Concert Reviews Archives

Real quick...Editors were totally on point last night. When they came through town a few months ago they seemed a bit off. Maybe it was them, maybe it was me (Sky high expectations), I can't say. What I can say is they played an amazing set last night. Their collective energy level was much higher, and it showed through in their set. Ed Lay was straight-up attacking his drum set. I was up front for most of the night and had planned to go in the back and stand with Natalya and her friend when there was a lull in the show. Well, that didn't happen until around song # 9 or so. Great, great show. And a good way to start out the 2008 concert year.

Can't say the same for the openers. I detest Louis XIV, who have yet to write a decent song. And about 30 seconds into Hot Hot Heat's set, their tour manager came up to me and scolded me that my photo pass was only good for Editors and not his band. Oh really? If my band just released and was touring behind their third album, which was greeting with universally lukewarm reviews, and was in the process of playing a nine song set, seven of which were old tunes, I'd be begging people to pay attention to my band before they fall off the face of the fucking planet. But hey, you got it. I won't talk about or pay attention to them no more.

If you haven't read it yet, don't forget to check out my interview with Editors lead singer Tom Smith.

While we're semi-on-the-subject, there is an embarrassing amount of great shows in D.C. tonight. The 9:30 has Blonde Redhead, who I have yet to see (the 2 songs I saw them do at ACL Festival last year don't count). The Black Cat is hosting Yeasayer and MGMT in the backstage (locals read all about the brouhaha regarding the small venue yesterday) and The Red and The Black has my boys from GreenVegas, NC, the one and only Future Islands. I saw them last year at Whartscape and they were teh awesome. Normally I would be front and center at the Future Islands show, but I threw my hat into the Yeasayer ring last week. So if you're one of the "lucky" few with tickets, see you tonight.

Mew @ Black Cat - "The highlight of the night, however, was the encore performance of "Special," a song a few concert goers around me said they were waiting all night for. Madsen started riffing with the band's drummer while the rest of the band slowly took the stage, launching into the song's signature riff with a perfectly timed crescendo that had the audience going wild."

LCD Soundsystem @ 9:30 Club - "I wouldn't call myself a huge LCD fan by any means, and to be honest, the amount of hype they're getting from NYC was turning me off on the band a bit, but holy shit, they brought the noise last night. It was one of those shows where the band plays for over an hour and you're having so much fun it feels like only 10 minutes. And the best part of it was the usually stoic D.C. audience was totally letting their hair down and absolutely turning it loose. Most everybody in the club was dancing, even old men like me. I was proud to be from D.C. last night."

The Pipettes and Smoosh @ Black Cat - "The Pipettes are, as some are wont to say, the sound of one pan flashing, but no matter how you feel about the group, they put on a great show. There were plenty of choreographed dance moves to go along with the group's throw-back, doo-wop sound, and best of all, the girls seemed to be enjoying themselves. The crowd certainly did. Think of them as the female Art Brut. You either get it and totally love it or you don't."

The National @ 9:30 Club - "There were some outstanding moments, none of which I can remember directly because I was slightly to fairly drunk. There were quite a few songs that had me dancing around like no one was watching. One of the songs off of the new record got a new arrangement and it sounded great, but I can't remember which one it was. "Lit Up" and "Mr. November" got the chatty Cathy's standing all around us to shut the fuck up and actually watch the show."

Travis @ 9:30 Club - "Normally I absolutely abhor it when bands play "greatest hits" sets. But when it's been seven years since you've seen a band, those type of sets aren't exactly a bad thing. In fact, last night the set was perfect. Because they played "Back In Black." On a whim. As the last song of the night. It was INCREDIBLE."

Dappled Cities Fly @ Black Cat - "They played the Black Cat's backstage room last night and put on one of the most enjoyable shows I've seen this year. Their sound is a glorious blend of Mew, Supergrass, The Shins and Levy - art rock with perfect pop hooks occasionally sung in falsetto."

Kings of Leon @ 9:30 Club - "You know all those completely overrated bands like The Decemberists, Beruit, effing Sufjan, Band of Horses, The New Pornographers, Tapes N Tapes, Andrew Bird and the like? You can have them. Go ahead and take 'em. Just give me Kings of Leon. Give me a band with career ambition, building their fan base the right way - releasing albums that get progressively better while touring like crazy and playing bigger and bigger venues, but most importantly a band that fucking brings the rock live. Their set last night at the 9:30 Club was perhaps the best show I've seen this year. "

Voxtrot & The Little Ones @ Black Cat - "You know how I always say I love bands that do mainly verse-chorus-verse songs with a "do do do," "la la la" or "woo woo woo" thrown in there at some point? The Little Ones generally do all three in most of their songs. Think of an American version of I Should Coco-era Supergrass. Tons of energy, lots of smiles on stage and plenty of chances to clap along with their songs. And it's pretty impossible not to sing along with the "hey-oh"'s in "Lovers Who Undercover." I had a ball during their set."

Pela @ Historic Sixth & I Synagouge - "Holy hell. They were brilliant. Forced to do a 30 minute set due to the schedule, they wasted no time and pulled no punches, delivering one of the best sets of music I've seen this year. They were damn near perfect. The choruses were big and soared when they needed to and Billy showed a newfound talent for pulling back a bit and showing a bit of restraint during the slower songs."

Jen Lekman @ Black Cat - "I couldn't stay long at the Jens Lekman show last night and that turned out to be a real shame. He was brilliant. It was a cold, rainy night outside but this guy was just emanating sunshine from the stage. And he managed to turn a good show into a great show in just the second song of the night, when during the last little bit of "The Opposite of Hallelujah" he dropped in a sample of "Give Me Just A Little More Time" by The Chairman of the Board."

Morrissey @ DAR Constitution Hall - "We only got to shoot two songs and they went by in a flash(no pun intended). I had both of my cameras with me and would switch between the two whenever the buffer on a memory card would fill up. I had them placed on the stage in front of me, which was very handy. During the second song, while I was putting one camera down and picking up the other, Moz hit me in the face with the mic cord! Awesome."

Superdrag @ 930 Club - "They didn't get to the good stuff, that being everything off of Head Trip In Every Key, until the latter part of the set but it was worth the wait. "Sold You An Alibi" killed. As did "Do The Vampire." "I'm Expanding My Mind" was every bit of the sonic godhead I make it out to be in my head. So yeah, this show was good."

Superdrag were brilliant last night.

Yes, they look a bit longer in the tooth but they still got it.

In spades.

John Davis can still sing his ass off.

Don Coffey Jr. still plays drums like a man possesed.

And Tom Pappas still wears leather pants.

So much awesome.

The set list (which I'm still looking for online) stuck mostly to the early EP's and first two records, with a few new Davis songs thrown in here and there. They didn't get to the good stuff, that being everything off of Head Trip In Every Key, until the latter part of the set but it was worth the wait. "Sold You An Alibi" killed. As did "Do The Vampire." "I'm Expanding My Mind" was every bit of the sonic godhead I make it out to be in my head. So yeah, this show was good.

The ungodly 11:15 start time meant I had to leave before their set was over, which is a real shame because I didn't get to hear "Destination Ursa Major," which is easily one of my 10 favorite songs of all time. But I was stoked to hear my faves from Head Trip.

I have no idea if the band will do something like this again soon (or ever again for that matter) but if it comes to pass, you need to go check them out. This band is the classic example of "these guys should have been HUGE!"

The ungodly start time meant no time for photo editing last night. So look for photos this weekend or Monday.

Completely unreleated:
A compilation: McSweeney's Rockist-oriented lists

Every NBA player from the 1980's has retired.

The Washington Wizard's new offense.

Dan Dickau. Who He Play For?

Seriously: All that for four shows.

Jimmy Carter, cat killer.

Last night I finally got to shoot Morrissey. I say "finally" because I was supposed to shoot three of the dates he cancelled back in July. Three! But it was not to be. And after the show last night, I think the wait was almost worth it.

I was incredibly nervous when I got to the venue. I was trying not to put too much pressure on myself to get "the shot" but it wasn't working. I had some serious butterflies in my stomach. About five minutes before Moz went onstage, the promoter led the photogs down to the front of the house. There is no photo pit at DAR, so we had to basically shoot from the crowd. However, the bouncers were nice enough to clear people out of the center aisle which was just enough space for myself and Ryan, the other photog. I was front row! Before I could even get settled, the lights dimmed and Morrissey bounded out across the stage. I took a deep breath and went to work.

We only got to shoot two songs and they went by in a flash(no pun intended). I had both of my cameras with me and would switch between the two whenever the buffer on a memory card would fill up. I had them placed on the stage in front of me, which was very handy. During the second song, while I was putting one camera down and picking up the other, Moz hit me in the face with the mic cord! Awesome.

When our two songs were up, I stored my camera in the production office and then went back out to enjoy the show. Even though the venue was just over half full, Moz was in fine form and looked like he was enjoying himself greatly. He played a great set (although he completely ignored any Ringleaders material - save for the b-side "Good Looking Man About Town") and the crowd was mad for it.

I got my hands on the second shirt that was thrown out but a mad scramble for it ensued and I gave up on it. Besides, what am I going to do with a 1/4 of a sleeve? Moz ended up throwing three shirts into the crowd and it seemed to rile everyone up. There were something like 12 stage invaders during the last song and Moz was loving it. he had the biggest smile on his face. Security was really cool about it, letting people jump up on stage and then back down if they didn't do anything crazy. They had their hands full. Boz threw out a set list right before he walked off stage and I just missed it. Dagger. Even so, I declare my 13th Morrissey gig a success.

Oh, and I got the shot.

Setlist: (via)
Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before / Irish Blood, English Heart / Interesting Drug / Death Of A Disco Dancer / Sister, I'm A Poet / One Day Goodbye Will Be Farewell / Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself? / Billy Budd / Jack The Ripper / The Loop / Stretch Out And Wait / I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris / Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want / Tomorrow / I Like You / Good Looking Man About Town / The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores / That's How People Grow Up / The Boy With The Thorn In His Side / Dear God, Please Help Me / How Soon Is Now? // First Of The Gang To Die

Ok, real quick. Ram's Head live is like the 9:30 Club with a capacity more akin to that of the Black cat. Only much more sterile and without any charm or personality. House of Blues Lite if you will. Still, I had never seen Morrissey in such a small venue before. The opportunity was too good to pass up and I just put the ticket price out of my mind.

I grabbed a spot stage right about 7 people back from the stage. I had the perfect sightline to the middle of the stage. I chatted with some of the people standing around me, mostly couples, and everyone was nice. I was pumped and ready for a great show.

Then during the set changeover after Girl In A Coma (who were ok, but nothing to blog about), about 10 minutes before the Mozzer came onstage, this visibly drunk older (40+ - just trying to put things in context here) couple tried to push their way through the small group of people where I was standing. This big burly guy (Who was stocky as hell) was having none of that and wouldn't let them do it. They contiunued to fight to get in front of him and a drink got spilled on someone next to the burly guy. He was none to happy and said something to the lady that spilled her beer. She basically said "Fuck off you fucking fuck" which didn;t make burly guy or the other people in the are very happy. A few people said things to older, drunk couple who kept replying "Fuck you, we paid money to be in here too," etc. More words were exchanged in both directions, lots of "Fuck Yous" flying back and forth. Finally the drunk lady said something very nasty and one of the guys that was doing the talking got in her face. She threw her (full) beer on that guy, drenching him and the causing collateral soakage to the poor sap standing next to him (Me!). So the wet guy grabs her, then her boyfriend/husband jumps into action, they grapple and then older dude throws a punch. The crowd was moving all around at that point so I'm not sure if it landed but younger dude was having none of that and he just decked the older guy. Older guy was stunned, more drinks were tossed by the lady and everyone is on their case by now. After another 30 seconds or so, older dude came back at the younger guy but the big burly guy from earlier (now wet) gave him a very hard shove and launched him back about eight feet. Dude got rocked. At that point security came over and took younger dude away. I never saw him for the rest of the night although a few bystanders went over to make sure security knew who started it.

I say all of this because after the melee I lost my awesome spot and had to stand behind this obnoxiously drink girl who (seriously) shouted "OMG! I can't belieeeeeeve it" everytime Morrissey began a song. Every. fucking. time. She sounded like a sick poodle or something. It derove me crazy. After the fourth or fifth song reality has to set in right? At some point don't you have to recognize the fact that you are in a rock club and Morrissey is singing and sound is coming out of the speakers? You have to acknowlegde that at some point, right?

They finally left just before "Tomorrow" and I got to enjoy the rest of the set in piece. All in all, it was a good show, Moz came out dressed in a tux (looking very dapper), with the band clad soleyl in loincloths. Even Boz. It was pretty awesome. Everyone in the band also had something written on their chest in magic marker, Boz's was "Disco Dancer." Moz was in fine form, although "Jack The Ripper" kinda suck because Boz's guitar was turned up too loud and you couldn't hear anything else. Moz opened with "The Loop" and it got the night off to a fantastic start. "The Death of a Disco Dancer" and "Stretch Out and Wait," my first time hearing both, were great as well.

Moz wasn't as chatty as usual (he didn't even mention canceling the July show there) but one standout part of the show was when he opened the floor up for questions and gave the mic to a girl in the front row. She took her time and eventually said"Yes, I'm curious about.." and at that point Moz grabbed the mic back and said flatly, "Stay curious." Awesome.

Can't wait for D.C. on Friday.

The set (via):
The Loop / Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before / Last Of The Famous International Playboys / Sister, I'm A Poet / All You Need Is Me / London / Billy Budd / Girlfriend In A Coma / Irish Blood, English Heart / That's How People Grow Up / Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me / Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself? / The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores / I Like You / Shoplifters Of The World Unite / Tomorrow / Stretch Out And Wait / I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris / Death Of A Disco Dancer / Jack The Ripper / How Soon Is Now? // First Of The Gang To Die

[MP3] Morrissey | The Loop

*dictated but not (proof)read