SCORE! part one: Records and Live Performances

part one...

Friday:

I have officially hit the age where i notice a pretty large age gap when i attend some rock and/or roll shows. not that i feel weird about it, but it is now a spot-on observation. this was the case when i attended the minus the bear show at the blue note. my friend daryle slid me into the show as his plus one, and from the get go, i felt out of place. there sidewalk was littered with kids who looked like first-time smokers. they had experimented with it long enough and were now ready to move on to a public venue for their new found vice.

inside i was surprised to see how packed the show was. not that i didn't think minus the bear could draw anyone in, but i guess i didn't expect to see such an energetic crowd, again most of them probably had a parent picking them up after the show. okay so after being mildly drawn into the big sleep set (they had some nice material, though i am curious to hear the recorded version, the atmosphere of the show and the live set were not enough to draw me in completely).

i have to admit by the time minus the bear hits the stage i want nothing to do with a live show. i'm tired, i am music-ed out(sometimes it is possible for me to take in an overload of music), and in sensory overload with the crowd. so honestly they never had a chance to grab my attention.
but i did stay for the first few songs, and i can see that they play their instruments well, they know how to put a song together, yet they weren't my cup of tea. furthermore i don't know how people could be so into this band. i mean the floor was packed with folks who knew words to all of the songs, where the big dramatic chorus, but i wasn't engaged. so after song three, i high-fived (yes hi-fived) a few folks and departed.

Saturday:

National Record Store Day...

i ended up with the following from purchases i made at Slackers (a.m) and Vintage Vinyl (p.m)

- Caribou - Andorra (vinyl)
- Gram Parsons - Grievous Angel (vinyl)
- George Harrison - All Things Must Pass (vinyl)

additional freebies
- Sub Pop compilation (cd)
- Vice Records compilation (cd)
- MGMT (7")
- Destroyer (7")

after spending a pleasant ride to st. louis with my pals david and zac, we took in the sale an at vintage vinyl, grabbed a quick bite at delmar lounge, and then headed to the pageant for one of them rock and/or roll shows featuring... the new pornographers and okkervil river...

as mentioned in earlier postings i finally came around to okkervil river with the album the stage names. so i was ready for this show. and the gentleman did not disappoint. though i have a couple of points i would like to pick on...

1) the suits - look my band was guilty of the whole suit thing as well, but have we moved past this presentation yet. maybe its charming, but i'm just past it personally, so isn't it just like me to feel like its over for everyone else? yes, of course. i'm a jerk
2) will sheff's movements - okay he is tall (check), he is lanky (check), and he is the lead singer for a very good band (check). so does this give him full merit to contort his body around the stage as if he is drunk? (he might be) he uses the mic stand to show the dramatic stage pose just as much to use for support. but again i am looking at this from a jerk's perspective. the show as a whole works, i'm just not sure if i like all of the gesturing...

other than that they were a band of tambourines. i spotted four at one time used on one song. they also had other perucussive devices that helped the audience clap along to. but this was a show after all, not a cd listening party, so for all of the points i complained about, it was just me trying to find points to critique, overall it was a great set and for that alone was worth my time and money.

the new pornographers moved their set along with the energy of a train.



my friends had two different perspectives on the show:

Zac

Annie

for this i will have to lean towards Zac's perspective (minus the Yao Ming reference, i am not a rockets fan, in fact i'm much more partial to college basketball. but for the sake of the NBA i will say that their comeback in set was reminiscent of Willis Reed and the New York Knicks), but i will give it to annie, with the Mac/Keyboardist reference. he did look bored to pieces, especially when he played bass on a song. look if you hate playing live shows move along... plus he got double minus points for just playing the macintosh on a couple of songs.

other than that the team pulled ahead and hit a set worthy of okkervil river's opening set. i was worried there would be a lull but A.C. Neuman and crew hit it right with My Rights versus Yours (this song's vocal melodies are owning me right now) and Myriad Harbour. Overall i was really happy with how the show went, but i have to admit, my tiredness set in and i was ready for the trip back to columbia.