Long days and Longer Nights...
So this is severely overdue. I apologize, but just haven't had many spare moments as of the last couple of weeks. Shit, where do I start. I guess from where my last entry left off.
Went and saw Sufjan Stevens over in Berkeley. He puts on a wonderful show and this one was no different. It wasn't as good as his other shows, but it was a solid show. He was backed by a choir, which definitely brought a cool element to the show. During his xmas song, "That was the worst Christmas ever" he had people dump about 50-100 blow up santas off the top balcony. It was pretty funny to watch people toss them like beach balls. Then he did the same with "The man from Metropolis Steals Our hearts" but with blow up Supermans. He played a decent amount off of The Avalanche, his b-side album, which I like but not as much as his others...I mean there had to be some reason those songs didn't make the final cut...haha. My Brightest Diamond opened the show and all I could say is wow, she's amazing, definitely check her out if you get a chance. I guess she's a trained opera singer.
The next night was Lucero. It started out seeing Ben acoustic at Amoeba, which was awesome. He has one of my favorite rock voices, and it sounds even better over acoustic guitar. We then headed home and over to slims. Missed William Elliot Whitmore, who I saw down in SD at the Casbah this summer and was really good. But we made it in time for Rocky Votolato, who has definitely blown up a bit in the last year. He's always a good show, although his voice did seem to be a little off for the first half of the set. Don't know if maybe he was sick or sore throat or what, but sounded a little strained. Lucero puts on one of the best live shows ever. They played a good mix of everything as always. Their new CD is great in my opinion and it was cool to see those songs transfered over live. Kinda weird to see Lucero with a keyboardist though. Definitely wasn't used to that aspect. It works on the new songs, because they have that organ feel to some of them. However, on some of the older songs, it sounded a bit strange, but didn't detract from me getting drunk and singing along to all of the classics.
Monday the 16th I headed down to Bill Grahm with my brother to see Bob Dylan. I'm glad I finally got to see him, as I was gonna last year when he played LA and didn't. This was my bday present from my brother, and I don't think I could've gotten a better present. Dylan was amazing. Modern Times is a great overall record and with many other Dylan records, I'm sure it will go down as a classic. He played a lot off that, with the staples thrown in for good measure. I walked out with a smile. I think my brother was bummed, as he doesn't play guitar live anymore, but I had known that going in and was complacent with it. Thanks B for a great bday present.
This is where the shows get crazy, after Dylan on Mon. night, Tues. night was Hold Steady @ Great American Music Hall. Hold Steady are another great live band, and all of a sudden it seems they've become a buzz band on the internet and blogosphere. Pitchfork wants their nuts, even after they dissed Lifter Puller for having shitty vocals...haha. They played everything I wanted to hear. Ended with Killer Parties which made my drunkeness even better, but not as good as Gav's.
Wed. night was the Boris & Doomrider's show at Slim's. Doomriders opened and were great. They played a brutal set and kept making jokes about how their songs went out to anyone who rides a skateboard. Solid set. Boris was fucking rad. Their drummer is the best drummer ever. Japan puts out crazy music and Boris is no exception. They were tight and spot on. The chick on guitar slays. Just a great band and I'm glad I made it out to see them. And I got the Vein LP which I would've had no chance at getting were it not for them touring, since they cut the pressing down severely. Only downside is that it was $30, but it's worth it after listening to it. Hooray Boris.
Thurs. night I headed out to Popscene at 330 Ritch for the Mew show. This was my first time at Popscene and I learned a few things. A. You'll probably want to be at least buzzed to be there. and B. Bands don't go on till 1030 and go late. But I learned my lesson, and then thoroughly enjoyed Mew. Their new record is really good, getting compared to Sigur Ros, even though to me they only sound slightly like them at times. But they were awesome and it was cool to see them in a smaller venue, especially since I missed them at the Independent when they opened for Kasabian the week before.
Friday night was Beirut at Great American Music Hall and let me just say WOW WOW WOW. I really enjoy their album, but their live show is something totally else. From the first note on it was reminiscent of early Broken Social Scene shows. The energy on both the stage and in the crowd was just great. People were dancing around and just having a great time. They played three new songs, elephant gun, transatlantic, and one i didn't catch the name of, as well as I think every track off thier album. They came back for an encore and were pretty much left with the only last song they knew. A Hawk and A Hacksaw opened the show. They were really good, and the girl in the band was gorgeous.
On the 24th Gav and I headed over to Oakland to catch The Transit War. Their new cd is a great pop punk cd and is catchy as hell. They did a great job and they deserve all the success they can get. Jim was telling us how they just got added to the Lost Prophets tour, which is great for them, as they will be playing larger venues to even more kids. If you get a chance, check out thier new CD Miss Your Face, it's great.
Wed. the 25th I headed to the bottom of the hill for the Metal Hearts and Say Hi To Your Mom show put on by Noise Pop. Metal Hearts put out an amazing CD on Suicide Squeeze earlier this year I think. They are great live. Super nice people. Definitely check out thier record, Socialize, as it is really good. They must be doing something right, as they were out of CDs becuase they sold out from the night before. That was fine with me, as they only had vinyl, right up my alley. Say Hi To Your Mom was solid. He reminds me of Jonah Matranga, who I will try to catch tomorrow night at the Make Out Room, and Atom and His Package. Just a dood playing guitar to some backing beats. He put on a fun show and had the crowd shakin thier asses. He thanked everyone for having fun, after playing LA the night before and getting very little response from the crowd. Noise Pop puts on some of the best low key shows around.
Thurs. night it was back to Bottom Of The Hill for Heavens, Matt Skiba from Alkaline Trio's new project. They put on a solid show. It was weird to see Matt not playing guitar and just singing. He should work on more rockstar moves for being a frontman...haha. Good show, I just really wasn't in the mood for a show that night, which made it hard to get really into it. Glad I went though, as it's unclear whether Heavens will continue on, or what.
This last week I was planning on going to see Foward Russia! at Cafe Du Nord, but they unexpectedly dropped off that show and I just didn't have the energy to make it out to see Scanners, which kinda bums me out, because I really like thier record.
Wed. night I went and saw Justice and MSTRKRFT at Mezzanine. A late show, but a fun show nonetheless. MSTRKRFT killed it. They put together a good set and had the crowd dancing the whole time. Justice was solid too. I didn't know until today that they pissed off Kanye by winning an award at the EMAs for Best Video. Kinda funny shit. It was fun dancing along to their sets. I haven't danced for a straight 2 and a half hours ever I don't think...haha.
Last night I headed out to Popscene again to catch Voxtrot and Love Is All. Before I headed there I went down the street and checked out the Dia De Los Muertos altars at Garfield Park. I didn't know that people built such elaborate altars. It was really cool and intense. Kinda hard, as I was thinking of my Grandma the whole time. But it is meant as an honor, not as mourning. So over at the Popscene, Love Is All started off. They are from Sweden and put on a good show. They're not the tighest band, sounded sloppy in parts, but they were fun. I like their tunes and it was cool to see them live, especially since it was their first time here. Voxtrot was next. I've been wanted to see them for a while now, and seem to keep missing them. Finally though, I was redeemed, and redeemed I was. I really like them, and that was not lessened at all by their live show. I felt like they should play a Sock-Hop themed party, as it could be fun. That's just the thought that came to mind while seeing them last night. Ramesh broke a string and they played a few songs on piano and him singing, including Soft and Warm, which I really like. They played a short set, but it was great.
As I said before, tomorow is Jonah Matranga and then possibly Voxtrot depending on how I feel. I will get back to regular posts this week.
Went and saw Sufjan Stevens over in Berkeley. He puts on a wonderful show and this one was no different. It wasn't as good as his other shows, but it was a solid show. He was backed by a choir, which definitely brought a cool element to the show. During his xmas song, "That was the worst Christmas ever" he had people dump about 50-100 blow up santas off the top balcony. It was pretty funny to watch people toss them like beach balls. Then he did the same with "The man from Metropolis Steals Our hearts" but with blow up Supermans. He played a decent amount off of The Avalanche, his b-side album, which I like but not as much as his others...I mean there had to be some reason those songs didn't make the final cut...haha. My Brightest Diamond opened the show and all I could say is wow, she's amazing, definitely check her out if you get a chance. I guess she's a trained opera singer.
The next night was Lucero. It started out seeing Ben acoustic at Amoeba, which was awesome. He has one of my favorite rock voices, and it sounds even better over acoustic guitar. We then headed home and over to slims. Missed William Elliot Whitmore, who I saw down in SD at the Casbah this summer and was really good. But we made it in time for Rocky Votolato, who has definitely blown up a bit in the last year. He's always a good show, although his voice did seem to be a little off for the first half of the set. Don't know if maybe he was sick or sore throat or what, but sounded a little strained. Lucero puts on one of the best live shows ever. They played a good mix of everything as always. Their new CD is great in my opinion and it was cool to see those songs transfered over live. Kinda weird to see Lucero with a keyboardist though. Definitely wasn't used to that aspect. It works on the new songs, because they have that organ feel to some of them. However, on some of the older songs, it sounded a bit strange, but didn't detract from me getting drunk and singing along to all of the classics.
Monday the 16th I headed down to Bill Grahm with my brother to see Bob Dylan. I'm glad I finally got to see him, as I was gonna last year when he played LA and didn't. This was my bday present from my brother, and I don't think I could've gotten a better present. Dylan was amazing. Modern Times is a great overall record and with many other Dylan records, I'm sure it will go down as a classic. He played a lot off that, with the staples thrown in for good measure. I walked out with a smile. I think my brother was bummed, as he doesn't play guitar live anymore, but I had known that going in and was complacent with it. Thanks B for a great bday present.
This is where the shows get crazy, after Dylan on Mon. night, Tues. night was Hold Steady @ Great American Music Hall. Hold Steady are another great live band, and all of a sudden it seems they've become a buzz band on the internet and blogosphere. Pitchfork wants their nuts, even after they dissed Lifter Puller for having shitty vocals...haha. They played everything I wanted to hear. Ended with Killer Parties which made my drunkeness even better, but not as good as Gav's.
Wed. night was the Boris & Doomrider's show at Slim's. Doomriders opened and were great. They played a brutal set and kept making jokes about how their songs went out to anyone who rides a skateboard. Solid set. Boris was fucking rad. Their drummer is the best drummer ever. Japan puts out crazy music and Boris is no exception. They were tight and spot on. The chick on guitar slays. Just a great band and I'm glad I made it out to see them. And I got the Vein LP which I would've had no chance at getting were it not for them touring, since they cut the pressing down severely. Only downside is that it was $30, but it's worth it after listening to it. Hooray Boris.
Thurs. night I headed out to Popscene at 330 Ritch for the Mew show. This was my first time at Popscene and I learned a few things. A. You'll probably want to be at least buzzed to be there. and B. Bands don't go on till 1030 and go late. But I learned my lesson, and then thoroughly enjoyed Mew. Their new record is really good, getting compared to Sigur Ros, even though to me they only sound slightly like them at times. But they were awesome and it was cool to see them in a smaller venue, especially since I missed them at the Independent when they opened for Kasabian the week before.
Friday night was Beirut at Great American Music Hall and let me just say WOW WOW WOW. I really enjoy their album, but their live show is something totally else. From the first note on it was reminiscent of early Broken Social Scene shows. The energy on both the stage and in the crowd was just great. People were dancing around and just having a great time. They played three new songs, elephant gun, transatlantic, and one i didn't catch the name of, as well as I think every track off thier album. They came back for an encore and were pretty much left with the only last song they knew. A Hawk and A Hacksaw opened the show. They were really good, and the girl in the band was gorgeous.
On the 24th Gav and I headed over to Oakland to catch The Transit War. Their new cd is a great pop punk cd and is catchy as hell. They did a great job and they deserve all the success they can get. Jim was telling us how they just got added to the Lost Prophets tour, which is great for them, as they will be playing larger venues to even more kids. If you get a chance, check out thier new CD Miss Your Face, it's great.
Wed. the 25th I headed to the bottom of the hill for the Metal Hearts and Say Hi To Your Mom show put on by Noise Pop. Metal Hearts put out an amazing CD on Suicide Squeeze earlier this year I think. They are great live. Super nice people. Definitely check out thier record, Socialize, as it is really good. They must be doing something right, as they were out of CDs becuase they sold out from the night before. That was fine with me, as they only had vinyl, right up my alley. Say Hi To Your Mom was solid. He reminds me of Jonah Matranga, who I will try to catch tomorrow night at the Make Out Room, and Atom and His Package. Just a dood playing guitar to some backing beats. He put on a fun show and had the crowd shakin thier asses. He thanked everyone for having fun, after playing LA the night before and getting very little response from the crowd. Noise Pop puts on some of the best low key shows around.
Thurs. night it was back to Bottom Of The Hill for Heavens, Matt Skiba from Alkaline Trio's new project. They put on a solid show. It was weird to see Matt not playing guitar and just singing. He should work on more rockstar moves for being a frontman...haha. Good show, I just really wasn't in the mood for a show that night, which made it hard to get really into it. Glad I went though, as it's unclear whether Heavens will continue on, or what.
This last week I was planning on going to see Foward Russia! at Cafe Du Nord, but they unexpectedly dropped off that show and I just didn't have the energy to make it out to see Scanners, which kinda bums me out, because I really like thier record.
Wed. night I went and saw Justice and MSTRKRFT at Mezzanine. A late show, but a fun show nonetheless. MSTRKRFT killed it. They put together a good set and had the crowd dancing the whole time. Justice was solid too. I didn't know until today that they pissed off Kanye by winning an award at the EMAs for Best Video. Kinda funny shit. It was fun dancing along to their sets. I haven't danced for a straight 2 and a half hours ever I don't think...haha.
Last night I headed out to Popscene again to catch Voxtrot and Love Is All. Before I headed there I went down the street and checked out the Dia De Los Muertos altars at Garfield Park. I didn't know that people built such elaborate altars. It was really cool and intense. Kinda hard, as I was thinking of my Grandma the whole time. But it is meant as an honor, not as mourning. So over at the Popscene, Love Is All started off. They are from Sweden and put on a good show. They're not the tighest band, sounded sloppy in parts, but they were fun. I like their tunes and it was cool to see them live, especially since it was their first time here. Voxtrot was next. I've been wanted to see them for a while now, and seem to keep missing them. Finally though, I was redeemed, and redeemed I was. I really like them, and that was not lessened at all by their live show. I felt like they should play a Sock-Hop themed party, as it could be fun. That's just the thought that came to mind while seeing them last night. Ramesh broke a string and they played a few songs on piano and him singing, including Soft and Warm, which I really like. They played a short set, but it was great.
As I said before, tomorow is Jonah Matranga and then possibly Voxtrot depending on how I feel. I will get back to regular posts this week.
posted by Mason at 9:49 PM
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