930 Forums
=> GENERAL DISCUSSION => Topic started by: TomJaworski on September 29, 2004, 10:27:00 am
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C'mon people! To hell with the naysayers, who's going?
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I'll be there solo in the 5th row center seat I managed to nab. I saw the last show of the 5-night stand at the Apollo Theater this past May and it was fantastic. Should be a great show.
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There with bells on. Either off to the left side or near the back (have 2 sets of tickets.)...ENJOY!
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Any place within walking distance of DAR with food & brew?
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Yes! Orch row S. I'll be the one in the Smiths T-shirt. I hope he is feeling better!
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Not that it'll definitely occur tonight, but at a few recent England fest dates, he has been opening with "How Soon is Now?". That would be the shit!!!
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Does anyone know if there is an opening band/act?
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that was an increadible concert and his voice was dead on! LONG LIVE MOZ!
He played so many more Smiths songs than I could have hoped! I think I almost passed out twice..
now who remembers the song list before the concert? a couple frenchy songs which i couldnt place...and a frank sinatra song?
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ok, all of the songs below were played, and roughly in this order. i can't remember the exact order, though.
how soon is now?
the first of the gang to die
november spawned a monster
such a little thing makes such a big difference
bigmouth strikes again
let me kiss you
the world is full of crashing bores
how can anybody possibly know how i feel?
everyday is like sunday
last night i dreamt that somebody loved me
now my heart is full
irish blood, english heart
rubber ring
i like you
you know i couldn't last
-----------------------------------------
there is a light that never goes out
there was a gong on stage. it was struck thrice.
all of the band members wore jobriath t-shirts.
morrissey is still one of the best performers in rock 'n' roll.
and i'm not too sure about the DAR acoustics.
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That was a great show. I liked when he changed the lyrics to Bigmouth so Joan of Arc's iPod was melting.
DAR does not screw around with show start times! When he went on at 9-ish, it seemed like a lot of people hadn't yet arrived.
Did anyone notice the old couple sitting in the front row box seats to the right of the stage? I wonder what their story was. They looked to be about 70 and seemed amused by the whole thing.
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Did anyone storm the stage? My favorite Morrissey concert moment was when I saw him in Key West, FL, and he was performing "Shoplifters of the World Unite". During the line "A heartless hand on my shoulder, a push and it's over" about 20 people ran up on stage and BOOM, he was outta there!
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"It's wet...it's wednesday...it's Washington."
A few people got onstage...the guards nabbed but not before Morrissey allowed them to touch his blessed hand. One girl tried to kiss him and he amusingly stepped away.
"You're very generous...but you have awful bread."
Morrissey is the ultimate entertainer. His immaculate voice is as strong as ever even though he is still recovering from illness. "Bigmouth Strikes Again" was incredible. "You Know I Couldn't Last" was an absolute epic closer. I'm still high off the concert the morning after.
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Did anyone notice the old couple sitting in the front row box seats to the right of the stage? I wonder what their story was. They looked to be about 70 and seemed amused by the whole thing.
My brother thought that was his mother.
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[/QUOTE] "and i'm not too sure about the DAR acoustics"
DAR is widely regarding by the touring industry as one of the worst sounding venues (for its size) in North America. It was built before the era of amplified audio for orchestras & such, and as a result is extreamly reverberant. The mix last night was quite good IMHO but I'd agree it was hampered by the venue...
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It seems I am the only one disappointed by this show. I definitely did not think it was worth the $65 I paid.
First though, the positives: All of those Smiths tracks, Morrissey's voice, how he looked, his quips in between each song, his taking his shirt off at the end. The lighting. The venue starting things bang on time and keeping to a schedule (and not having to wait outside for very long either, after the 7 p.m. door opening). The security that allowed us to see a full Morrissey concert without it abruptly ending early due to crowds rushing him. The fact that Morrissey played 1.5 hours (longest of the 4 concerts I have seen by him) despite illness.
The negatives: The audience (I felt like I was in a concert occuring at a nursing home - this was the quietest crowd I've ever encountered at a Moz gig - this was also the first time I had not heard chants of "MORR-is-sey"). Many people on the sides were sitting down throughout the whole concert. The lack of energy, particularly in the beginning (downright boring, at times). The number of ballads played. The fact that songs like "How Soon Is Now?," "November Spawned A Monster," "Now My Heart Is Full" and others that rock on record felt flat/watered down and were not nearly as heavy or driving. The arrangements of some of the songs. The sound (around me, I kept hearing people yelling for the guitars to be turned up, and I agreed). D.A.R. Constitution Hall's sound/acoustics. The far-too-long intro (was that Joolz doing the voice-over?). Some of the sparkly curtain/flashing lights reminding a few friends and I of Elvis's later "Las Vegas" years and us saying that we hope Morrissey doesn't go down that route ... with his crooning last night however, and the emphasis on ballads ... perhaps it is not long off?! The people next to me, who thankfully moved - one constantly asking me and some others if we "had any gum," and tapping me on the arm saying, "Isn't it great we're so close?" while her friend sat there wearing a Britney Spears t-shirt. The guy in front of me who kept saying, "I want to go to Australia and get laid every night." Where the HELL do these people come from?!
At some points I got an uncanny feeling thinking that Morrissey and Jay Leno (looks-wise) have perhaps been separated at birth.
For those interested in such things, Morrissey first came out wearing black trousers, a black button-down shirt, and a deep red velvet blazer/smoking jacket. After a few songs, he took off the jacket. Later, he changed into another dark (bluish, I think?) button-down shirt. For the encore, he came out in an orangey-red shirt that looked great against the backdrop.
The stage had a dark sparkly curtain that nicely reflected the light and made me happy (lover of glittery things that I am). There was the large MORRISSEY sign made up of dozens of light bulbs that mainly flashed red, but also turned different colors.
Here is the setlist in order along with some of his words to the crowd. The songs with * next to them were my favorites of the night.
"It's wet, it's Wednesday, it's Washington"
1. How Soon Is Now?
"It's nice to be back here at the 9:30 Club"
2. First Of The Gang To Die
3. November Spawned A Monster
(Lyrics altered to include Moz singing "Yes, I am a freak")
4. Such A Little Thing Makes Such A Big Difference *
"Just remember you don't need to clap if you don't really want to."
5. Bigmouth Strikes Again
Lyrics altered to include Moz singing "The IPOD started to melt")
"I'm not a professional yet ... Just you watch, I'll make it into Rolling Stone magazine someday."
6. Let Me Kiss You
Moz introduces his band
7. The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores
Gong struck at the end of this song
"The unfortunate thing about being an American is American politics."
8. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me *
9. Subway Train (into) Everyday Is Like Sunday *
10. How Can Anyone Possibly Know How I Feel?
"I didn't want to be me - it was thrust upon me."
11. Now My Heart Is Full
12. Rubber Ring
13. Irish Blood, English Heart *
14. I Like You
15. You Know I Couldn't Last
Went offstage, then came back on and took a bow with his bandmates
"We're not the Grateful Dead ..."
16. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
Took off his shirt, threw it into the crowd
The most powerful, best song of the night for me was "Last Night I Dreamt Somebody Loved Me." I'm not too keen on this recorded, but out of everything last night, this was the most interesting. And even though a ballad, "You Know I Couldn't Last" showed Morrissey's voice at the peak of brilliance.
For me, the Morrissey shows I have seen can be represented as a graph that started high and is slowly going down. Coming away from this concert I felt how quickly time is passing by, and how all of these artists we revere and look up to are getting old. Who knows how much time we all have left ...
So Morrissey still remains the beautiful icon he always was, with his distinctive voice and gorgeous face that makes you want to "kiss" him "full on the mouth" - it's just an older, slower, more watered-down Morrissey for me, which means life is getting on, and it's just a question of time ...
Cheers
DJ Medusa.
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good review, medusa.
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In the preshow playlist, there was a song done in a Serge Gainsbourg like style...anyone know who that was? someone told me it was jobriath...but...that doesnt seem right...
also, there was a nancy sinatra song and a frank sinatra song.....anyone know what those titles were?
thanks in advance...
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It seems I am the only one disappointed by this show. I definitely did not think it was worth the $65 I paid.
It was worth every damn penny. First of all, Morrissey has always performed several ballads in concert. Everyone of his albums (except Southpaw Grammar) is loaded with slower material. "Now My Heart is Full" is one of the most beautiful songs ever written, he's performed it the last four times I've seen him, and I would have been sorely disappointed had he not performed it on Wednesday. The "MORRISSEY" stage design was cool as hell and actually was obviously inspired by Elvis' 68 Comeback (not his Vegas years) which as any rock n' roll fan would know, was when the King was at his peak of coolness and vocal ability. Morrissey is not in a decline, he is as steady as ever.
However, I agree with the audience being very boring. I tried to get a "MORRissey" chant going from row R, but none of the saps around me joined in.
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Originally posted by palahniukkubrick:
good review, medusa.
Excellent....wish I could have gone, though I certainly see/hear what you're saying, Medusa. I can picture it -- wonderful, yet, different.
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the best line was something to the effect of:
"this is a pop concert. and you thought you were sophisticated"
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This is a good review:
Morrissey Strikes Again At Constitution Hall
Friday, October 1, 2004; Page C04
As always, Morrissey has so much to answer for. How could the indie-pop cult hero take the stage at Constitution Hall on Wednesday night in a red velvet jacket? How could he perform in front of an Elvis-style backdrop that spelled out his surname in blinking red light bulbs? And how dare he allow his keyboardist to inject a tinkly synth-pop riff into "How Soon Is Now?," the existential boogie that was the American breakthrough of Morrissey's iconic '80s band, the Smiths?
In fact, the British singer (currently resident in Los Angeles) made all these things work, as only he could. He has an uncanny ability to fuse the elements of his sensibility -- lounge ballads with raucous punk, showbiz campiness with earnest introspection, maudlin self-absorption with ironic wit -- and an engaging naturalness as a performer. After storming the hall with an introductory selection of new and older tunes in arrangements that could be fairly termed arena-rock, Morrissey shrugged that the show was just "a pop concert. And you thought you were sophisticated."
Morrissey (shown in May) performed a mix of old and new material. (Yui Mok -- AP)
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In fact, the audience was sophisticated -- one fan who managed to scramble onstage kissed the singer's hand -- and so was the performance. Morrissey's first D.C. show in more than four years confidently ranged through his repertoire, not overselling material from his respectable new album, "You Are the Quarry," and including such Smiths classics as "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" and "Bigmouth Strikes Again" (with its "Walkman" reference updated to "iPod''). In about 80 minutes, the performer united the crowd and reestablished his relevance. Once again, Morrissey had turned alienation, petulance and playful self-deprecation into triumph.
-- Mark Jenkins
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Originally posted by Medusa:
The negatives: The audience
seriously
the washington DC area is the LAMEST concert audience in the whole world. hands down.
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Whatever man, if you were struck by the chords of thunder like I am, you'd be doing the standstill too.
Originally posted by sonickteam2:
the washington DC area is the LAMEST concert audience in the whole world. hands down.
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Depends on the show. I travel a lot and it's always interesting to see a tour in DC vs. other cities. I've got to say that 9:30 Club audiences tend to be some of the best overall. It carries over to the performances of the musicians. Sometimes the venue can really damper the audience's mood, but I sure hope that the Pixies shows will be incendiary. Constitution Hall unfortunately does tend to make people feel as though they have to sit. I just can't imagine sitting for the Pixies.
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no one is complaining that his set was not even an hour and a half? :eek: