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[sean]

hai guys i saw efterklang lawlz

lkasdujflaskjdf

I swear, these guys need to come to the U.S. now.

[feh]

I don't get to many shows these days, but when I do I make it a good one. Last show I got to see was one of two Robert Pollard shows he did in 2007 (Dec. 1 at Southgate House). Blew my mind. He put together a band that had one practice to learn two albums worth of new material, plus his older material and a few older Guided by Voices classics. They tore the place up.

I also got to go to his 50th birthday party in October, and he played about 6 songs with an impromptu GbV reunion of random members of various previous incarnations of the band. Doug Gillard, Nate Farley, Jim MacPherson were up there. I think it was Kevin Fennel on bass. Once in a lifetime experience, to say the least.

[doombilly]

Last Night:
Yayyyy. I finally got to see the Meat Puppets. It is so good to see (albeit grizzled) Chris Kirkwood out of the slammer/rehab etc... He was quite the energetic bass playinz last night. The only shortcoming was the fact that they were opening for some band called Built to Spill who I guess are some kind of big deal. But you know, they weren't the fucking Meat Puppets. And Meat Puppets rocked...in a southwestern~countrified~punk rock sort of way.

[Ishotdanieljohnston]

Hey, don't you be bitchin on Built to Spill! Well I'm one angry fucking camper tonight, beirut fucking cancelled on my ass! He informed the venue two hours before the show. FUCK. Cat Power on Thursday better goddamn make up for this.

[doombilly]

Or else you'll what?
heh

nm, if you are excited about seeing Cat Power...
Here's hoping that works out ok. BTS were ok. They need 10 more guitar players in the band though. 

[karl gambolputty...]

Hey, don't you be bitchin on Built to Spill! Well I'm one angry fucking camper tonight, beirut fucking cancelled on my ass! He informed the venue two hours before the show. FUCK. Cat Power on Thursday better goddamn make up for this.

I don't think you missed out on much with Beirut.  They were pretty underwhelming when I saw them.  They had a metric fuckton of people onstage, all playing over each other, it was a mess.  Zach Whatsisface was pretty great though, the dude can sing.

Cat Power will more than make up for it

[TheFuriousWombat]

I'm seeing Frog Eyes tonight in the converted garage/concert venue type thing here on campus. I've heard mixed opinions about 'em as a live band. Anyone know what I should expect? Thoughts to follow, I guess.

[Inlander]

I was disappointed about Beirut, but I don't think it's fair to be angry about it. I mean, according to the venue's website, dude had a throat infection and was told by a doctor not to perform. What do you want him to do? Unless he actually went and rubbed bacteria onto his tonsils just because he's so overwhelmed by ennui that he can only get his kicks out of sabotaging his own shows and pissing off his fans, there doesn't seem to be much to be angry about. Unless you're angry at the infection itself, I guess.

I've been to a couple of shows in the last few days. Iron & Wine was disappointing : great venue, great musicians, great songs - but too much long-winded playing that sounded like guys jamming. And too heavy a focus on the new songs. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the new songs, and I'd hate to be one of those guys who insists that a musician live in the past, but when the last song of the set (excluding the encore) was a simply stunning version of "Upwards Over the Mountain", arranged for the whole band and played in what we might call the "Shepherd's Dog style", it made me really yearn to hear more of his old stuff transformed in that way. Oh well.

Jens Lekman on Monday night, however, was something else entirely. What a gig. I've been to a few pretty awesome gigs this year, and this one was right up there. It was the third time I've seen him perform, and probably the best (although the second doesn't really count, as he was losing his voice). He had a full band up there with him, including a cellist and a violinist, and it was just wonderful to hear tracks like "Maple Leaves" and "Black Cab" played by so well by real actual musicians (although he had his usual backing tracks too, they complemented and filled out the sound, rather than dominating it). I've been a little underwhelmed by his most recent album so far, but I'm going to have to revisit it now - it was one of those gigs that made me hear songs I'd otherwise dismissed in a new and revelatory light.

[FireAarro]

thanks for talking up the Mae Shi kari, i'm seeing them thursday night.

went to tokyopoliceclub for the 2nd time last night, it was okay. they played better than when i saw them in the summer, but the crowd wasn't as good and this show was outside.

The Mae Shi are pretty much my favourite band. It's funny you mention "without the sermon" though, their new singer is Christian and so are all the lyrics off their latest album. I don't mind it too much though. Quote Jeff the guitarist "A lot of people think we are a Christian band. We get criticized for being dogmatic, but we aren't dogmatic at all".

Jens Lekman! I was gonna see him on Monday but underage+tickets sold out. My friend's sister's playing 'cello in his band, he was playing violin before uni started. I hope I can see him soon.

[Inlander]

Well if he moves out here permanently, you'll have a pretty good chance!

P.S.: your friend's sister played very well.

[FireAarro]

Thanks, I'll let her know

My friend said Jens might only be staying here for the year, and might be taking a break sometime... hopefully those aren't all true.

[Beastmouth]

I saw Jonathan Richman a couple weeks ago, just him with a looper and a classical guitar and a drummer.  It was utterly fantastic, and then after the show I talked to him, and I think maybe he might be from this planet

[DMart]

I was disappointed about Beirut, but I don't think it's fair to be angry about it.....

I've been to a couple of shows in the last few days. Iron & Wine was disappointing ...

Yeah, Beirut cancelling kinda sucked - I was so amped for it - and I definitely agree on the Iron & Wine thing. I was hoping for a lot more of the early stuff - besides, acoustic instruments would have suited his attire much better than the SG he was playing for most of the show.

I saw CW Stoneking the other week too - truly entertaining. I wouldn't go out of my way to listen to his material very often (actually I'd never intentionally listened to any of it prior to going to see him), but I'm damn glad I went.

And 'plus one' (har har) for Okkervil River being excellent live.

[TheFuriousWombat]

Frog eyes was fairly excellent. The two opening bands were pretty local (from SUNY Purchase I believe). The first was fairly forgettable but the second, 'In the Distance: A Light!' was excellent (an extremely eccentric front man with awesome vocals and tons of energy). Obviously Frog Eyes and related bands were an influence on the vocals. Really raucous, energetic, longish songs. Well worth checking out (although the myspace songs aren't quite as good as the live set was and have less instrumentation in some cases). Take a listen: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=80738420 The song 'The Man with the Frozen Arm' is particularly good.

Frog Eyes kicked ass. All their songs were extended versions of what's on their albums, they were incredibly energetic, played a new, awesome song, and ended with a 15 minute rendition of 'Bushels' which was absolutely killer. Carey Mercer is also one of the funniest people I've encountered on stage. His between song banter was hilarious and he was incredibly friendly after the show. Although I've heard mixed things about Frog Eyes as a live band, I thought the performance was seriously great. I missed out on what looked like an awesome experimental music/video/slide performance to see this show and I was worried that I would be let down but I got immediately taken in by the energy of the band and they managed to sustain it over long songs and for the entire set.

[Ishotdanieljohnston]

So I went to Cat Power last night, and... total surprise, Mick Turner and Jim White opened for her. Dirty Three are my favourite Australian band so you can imagine how I felt when I turned round from the bar at the forum to see them both up their. Man, Jim White is just incredible, I think everyone in the crowd was just totally transfixed by him, his left and right arm appeared to belong to seperate bodies, doing their completely own thing and just flying all over the place. Incredible. Mick, of course, was great as well and man cn he loop like a mother fucker, building and building these amazing Mogwai like soundscapes. I bought their new album after the show and am listening now.

Anyway, Cat Power herself. I'd heard from people that she was really unenthusiastic live and quite a selfish performer, if this was ever true, boy has she changed. There was just o much energy in her and such stage presence. Her band with Jim White in tow was fantastic. She wasn't bogged downby a piano or guitar or anything and just danced around thes stage. The sound was pretty badly mixed though and much of her singing was drowned out by the guitar. At the end of the show she insisted the house lights be turned on ad just took a minute to stand there and admire her audience, at which point she handed me a flower  , which made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.She really just didn't want to leave the stge at the end she just kept hanging round after the band was gone making silly voices and prancing around, having fun with the audience. What a woman.

[pilsner]

So, Iron Maiden last night in NJ was amazing.  The 8 foot tall Eddie from the future with Terminator gun, fireworks and flames, and the fact that Dickinson still has a hell of a voice combined for maximum fun in an evening where they performed most of the old favorites including Fear of the Dark, Run to the Hills, The Number of the Beast, Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, and Can I Play With Madness.  They also announced a June 15 show at MSG.

[FireAarro]

i saw the mae shi 3 times in the past two days, and i'm seeing them again tomorrow or saturday.

new favorite band? maybe.

one of us... one of us...

[valley_parade]

DKM/Everybody Out/Big D & The Kids Table (afternoon show)

Everybody Out: Riotous fun. English punk ahoy!
B+ would see again! Attempted to buy a t-shirt, but they were sold out.

Big D: Uninspiring, really. They played two covers, and those were probably the best tracks.
D+ Booooooo.

Dropkick: I'll get back to this. See the later review.

Dropkick/Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (night show)

Ted Leo: The set was REALLY high energy, but unfortunately the crowd was made of mostly drunken dudebros who were screaming about how bad Ted Leo is. At one point, Ted started arguing with them. I loved it, but I think I was the only one there that did, sadly. I ended up leaving the general area before the last two songs (they closed with an amazing Stiff Little Fingers cover) because I could not stand the dudebros.
A- Great show, but the crowd wasn't into it. *sigh*

I hate to say it, but I guess Dropkick Murphys are too big, or rather, the fanbase totally sucks now. I almost don't want to go next March to see them. I mean honestly, the pits were a mix of drunken frat-boy dudebros, 12 year old girls, and thirtysomethings who think they're still hip. I'm sad. I long for the good ol' days when they were rocking tiny clubs (even though I wasn't a huge fan back then?).

Both of their sets were wicked fun, though. I really enjoyed the shows...just not the crowd.
B+ It's frigging Dropkick Murphys on St. Patty's weekend. You should experience it at least once. Before the dudebros take over entirely.



I guess this proves nothing aside that Ted Leo and at least one Pharmacist were playing a show.

[Kai]

Seeing Built to Spill and the MEAT PUPPETS tomorrow night. Hella excited.

[pilsner]

I ended up leaving the general area before the last two songs (they closed with an amazing Stiff Little Fingers cover) because I could not stand the dudebros.

Suspect Device, right?  Ted Leo's cover of that song is epic.

[valley_parade]

Yep! It was so good.

Got my ticket today for Fu Manchu on Thursday. \m/

[DMart]

Just got back from Múm at the Corner - Wow. I thought I was in for a night of regret - It was really hot outside let alone inside the bandroom, I was tired and in a fairly shitty mood and just plain didn't want to be in a room full of strangers (most of whom were taller than me, as usual). I actually considered calling a friend to see if I could sell off the ticket so I could just go home instead... and then they got on stage and I forgot about all that. I didn't expect them to be so captivating really. And on top of that, they were so modest and appreciative of the crowd's reaction (actually I haven't seen the whole crowd that 'into' the band playing in quite a while), and they seemed to be having a genuinely great time on stage. If you're into their music and have the opportunity to see them, don't waste it.

[Inlander]

I just got home from that same gig. My impressions are pretty much the same as yours - at about 7 o'clock this evening I was feeling nauseous from the heat and really didn't feel like going out, and I from their music (which I only have a passing familiarity with, anyway) I was expecting the band to be really subdued and introspective on stage. I couldn't have been more wrong. So glad I went - it's unusual to see a band so genuinely surprised and delighted at the crowd's response to their performance. It was a rare pleasure to see a band that, without actually jumping around or doing much on stage, nonetheless radiates so much joy and and enthusiasm. It created a very special mood in the whole room, which everyone in the crowd instinctively picked up on.

[valley_parade]

Fu Manchu: the most fun I've ever had at a rock show (including The Aquabats).

And it has nothing to do with me asking a cute girl out after the show. She said no, anyway.

[TheFuriousWombat]

hai guys i saw efterklang lawlz

lkasdujflaskjdf

I swear, these guys need to come to the U.S. now.

Sorta like the ones they're playing in late May you mean?? I'm seeing them the 26th in Philly!

I'm seeing Xiu Xiu for the second time tomorrow. First time I saw them was bizarre and awesome so I'm really excited. Thao Nguyen and the Get Down Stay Downs are opening (and playing a live, in-studio set in our lovely little radio station beforehand. Check it out! Link's in my sig (sorry for shameless plugs).) Thoughts Sunday probably. Expect them to be good ones though.

[Ishotdanieljohnston]

I really wanted to see Maceo Parker at the corner last night but tickets were 79 and none of my friends are fans, I ended up at the venue round the time he started though and listened from outside for a few minutes. Sounded incredible.

[LucyStag]

I just saw the Slits. Holy shit awesome pretend trip to London 1977 happy dance party.

Go see them, everyone ever.

[doombilly]

I just saw the Slits. Holy shit awesome pretend trip to London 1977 happy dance party.

Go see them, everyone ever.

Wow, you ARE a LuckyStag.

[lol@yourface]

bands i've seen live:
Lost Prophets, Iron Maiden, Taking Back Sunday, Trivium, Anti-Flag, Alexisonfire, UnderOath, Saosin, My Chemical Romance, Funeral For A Friend, Kids In Glass Houses, Paramore, The Gallows, Senses Fail, Enter Shikari, and lots of small local bands.
The best was by far Iron Maiden, saw them back in december 06 the only bad point was they played the entire of A Matter Of Life And Death and only a few of their older songs.
The next best was Funeral saw them december 22nd 07 they were amazing, a good mix of all their albums and involving the crowd, keeping everyone entertained.

[ZedAvatar]

I managed to catch Imogen Heap the last time she was in Chicago.  For a one-woman band, she puts on a heck of a show! 

[Leprechaunic]

I lived in Hawaii most of my life and few bands EVER go there. However, I did get to see 311 two years ago. It was fantastic. Great live band and I had a lot of fun.

[amok]

got a few gigs upcoming in the next ~month 1/2 (ted leo, low, i am x) but the cream of the crop has to be ulrich schnauss w/ airiel at the Bristol Lousiana, such an awesome lil' venue. hell will freeze over before there's a fleeting chance that won't rock my face off.

[valley_parade]

Have fun with Ted Leo. He put on a GREAT set in Lowell, but the crowd wasn't into it at all.

[amok]

Man, Ted Leo was going to play my favourite venue in my hometown Bristol when he cancelled for unknown 'family reasons' the date before.

I mean the guy's so lovely that he obviously had a legitimate reason but my heart broke. I snapped up a pair of tickets the second I saw he was over here again.

fuckin' guarantee that at least 2 of the crowd will be 'into it' very much

[TheFuriousWombat]

Just saw three shows three nights in a row, the first two at SMOG, a garage here on campus, the last one in the campus center multi-purpose room.
Saturday:
Xiu Xiu with Thao Nguyen and Symbol:
What a let-down! I've seen Xiu Xiu and Thao live a couple of times in the past and they shows were fantastic. For some reason, something was seriously wrong when I saw them. I think whoever was doing sound must have been stoned or drunk or something since I've never heard worse sound mixing in my life. Thao, a singer/songwriter with a backing band, was a mess. Although the band rocked out and were really high energy, Thao's voice was totally overwhelmed by the instruments and her acoustic guitar was barely audible. Eventually she got frustrated and plugged it into the guitar amp which kinda killed the acoustic quality of it. There was a lot of energy in the performance and the crowd was really into it anyway but the music itself was disapointing. Fucking sound guy.
Xiu Xiu had the exact same problems and then some. The venue is fairly tiny so it got extremely crowded. Like, 'wow I can't move' crowded. The crowd was extremely noisy so during lulls in songs, voices almost drowned out Jamie Stewart's vocals which, again, were barely audible to begin with. The band was trying but the crowd was just not getting into it and everything sounded fairly terrible overall. The keyboard has a list of 12 songs and settings for each song on it, which I would presume was a playlist, but the band only did six songs before ending the set. A serious let down, especially since they've been awesome in the past. Fucking sound guy.
Symbol was a ambient/drone/noise improv band which I rather loved but I think most people couldn't get into it. They sounded a bit like Tarentel which endeared them to  more. A rather longish, continuous set. Probably the best part about the show, to be honest.

Sunday:
An Albatross with Apes
Well this show was so fucking bad-ass that it more than made up for Saturday. Apes were absolutely killer, putting on one of the most energetic and enjoyable live sets I've had the pleasure to see. Awesome, vaguely industrialish, super energetic rock with guitar, lots of awesome keyboard and a fucking awesome drummer who played drums probably harder than anyone I've seen. The lead singer was amazing. He had a great, unique voice and tons of energy, coming off the stage and into the audience to dance and sing like a madman. This set was tons of fun and it alone would have made the show more than worthwhile.
An Albatross were brilliant. They blew me away. I think my ears are still ringing from all the rocking the fuck out they did. Seriously intense hardcore electro-y rock god amazingness. The lead singer had perhaps the best stage presence I've seen in a long while, the instrumentals (drums, guitar, bass, keyboards) were fantastic, the entire set was almost non-stop and unrelentingly intense. So much fun. They drove a car into the venue (it's a garage so it works) and even played on and in the car. Overall a killer stage presence and a really amazing sound. Truly awesome.

Monday:
Crystal Castles with Health
I miss Health. I heard they were good.
Crystal Castles was fairly boring. They used a strobe light for the entire show which was kinda annoying. They weren't bad but I think the most I can say is that they were sorta fun and inoffensive. Basically they make kinda average 90s-ish dance/club music. They had a singer, keyboardist and live drummer, the last of which was pretty superfluous. If they wanted a live instrument, they should have had a drum machine play the repetitious drum parts and used a real bassist in lieu of the keyboard bass, which sounded kinda weak. It wasn't a bad show and I guess I had fun but it was pretty clean and mediocre.

[pinkpiche]

I CURSE you, for having seen An Albatross. That band is so ridiculously awesome it hurts.

[a pack of wolves]

Yeah, An Albatross put on a great show. It's nice to see a band who won't let the fear of looking a bit silly get in the way of a fun performance.

I just got back from Sinaloa, Don't Mess With Texas, Feint and Kids Return. I unfortunately only caught the end of Kids Return's set but they impressed me enough to pick up the LP (which is made from an old Olivia Newton John record, excellent DIY recycling second only to an Impressions 7" I have made from an old Frosties packet). Good old school emo with good songs and a lot of passion. Feint were as great as they always are, really cutting through to what emo should be all about with a very distinctive style. They're ramshackle in the best possible way. Don't Mess With Texas had a pleasant sound but lacked any real meat, I felt they really needed a singer. As an instrumental group they didn't really cut it. Sinaloa were good, I wasn't blown away but it was a tight set and I liked the fact that they'd talk about what the songs were about like a proper punk band. Kids Return and Feint were definitely the highlights, finally the UK is producing emo bands that can compete with the mainland.

[TheFuriousWombat]

That's a very odd lineup, no?

[a pack of wolves]

That's a very odd lineup, no?

How so? They all seem to fit pretty well together to me.

[TheFuriousWombat]

Well it's a pretty decent older sounding emo-ish band, another emo-ish band, a kinda mediocre post-rock band (who are pretty decent but also not to compelling when recorded) and, from what I've heard of the last band, a slightly more electronics driven/more hardcore sounding band. I guess it's mostly DMwT that seems a little out of place now that I think about it...

[a pack of wolves]

Sinaloa weren't using any electronics live, I haven't heard the records so I don't know about them. They definitely had a more hardcore sound than Feint and Kids Return but it was still emo. DMWT were on a very different tip but they're definitely coming out of the DIY scene, and live their twinkly bits with louder sections sits alright with emo. I always prefer a more diverse bill myself, I miss the days when you'd get The Ataris supported by Fall Silent and Dragbody playing with Joe 90.

[DMart]

Rodrigo y Gabriela played at the Forum last night. I was kind of expecting it to be a fairly sedate affair, like a lot of acoustic shows - musicians on the stage, sitting on stools, playing their stuff, no big fuss. It still would have been great if that was the case - seriously, listen to their album if you haven't already and consider that they pulled that sound off with just the two of them on stage, and with the same momentum. But then there was a visual show to go with it - they had like 4 or 5 cameras set up on the stage; one pointed at each of their right hands, one down the neck of their guitars and a few placed elsewhere. So while they were doing their stuff, these views were projected in black and white behind them. To top it all off they were great showmen (showpeople?). They had the crowd just as fired up as they were the whole time. Fucking excellent. Top notch musicians with a good sense of humor. Gabriela has more rhythm in her right hand than Meg White does in her whole body

[Ishotdanieljohnston]

I really wanted to go to that, not quite sure why I didn't. Glad to hear it was good times.

[october1983]

Last night I went to see El Guincho at the Old Blue Last, and he was fucking awesome. A lazy description would be Person Pitch but with a kind of Mediterranean/Caribbean/tropical bent, but frankly it's so loaded with influences from all over the world it's hard to describe or pin down. Most importantly it is music to dance to, without a doubt. Anyone who goes to his live shows and does not feel utterly compelled to dance is completely ignoring the most base of all human impulses, I swear. Unfortunately the Old Blue Last is a pub owned and run by Vice magazine, and a good portion of the crowd was clearly too fucking cool to dance, to the extent that one guy actually told my friend to stop. Bastards. We still had fun.

[DMart]

Smashing Pumpkins at Festival Hall... the sound wasn't great - loud, but a bit unclear. Apart from that, Billy, James and the rest of the crew can fucking rock out AWESOME STYLEZ. I'll probably edit this in the morn and add a bit more... but basically they played 3 songs off their latest album, and the rest was older stuff, along with a cover of Britney's 'You Wanna Piece Of Me?' and Floyd's 'Set the Controls to the Heart of the Sun'.

Whoa.

On the downside, the 5-0 hassled me and my brothers (literally... i'm not african-american) for 'borrowing' pint glasses from a pub after the gig. Bad idea: Yes. As severe as the hero-like officer of the 3 made it out to be: No.

[yipinglim]

A couple of the best gigs I have been to are here in London.

Caught Mono a while back, and hands down, best band I've seen live. Was in a small venue, at this place called Underworld. I woke up the next morning with my ears ringing. Here's a picture from that gig.



Another gig which I went to which I really enjoyed was Calexico a while back as well. They had A Hawk and Hacksaw, and Beirut open up for them. That concert was so alive. The best part about it was that all three bands came out at the end to play together on stage. Fucking awesome!

[karl gambolputty...]

Going to see Les Savy Fav tonight.  I hear they put on a pretty kick-ass show.  Details to follow

[valley_parade]

Also to follow: my adventures in seeing John Vanderslice/Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks tonight.

John Vanderslice: Awesomely fun. For their last song, they ended up venturing into the middle of the crowd and playing an acoustic song.

Malkmus/Jicks: Roooooooock. I mean..really. Shouldn't every show end like this, guitars and mics strewn about an old, beat-up amp? The only problem with the entire show was the inconsistencies of Malkmus' guitars. He must've broken 4 strings on his Jazzmaster, and the Les Paul was having tuning issues left and right.

[TheFuriousWombat]

Caught Mono a while back, and hands down, best band I've seen live. Was in a small venue, at this place called Underworld. I woke up the next morning with my ears ringing.

Aye, MONO is easily one of the best live bands I've ever seen. They don't tour all that often but I always go out of my way to see them as many times as possible when they do. I only do that for a few other bands.

[voidSkipper]

Managed to see Budgie a couple of weeks back. The crowd was a bit tame, as the major interest came from people that had missed them before they stopped touring some 30 years ago.

All that remained was the bassist/singer, who clearly wanted to be Osbourne - but goddamn could these guys play. Sorta funky, riff based, bass driven rock. For an old fella, he could move pretty well, too.

They kept making jabs at the kids wearing Metallica shirts, though. Little known fact that they wrote Breadfan and Crash Course in Brain Surgery - "and we play it with only three people", he growled while introducing the former.

The support bands consisted of a slide guitar driven country rock band, Swayback (They put on a hell of a show, but I bought the album and it was a little disappointing in comparison), and a three-piece metal band, Stone Ox. These guys had a lead bassist, and he was a bit of a joke as far as stage presense went - grinning sideburn to sideburn and making Rokk poses from the '80s, but he could definitely play. He blew an amp halfway through though, and their show kinda suffered from it.