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Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
Best, hands down: Drive By Truckers at a bar in Little Rock. Three guitars in the band including a flying V, an open and slowly emptied bottle of Jack Daniels on the floor of the stage, every amp turned up to 11, a crowd that was energetic without being violent, a band that knew when to pull back a little and how to bring down the house at the end, and basically a rock your face off event.
Runner-up: Al Green and Kool and the Gang, both at the River Amphitheater in Little Rock. Two of the most diverse crowds I've seen at a concert, and consequently, two of the most fun. People were all there for the same reason: to see Al Green or Kool and his Gang, some of whom had grown up listening to him because of their parents, some who had possibly conceived thanks to them, and so none of the stupid scenesters there to "party" or because it's where they were supposed to be. Even if there were people there ironically, there were plenty of other people to keep spirits up.
Worst concerts I've seen: Bright Eyes opening for Wilco in Boulder, CO. Lead singer fails to look at the audience. All songs played at 60 bpm. One of the 3 band members played no more than one note on his keyboard at a time, and only played max of 5 or 6 notes each song, all while never looking up. I came to enjoy this band, but that was the worst concert performance I've seen.
The worst crowd I've seen was at another Wilco show (wow, I'm so adult contemporary) in Champaign-Urbana in which no one stood up, and no one acted like they liked the music. I felt like I was on the PGA Tour.
The worst shows I've ever been to were Phish (mid-90s) and the Dead (late-80s), but then I'm not really a jam band guy. The most condescending and annoying was the Pixies (mid-90s) who, playing at Vandy, had nothing but contempt for their audience. I'm still a fan, but they tried hard to prevent that. Also weak: late career Jon Spencer and an early show by Kings of Leon (a band I like on record).
On the plus side, the band that opened for the Kings of Leon on that bad night was the Features (Nashville's best rock band but a national secret), and they've been phenomenal every time I've seen them. Jason & the Scorchers also used to put on a mean show--too bad they're not around anymore. Josh Rouse (another quasi-Nashville treasure) is always good. And would you believe Johnny Paycheck? Is he dead? He kept taking inhaler breaks between verses and he still kicked ass. Other noteworthy shows: REM, Elvis Costello, Wilco, Flaming Lips, the Eels.
Let's not talk about good live acts or bad live acts. Sometimes the same band is great one night and terrible another, or great in one venue and blah in another.
No, let's talk about concert behavior. Boorish fans who insist on shouting "Whoooooooo!" at 10 billion decibels like they at a Bad Company concert, but it's really Nickel Creek on stage. (Yeah, an unfortunate real experience at the Fillmore in Denver.) Or clouds of marijuana smoke. Sorry, folks, but not all of us enjoy getting high, and some of us have responsible jobs that are affected the next morning because of a contact high resulting from your irresponsibility. (Yeah, same Nickel Creek concert.)
Or people who bring their kids to concerts. Or who get drunk and obnoxious at concerts. I could go on, but let's have a column about this. It would be enlightening, and might just wake up some of those concert boors reading this column.
I go for the entire experience, the bands, the crowd, the unique dynamics of each venue. I have seen a few lackluster performances over the years, but they are definitely the exception. Each show is a unique experience in my life that can never be done again, and never needs to be. I love a lot of different kinds of musc so I have seen shows from diverse genres in all kinds of disparate settings. I've seen Dave Van Ronk play to 100 people in a little converted church in Kansas City and I've seen R.E.M. play to 60,000+ at Zilker Park in Austin. Each experience (and uncounted others) is an unrepeatable gathering together of forces and moments and I have loved them all. Rock'n Roll is a dirty business, but the overcrowded clubs, rude and drunk audience members and uncertain acoustics have all contributed to some of the greatest nights of my life. I'm a regular attendee at SXSW every March in Austin, TX, and that's a place where all live music lovers wish they could go after they die. Rock'n Roll Heaven. You can also find me at obscure festivals (like The Winnipeg Folk Fest) where the bands that absolutely blow me away are the ones I've never heard of.
Here are some of the outstanding shows I have seen over the last year.
1. The Stooges at The Fillmore Auditorium, Denver - an amazing night of the purest, rawest rock music to be found anywhere (I saw The Stooges at SXSW, but I was in the back and too drunk and having too much fun with audience members to care).
2. The James Gang at Red Rocks, again Denver. Red Rocks may be the most beautiful outdoor ampitheater in the world, and The James Gang delivered.
4. Johnette Napolitano in a top-of-the-hotel club at SXSW. Amazing singer and that view of nighttime Austin is etched in my mind forever.
There are too many others to list.
In closing, live music is much different than listening to music in your ideal home environment. It's a whole 'nother enchilada. Some people don't like going to see live music for reasons too varied to count. And others are like me and just can't get enough. We all get to choose whether to stay home and fire up the sound system or to go out and get a bit grungy.
Love, peace, and see you in the mosh pit :)
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