Ryan was watching High Fidelity on the road to Virginia, and felt the need to text this topic to me so we wouldn't forget to do it. For me at least, it wasn't hard at all to leave off any songs from the aforementioned list now immortalized in literature and film. So without further ado...
Dan's Top 5:
1. "Keep Me In Your Heart" - Warren Zevon - The rare case (actually, I'm unsure if there's ever been another case) where the songwriter himself knows that he hasn't got much longer to live. Sadly, I remember that at the time the song was released, I didn't know who Zevon was. I thought he might have been one of those "boring" songwriters that the 70's produced far too many of. Only after I got hooked on Excitable Boy did I realize the connection. To this day, one of the very few songs that can get me choked up.
2. "Do You Realize??" - The Flaming Lips - Very cheery-sounding for a song about death (really, there's no death occurring, but it is a reflection on mortality) To quote the lyrics: "Do you realize that everyone you know someday will die? And instead of saying all of your goodbyes - let them know you realize that life goes fast. It's hard to make the good things last" It does what I like death songs to do - focus on the good parts of life. And how can you not do that on an album featuring pink robots?
3. "Thoughts of a Dying Atheist" - Muse - I'm really surprised that this song has such a happy-sounding chord progression in the chorus. The music seems in direct contrast to the feeling of the lyrics. I mean, such an upbeat chorus doesn't sound like it fits with the lyrics "eerie whispers trapped beneath my pillow" and "Are you afraid to die?" But hey, I don't question Matt Bellamy, and neither should you.
4. "I Grieve" - Peter Gabriel - I remember being shocked seeing a new Peter Gabriel with no hair and a white goatee when he released his 2003 album, Up. After hearing that this was his darkest album ever (I disagree - that accolade goes to PG III) I always skipped this song out of pure fear that I would be too depressed. However, it surprisingly has an uplifting section towards the middle/end of the song. Do yourself a favor and don't just read the lyrics though.
5. "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" - Radiohead - Widely considered Radiohead's first really good song, and off of what is probably my personal favorite album. More haunting than anything, I don't know of any Radiohead fan who doesn't like it. (Then again, most Radiohead fans are so in love with the band that they call you an infidel if you even state you're open to the possibility that there can be a greater band on the face of the planet. That's my only worry about claiming to be a Radiohead fan - that I'll look like an asshole.) Anyway, this song is a solid choice to round out the Top 5, and I don't think I've given Radiohead a shout-out lately.
Ten honorable mentions in no order: "Don't Fear The Reaper" - Blue Öyster Cult, "When The Man Comes Around" - Johnny Cash, "I Don't Like Mondays" - The Boomtown Rats (regarding a senseless school shooting in America), "American Pie" - Don McLean, "Paint It, Black" - The Rolling Stones, "Eleanor Rigby" - The Beatles, "Candle In the Wind" - Elton John, "A Day In The Life" - The Beatles, "Tears In Heaven" - Eric Clapton (probably number 6 - a song about his four-year-old son is pretty powerful.), "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" - Monty Python
Ryan's Top 5:
"The night Laura's daddy died. Sha na na na na na na na na! Brother what a night it really was. Mother what a night it really... angina's tough! Glory be!"
1. "Casimir Pulaski Day" - Sufjan Stevens - Sufjan Stevens is a Christian, and this is a song written from a Christian perspective. That said, this song reflects loss on a personal level, without espousing any view of Why Death Happens To Who It Does; on the contrary, the speaker of the song is at a loss for understanding. The singer can't understand why "He takes and He takes and He takes..." The music is beautiful and sounds almost optimistic (the lyric "Oh the glory!" begins new verses). I don't know, the disparity between music and lyrics gives me the sense that there is, in fact, an understanding of death to be had, it's just impossible to realize it when someone close dies. Who needs a drink?
2. "A Minor Incident" - Badly Drawn Boy - The concept of this song alone is brilliant. Written by Damon Gough for "About a Boy," this is supposed to be the suicide letter Fiona writes to her son Marcus, put to music. You've got to appreciate the verbal irony of referring to the event as a "minor incident." (I'm a big fan of irony.) And it's just Damon Gough, acoustic guitar, and harmonica. Excellent.
3. "Five Years" - David Bowie - The lyrics are pretty epic. "Five years--that's all we've got!"
4. "Eleanor Rigby" - The Beatles - Where do all the lonely people belong anyway? Asking questions that don't have answers seems to be a trend on this list...
5. "Hurricane" - Bob Dylan - I was obsessed with this song for a brief period in high school, and it feels like I haven't played it since. Anyway, here's Dylan the storyteller on display. And I really, really like the way he sings, "pool of bluuuud."
Honorable mention: "Let It Be," by The Beatles; "Brick" by Ben Folds Five; "Don't Fear the Reaper" by BOC; "Not Dark Yet" by Bob Dylan; "Mack the Knife" by Bobby Darin; "Five Years" by David Bowie; "Hey Joe" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience; "Shortly Before The End" by OK Go; "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" by Monty Python.
Tim's Top 5:
I had started a list like this that was limited to songs about murder, so my list is kind of guided in that direction, though I'm generally happy with it anyway.
1. "O Valencia" by The Decemberists - The Crane Wife is an awesome album if I recall correctly. Unfortunately, I never have a chance to recall correctly because I'm so enamored with this song that I never make it much beyond The Perfect Crime 2 before I have to go listen to it again. It's on the hyper-literate side, having been lifted pretty directly from Romeo & Juliet (Valencia is pretty much in the place of Mercutio). But it fits the category, given that Valencia utters a dying cry with her blood still warm on the ground.
2. "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin-To-Die Rag" by Country Joe and the Fish - My parents had the Woodstock 3LP set, this was about the only thing from it that I find essential to this day. It's stretching a bit to put it in the category here, but it is an entire song themed on the death of people in Vietnam and the title eliminates any lingering doubts I have about putting it in here. One of the most bitter, but brilliant, sets of lyrics after concocted, it was Dead Kennedys before Jello Biafra.
3. "Lucifer" by Jay-Z - Again, this is a song that's themed on murder and revenge, rather than strictly death. But it's one of Kanye's best use of samples and it's a fantastic song even out of context, which is the reason I was reminded how awesome it is (it plays over the end credits of an episode of Entourage in season 2 or 3).
4. "Not Dark Yet" by Bob Dylan - This song is a stretch to include because it's more about dying rather than death. But it's Dylan at his creative pinnacle in Time Out of Mind and was used beautifully in Wonder Boys, which is itself a masterful elegy.
5. "American Pie" by Don McLean - This song may be the only reason ordinary people remember Buddy Holly in another 20 years. His music has largely fallen into the void along with pre-sequined jumpsuit Elvis Presley so that it's just not heard on the radio. But Don McLean created a song that's about Buddy's death but also about most everything that happened for the next ten years that doesn't wear out its welcome at over 8 minutes. And he had the prescience to do it several years before hating on Vietnam became politically necessary.
Honorable mention: "Murder Was The Case" by Snoop Dogg; "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" by The Killers; "Traditional Irish Folk Song" by Denis Leary; "What Sarah Said" by Death Cab for Cutie; "A Fond Farewell" by Elliott Smith
Showing posts with label the decemberists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the decemberists. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Top 5 Concerts You've Been To
Straightforward and strictly self-referential for a change of pace.
Ryan's Top Five
1. Badly Drawn Boy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 2004) - When I put down all the concerts I've been to in print (not as many as I had thought), this one is far and away the best. First off, you have to factor in this--what are the fucking odds of A) Badly Drawn Boy coming to America to tour, B) Badly Drawn Boy coming to Lawrence, KS, and C) Badly Drawn Boy coming to my favorite venue in the world? Secondly, I definitely got my money's worth; he played his best album, "One Plus One Is One" (which had just been released), in its entirety, then they took a break, then he came back and did a full concert of older songs, then he came back for an encore. The show lasted almost four hours. By the encore, he was drunk and ranting about the upcoming election and George W. Bush. And to top it off, the opener was good, an indie band from England called Adem. My favorite concert, bar none.
2. Duran Duran, NTelos Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA (Aug. 2005) - This was easily the biggest concert I've ever been to, and Duran Duran did not remotely disappoint. They opened with "Friends of Mine," then Simon Le Bon says hello to the crowd and screams, "IS ANYBODY HUNGRYYYYY?!" before they launch into "Hungry Like The Wolf." This strikes me as one of the coolest ways to begin a show, ever--give the public what they want. Adhering to this, they did just about every song you could want them to do, not letting their newer stuff overwhelm the act. This included my two favorites, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World." And when he dedicated the latter to the military men and women overseas and their families left behind--Norfolk after all is a Navy town, and plenty of Navy folk were in the crowd--it actually wasn't cheesy, doubtless because the song itself is so fucking awesome. Downside: the opening act sucked. All in all though, great show.
3. Colin Meloy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (April 2008) - I was psyched for this concert but I'll admit I was a bit leery of an entirely acoustic set. Fortunately, this concert was pretty great, all told. He did plenty of "The Crane Wife," including kick-ass versions of "The Perfect Crime 2" and "O Valencia." He's a pretty good stand-up comedian to boot; at one point he said he didn't want to "get too footnotey, like some fucking David Foster Wallace novel." Finally, he finished by leading the crowd in a rollicking rendition (says I) of "The Mariner's Revenge Song."
4. Ben Folds Five, Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE (Oct. 1999) - The concert itself was great, but more than that, this was at 16 my First Real Concert I ever went to, you know, of music I had discovered on my own and had listened to religiously for two solid years. (See #5 for clarification of "First Real Concert.") They did a few songs from Reinhold Messner (released earlier that year) but focused primarily on Whatever And Ever Amen (one of my top 5 favorite albums) and their eponymous debut. Highlights included awesome renditions of "Philosophy," "One Angry Dwarf...," "Narcolepsy," and so on. It was all good. Side-note: Train was the opener, before they were big. I suppose I liked them then, or anyway I liked "Meet Virginia."
5. Hootie & the Blowfish, Some Nebraskan Ampitheatre, summer, I believe 1997 - OK, not the best of recollections about this one... though I know I still have the ticket stub somewhere. This, in all fairness, was the First Concert I ever went to, so I have to include it here. Actually, it's easy to laugh about Hootie & the Blowfish now, but... well OK, it was probably easy to do so then, but I was still 13 and only a few years removed from "Cracked Rear View." Hey, you know what, fuck you all, I like Hootie & the Blowfish.
All The Concerts I've Been To Follow (I am pretty sure I'm not forgetting any...):
Honorable Mentions:
- The Swell Season at the Uptown Theatre, KCMO (this is #6 if I were ranking them, great show)
- Ben Folds, the Lied Center (at KU, this was an awesome show and I suppose is tied for 6th)
- Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright, Ben Lee at City Market, KCMO (would have been great if lightning didn't preclude Ben Lee entirely and persuade a skittish Rufus Wainwright to fly through his set)
- Ben Folds at some venue in Norfolk (Portside? Somethingerother? This is how much Hampton Roads is into Ben, my dad bought tickets for the three of us (him, me, Tory), we get there, and they're handing out free tickets at the door...Anyway, good show, but nothing particularly Top 5-worthy)
- Jurassic 5, Abe & Jake's in Lawrence (my only hip hop show)
- Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at the NTelos Pavilion in Portsmouth, VA (fun seeing a Beatle. Not quite as fun seeing members of Supertramp, ELP, et. al.)
- Nickel Creek at Liberty Hall (good concert, the music's not really my cup of tea, but still)
Dishonorable Mention:
- Tonic at Harbor View in Norfolk, VA (free concert...took forever for them to get onstage...after they performed about three songs we realized we didn't really give a shit about Tonic and left, which was enjoyable. They did have good barbecue, to be fair.)
Dan's Top 5:
1. Smashing Pumpkins, The Orange Peel, Asheville, NC (Jun. 30, 2007) - The Smashing Pumpkins did a residency for a little over a week in Asheville to promote Zeitgeist. I actually managed to get two tickets (a mere $20 each) out of I'm guessing 600 per show. The greatest thing about this concert was the venue. It's essentially the size of a school gym, so I got to stand about ten or fifteen feet away from Billy Corgan. Despite only beginning to get into Smashing Pumpkins at the time, it was still an amazing set. They played "Stand Inside Your Love," "Tonight, Tonight," and of course, "1979," which is a song that's in my Top 10, if not my Top 5 Songs of All Time. I Would have liked to see a show with the original lineup (i.e., with D'arcy and James) but let's not kid ourselves - Corgan is the band (for better or for worse - I blame him exclusively for Zeitgeist).
2. Gogol Bordello, The Lyric Theatre, Blacksburg, VA (October 18, 2007) - This one was a real surprise. I accepted a ticket after my roommate told me about the group, making this the first and only concert to go to where I didn't know any of the songs that would be played. For those who don't know of Gogol Bordello, the music is best described as Eastern European Gypsy Punk. Yeah, wrap your head around that. Anyway, I managed to squeeze into the front row, but of to the side, where there was no punk activity (minor crowd surfing and possible moshing took place) so I could focus on the performers. The concert ranks so high because I was right up front for an extremely high-energy show. All the performers were really into it, and I got to shake all their hands at the end of the set.
3. Radiohead, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Charlotte, NC (May 9, 2008) - I had to settle for lawn seats, but for fucking Radiohead, it didn't matter (I was in the front against the railing anyway). The band did twenty-four (24) songs and wrapped up by 11, letting me get back to Blacksburg by 2. It seemed fast at the time, but it was two-and-a-half hours. Naturally, they did their In Rainbows songs, but they also pulled a few tricks by playing songs like "Optmistic," "Exit Music (For a Film)" and "Planet Telex." The encore consisted of "Paranoid Android" and "Reckoner," and will probably be the best encore in the history of ever. My only complaint is that they didn't play any of my top three songs ("My Iron Lung," "No Surprises," "Fake Plastic Trees").
4. Rush, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA (Jun. 22, 2007) - I've only been really into Rush for under a year, and this concert really made me a die-hard fan. I knew that each member of the trio was one of the best in the world at their instrument, but I wasn't expecting this level of awesomeness. I get to say I've seen a Neil Peart drum solo live, and that makes me happy. I didn't know but half of the songs, but one of the highlights was a clip of South Park introducing "Tom Sawyer." The band really has a good sense of humor. The encore was capped with "YYZ," which took it to a whole new level of kickass.
5. Sudflood XVIII, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA (Apr. 22, 2006) - I'm going to pull a fast one and include an all-day music fest that my former band, Rex Bedlam, played in. We were originally slated to play an hour and a half, but technical issues and other bands running over time shaved our set down to about half an hour to 45 minutes. The first song, our drummer broke his kick pedal, and the second song, our electric guitarist broke a string. However, we gave it our best and even managed to cover Zeppelin's "Black Dog." Afterwards, other visiting bands (all of which were good) gave us props during their sets. Pretty awesome. Oh yeah, we also got unlimited free beer for twelve hours.
Honorable Mentions (i.e., the rest of the concerts I've been to, ranked in descending order of greatness):
Muse w/ My Chemical Romance, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD - Muse fucking rule, but because they were openers, their set was a mere 45 minutes.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with Gnarls Barkley, John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA - RHCP was really lackluster, as they played mostly newer songs (i.e., post-BSSM), but Gnarls Barkley was the shit. However, their bass was clipping because their sound levels were off, resulting in a non-ideal show.
The Last Dispatch, The Hatch Shell, Boston, MA - Dispatch's supposed final show ever. (They reunited recently at MSG for a series of benefit concerts.) Awesome music from a single band for three and a half hours, but way too many people, way too hot, and most of the fans were hippies.
ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA - This was my first concert ever, and I went with my dad (which, if you know my dad, is not an uncool thing to admit). It was pretty enjoyable, but Ted Nugent ruined his set for me when he avidly supported George W. Bush during some inter-song banter.
Carbon Leaf w/ Ben Lee, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I was in the second row for this one, and I'm a solid fan of Carbon Leaf. Ben Lee was pretty good too. I expect this to be the standard for an acceptable concert experience.
Sudflood XIX, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA - Overall, most of the bands were boring, but Carbon Leaf was there, and I found out that they did the show for free (proceeds this year went to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund). They also signed my copy of Echo Echo.
Ben Folds, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - This concert makes me suspect that Ben Folds hates, for some reason, the state of Virginia, Virginia Tech or even me personally. He seemed really detached from the audience, and even forced us to listen to him start "Gracie" about five or six times because someone in the audience "woo"-ed in approval. (He neared completion of it twice, only to start it over.) What a douche.
O.A.R. w/ Michael Franti and Spearhead, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I think I was in the front row for this, but let's be honest, O.A.R. sucks. Spearhead was pretty cool, though.
Tim's Top 5:
Ryan jumped the gun on this one, I'm pretty sure the Springsteen show I'm going to 7/27/08 will be #1 and I suspect the Pearl Jam show (and maybe, god willing, R.E.M.?) in June may crack the list, so I was holding off.
1) 4/00 - Guided by Voices with Sense Field at The Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE - I was probably the only person watching Sense Field, but they became one of my favorite bands after the concert -- and shortly after the concert had to abandon their hopes of ever releasing their album with Warner Bros. and it became the abortive effort that was released on Nettwerk and scored them 15 minutes of fame with "Save Yourself". Then GbV put together a greatest hits concert that captured the era of GbV at its finest -- this was right after Do The Collapse, so they didn't have the stuff from Isolation Drills, but it led them to get the best of the Fading Captain Series and favor stuff from Alien Lanes and Bee Thousand instead of the most recent album. The only drawback is one that would follow GbV for years, their steadfast avoidance of material from Mag Earwhig!, which was and still is, my favorite GbV album hands down.
2) 6/13/03 - Pearl Jam with Idlewild at the Mid-American Center, Council Bluffs, IA - Bu$hleaguer on the Riot Act album...boring. Bu$hleaguer live -- played in the heart of Republican country -- unparalleled in awesomeness. This is the concert that made me think Riot Act was one of Pearl Jam's greatest albums, even though only me and four other people own it. I don't think I'm wrong. They closed with Rockin' in the Free World, which is definitely the chosen song to end Pearl Jam shows, they covered The Police's Driven to Tears, The Clash's "Know Your Rights" (both have since become favorites of mine) and unfortunately Crazy Mary (a song which I have no affection for). It was really an amazing show, no Katowice, Poland, but amazing nonetheless.
3) 7/28/07 - The Old 97's with Ha Ha Tonka at The Chameleon Club, Lancaster, PA - I'd seen the Old 97's the night before on the Rockin' on the River cruise in New York but discovered they had a show far closer to me the next day. They ended up playing three encores -- one with Rhett by himself playing a couple of solo songs and a cover of the Pixies' "Wave of Mutilation", then the band returned to join him for a couple more Old 97's tracks. After half the club had left, they came out and played two more songs, both of which were unrecognizable at the time. The venue was astounding for a middling college town in the middle of Amish country, and the crowd really seemed to know their work much more than the NYC crowd. Ha Ha Tonka was an entertaining enough band, more on the side of country than alt-country, but they waited at the back of the show to watch, which is the true sign of an opening act that deserves some respect. I've meant to get their album for a long time now. I should really get around to it. There were still a couple of songs I'd have killed for them to play (seriously, "Nite Club" and "If My Heart Were a Car" warrant playing), but it was an exhaustingly amazing show. I drove the long trip home having absolutely no regrets about seeing them for a second time in two days.
4) 4/06 - Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie at Barton Hall, Ithaca, NY - The venue was awful for acoustics, I had absolutely nothing to drink (thank you, Cornell University), but the two acts were amazing. Franz Ferdinand went through the vast majority of their material, but still managed to hold things back that I'd forgotten were awesome; Death Cab played a good sampling of their material, even though I was unfamiliar with 90% of it at that point. I owned Plans within the week and have since developed an appreciation for their work as a whole.
5) 7/07 - The Police with Fiction Plane and the Fratellis at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA - Sure, it might as well have been pre-packaged, because The Police played only two sets during the entire reunion tour (Philadelphia warranted the long set at least), but they reminded me that there was a period before I was really sentient that Sting used to actually, you know, be kind of cool. And rock. They really put together a great show, the venue wasn't bad, and the beer flowed freely. Definitely one of the highlights of my employment thus far. You know, other than all the "law" stuff.
Honorable Mention: Ben Folds with The Divine Comedy at Seven Flags Event Center, Clive, IA - This was on the Ben Folds and a Piano tour after Rockin' the Suburbs, before he went off the musical deep end and became dead to me forever. The audience interaction seemed fresh (it wasn't, as you learned from the live album, it was all a scripted show with the same banter at every stop), and the music was awesome; Smashing Pumpkins with Fountains of Wayne at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE - My first concert still warrants mention, although I knew so little of either of these bands' work when I went to the show that it really cut into the awesomenss; Snow Patrol with OK Go and Silversun Pickups at Tweeter Center, Camden, NJ - the headline act wasn't what I went to see, but they put together a good show, OK Go played most of their catalog and Silversun Pickups are as solid a second opening act as I could envision. Venue wasn't particularly good.
Ryan's Top Five
1. Badly Drawn Boy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 2004) - When I put down all the concerts I've been to in print (not as many as I had thought), this one is far and away the best. First off, you have to factor in this--what are the fucking odds of A) Badly Drawn Boy coming to America to tour, B) Badly Drawn Boy coming to Lawrence, KS, and C) Badly Drawn Boy coming to my favorite venue in the world? Secondly, I definitely got my money's worth; he played his best album, "One Plus One Is One" (which had just been released), in its entirety, then they took a break, then he came back and did a full concert of older songs, then he came back for an encore. The show lasted almost four hours. By the encore, he was drunk and ranting about the upcoming election and George W. Bush. And to top it off, the opener was good, an indie band from England called Adem. My favorite concert, bar none.
2. Duran Duran, NTelos Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA (Aug. 2005) - This was easily the biggest concert I've ever been to, and Duran Duran did not remotely disappoint. They opened with "Friends of Mine," then Simon Le Bon says hello to the crowd and screams, "IS ANYBODY HUNGRYYYYY?!" before they launch into "Hungry Like The Wolf." This strikes me as one of the coolest ways to begin a show, ever--give the public what they want. Adhering to this, they did just about every song you could want them to do, not letting their newer stuff overwhelm the act. This included my two favorites, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World." And when he dedicated the latter to the military men and women overseas and their families left behind--Norfolk after all is a Navy town, and plenty of Navy folk were in the crowd--it actually wasn't cheesy, doubtless because the song itself is so fucking awesome. Downside: the opening act sucked. All in all though, great show.
3. Colin Meloy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (April 2008) - I was psyched for this concert but I'll admit I was a bit leery of an entirely acoustic set. Fortunately, this concert was pretty great, all told. He did plenty of "The Crane Wife," including kick-ass versions of "The Perfect Crime 2" and "O Valencia." He's a pretty good stand-up comedian to boot; at one point he said he didn't want to "get too footnotey, like some fucking David Foster Wallace novel." Finally, he finished by leading the crowd in a rollicking rendition (says I) of "The Mariner's Revenge Song."
4. Ben Folds Five, Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE (Oct. 1999) - The concert itself was great, but more than that, this was at 16 my First Real Concert I ever went to, you know, of music I had discovered on my own and had listened to religiously for two solid years. (See #5 for clarification of "First Real Concert.") They did a few songs from Reinhold Messner (released earlier that year) but focused primarily on Whatever And Ever Amen (one of my top 5 favorite albums) and their eponymous debut. Highlights included awesome renditions of "Philosophy," "One Angry Dwarf...," "Narcolepsy," and so on. It was all good. Side-note: Train was the opener, before they were big. I suppose I liked them then, or anyway I liked "Meet Virginia."
5. Hootie & the Blowfish, Some Nebraskan Ampitheatre, summer, I believe 1997 - OK, not the best of recollections about this one... though I know I still have the ticket stub somewhere. This, in all fairness, was the First Concert I ever went to, so I have to include it here. Actually, it's easy to laugh about Hootie & the Blowfish now, but... well OK, it was probably easy to do so then, but I was still 13 and only a few years removed from "Cracked Rear View." Hey, you know what, fuck you all, I like Hootie & the Blowfish.
All The Concerts I've Been To Follow (I am pretty sure I'm not forgetting any...):
Honorable Mentions:
- The Swell Season at the Uptown Theatre, KCMO (this is #6 if I were ranking them, great show)
- Ben Folds, the Lied Center (at KU, this was an awesome show and I suppose is tied for 6th)
- Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright, Ben Lee at City Market, KCMO (would have been great if lightning didn't preclude Ben Lee entirely and persuade a skittish Rufus Wainwright to fly through his set)
- Ben Folds at some venue in Norfolk (Portside? Somethingerother? This is how much Hampton Roads is into Ben, my dad bought tickets for the three of us (him, me, Tory), we get there, and they're handing out free tickets at the door...Anyway, good show, but nothing particularly Top 5-worthy)
- Jurassic 5, Abe & Jake's in Lawrence (my only hip hop show)
- Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at the NTelos Pavilion in Portsmouth, VA (fun seeing a Beatle. Not quite as fun seeing members of Supertramp, ELP, et. al.)
- Nickel Creek at Liberty Hall (good concert, the music's not really my cup of tea, but still)
Dishonorable Mention:
- Tonic at Harbor View in Norfolk, VA (free concert...took forever for them to get onstage...after they performed about three songs we realized we didn't really give a shit about Tonic and left, which was enjoyable. They did have good barbecue, to be fair.)
Dan's Top 5:
1. Smashing Pumpkins, The Orange Peel, Asheville, NC (Jun. 30, 2007) - The Smashing Pumpkins did a residency for a little over a week in Asheville to promote Zeitgeist. I actually managed to get two tickets (a mere $20 each) out of I'm guessing 600 per show. The greatest thing about this concert was the venue. It's essentially the size of a school gym, so I got to stand about ten or fifteen feet away from Billy Corgan. Despite only beginning to get into Smashing Pumpkins at the time, it was still an amazing set. They played "Stand Inside Your Love," "Tonight, Tonight," and of course, "1979," which is a song that's in my Top 10, if not my Top 5 Songs of All Time. I Would have liked to see a show with the original lineup (i.e., with D'arcy and James) but let's not kid ourselves - Corgan is the band (for better or for worse - I blame him exclusively for Zeitgeist).
2. Gogol Bordello, The Lyric Theatre, Blacksburg, VA (October 18, 2007) - This one was a real surprise. I accepted a ticket after my roommate told me about the group, making this the first and only concert to go to where I didn't know any of the songs that would be played. For those who don't know of Gogol Bordello, the music is best described as Eastern European Gypsy Punk. Yeah, wrap your head around that. Anyway, I managed to squeeze into the front row, but of to the side, where there was no punk activity (minor crowd surfing and possible moshing took place) so I could focus on the performers. The concert ranks so high because I was right up front for an extremely high-energy show. All the performers were really into it, and I got to shake all their hands at the end of the set.
3. Radiohead, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Charlotte, NC (May 9, 2008) - I had to settle for lawn seats, but for fucking Radiohead, it didn't matter (I was in the front against the railing anyway). The band did twenty-four (24) songs and wrapped up by 11, letting me get back to Blacksburg by 2. It seemed fast at the time, but it was two-and-a-half hours. Naturally, they did their In Rainbows songs, but they also pulled a few tricks by playing songs like "Optmistic," "Exit Music (For a Film)" and "Planet Telex." The encore consisted of "Paranoid Android" and "Reckoner," and will probably be the best encore in the history of ever. My only complaint is that they didn't play any of my top three songs ("My Iron Lung," "No Surprises," "Fake Plastic Trees").
4. Rush, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA (Jun. 22, 2007) - I've only been really into Rush for under a year, and this concert really made me a die-hard fan. I knew that each member of the trio was one of the best in the world at their instrument, but I wasn't expecting this level of awesomeness. I get to say I've seen a Neil Peart drum solo live, and that makes me happy. I didn't know but half of the songs, but one of the highlights was a clip of South Park introducing "Tom Sawyer." The band really has a good sense of humor. The encore was capped with "YYZ," which took it to a whole new level of kickass.
5. Sudflood XVIII, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA (Apr. 22, 2006) - I'm going to pull a fast one and include an all-day music fest that my former band, Rex Bedlam, played in. We were originally slated to play an hour and a half, but technical issues and other bands running over time shaved our set down to about half an hour to 45 minutes. The first song, our drummer broke his kick pedal, and the second song, our electric guitarist broke a string. However, we gave it our best and even managed to cover Zeppelin's "Black Dog." Afterwards, other visiting bands (all of which were good) gave us props during their sets. Pretty awesome. Oh yeah, we also got unlimited free beer for twelve hours.
Honorable Mentions (i.e., the rest of the concerts I've been to, ranked in descending order of greatness):
Muse w/ My Chemical Romance, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD - Muse fucking rule, but because they were openers, their set was a mere 45 minutes.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with Gnarls Barkley, John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA - RHCP was really lackluster, as they played mostly newer songs (i.e., post-BSSM), but Gnarls Barkley was the shit. However, their bass was clipping because their sound levels were off, resulting in a non-ideal show.
The Last Dispatch, The Hatch Shell, Boston, MA - Dispatch's supposed final show ever. (They reunited recently at MSG for a series of benefit concerts.) Awesome music from a single band for three and a half hours, but way too many people, way too hot, and most of the fans were hippies.
ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA - This was my first concert ever, and I went with my dad (which, if you know my dad, is not an uncool thing to admit). It was pretty enjoyable, but Ted Nugent ruined his set for me when he avidly supported George W. Bush during some inter-song banter.
Carbon Leaf w/ Ben Lee, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I was in the second row for this one, and I'm a solid fan of Carbon Leaf. Ben Lee was pretty good too. I expect this to be the standard for an acceptable concert experience.
Sudflood XIX, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA - Overall, most of the bands were boring, but Carbon Leaf was there, and I found out that they did the show for free (proceeds this year went to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund). They also signed my copy of Echo Echo.
Ben Folds, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - This concert makes me suspect that Ben Folds hates, for some reason, the state of Virginia, Virginia Tech or even me personally. He seemed really detached from the audience, and even forced us to listen to him start "Gracie" about five or six times because someone in the audience "woo"-ed in approval. (He neared completion of it twice, only to start it over.) What a douche.
O.A.R. w/ Michael Franti and Spearhead, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I think I was in the front row for this, but let's be honest, O.A.R. sucks. Spearhead was pretty cool, though.
Tim's Top 5:
Ryan jumped the gun on this one, I'm pretty sure the Springsteen show I'm going to 7/27/08 will be #1 and I suspect the Pearl Jam show (and maybe, god willing, R.E.M.?) in June may crack the list, so I was holding off.
1) 4/00 - Guided by Voices with Sense Field at The Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE - I was probably the only person watching Sense Field, but they became one of my favorite bands after the concert -- and shortly after the concert had to abandon their hopes of ever releasing their album with Warner Bros. and it became the abortive effort that was released on Nettwerk and scored them 15 minutes of fame with "Save Yourself". Then GbV put together a greatest hits concert that captured the era of GbV at its finest -- this was right after Do The Collapse, so they didn't have the stuff from Isolation Drills, but it led them to get the best of the Fading Captain Series and favor stuff from Alien Lanes and Bee Thousand instead of the most recent album. The only drawback is one that would follow GbV for years, their steadfast avoidance of material from Mag Earwhig!, which was and still is, my favorite GbV album hands down.
2) 6/13/03 - Pearl Jam with Idlewild at the Mid-American Center, Council Bluffs, IA - Bu$hleaguer on the Riot Act album...boring. Bu$hleaguer live -- played in the heart of Republican country -- unparalleled in awesomeness. This is the concert that made me think Riot Act was one of Pearl Jam's greatest albums, even though only me and four other people own it. I don't think I'm wrong. They closed with Rockin' in the Free World, which is definitely the chosen song to end Pearl Jam shows, they covered The Police's Driven to Tears, The Clash's "Know Your Rights" (both have since become favorites of mine) and unfortunately Crazy Mary (a song which I have no affection for). It was really an amazing show, no Katowice, Poland, but amazing nonetheless.
3) 7/28/07 - The Old 97's with Ha Ha Tonka at The Chameleon Club, Lancaster, PA - I'd seen the Old 97's the night before on the Rockin' on the River cruise in New York but discovered they had a show far closer to me the next day. They ended up playing three encores -- one with Rhett by himself playing a couple of solo songs and a cover of the Pixies' "Wave of Mutilation", then the band returned to join him for a couple more Old 97's tracks. After half the club had left, they came out and played two more songs, both of which were unrecognizable at the time. The venue was astounding for a middling college town in the middle of Amish country, and the crowd really seemed to know their work much more than the NYC crowd. Ha Ha Tonka was an entertaining enough band, more on the side of country than alt-country, but they waited at the back of the show to watch, which is the true sign of an opening act that deserves some respect. I've meant to get their album for a long time now. I should really get around to it. There were still a couple of songs I'd have killed for them to play (seriously, "Nite Club" and "If My Heart Were a Car" warrant playing), but it was an exhaustingly amazing show. I drove the long trip home having absolutely no regrets about seeing them for a second time in two days.
4) 4/06 - Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie at Barton Hall, Ithaca, NY - The venue was awful for acoustics, I had absolutely nothing to drink (thank you, Cornell University), but the two acts were amazing. Franz Ferdinand went through the vast majority of their material, but still managed to hold things back that I'd forgotten were awesome; Death Cab played a good sampling of their material, even though I was unfamiliar with 90% of it at that point. I owned Plans within the week and have since developed an appreciation for their work as a whole.
5) 7/07 - The Police with Fiction Plane and the Fratellis at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA - Sure, it might as well have been pre-packaged, because The Police played only two sets during the entire reunion tour (Philadelphia warranted the long set at least), but they reminded me that there was a period before I was really sentient that Sting used to actually, you know, be kind of cool. And rock. They really put together a great show, the venue wasn't bad, and the beer flowed freely. Definitely one of the highlights of my employment thus far. You know, other than all the "law" stuff.
Honorable Mention: Ben Folds with The Divine Comedy at Seven Flags Event Center, Clive, IA - This was on the Ben Folds and a Piano tour after Rockin' the Suburbs, before he went off the musical deep end and became dead to me forever. The audience interaction seemed fresh (it wasn't, as you learned from the live album, it was all a scripted show with the same banter at every stop), and the music was awesome; Smashing Pumpkins with Fountains of Wayne at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE - My first concert still warrants mention, although I knew so little of either of these bands' work when I went to the show that it really cut into the awesomenss; Snow Patrol with OK Go and Silversun Pickups at Tweeter Center, Camden, NJ - the headline act wasn't what I went to see, but they put together a good show, OK Go played most of their catalog and Silversun Pickups are as solid a second opening act as I could envision. Venue wasn't particularly good.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Top 5 Current Favorite Bands/Artists
Defined however you like, but within reason...though The Rolling Stones may technically tour again, for example, I wouldn't rate them here. (Not only for that reason, but you get the idea.) Ditto Paul McCartney. I guess what I'm trying to say is, no old folk. Ben Folds would probably be the oldest on my list.
P.S., Stole this idea from Tory, who had it a while back.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - It's actually kind of difficult for me to explain my love affair with Badly Drawn Boy. More than any other artist, he makes albums before songs. I listened to One Plus One Is One a few times and couldn't find many memorable singles, but upon repeated listens, I began to love every individual track for its contribution to the whole. My favorite songs: "Four Leaf Clover," "The Shining," "Minor Incident," "Something to Talk About," "Born in the UK," "Silent Sigh," "Fewer Words," et. al.
2. Muse - Feels wrong ranking them this low because they kick so much ass. I guess, if they follow Black Holes up with something close to as awesome, they might be my favorite band of all-time.
3. Ben Folds - In the long run I like Ben Folds more than almost everyone else, of course, but if I'm being truthful to the "current" point, I have to put him third.
4. The Decemberists - OK, now I feel comfortable ranking them, after legally (in an illegal sort of way) getting their albums online. I've listened to The Crane Wife in one of those patented ryan-obsessive sort of Musey, Badly Drawny Boyey-type ways lately. Everyone had successfully convinced me that they were lyrically talented, but what's taken me by surprise is their musicality. These songs rock--try listening to "The Perfect Crime 2" without jamming.
5. Sufjan Stevens - Narrowly defeats The Flaming Lips, probably because At War With The Mystics wasn't as good as Yoshimi (a really tall order). I'm in love with Illinoise. I've never thought of seriously using this adjective, but his lyrics really are "haunting." It takes some talent to pull off a mournful song about John Wayne Gacy and make it personally relevant ("And in my best behavior, I am really just like him / Look beneath the floorboards for the secrets I have hid").
Honorables: The Flaming Lips, Gnarls Barkley (like Muse, a good follow-up would affect their rank), Coldplay ("You know why you're gay? Because you like Coldplay."), Fiona Apple
Dan's Top 5:
I'm going to interpret this as both "bands that are active" as well as "bands that I've been listening to within the last month or so." That's the only way I'm going to be able to narrow it down to 5.
1. Muse - Dan's Musefest 2007 is about out of gas, as I've been listening to Muse for quite some time. However, with GH III coming out and featuring Knights of Cydonia, I will most likely again take up listening to them nonstop, while being quick to point out that "I was into them before GH III came out."
2. The Decemberists - Probably the band for which I have to do the most listening work, but I'm really looking forward to it. I only "know" about a handful of songs, but I've never heard one that I dislike.
3. Damon Albarn's Latest Project - I figure this includes Blur (recently reunited), Gorillaz, and The Good The Bad & The Queen. I've listened to every "artist," and they're all good. I'm looking forward to whatever he releases next, and I'm almost guaranteed to buy it without listening to it first (which is what I did for TGTB&TQ).
4. Belle & Sebastian - This is only based off one album, but it was good enough for me to probably get their next one, whenever it's released.
5. Starsailor - I have two albums, but in all honesty have only listened to three songs. Again, they're a band I like, but I just need ot work on getting to know them.
Honorable Mentions: Radiohead (only unranked because they've had no new album in a while), The Go! Team, Doves, Gnarls Barkley
Tim's Top 5:
Having now taken a solid nine months to respond to this, I have a little more hindsight to celebrate, but oh well. That said, I don't think my list will have changed. Since my initial list all involved bands who had put out fewer than three albums except The Old 97's, I've just decided to set that limit.
1. Franz Ferdinand - They may never release a third album, but I'm so enamored with the first two that they still make the top 5. They're British, they're good with writing lyrics and making references to things that make me feel British (ah, Terry Wogen, how you make me feel British)
2. OK Go - I love these guys. I don't care about the videos that got everyone into the band, it took me forever to appreciate them on any level, but now that I do, I'm hooked. Oh No is one of my favorite albums of the last decade, and their debut has a few songs that I consider indispensable. Throw in the connection to NPR and attempting to dethrone Bush...and I can't believe I'm putting them at 3.
3. Arctic Monkeys - Both their debut album and the follow up are dynamite albums and they've already mastered the art of the non-album single with "Leave Before the Lights Come On". They're not strictly a singles band, which makes them absolutely essential to this list.
4. The Killers - All right, I gave up on Sam's Town, only to come around and find it to be a masterpiece, even if it's not Hot Fuss. Sawdust was underwhelming, but they're a young band to be putting out a B-sides disc, and it still has some very solid material. Hot Fuss is one of the most consistently great albums of the decade and Sam's Town has some indispensable tracks, including the title track and Bones.
5. Nine Black Alps - Their first album is a masterpiece, one of the best things Rob Schnapf has ever done, and he's one of the greatest producers of all time (see earlier list). The second album is less wonderful, but still quite good.
Honorable mention: The Decemberists have put out more than three, hence they don't get #5, but they still should count. Kanye West, though he loses me more with each album. The Bravery's last album would get mention, but I didn't think much of their debut. Interpol interests me. The bands I would have put in here don't seem "current" enough -- The Old 97's are almost as old as Pearl Jam, Jay-Z is old, Muse isn't that old, but they've put out five albums, Death Cab is pretty vintage, even if I didn't get into them until Plans.
P.S., Stole this idea from Tory, who had it a while back.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - It's actually kind of difficult for me to explain my love affair with Badly Drawn Boy. More than any other artist, he makes albums before songs. I listened to One Plus One Is One a few times and couldn't find many memorable singles, but upon repeated listens, I began to love every individual track for its contribution to the whole. My favorite songs: "Four Leaf Clover," "The Shining," "Minor Incident," "Something to Talk About," "Born in the UK," "Silent Sigh," "Fewer Words," et. al.
2. Muse - Feels wrong ranking them this low because they kick so much ass. I guess, if they follow Black Holes up with something close to as awesome, they might be my favorite band of all-time.
3. Ben Folds - In the long run I like Ben Folds more than almost everyone else, of course, but if I'm being truthful to the "current" point, I have to put him third.
4. The Decemberists - OK, now I feel comfortable ranking them, after legally (in an illegal sort of way) getting their albums online. I've listened to The Crane Wife in one of those patented ryan-obsessive sort of Musey, Badly Drawny Boyey-type ways lately. Everyone had successfully convinced me that they were lyrically talented, but what's taken me by surprise is their musicality. These songs rock--try listening to "The Perfect Crime 2" without jamming.
5. Sufjan Stevens - Narrowly defeats The Flaming Lips, probably because At War With The Mystics wasn't as good as Yoshimi (a really tall order). I'm in love with Illinoise. I've never thought of seriously using this adjective, but his lyrics really are "haunting." It takes some talent to pull off a mournful song about John Wayne Gacy and make it personally relevant ("And in my best behavior, I am really just like him / Look beneath the floorboards for the secrets I have hid").
Honorables: The Flaming Lips, Gnarls Barkley (like Muse, a good follow-up would affect their rank), Coldplay ("You know why you're gay? Because you like Coldplay."), Fiona Apple
Dan's Top 5:
I'm going to interpret this as both "bands that are active" as well as "bands that I've been listening to within the last month or so." That's the only way I'm going to be able to narrow it down to 5.
1. Muse - Dan's Musefest 2007 is about out of gas, as I've been listening to Muse for quite some time. However, with GH III coming out and featuring Knights of Cydonia, I will most likely again take up listening to them nonstop, while being quick to point out that "I was into them before GH III came out."
2. The Decemberists - Probably the band for which I have to do the most listening work, but I'm really looking forward to it. I only "know" about a handful of songs, but I've never heard one that I dislike.
3. Damon Albarn's Latest Project - I figure this includes Blur (recently reunited), Gorillaz, and The Good The Bad & The Queen. I've listened to every "artist," and they're all good. I'm looking forward to whatever he releases next, and I'm almost guaranteed to buy it without listening to it first (which is what I did for TGTB&TQ).
4. Belle & Sebastian - This is only based off one album, but it was good enough for me to probably get their next one, whenever it's released.
5. Starsailor - I have two albums, but in all honesty have only listened to three songs. Again, they're a band I like, but I just need ot work on getting to know them.
Honorable Mentions: Radiohead (only unranked because they've had no new album in a while), The Go! Team, Doves, Gnarls Barkley
Tim's Top 5:
Having now taken a solid nine months to respond to this, I have a little more hindsight to celebrate, but oh well. That said, I don't think my list will have changed. Since my initial list all involved bands who had put out fewer than three albums except The Old 97's, I've just decided to set that limit.
1. Franz Ferdinand - They may never release a third album, but I'm so enamored with the first two that they still make the top 5. They're British, they're good with writing lyrics and making references to things that make me feel British (ah, Terry Wogen, how you make me feel British)
2. OK Go - I love these guys. I don't care about the videos that got everyone into the band, it took me forever to appreciate them on any level, but now that I do, I'm hooked. Oh No is one of my favorite albums of the last decade, and their debut has a few songs that I consider indispensable. Throw in the connection to NPR and attempting to dethrone Bush...and I can't believe I'm putting them at 3.
3. Arctic Monkeys - Both their debut album and the follow up are dynamite albums and they've already mastered the art of the non-album single with "Leave Before the Lights Come On". They're not strictly a singles band, which makes them absolutely essential to this list.
4. The Killers - All right, I gave up on Sam's Town, only to come around and find it to be a masterpiece, even if it's not Hot Fuss. Sawdust was underwhelming, but they're a young band to be putting out a B-sides disc, and it still has some very solid material. Hot Fuss is one of the most consistently great albums of the decade and Sam's Town has some indispensable tracks, including the title track and Bones.
5. Nine Black Alps - Their first album is a masterpiece, one of the best things Rob Schnapf has ever done, and he's one of the greatest producers of all time (see earlier list). The second album is less wonderful, but still quite good.
Honorable mention: The Decemberists have put out more than three, hence they don't get #5, but they still should count. Kanye West, though he loses me more with each album. The Bravery's last album would get mention, but I didn't think much of their debut. Interpol interests me. The bands I would have put in here don't seem "current" enough -- The Old 97's are almost as old as Pearl Jam, Jay-Z is old, Muse isn't that old, but they've put out five albums, Death Cab is pretty vintage, even if I didn't get into them until Plans.
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