Breathing / On A Hike / Milk Crate Mosh / The Weekenders / Same Kooks / We Can Get Together / Most People Are DJs / A Slight Discomfort // Hornets! Hornets! / Girls Like Status / How a Resurrection Really Feels
We're not afraid / We have our faith
The best of an imperfect world
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists / Screaming Females
Tallahassee, Club Downunder
April 3, 2010
…But first, let me tell you about my journey to Tallahassee. It was a beautiful Saturday, I was listening in the car to Michael Palin read his Diaries, and I was just south of my old hometown, Gainesville, when suddenly my car started violently shuddering. Never a good sign, much less at 80 mph. Luckily, I was in the far left lane, so I was able to pull to the side of the Interstate and get out of the way. I’m a paranoid, worried driver at the best of times, and this was certainly not the best of times. I got out of the car, and found a spectacularly blown out front tire on the passenger side. Called AAA for assistance, and when they asked where I was, all I could think of was “I’m between the exits for Jai-Alai and the strip club”. I knew the area but only by its landmarks. The guy soon came and bravely replaced my tire, inches from cars whizzing by. When he was done, I hobbled up the interstate as fast as the crappy spare tire would allow, and made it to Gainesville, where it was replaced with a real one. I’m fortunate, I suppose, that it happened close to a town I knew my way around, which was not in the middle of nowhere. If it had occurred an hour further up the road, around Lake City, I’d have been in trouble. As was, I got to see a couple of old friends, roam around Target, and made it to Tallahassee only three hours behind schedule.
Anyway, on to the rock.
Screaming Females were up first, and I didn’t know anything about them other than that they had a great name. Sho’nuff, they’re led by a singer/guitarist named Marissa, who has long hair that covers her eyes and also she is great. Seriously, her guitar playing was really interesting, and the band were tight, and it was a terrific set. I’ll look them up, you should do the same.
Then came Shorty Award winning Ted Leo, who, along with his Pharmacists, has just released an excellent album called ‘The Brutalist Bricks’. They opened with ‘The Mighty Sparrow’, which, unlike its video, succumbed to the stupid laws of gravity, but only just. Cut to the chase: this band is on fire. When they were done, I felt like it had been a short set, but look at that list: they played 20 songs! And that’s just what I remember two days later. Throwing three singles into the first four songs might be a problem for some bands, but TL/Rx didn’t lose any momentum, and I’m happy to say, the crowd was really into it too – not always a given at Club Downunder. There’s not a lot to say about the performance: they ploughed through great song after great song, and I was struck by how hard Big Steve hits his drums. That guy means it.
I was surprised at how few songs from ‘Living with the Living’ came up, but not too saddened by the emphasis on the new album and ‘Shake the Sheets’. Everything I wanted to hear got played. ‘Bottled In Cork’, the highlight from ‘The Brutalist Bricks’, and one of Ted’s finest ever songs, sounds a lot more muscular live, and it was a goosebumps moment to see Ted, James and Marty Violence all harmonizing “I’m falling in love” as it sped to its conclusion. The only way that ‘Timorous Me’ could ever be improved would be for it to segue into another great song, and that’s what happened. During ‘Walking to Do’, Ted gave a shout-out to The Cowhaus (now the much less cool-sounding Engine Room), the scene of TL/Rx’s first Tallahassee show, many many moons ago. Everyone loved them – even the guy who heckled with “Play some songs!” and Ted stuck around afterwards to shake every hand and be in every photograph. If anyone ever tells you that Ted Leo isn’t the world’s nicest dude, slap them and call them a liar.
The Mighty Sparrow / Heart Problems /Me and Mia /Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone? / Where Was My Brain / I’m a Ghost / One Polaroid A Day / The Stick / Counting Down the Hours / Little Dawn / Even Heroes Have To Die / Bottled In Cork / Colleen / A Bottle of Buckie / Gimme the Wire/The High Party // Fisherman’s Blues / Timorous Me / Walking To Do /Biomusicology
Relish in your energy
Last year, I saw precisely one live gig. In the entire year. This is the fewest since I was eleven years old, and frankly I'm ashamed at how infrequently I made it out. 2010 will be different. To that end, last night I went to see the hotly-tipped new band Surfer Blood play at Park Ave CDs, which conveniently enough is a seven minute drive from my home. And yes, a four-song set counts as an entire gig, such is the lack of live music in my recent past. Though I had heard their name a few times recently, I hadn't really paid Surfer Blood any attention until their recent hot review on Pitchfork. It's amazing what wonders an 8.2 from that site can do for a new band.
So anyway, Surfer Blood are from West Palm Beach, and their being really quite good counteracts at least one terrible Florida band. They're all in their early 20s, but don't look a day over 18. My girlfriend taught English to 17 year olds two years ago, and they look older than the guys in the band. But if we learned anything from Aaliyah, it was that age ain't nothing but a numerical depiction of how many years a given individual or entity has been alive/around for.
Live, SB were a lot of fun. Though I've never been much of a Weezer fan, there's a nice nod to the Blue Album in most of Surfer Blood's songs, and that's okay with me. Of their four songs, the single 'Swim (To Reach The End)' got the most love from the crowd, with a nice - and not the first of the night - drums versus cowbell showdown. They also dedicated a song to the late Jay Reatard, which was sweet, and played another that shouted out David Lynch.
The band is playing a few shows in the UK next week, before returning for a big tour, including several shows at SXSW. Catch them if you can, but just make sure they get home before bedtime.
If this is my public, I'm ready for you
My little sister, who is very busy and important, went to see Colin MacIntyre last week, here's her review.
Colin MacIntyre
The Living Room, New York
October 6 2009
The curly haired Scotsman from the Isle of Mull delighted the audience at the Living Room in New York’s Lower East Side on Tuesday night. Playing a mix of songs from his Mull Historical Society days to his new album, ‘Island’, Colin’s sensational voice and amusing commentary in between songs entertained the audience for the hour long set.
Sitting solo on the stage, facing a dozen or so small round tables, Colin played two songs from his new album, ‘Island’ early on in the set: ‘Cape Wrath” and 'The Edge of Nearly'. Both are my favorites on the record, particularly because of the powerful violins which give each song an eerie complexion. That is what I love about Colin’s music. It’s hard to pinpoint, but there is something joyful and yet slightly haunting about it. His adaption of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s ‘Maps’ was a beautiful and touching acoustic piece. It truly tugged at the heart strings.
He played the next few songs with excitement and energy – stopping in-between to share some stories with the audience. He pulled out a music report card from his schooldays, in which the teacher wrote “Colin spends too much time showing off to ever make anything of himself” and sharing the inspiration for ‘Tree Scavengers’ – a trip to upstate New York where he felt as though turkeys were flying in the air. He was cheeky and charming, at one point mentioning, that he “really learn to play the guitar for this one” before starting one of his more difficult musical pieces.
But it was Colin’s performance of ‘Samuel Dempster RIP’ that was the most memorable part of the evening. Before he started playing, Colin explained that the song is about his great grandfather, a man who served in world War and never returned, or knew that his girlfriend was carrying his child, “the girl he’ll never know as his own”. It felt as though the entire room was moved almost to tears as he poignantly shared this tragic moment in his family’s history.
Colin closed the set on a high note with “You’re a star” – leaving the crowd head-bopping, fist pumping and grinning ear to ear. He even managed to squeeze in a Letterman gag mid-song when he sang, "TV hosts write their own epitaphs”. It was pretty amusing.
In summary, Colin is simply a brilliant musician. His beautifully written songs are moving, thoughtful and at times heartbreaking. He is tremendously talented and an absolute pleasure to watch. Thankfully, Colin mentioned that he married a New Yorker, so in his own words…he’ll be back soon.
- Anu Mathur
[download Colin MacIntyre - Samuel Dempster RIP]
He played 'Watching Xanadu'!
There was no sound
Like 90% of the bands who are big on the internet and not necessarily in real life (IRL, sorry), I was aware of Deerhunter without necessarily knowing anything about/by them. But last night they played, for free, walking distance from my house, so I went to check them out. It was in the same ballroom as the Cursive show a few years back, on the third floor of the Union building. First observation: Bradford Cox, the singer and guitarist looked like, as one concertgoer observed, he had been ravaged by consumption. The guy did not look healthy at all. Later he would explain that, indeed, he was quite unwell. No mind, the guys still made a sufficient racket. I must say: in the hour-or-so they played, there was maybe twenty-five minutes' worth of really good music, where they sounded ace. The majority of their set, though, was a mess of feedback, droned-out noise with a krautrock drumbeat keeping it going. You could see people in the crowd looking at each other, going "huh?". I guess there's something to be said for making music that defies expectations, that is different or avant-garde, but we only sporadically saw stuff that fit that category, such as on 'Calvary Scars', which they finished with. Otherwise, for the most part, ho and indeed hum.
You were a champion in their eyes
Gig of the year: Kanye West
Go 'head switch the style up
Glow in the Dark Tour: Kanye West, Rihanna, N*E*R*D, Lupe Fiasco
Tampa Ford Amphitheater
May 5, 2008
First things first.
A bumped-up start time does no favours for Lupe Fiasco, who is on at 6pm and playing to a quarter-filled enormodome. He gives it all he's got, but cutting off the track to let the audience sing choruses doesn't really work in this situation. Still, 'Kick Push', 'Go Go Gadget Flow' and 'I Gotcha' are all stone-cold stormers, and by the time he rounds out with 'Superstar' and 'Daydreamin', everyone's on his side.
Has it really been four years since 'Fly or Die'? Even an appearance from the Madden Brothers couldn't make that album not enjoyable. Now N*E*R*D have a third album due sometime soon, and Pharrell is still wearing the American flag. There are some new songs - one of which is called 'Spaz' - a crowd-surge, and 'Lapdance'. Also, there are two drummers and - ugh - a drum off. The set was tight, the new songs sounded pretty good, 'She Wants to Move' was great, but overall I didn't think they were more than 'pretty good'.
I admit it. I don't own any Rihanna albums. But I wish I did, because her short set - seven or eight songs, one costume change - was really good. No 'Shut Up and Drive', alas, but the rest of the hits. Finished with 'Umbrella', maybe you've heard that one before.
Kanye West made my hands glow. Seriously, at one point my glowstick exploded and my right hand was covered in shiny yellow glowstick juice, which though cool-looking was probably quite toxic, so I had to run to the bathrooms, thereby missing 'All Falls Down'. Straight up, this man is Mr. Main Event (sorry, this guy). Dude puts on a SHOW. With video screens, a talking spaceship, a narrative (!), pyro, a pseudo-cover of 'Don't Stop Believin', did I mention that the talking spaceship flirts with Kanye, some weird lady-things from Jim Henson's studios, a gold belly dancer, this was not just seeing some band play in a smoky bar. Also, he played some songs.
It's been a long time since I've been to a big-scale, outdoors show. I elected to see Kanye instead of Radiohead at the same venue the following night (couldn't afford to go to both). I'm glad I made the choice I did - nothing against Radiohead, but I've seen them before, and doubt they'd have had me dancing like a twat for ninety-five minutes. Somebody give this man a medal.
Good Morning / I Wonder / Heard 'Em Say / Through the Wire / Champion / Get 'Em High / Diamonds from Sierra Leone / Can't Tell Me Nothing / Flashing Lights / Spaceship / All Falls Down / Gold Digger / Good Life / Jesus Walks / Hey Mama / Don’t Stop Believin’ / Stronger / Homecoming / Touch the Sky
[download Kanye West - Champion (live on SNL)]
[download Kanye West - Everything I Am/Freestyle (live on SNL)]
[Kanye West myspace / official]
[Rihanna myspace / official]
[N*E*R*D myspace / official]
[Lupe Fiasco myspace / official]
A bright and haunted age
British Sea Power / Film School
Jacksonville Jack Rabbits
April 19, 2008
"Come on, allons-y, let's go"
Somethings never change. It's been six years since I last saw British Sea Power, and they still look more like an expedition than a rock band. Hamilton's shirt was ripped so much it looked like he'd been to the Arctic Circle and back this very day. Now, though, they're augmented by a viola player (whose look owes a lot to the Lady of Shalott) and a keyboardist who didn't get knocked unconscious which was a plus.
"There's things that we all need to navigate"
Somethings do change. In 2002, I was terrified by the brothers' Demon Headmaster stare. Now, because they have a more polished new record out, they're a little more comfortable on stage. Still very little onstage chitchat, although at one point Noble mentioned Bill and Ben, which was cute. Primary impression of the gig: British Sea Power really fucking rock. I guess the album title is a hint, but oh my. I was surprised at how heavy they were, maybe because I still think of them as the awkward weirdos they were when they first started. BSP in 2008 are polished, seamless and loud as aw'hell. 'Canvey Island' lost a bit, I thought, under walls of guitars.
Some have criticized them for not being as spastic and mental as the olden days, but you can't expect a band to be young men forever. I would've liked to have seen 'Remember Me' in there, though.
"Lakes are forming on the pockets of your brain"
Highlights? 'Atom' and its shouts of "I just don't get it!" (a common reaction to molecular physics) was thankfully stripped of its extra intro. Viola and trumpet being heard above the racket for 'The Great Skua'. The double whammy of my two fave BSP songs, 'True Adventures' and 'No Lucifer' was pretty great. They finished, as is their way, with a 30 minute+ freakout that most of the audience left during, and was really loud, and saw Noble come into the crowd, and some gymnastics, and various guests, and lots of fingers-in-ears. It was okay, but clearly looked more fun for the band than for the crowd.
lights out for darker skies / atom / oh larsen b / down on the ground / how will i ever find my way home? / waving flags / the great skua / spirit of st louis / a trip out / canvey island / true adventures / no lucifer / carrion / a rock in
Earlier, San Francisco's Film School played a very impressive set that made me wish I'd noticed their album 'Hideout' last year. Lots of reverb, heavy MBV influence, nice tempo shifts, an attractive bass player (named Lorelei? really?) and a guitar player with a sense for showmanship. I don't know how much this would necessarily be captured when listening to their CD, but if you get a chance, go and see them play live.
Worth making a 150 mile round trip for, the weekend before law school finals start? Fuck yeah!
[download British Sea Power - True Adventures]
[British Sea Power - official / myspace]
[Film School - official / myspace]
My yarns will keep me warm
Kimya Dawson
March 21, 2008
Kimya Dawson means business. On her massive current tour, she's playing NINE shows in the state of Florida. As I've often lamented on these pages, touring bands rarely play any shows here. And she's doing nine? This is a woman who's just appeared on a number one album, for the love of Pete! Lady sure is dedicated.
Now, many years ago I caught the Moldy Peaches at the Reading Festival, and even among my circle of friends, they really divided opinion. Some of us thought their show charming, silly and fun, while others grew bored, nauseous and borderline sociopathic at what they saw as overbearing precious people in rabbit suits playing songs about shit and piss. Seriously, my friend John would've killed Adam or Kimya if he saw them.
Since then, Kimya has put out a few solo records, which have moments of real darkness and sadness - 'The Beer' and 'Underground' are particularly intense at the show - as well as a kids album and various other projects. The set draws from many different places - no Moldy Peaches songs, though - and the audience was politely receptive the whole time, but it was clear that 99% of everyone - myself included - only really knew the 'Juno' songs. The show stayed on the right side of the charming vs. nauseating thin line - plenty of stories and jokes from the performer, she took requests only from people who raised their hands first, often giggling mid-song, and having the Paul Baribeau - as mentioned on 'Tire Swing' - came along to sing along on 'Tire Swing'.
Things went a little off-beat, though, when she invited "interpretive dancers" for one song toward the end. One girl kept opening and closing a towel. But by the finale, an almost singalong for 'Loose Lips', people were on their feet, and dancing and it was fun without feeling too cutesy. I don't know that I'd pay to see her play, but for free, at a cool outdoors amphitheater, it was a fun way to spend a Friday night.
[download Kimya Dawson - The Beer]
[Kimya Dawson myspace / official site]
What's the use in making the bed?
Black Kids
Gainesville Common Grounds
November 27, 2007
It's nice that Black Kids are getting so much exposure. They're from Jacksonville, about two hours away from here, and so it means that my housemate and other friends know the guys from the band. It also means that at the end of their set, people were shouting "DUUUVAAAL!" at them, which you have to be from Florida to understand. After giving the world Limp Bizkit, it's nice to have something a little more credible to call our local band.
The downside of the massive hype machine already behind them is that they only have, like, ten songs, and so it's too soon to speak of them as the next saviours of music. Other people can debate the hype all they want. It's weird, though, that the band has played more shows in New York than in Florida (outside of Jacksonville), and next week have like six London dates lined up. Remember, they have ten songs.
But ignoring all that, we went to check 'em on Tuesday and they were pretty solid. Not spectacular, but really good. The band knows how to get people dancing, recalling in parts The Cure (Reggie has a Smith-like voice) and the Killers, with their twin synth onslaught. Also, if UK readers remember the band Younger Younger 28s, there's a touch of them in there too. I never, ever thought I'd bring up YY28s on this website. Just the two girls, one bloke approach on vocals, that's about it.
They opened really well and finished really well, with a bit of a lull in the middle. What are these guys? 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not'? (I've been meaning to make that joke ever since the show a few nights ago).
People only know four of their songs, and they threw out the best known, 'I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You' very early, but others like 'Hurricane Jane' and the last one they played show that they've got some good ideas under that Afro. If you see them, expect nothing more than a good dance and you'll be golden. Also, throw shapes!
[download the 'Wizard of Ahhs' EP from their official site]
Thanks to Sarah for the pic - see her full set on Flickr.
Wouldn't have it any other way
Less Than Jake/Pepper
Gainesville Flavet Field
November 12, 2007
Not long ago, my housemate and I were talking about the band Bloodhound Gang, and about how their brand of juvenile, aimed-at-high-schoolers-and-frat-guys music is inoffensive enough, but are they really going to still play the same songs when they're in their 40s? When dudes are a lot older than their audience, and are singing about sex and drugs and booze, it gets a little embarrassing. Enter the evocatively-named Pepper, a band from Hawaii, who know their audience very well, and accordingly play a really dull brand of lightweight ska-rock which all sounds the same, and only talk about how they love getting drunk/high and getting girls to take their tops off and such. Also, they had a song called 'Dirty Hot Sex' (sample lyric: "get down on your knees, and don't forget the balls"). Maybe it's because, at 24, I was older than most of the people in the audience (it was a free show at a college campus), but I just didn't like it at all. Nicest thing to say about Pepper? One dude looked like the main trapper (on the right) from 'Cannibal: The Musical'.
Less Than Jake are pretty juvenile, too - they get people to make out on stage, talk about drinking an awful lot - but at least they know how to have fun. Again, I only vaguely know a couple of their songs and went along because it was free and close to my house and some friends were going, but I had a good time. I didn't quite get the skanking right - my elbows weren't quite hitting my knees - but it was fun regardless. They mentioned a few times that they are from Gainesville, and how they haven't played on the UF campus in twelve years. They went down very well, but like Tom Petty or Chris Leak, they could shit in a trombone and people in Gainesville would go nuts. They threw out lots of t-shirts and other merch from the stage, which is cool I suppose, and they finished, of course, with a massive singalong to their most a propos jam. A nice way to not study on a Monday night, don't know if I'd have gone if it had required any effort on my part, but certainly check them out if you're at a festival and there are no conflicts with bands you'd rather see.
[download Less Than Jake - Gainesville Rock City]
Merry Little Fancy Things
Caribou/Born Ruffians
Gainesville Common Grounds
October 13, 2007
There are three of them, they all look about fifteen years old, and from what little we caught of them the other night, Canadian trio Born Ruffians are pretty damn good. Before their last song, someone shouted a request, and the drummer said "We were going to play a different song, but it blows our mind that people know our songs in Florida, so we'd be stupid not to play what you asked for" and I thought that was very sweet. They play songs chock full of energy, with hand-claps and whoo-whoos and were six layers of fun. I even bought the CD! They played a song called 'This Sentence Will Ruin/Save Your Life', which was especially ace. Listen to a whole live set of theirs here and look out for an album early next year.
Dan Snaith, better known as Caribou, has some trippy visuals, and more importantly, two drumkits! Opening with 'Sandy' from his much-loved new record 'Andorra' [buy it], the band suffered from awful sound problems for the whole show. All of them at different times tried to get different levels adjusted, and the result was that vocals were very low and drums (two sets, remember) were really high in the mix. It was still all very enjoyable though - a little harder than on record. Lots of dancing, a couple of Manitoba tracks ('Crayon'!) and a brief encore. I'm not good with his song titles, so I can't give much more of a tracklisting, unfortunately. 'Melody Day' had the most recognition from the audience, of course, and saw more dancing. All in all, a good set but definitely hampered by poor levels.
Carried in the arms of cheerleaders
The National / The Rosebuds / Doveman
Orlando Social
September 10th, 2007
The first thing that Matt Barringer says is “This is cosy”, before America’s The National kick off with ‘Start A War’, a relatively gentle song from their wonderful and relatively gentle latest record ‘Boxer’. He’s right, it is cosy. The Social is an unfeasibly small place to be catching this band – it’s a sell-out but there’s only about 400 people here. Compare to the far bigger places that they’re playing in other parts of the world, including two nights at Shepherd’s Bush in London, and you can see how special this setting was.
In the live setting, the band really beefs up the ‘Boxer’ tracks – ‘Start a War’ rolls from its gentle beginning to a huge noisy climax, making it a great opener. ‘Squalor Victoria’, ‘Fake Empire’, and an accordion-assisted ‘Slow Show’ are all immense. Some of the album’s subtleties are lost to this heavier sound, which is a shame, but it’s very enjoyable all the same. In a place this small, the sound of the violin carries really well, so that nuance comes across nicely, especially on ‘Baby, We’ll Be Fine’, one of a handful of ‘Alligator’ songs. Matt’s deep, deep voice carries the slower songs, like ‘Daughters of the Soho Riots’ and ‘Racing Like A Pro’ and, to make the point yet again, the small venue suits those songs really well.
He has a really nervous, self-conscious stage presence, clinging to his all-white mic stand for most of the evening. He doesn’t seem too at ease talking to the audience, so chat is limited. Before ‘Mr. November’, we get “This song is about baseball… It isn’t really”. That song, with its sprawling lyrics about the English and cheerleaders and the great white hope, gets the most energy from both crowd and band, with Matt keeled over screaming the chorus. They don’t have any songs like that on ‘Boxer’, so it’s nice to hear how far they’ve come.
start a war / mistaken for strangers / secret meeting / slow show / brainy / baby, we'll be fine / all the wine / squalor victoria / racing like a pro / apartment story / daughters of the soho riots / abel / fake empire / about today... green gloves / mr. november.
Earlier in the evening, North Carolina’s The Rosebuds proved to be more than just an allegory to lost youth, by turning in an energetic set which had the crowd clapping and nodding. Nothing remarkable, but they did the job as far as support bands go. Unlike Doveman, who looked very sad while playing. His songs are better suited to smoky late night establishments, and this setting didn’t fit him too well. Most of them sounded pretty alike, with only the last song picking things up a bit. I’d be interested to hear his upcoming second record, but this wasn’t too hot of a set.
[download The National - Apartment Story (live)] [buy 'Boxer']
[download The Rosebuds - Get Up, Get Out] [buy 'Night of the Furies']
[download Doveman - Sunrise Medley] [pre-order 'With My Left Hand I Raise the Dead']
Live vault: Maximo Park in Edinburgh (2007)
"We are Maximo Park, there's very little doubt in our minds about that..."
Here are six songs from a live session the Park did recently for XFM Scotland. I couldn't be bothered to rip the whole gig, sorry. I've never seen them live, but the songs sound really similar to their studio counterparts, which makes them seem less interesting. Although, I imagine the live Maximo experience is more about the energy and the jumping. I'd have loved to have caught their recent shows with Art Brut (speaking of, Eddie's tour diary is back).
Anyway, here are some songs from Maximo Park - give 'em a spin. Maybe, just maybe, this is the last time I'll post 'Apply Some Pressure' for a while.
[download Maximo Park - Graffiti (live in Edinburgh)]
[download Maximo Park - Girls Who Play Guitars (live in Edinburgh)]
[download Maximo Park - The Unshockable (live in Edinburgh)]
[download Maximo Park - Our Velocity (live in Edinburgh)]
[download Maximo Park - Russian Literature (live in Edinburgh)]
[download Maximo Park - Apply Some Pressure (live in Edinburgh)]
[buy 'Our Earthly Pleasures']
With all your power, what would you do
Hello people who came here after reading today's Guardian shout-out. How's it going?
This might be the last post regarding last week's Flaming Lips extravaganza. A bootleg of the show is floating around on the torrent sites (cough) so check it out if you're keen. I've put up 'Yeah Yeah Yeah Song' because it was the set highlight. At the beginning, there's a few minutes of Wayne talking about politics. It'd be annoying if we wasn't so endearing (there's that word again).
Also, thanks to Alissa Strother for these pictures from Sunday - click 'em to see 'em full sized.
[download The Flaming Lips - Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (Live in Gainesville)]
All of your friends are standing in line
Hours after a rain storm the size of Belgium hit Gainesville, a second storm - more metaphorical in character - returned the favour. More on that later.
As I said last week, I was pretty excited - stoked, in the parlance of our times - to see the Flaming Lips. About four thousand people were, too - a great turnout for a free show. Considering it was a free, open-air show, the bands had to contend with playing in front of mostly people who didn't know their songs. No matter.
The Rapture went for a lean set - no room for the more spaced-out noodling tracks from 'Echoes', preferring the more instant, accessible tunes. Pretty much every song I wanted to hear was in there - 'Pieces of the People We Love', 'Sister Savior', 'Killing', 'W.A.Y.U.H.', 'Heaven', 'Get Myself Into It'... Luke kept doing that thing where he shoots the audience with his guitars, but the crowd interaction was pretty limited. Still, people were dancing, and their set worked in the glorious sunshine very well.
The downside with seeing the Flaming Lips is that their stage set-up takes the best part of an hour. Maybe they were just killing time, waiting for it to get dark, because the light show would've been much less effective otherwise. Any question about whether the long wait was worth it was quickly answered as Wayne came out in his giant hamsterball and rode over everyone like a human manifestation of joy and indomitable spirit.
As I suggested the other day, it's really hard to write about the Lips live experience without sounding like a twat. It doesn't matter that they only play ten songs. It doesn't matter that it gets really cold. It doesn't matter that the prevailing winds are blowing all the balloons and streamers behind the stage. It doesn't matter that most of the projections were the same as they've been for at least five years. It certainly didn't matter that, as I said, most people weren't familiar with the tunes.
...because the Lips are so fucking endearing. Wayne is always happy to be playing - he's genuinely happy to be playing a free gig, he's genuinely happy that his nephew's band played earlier in the evening, he's genuinely happy to be here. There are girls in alien suits on one side, dudes in Santa Claus suits on the other. One guitar has a mobile phone stuck to it, the other has an iPod and two necks. There are lots of balloons, one of which is a beast, finger puppets, penguins, singalongs, anti-Bush tirades, hands-in-the-air-moments, and the sentence "I was worried that the lady on stilts might get her abdomen sliced off by the laser"... Only a monkey could have made this show better.
I've never been too hot on any of their albums individually, so it's always great to see that the live show captures their best songs. Oh, and 'YYY Song' was the best of the night - made me appreciate it a lot more than on wax, so there.
Go and see them before you die - you won't regret it.
Race for the Prize, (Instrumental), Free Radicals, Fight Test, Yoshimi..., Yeah Yeah Yeah Song, Vein Of Stars, Waitin' for a Superman, She Don't Use Jelly, Do You Realize??
[download The Flaming Lips - Yeah Yeah Yeah Song]
Pics by Rafael Rodriguez
I guess I'm something of a ne'er-do-well
The Decemberists
Orlando Hard Rock Live
April 8th, 2007
I haven't made up my mind about last night's gig yet. I don't know if it's just little things that annoyed me about the environment or the band.
Things that were ace:
Sons and Daughters - with hurdy-gurdy and mass singing in the round. Fantastic.
Engine Driver - of course
Mariner's Revenge Song - now back to stay, with a ridiculous new prop.
Crane Wife 1 but not 2 - good choice
Bachelor and the Bride - just because
Colin's chatter - that one's a given
Jenny's balloon-animal-hat
Things that weren't ace:
-Opening with 'Oceanside', a song that maybe five people knew. Similarly, encoring with a Brian Eno cover. Polite hand-clapping and little else from the audience.
-'16 Military Wives' and 'Perfect Crime' lasting about ten minutes each because of extended singalong/dance contest respectively. Entertaining, sure, but I couldn't help but thinking "they could be playing something else now".
-Big venue - maybe I'm just spoilt from seeing them in small places before, but it rarely felt like the whole crowd was behind it.
-Heavy reliance on 'Crane Wife' - I guess that's to be expected. But I could really live happily without seeing 'Shankhill Butchers' or 'Perfect Crime' again. One song each off the first two records is a shame, though.
-There were only five of them - what happened to Lisa? Though it was nice to see Chris Funk playing violin at the end of 'You'll Not Feel the Drowning'.
Maybe it's just because the last couple of times I saw them they were tremendous, and since then they've put out a record that I only like half of. But I still like them more than these guys do.
Oceanside, July July!, The Bachelor and the Bride, The Engine Driver, The Island, The Crane Wife 1, Yankee Bayonet, 16 Military Wives, Shankhill Butchers, O Valencia, Perfect Crime, Sons and Daughters... I'll Come Running (To Tie Your Shoe), The Mariner's Revenge Song
Here's the song they opened with, in case you don't have it. And video of a song they didn't play.
[download The Decemberists - Oceanside]
Slide, slide, slide down the waterslide
I'm still angry about Epic Movie. To calm me down, I watched 'Kicking and Screaming' (the good one, not the rubbish one) and the quotations from it will be circulating for a while. I also watched this Chris Rock video repeatedly. It helped take away the pain.
Oh yeah, last Sunday I saw Yo La Tengo at the Moon in Tallahassee. Their name means "I have it" and they sure do. I'm not sure what it is, though. They've been around since the Korean War, and I only really know their newest record - which is 99cents cheaper from the merch desk than "air quotes Best Buy" according to Ira - and so there were vast swathes of the gig where I was a little underwhelmed. Also, there are songs like today's download, which are very very very long and grated after a while. In their defense, they played for two hours, a couple of encores, some covers, and the part in the middle where they played 'The Weakest Part', 'Beanbag Chair' and 'Mr Tough' was smooth-ass perfection. Good show, I just wish I knew more songs, then I'd have got into it more.
[download Yo La Tengo - Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind]
It's the chance of a lifetime
The Rapture / Under the Influence of Giants
Tallahassee Beta Bar
January 26, 2007
Who are Under the Influence of Giants? Or UTIOG? I still don't really know. They're on a major, so perhaps I should. Jimmy Kimmel tells me they're huge on iTunes and myspace. The consistently entertaining but rarely useful 'moods' function on AMG says they're quirky, amiable, trashy and indulgent, and ideal for a girl's night out. Not sure what any of that means. They played pleasant enough rock n' roll with some funk basslines (bass player looked like a badass, btw) but all the songs sure did sound the same. Their singer, Aaron, wore a big coat, paced around a lot and gave off a Johnny Borrell vibe which kind of bugged me. Their last two songs were easily their best, and the last one especially was really heavy and dynamic and would really have made a great set-opener. So-so band, shit band name.
What you gonna do? What you gonna do? When The Rapture comes for you? Maybe they could put that on a t-shirt. One thing that can be said about the Brooklyn foursome - they don't mess around. All bangers. No slow jams. Lots of energy. Mostly songs off 'Echoes'. Call and response for 'Sister Savior' and 'Get Myself Into It'. Old-school rave vibes through 'Killing' and 'Don Go Do It'. Luke Jenner playing with his back to the crowd on set-highlight 'Pieces of the People We Love', and throwing dance moves on 'W.A.Y.U.H.' And of course, as that delayed guitar hits the start of 'House of Jealous Lovers', everyone goes ape. It was a very fun set, but the guitar was often way too high in the mix, and sounded muddy. Plus, I realized that a lot of their songs sound the same. So if you didn't know any of them coming into the gig, you'd probably have been quite bored after three songs. But as a fan, I enjoyed it a lot, and as they finished with 'Olio' and the house lights came up, and we all realized quite how much sweat we'd lost, it was all worth it.
Today's download was all over the net a few months ago, but because I can't find it active anywhere else at the moment, here you go. It's essential.
[download The Rapture - Whoo! Alright! Yeah! Uh Huh! (Simian Mobile Disco Remix)]
