930 Forums
=> GENERAL DISCUSSION => Topic started by: redsock on December 09, 2004, 06:14:00 pm
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The fact that the current sellouts on the board are Better than Ezra, Gavin Degraw and OAR says everything you ever needed to know about the DC music scene.
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I was pretty shocked that Better than Ezra sold out. Aren't they sort of Live On Penn band? Almost as shocking is Motley Crue playing MCI.
Will Bright Eyes sell out?
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Other bands have sold out 9:30 in the past year...Just some shows for others happen to be scheduled this month...But you do have a point, I'm surprised BTE sold out. A variety of reasons though...it's a Friday, the holidays, maybe it's b/c of the two opening bands? (I have no idea who either of them are.)
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Originally posted by bellenseb:
Will Bright Eyes sell out?
yes
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Originally posted by redsock:
The fact that the current sellouts on the board are Better than Ezra, Gavin Degraw and OAR says everything you ever needed to know about the DC music scene.
I know I get defensive, but it's not just DC. These are the bands that sellout most places rather than Le Tigre, The National or Clearlake.
Look, frickin' Bright Eyes will sell out. If that's not the nadir (or zenith) of the indie scene, nothing is. :p
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Muse & Interpol sold out on consecutive weeknights
I would say that speaks for the sophistication of our town
the fact that stuff sells out that you think is dorky shouldn't take away from that
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The last two posts are dead on. I'm not seeing Better Than Ezra this time cause I've seen them about five times already in the last two years, but I can say that they put on one heck of a live performance.
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Originally posted by bellenseb:
I was pretty shocked that Better than Ezra sold out. Aren't they sort of Live On Penn band? Almost as shocking is Motley Crue playing MCI.
Well that would make GBV and other Indie bands "Live on Penn." bands since they also played there.
As for Motley Crue, that concert is gonna be a great concert and the MCI Center will probably be the only spot inside the city that can hold the crowd.
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Originally posted by Seth Hurwitz:
Muse & Interpol sold out on consecutive weeknights
I would say that speaks for the sophistication of our town
the fact that stuff sells out that you think is dorky shouldn't take away from that
I'm not suggesting the OAR crowd is the only type of show to sell out around here, merely that these "safer" shows tend to be what the general public want to see. It obviously makes sense since corporate radio plays to the same exact crowd. And despite Muse, Interpol, GBV, etc., I think the number of good bands that hardly get an audience, whether at 930, BC or other places, heavily outweighs the few that do sell out. In a place like NYC or LA, they do grab god audiiences.
I realize I'm being captain obvious here, but it just made me a little sad to think that there are good bands who can't even find a place to play in DC, much less draw a crowd. And Gavin Degraw sells out 2 shows.
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The lack of local college radio with a decent signal plays a part in this, I think. People won't likely go to a show of a band they've never heard.
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What exactly makes Muse or Interpol "unsafe." No disrespect to those bands or their fans intended, but they don't seem that far from Better Than Ezra to me.
Originally posted by redsock:
It obviously makes sense since corporate radio plays to the same exact crowd.
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Carlos D's a loose cannon with herpes.
Originally posted by nkotbie:
What exactly makes Muse or Interpol "unsafe."
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Originally posted by nkotbie:
What exactly makes Muse or Interpol "unsafe." No disrespect to those bands or their fans intended, but they don't seem that far from Better Than Ezra to me.
Originally posted by redsock:
It obviously makes sense since corporate radio plays to the same exact crowd.
[/b]
You don't think the average 35 year old woman from Connecticut would find Interpol or Muse a bit too edgy? Granted, both bands are played on HFS, but generally speaking, the majority of Clear Channel tations wouldn't play them over their standards, wheher it be GnR, Shania Twain, Degraw, Barenaked Ladies etc... For crying out loud, Matchbox 20 and Fountains of Wayne pass for cutting edge on many of these stations. Whatever you think of those two bands, cutting edge they are not. Even the new stuff they play on DC101 is cookie cutter rock. That is why things like the Shortlist award really are important.
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i can't remember the last show i went to in dc that wasn't really crowded. maybe aislers set like a year and a half ago
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They're really far apart.
Muse and Interpol are "hip"
Better Than Ezra, despite a very interesting and genre-busting 1998 LP and a rootsy-indie feel on their last album, can never be "hip" after that 'good' song.
Originally posted by nkotbie:
What exactly makes Muse or Interpol "unsafe." No disrespect to those bands or their fans intended, but they don't seem that far from Better Than Ezra to me.
Originally posted by redsock:
It obviously makes sense since corporate radio plays to the same exact crowd.
[/b]
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Originally posted by redsock:
Originally posted by nkotbie:
[qb] You don't think the average 35 year old woman from Connecticut would find Interpol or Muse a bit too edgy? [/b]
I'm a 32 year old woman from Chicago and I find Interpol not at all edgy, slightly cheesy, and I don't know Muse.
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Kind of odd that 35 year old women from Connecticut are buying up all the 9:30 concert tickets, aint it?
Take your dorky glasses and move to LA, hipster boy.
Originally posted by redsock:
The fact that the current sellouts on the board are Better than Ezra, Gavin Degraw and OAR says everything you ever needed to know about the DC music scene.
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Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
Take your dorky glasses and move to LA, hipster boy.
My glasses are rather metro-sexual thank you very much. I'm going to visit LA in a month, does that count?
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Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
Better Than Ezra, despite a very interesting and genre-busting 1998 LP and a rootsy-indie feel on their last album, can never be "hip" after that 'good' song.
[/qb]
[/qb][/QUOTE] [/QB][/QUOTE]
I don't really think a band from New Orleans gives a rat's ass about being "hip". They joke about that song ("Good") at most of the concerts I've gone to. That song was and still is "good", and most of the other songs they sing are "good".
"good" bye....For now. :D
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You and I both know that GBV was an abberation and that when someone says Live on Penn you don't think indie bands...you think "alternative" one hit wonders from ten years ago.
And I have nothing personal against Better than Ezra or Motley Crue, I'm just plainly surprised they still have such fanbases. Good for them.
Originally posted by Rob_Gee:
Originally posted by bellenseb:
I was pretty shocked that Better than Ezra sold out. Aren't they sort of Live On Penn band? Almost as shocking is Motley Crue playing MCI.
Well that would make GBV and other Indie bands "Live on Penn." bands since they also played there.
As for Motley Crue, that concert is gonna be a great concert and the MCI Center will probably be the only spot inside the city that can hold the crowd. [/b]
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Originally posted by Rob_Gee:
Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
Better Than Ezra, despite a very interesting and genre-busting 1998 LP and a rootsy-indie feel on their last album, can never be "hip" after that 'good' song.
[/b]
[/qb]
[/QB][/QUOTE]
I don't really think a band from New Orleans gives a rat's ass about being "hip". They joke about that song ("Good") at most of the concerts I've gone to. That song was and still is "good", and most of the other songs they sing are "good".
"good" bye....For now. :D [/QB][/QUOTE]
Rob did you go to their show in 1997? That was a fun show. At the last minute, I ended up at their show on St. Patty's Day (a couple of years ago). I was surprised that after all this time, they maintain a large and youthful fanbase. I have no idea what they have been up to in the past couple of years -- I'm assuming new fans have latched onto their recent albums.
At this point, I'd take them over Carbon Leaf or Pat McGee Band. Everywhere I look they are playing. At least BTE reminds me of the 90's heydays.
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Heh, just noticed on the 9:30 front page that the Something Corporate show is now sold out.
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Originally posted by Rob_Gee:
Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
Better Than Ezra, despite a very interesting and genre-busting 1998 LP and a rootsy-indie feel on their last album, can never be "hip" after that 'good' song.
[/b]
[/qb]
[/QB][/QUOTE]
I don't really think a band from New Orleans gives a rat's ass about being "hip". They joke about that song ("Good") at most of the concerts I've gone to. That song was and still is "good", and most of the other songs they sing are "good".
"good" bye....For now. :D [/QB][/QUOTE]
You obviously missed my point, I was merely showing why they're "far apart" from interpol/muse. The music intellegencia will never consider them "hip" because of their mainstream post-grunge success.
That said, I like the direction they took on their last two albums and I'm sure the band could give a shit what people think, they're selling out good sized venues, more power to them.
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Originally posted by Random Citizen:
Heh, just noticed on the 9:30 front page that the Something Corporate show is now sold out.
And it's in January! Crieky, I dunno, I don't predict trends.
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Well, my mom has placed both Interpol and Muse on recent mix CD's she's made, and she's by no means hip or with it. She hears a song, likes it, and downloads it, and that's across the board and across radio stations.
It just seems odd to me to criticize one band for having a hit on modern rock radio and not criticize another. If that's the criteria, then there is absolutely no difference between Interpol and Better Than Ezra. And to think different is completely elitist.
Originally posted by redsock:
You don't think the average 35 year old woman from Connecticut would find Interpol or Muse a bit too edgy?
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Originally posted by nkotbie:
Well, my mom has placed both Interpol and Muse on recent mix CD's she's made, and she's by no means hip or with it. She hears a song, likes it, and downloads it, and that's across the board and across radio stations.
It just seems odd to me to criticize one band for having a hit on modern rock radio and not criticize another. If that's the criteria, then there is absolutely no difference between Interpol and Better Than Ezra. And to think different is completely elitist.
Originally posted by redsock:
You don't think the average 35 year old woman from Connecticut would find Interpol or Muse a bit too edgy?
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Well, for one, your mom is not the average mom. My mom couldn't operate a computer much less download music. And lord knows she would not be listening to Muse or Interpol.
I am not being critical towards Better than Ezra, I have two of their CDs. I'm just saying that they are an example of this corporate "safe" music, which is what people seem to want to listen to. As opposed to more interesting stuff. None of this is terribly surprising, since so few folks actually want to challenge themselves, why would they want to listen to different types of music?
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Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
You obviously missed my point, I was merely showing why they're "far apart" from interpol/muse. The music intellegencia will never consider them "hip" because of their mainstream post-grunge success.
[/QB]
Ok, sorry, I missed your point. I now get it. :)
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Does listening to Muse or Interpol really qualify as "challenging oneself"?
A friend of mine (who is a big Bigger than Ezra fan) worked in post-war Iraq for 9 months. That's challenging yourself.
Challenge yourself by listening to some bluegrass. I don't hear that played much on corporate radio. Or is bluegrass "safe"?
Or are you, or more like the online 'zines you read, the only person allowed to be the arbiter of what is deemed "safe"?
Seems that a person living in a major metropolitan area who listens to bluegrass would be more "edgy" than one who listens to Interpol. Just as an Interpol listener in Demopolis, Alabama would probably be more "edgy" than a Kenny Chesney listener from same location.
Originally posted by redsock:
Originally posted by nkotbie:
Well, my mom has placed both Interpol and Muse on recent mix CD's she's made, and she's by no means hip or with it. She hears a song, likes it, and downloads it, and that's across the board and across radio stations.
It just seems odd to me to criticize one band for having a hit on modern rock radio and not criticize another. If that's the criteria, then there is absolutely no difference between Interpol and Better Than Ezra. And to think different is completely elitist.
Originally posted by redsock:
You don't think the average 35 year old woman from Connecticut would find Interpol or Muse a bit too edgy?
[/b]
Well, for one, your mom is not the average mom. My mom couldn't operate a computer much less download music. And lord knows she would not be listening to Muse or Interpol.
I am not being critical towards Better than Ezra, I have two of their CDs. I'm just saying that they are an example of this corporate "safe" music, which is what people seem to want to listen to. As opposed to more interesting stuff. None of this is terribly surprising, since so few folks actually want to challenge themselves, why would they want to listen to different types of music? [/b]
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You Goddamned momma's boys!
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Originally posted by El Tee:
Rob did you go to their show in 1997? That was a fun show. At the last minute, I ended up at their show on St. Patty's Day (a couple of years ago). [/QB]
I just moved to the area in 1999 and probably didnt start hitting the concerts til the middle of 2000. One of my bosses from work is a HUGE Better Than Ezra fan so I went to the group, was quite suprised about how many songs I actaully knew and just kept going every time they came. Well except this time. But I'll catch them again the next time they come here.
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Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
Does listening to Muse or Interpol really qualify as "challenging oneself"?
A friend of mine (who is a big Bigger than Ezra fan) worked in post-war Iraq for 9 months. That's challenging yourself.
Challenge yourself by listening to some bluegrass. I don't hear that played much on corporate radio. Or is bluegrass "safe"?
Or are you, or more like the online 'zines you read, the only person allowed to be the arbiter of what is deemed "safe"?
Seems that a person living in a major metropolitan area who listens to bluegrass would be more "edgy" than one who listens to Interpol. Just as an Interpol listener in Demopolis, Alabama would probably be more "edgy" than a Kenny Chesney listener from same location.
I agree with all of your points, accept that I am not the only person capable of deeming what is safe. I'm sure bluegrass challenges lots of people in a good way, and would challenge far more if folks gave it a chance.
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I'd say that living in a major metropolitan area like DC and listening to Kenney Chesney would be most challenging of all...
Why does music have to be challening?
I thought it was entertainment.
My mom likes Rogue Wave.
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I'm sorry, Interpol is good, but there's really nothing "challenging" about it. It's all been done before.
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Originally posted by HerrDoktorDoom:
I'm sorry, Interpol is good, but there's really nothing "challenging" about it. It's all been done before.
Compared to Sonic Youth or your average noise rock outfit, no they are not. But compared to Better than Ezra?
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To 35 year old women from Connecticut, Interpol probably sounds wayyy too much like the college radio bands they listened to at their elite private universities back in the 80's to ever be regarded as "challenging".
To me, there's nothing really challenging about Sonic Youth. Perhaps 15-20 years ago, but certainly not at this point, no? I have never heard Muse or Bigger than Ezra, so really can't comment on them.
I don't think most people ponder whether the music they are listening to is "challenging". Most people want music that sounds good to them and entertains them. Which, unless you're a complete music junkie, seems sufficient to me.
Bands that sell out show in NYC do so because there are like 10 million people in NYC, compared to a much smaller population in DC.
Originally posted by redsock:
Originally posted by HerrDoktorDoom:
I'm sorry, Interpol is good, but there's really nothing "challenging" about it. It's all been done before.
Compared to Sonic Youth or your average noise rock outfit, no they are not. But compared to Better than Ezra? [/b]
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I don't know about all this "challenging" stuff either. I like Better Than Ezra because there's no other band that I listen to that comes close to their sound. I'm sure there are alot of New Orlean bands that might sound like them but I haven't heard them and probably don't want to.
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When I lived in Norfolk a few years ago, I saw Better Than Ezra draw upwards of 6000 people at $10 a pop for an outdoor show, despite not having a current hit on the radio at the time. They brought out all kinds of people, kids, college students, somewhat hip looking young adults, families, older folks...so, seeing how this show is on a Friday, I'm not the least bit suprised it sold out a day in advance.
Plus, alot of the people I know going are just coming back into town after finishing up the fall semseter at colleges out of town and using this as a back in town celebration. I mean for alot of people, the only options they saw were this and the dude from Rancid playing at the Black Cat.
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Originally posted by alex:
I'm not the least bit suprised it sold out a day in advance.
Plus, alot of the people I know going are just coming back into town after finishing up the fall semseter at colleges out of town and using this as a back in town celebration. I mean for alot of people, the only options they saw were this and the dude from Rancid playing at the Black Cat.
Are they all home online and that is why Something Corporate sold out a month ahead?
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something corporate = trendy warped tour band
no suprise either seeing how other warped tour bands like taking back sunday and that coheed band sold out well in advance too.
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Originally posted by redsock:
Originally posted by HerrDoktorDoom:
I'm sorry, Interpol is good, but there's really nothing "challenging" about it. It's all been done before.
Compared to Sonic Youth or your average noise rock outfit, no they are not. But compared to Better than Ezra? [/b]
Well compared to Hootie and the Blowfish, Creed sounds challenging. If you're setting your standards that low, why bother?
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all this better than ezra talk reminded me of one of my favorite norm mac-donald lines from weekend update:
(paraphrasing)
"this week, better than ezra holds the top spot on the billboard charts ... in second place: ezra."
ahh, the mid-90s, how i miss ye
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Gotta love Norm. My other favorite line:
"This Wednesday Jews celebrate Yom Kippur. Or as the rest of us know it as: Wednesday."
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Both very funny....LOL
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Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
I don't think most people ponder whether the music they are listening to is "challenging". Most people want music that sounds good to them and entertains them. Which, unless you're a complete music junkie, seems sufficient to me.
Bands that sell out show in NYC do so because there are like 10 million people in NYC, compared to a much smaller population in DC.
Wow, i was going to make these exact two points. As Rhett. Same points!
I'm a music junkie, but I love the music I love....just because it sounds good go me and I love it. I love Tegan and Sara, I think Bright Eyes sucks. Can't get in to Luna at all, but I think Snow Patrol is resplendent. I like stuff that gets indie cred, and I like stuff that gets mocked. It's really quite visceral, and because I love music so much, I've become quite aware at how music inspires a reaction -- there's not usually that much brain involved.
Do I understand why so many people love OAR or Something Corporate? No. Same way I don't understand why the Replacements weren't as big as the rollling stones.
Ditto, also, to the point on Manhattan. There are 10 times as many people there (probably twice as many if you compare NYC to DC metro, which is probably an apt comparison...though a lot of folks are densely packed nearer the venues, etc). Shouldn't be unusual they sell out far more often and faster than DC shows.
NYC: 8 million (city only), 22 million (metropolitan area as defined by US census 2000)
L.A.: 3.7 million (city only), 9.5 million (metro area)
D.C.: 575K (city only), 3.9 million (metro area)
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Originally posted by Bags:
Wow, i was going to make these exact two points. As Rhett. Same points!
even a stopped clock is right twice a day. :D
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Yeah, this may be a little off subject to a degree, but i remember my favorite show being Calla/Cooper Temple Clause at 9:30 in March, aside from the great sets and my general interest in them, from what i remember the show was barely half full if that. I dunno, i just dont enjoy being in a sold out show as much, but im guessing most people feel the same way. Then again...
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speaking of sell-outs...
Arcade Fire? Being all the rage, will this one sell-out? Has HFS begun playing them?
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I'm kind of worried about that too. If I can't get to the box office this weekend, I'm ordering mine from Tickets.com.
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people are we forgetting, when you say the "current sellouts" at 9:30 represents the "DC music scene" that dc really doesn't have a representative music scene. if anything really, anything goes.
not to mention when people go to 9:30 i don't think any concert has been more than fifty percent washingtonians. you're forgetting md and va are there, and i've seen people as far as from europe come to shows here. diversity in music really soars around here.
really to say otherwise is looking at one side of a huge polygon. :cool:
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Originally posted by niro:
when you say the "current sellouts" at 9:30 represents the "DC music scene" that dc really doesn't have a representative music scene.
Spoken like someone who doesn't have a clue. There are more than a few bands that are not from the DC area who cite DC-based bands as influences on their sound. Try to do a bit of research before you generalize...or, as you put it, "looking at one side of a huge polygon."
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Originally posted by niro:
people are we forgetting, when you say the "current sellouts" at 9:30 represents the "DC music scene" that dc really doesn't have a representative music scene. if anything really, anything goes.
not to mention when people go to 9:30 i don't think any concert has been more than fifty percent washingtonians. you're forgetting md and va are there, and i've seen people as far as from europe come to shows here. diversity in music really soars around here.
really to say otherwise is looking at one side of a huge polygon. :cool:
this is sarcastic, right?
DC is well known for having one of the most monolithic and stifling music scenes in the country. If Ian MacKaye doesn't like you, you're SOL.
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Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
Originally posted by niro:
people are we forgetting, when you say the "current sellouts" at 9:30 represents the "DC music scene" that dc really doesn't have a representative music scene. if anything really, anything goes.
not to mention when people go to 9:30 i don't think any concert has been more than fifty percent washingtonians. you're forgetting md and va are there, and i've seen people as far as from europe come to shows here. diversity in music really soars around here.
really to say otherwise is looking at one side of a huge polygon. :cool:
this is sarcastic, right?
DC is well known for having one of the most monolithic and stifling music scenes in the country. If Ian MacKaye doesn't like you, you're SOL. [/b]
Ian came to the most recent BigYawn show, I hope that means he likes us.
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Don't forget that Wilco sold out too. It's no suprise that OAR and BTE sold out. Look at all the crap they play on the radio that people suck right up without question.
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Gavin DeGraw caught me by surprise. 2 shows sold out? Who is this guy?
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the title of this thread should be "sellouts sell out." ;)
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Ian came to the most recent BigYawn show, I hope that means he likes us.
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for the sake of you and your family, i sure fucking hope so.
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Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
If Ian MacKaye doesn't like you, you're SOL.
I think you're referencing the scene in 1994...it's 2004.
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Originally posted by Bags:
Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
If Ian MacKaye doesn't like you, you're SOL.
I think you're referencing the scene in 1994...it's 2004. [/b]
point well taken, and i'm sure it was hyperbole even then ... but i was just amazed that this guy with hubris to spare thought that DC has no discernable scene.
if you ask anyone who knows anything about music in this country what they think of when you say "DC music scene" and they either say hardcore or fugazi. pretty simple.
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Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
Originally posted by Bags:
Originally posted by HoyaSaxa03:
If Ian MacKaye doesn't like you, you're SOL.
I think you're referencing the scene in 1994...it's 2004. [/b]
point well taken, and i'm sure it was hyperbole even then ... but i was just amazed that this guy with hubris to spare thought that DC has no discernable scene.
if you ask anyone who knows anything about music in this country what they think of when you say "DC music scene" and they either say hardcore or fugazi. pretty simple. [/b]
or go-go, if they're not totally narrow-minded and whitebread.
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Challenge yourself by listening to some bluegrass. I don't hear that played much on corporate radio. Or is bluegrass "safe"?
no bluegrass is my hidden treasure. i would say a good portion of bluegrass is safe if not most.
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Originally posted by Random Citizen:
Originally posted by niro:
when you say the "current sellouts" at 9:30 represents the "DC music scene" that dc really doesn't have a representative music scene.
Spoken like someone who doesn't have a clue. There are more than a few bands that are not from the DC area who cite DC-based bands as influences on their sound. Try to do a bit of research before you generalize...or, as you put it, "looking at one side of a huge polygon." [/b]
spoken like someone who loves to paraphrase and loses the message. simply to say, a club that shows a band that sells out doesn't automatically dictate the music scenes of a city.
and yes agreed just like everywhere else, bands that originate from a city have influenced many bands not of that region. but you need to take a dose of your own advise and do some reasearch. my statement was of course in response to the topic that started the thread. that's why it was quoted...that's why it spoke of the venue sell outs and music scene relationship.
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Originally posted by niro:
spoken like someone who loves to paraphrase and loses the message. simply to say, a club that shows a band that sells out doesn't automatically dictate the music scenes of a city.
and yes agreed just like everywhere else, bands that originate from a city have influenced many bands not of that region. but you need to take a dose of your own advise and do some reasearch. my statement was of course in response to the topic that started the thread. that's why it was quoted...that's why it spoke of the venue sell outs and music scene relationship.
Best non-response response posted today. :p