Filter was the opener. I really enjoyed Short Bus and Title of Record and was surprised by the fact that Richard Patrick sounds EXACTLY the same as 28 years ago. They only played 6 songs, so there wasn't much time for banter. Halfway through the set, they played Take a Picture. He added an extra bridge as the outro to the song, changing the lyrics to "Hey son, what do you think about your dad now?" as I'm standing on the grass at Fiddler's Green, 32 years after my first concert there next to my adult daughters and my oldest's fiance. After the song ends and the applause dies down, Richard asks the crowd "Did we give you The Feels there?"
Geez, man.
Nice shot.
OMG i loved all of your post, but this (and the rob zombie - how times have changed part) were my favs. good one with the "Geez, man. Nice shot."
Location: right behind you. no, over there. Gender:
Posted:
Sep 18, 2023 - 7:40am
It occurs to me that I've been remiss in reporting back on hiccup and ptooey's Year of the Concerts.
We got to see The National last month, back-to-back evenings, with Aussie band The Beths opening. Friday night we had fancy schmancy reserved seats stage right and just above the stage floor. The Beths were great. Excellent guitar tone, harmonizing and good tunes. If you haven't yet had the opportunity, check out Expert in a Dying Field. The National took the stage and were stately and majestic and loud and crazy good. The Dessner brothers were charming and funny and I was surprised by the degree of guitar wizardry on display. Bryan Devendorf hardly moves his arms during all of that complex drumming, which was kind of fascinating to watch. Matt Berninger was in exceptional voice, and while not as chatty as the Dessners, occasionally chimed in with a joke or a goofy dance and it was fun.
The next night, we had GA tickets and decided we were just going to go for it and set up right along the barricade, stage left. The Beths ripped through an identical set (it was still great), and the National came on a little loopier and more ragged than the night before. We were about 6 feet from Bryce Dessner for most of the concert. Berninger apparently gets a little stage-frighty and had been pregaming more than the previous night. He still sounded great, but was just a little wobbly. He usually goes out amongst the audience for a couple of songs, and when he left the stage, he went off the opposite side from us, which was a little disappointing. He did, however, loop back past our side and while I wasn't quite close enough to clap him on the shoulder, it was close enough to realize he isn't as tall as I'd imagined. They closed the show with Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks, acoustically, with all microphones pointed at the audience. The audience sang every word, and the band sang without mics. I've had the opportunity just a couple of times to hear favorite vocalists up close and unamplified, and it's always a special feeling, but standing 8 feet away from Matt Berninger and locking eyes with him as we both sang "All the very best of us string ourselves up for love" was something for the memory banks.
This past Saturday, we took the whole famn damily to see the Freaks on Parade tour. I've wanted to see Ministry since Twitch came out and Al Jourgensen remains not only surprisingly alive, but compelling and active and in great voice, even with all of the effects. The current band is great and loud, and just scary enough and it was a good time.
Alice Cooper. How in the world can a 75 year old man still perform that well? Vince still sounds great, has put together an excellent band with 3 mind-bogglingly amazing guitarists. Sixteen songs, hitting all of the highlights, a snake, 2 swords, 2 stabbings and a beheading by guillotine. I've always wanted to see him/them, and it was everything I'd hoped for.
Rob Zombie was the headliner and while I wasn't really as stoked to see him as the other 3 acts, but it was a reminder how much fun a rock spectacle can be. Crazy light show, video walls, flame pillars, gore, and 12 foot tall demon puppets. His band is also extremely good and he's hilarious. At one point, he had to stop the security crew from putting a halt to what used to be expected concert behavior. "Hey, she's just crowdsurfing. Let her. See? They caught her. It's fine". The times sure have changed.
Filter was the opener. I really enjoyed Short Bus and Title of Record and was surprised by the fact that Richard Patrick sounds EXACTLY the same as 28 years ago. They only played 6 songs, so there wasn't much time for banter. Halfway through the set, they played Take a Picture. He added an extra bridge as the outro to the song, changing the lyrics to "Hey son, what do you think about your dad now?" as I'm standing on the grass at Fiddler's Green, 32 years after my first concert there next to my adult daughters and my oldest's fiance. After the song ends and the applause dies down, Richard asks the crowd "Did we give you The Feels there?"
The last concert before the Rona was Plant and band at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass weekend. (Also saw Mike Nesmith, Judy Collins, Joan Osborne, Dave Brombergâ¦I so love that weekend)
Plant KICKED ASS and, if I never go to another Hardly Strictly, it was a fine finish. He knew what the audience wanted, and delivered!
I saw Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit at ArtPark in Lewiston NY. Great venue for a fantastic show on a warm summer night. SG Goodman opened up and she was great. I always love it when I come away from a show with more music to discover. SG really delivered!
Robert Plant and Alison Krause last evening ... simply AMAZING. Last night of this leg of their tour. Both in fine voice and Alison dueting on fiddle was stunning. Great band (the drummer was awesome). Nice venue. And the opening band did NOT suck!
Robert Plant and Alison Krause last evening ... simply AMAZING. Last night of this leg of their tour. Both in fine voice and Alison dueting on fiddle was stunning. Great band (the drummer was awesome). Nice venue. And the opening band did NOT suck!
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss last evening ... simply AMAZING. Last night of this leg of their tour. Both in fine voice and Alison dueting on fiddle was stunning. Great band (the drummer was awesome). Nice venue. And the opening band did NOT suck!
Saw Roger Waters last night, bought last minute tix for $45.
Great band, and still the best rock show performance out there, at 79!
And if you don't like his politics, "piss off to the bar"
He was fair, called each president since Reagan a war criminal...and he certainly had fun.
I would say the sound was good, but not as good as the last time I saw them 5 years ago.
Perhaps too many speakers and the in the round setup, rather traditional stage setup at one end.
The magic of live music: even a genre I don't normally like, played by people who are really good at it and having fun doing it makes for a good time.
Which brings it back around to the festival I just got back from... most of the bands were really relaxed and honestly looked like they were enjoying themselves. Nation Of Language! I forgot to mention them, KIDS who raided their goth parents' record collections, did the only cover song of the entire weekend (Pixies) and were having a blast. I feel like I saw a band before they got enormous. All very charming.
Saw Greg Blake last night on the front porch of a friend's house, accompanied by Natalie Padilla on fiddle and her dad Ray on bass. He's a killer bluegrass guitarist and he sings with a voice made for country radio.
Not the sort of thing I'd usually go see but I heard Natalie was playing with him and that sealed the deal. And I had a great time listening to him cover old country classics and picking a few bluegrass tunes. The magic of live music: even a genre I don't normally like, played by people who are really good at it and having fun doing it makes for a good time.
We walked out of a Shakey Graves show a few years ago, absolutely brutal sound mix. We've been to shows at the same place before and they were fine, but it's a cinder block box so they have to be careful.
These are the earplugs, by the way. They're not as wonderful as the advertising copy wants you to believe but they definitely are better than foam. I added the $6 lanyard which is a rubber band but it held up so maybe it's worth it.
Place like that here that's called The Blue Door. Saw James McMurtry there a few years ago and they got the sound and volume just right.
We walked out of a Shakey Graves show a few years ago, absolutely brutal sound mix. We've been to shows at the same place before and they were fine, but it's a cinder block box so they have to be careful.
Went to see Bob a few years ago in Oakland and the openers, who I really wanted to see, were Kings of Leon. But - even when we escaped out in the lobby by the concessions - we couldn't hear ourselves think. It was horrible. But we always have some high Q earplugs I tote to every show.
Flip side: saw Genesis back in the Illegal Alien period and the mix was so clean you could hear it when Phil picked up his tambourine. Beautiful.
