New Pornographers - Sat night

[930clubber]

What was the punchline on the joke?  She asked the waiter or the bartender what's good to eat, and he said??
 
 

Originally posted by sch2383:
   

Originally posted by kosmo:
  yes and her name is emma pollock, could listen to her sing all day...

Or just talk.  About a 3 pm breakfast in Adams Morgan or the weather, or the phone book. [/b]

[Darth Ed]

I thought Emma Pollock was very good, not quite great (yet), but very good. What is Scotland putting in their water that they keep churning out such fascinating female singers/frontwomen as Emma Pollock, Tracyanne Campbell, and KT Tunstall? I picked up Emma's CD (and the NP's live CD; all CDs were reasonably priced at $10).
 
 The New Pornographers were excellent! As I told Kosmo and Dr. Anton Phibes in the BackBar after the show, this marks the fourth time I've seen the NPs live in concert, and this was by far the best yet in my experience. They were just nailing song after song. The set list was perfect, mixing in lots of tracks from Challengers with plenty of fan favorites from Twin Cinema and Mass Romantic and Electric Version. Neko, Carl, Dan, and Kathryn's harmonies were just breathtaking at times. In the past, I've hated Dan Bejar with a passion, but he was actually tolerable this time. Maybe it's because I'm getting used to his "style." Or perhaps it has something to do with the fact that Dan Bejar's songs on Challengers are some of my favorites on that album. I would have liked a little more Neko probably. I think she only sang lead on two songs, but that is twice as many as Kathryn. Kathryn's one song was a little shaky, but she was trying to play keyboards and an accordion and sing all at the same time. Carl was in fine voice, and Kurt Dahle's drums anchor the whole band. He impresses me with his drumming more each time I see him perform. (His backing vocals with Emma Pollock were good too!)
 
 The sound could have been a little better. I don't know if one of the front speakers was having a problem or couldn't handle the volume or if it was poor sound engineering, but it sounded as if the vocals were clipping at peak volume, like when more than two members of the band were singing at the same time. Fortunately, it was a minor problem.
 
 The lighting was very good. Loved the New Pornographers sign on the backdrop.
 
 Excellent show over all! My thanks again to the boardie who hooked me up with a ticket and my thanks to the other boardies who offered. You know who you are.
 
 Later,
 Ed

[kosmo vinyl]

I agree that the NPs drumming hoping into prove some backing vocals during Emma's set was a great addition.  Emma definitely needs to another album of material or dip into the Delgados catalog before becoming headlining material.  But, I be perfectly happy to see her do a couple more shows as a support act in the meantime.

[godsshoeshine]

bejar was just not having it. great show, had a good time. neko was great, i cant imagine seeing them without her. i liked emma too, and got my cd signed. hadnt heard the songs before, and she seemed all excited when i told her i bought her cd on the strength of her set. thanks seth/staph

[kmb187]

Emma was lovely and I bet her presence at the merch booth helped boost album sales. I've listened to the album once through and "Limbs" is just as beautiful as it was at the show. Anyhow, New Pornos were great, Neko (and everyone) was very nice afterward and the only real disappointment was that there was no "Letter from an Occupant" (and maybe "Mutiny I Promise You" and "These Are the Fables"). But hey, I guess they can't do everything.
 
 (Since I can't think of a better place to ask this, I'll do it here: Why does 9:30 always promptly turn on the lights and clear the stage after the encore? I've seen many shows where the crowd would definitely have stayed to demand a second encore--and there was plenty of time before curfew--but doesn't get the chance. Does the crew work this out with the band before, or is a second encore just not an option?)

[Darth Ed]

I don't have any "Inside Baseball" type information, but I've always imagined that the band tells the club how many encores they are planning to do beforehand and that's what determines when the house lights come up. But if the audience starts leaving, like they did on Sunday after the encore, that might trigger the house lights too. Not sure. I would have liked a second encore myself.
 
 There's only been one occasion that I can recall of a 9:30 Club audience not giving up once the house lights came on and that was Sleater-Kinney's final show at the 9:30 Club. The house lights came up, but the audience just wouldn't have any of it and "forced" the band to come back on stage. So it is possible, just rare.

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by kosmo:
  yes and her name is emma pollock, could listen to her sing all day...

Anna-Lynne Williams (Trespassers William) trumps them all.

[K8teebug]

I miss Sleater-Kinney.

[MonkeyPants]

Letter to an Occupant was on their set list as the last song of the encore, and it was requested by an audience member and Carl said they'd play it later and they never did  
 
 It was still a freaking great show.

[Vas Deferens]

We got "Slow Descent to Alcoholism" instead..
 
 

Originally posted by MyraEllen:
  Letter to an Occupant was on their set list as the last song of the encore, and it was requested by an audience member and Carl said they'd play it later and they never did    
 
 It was still a freaking great show.

[kosmo vinyl]

Based on my experience, it's the band's tour manager, soundperson, etc and not the club  which are in control of the house lights and sound when the band is on stage.  So in the case of the NPs it was their soundguy who brought up Xanadu as the outro music which indicates the band is done for the evening.  Unless it's planned very few bands do second encores, and the Sleater-Kinney second encore was the exception to the rule.  If fans want second encores they need to demand them, but it will more than likely fall on deaf ears.

[Bags]

Originally posted by Darth Ed:
 
 There's only been one occasion that I can recall of a 9:30 Club audience not giving up once the house lights came on and that was Sleater-Kinney's final show at the 9:30 Club. The house lights came up, but the audience just wouldn't have any of it and "forced" the band to come back on stage. So it is possible, just rare.

This just happened at the Spoon show.  Clearly the band had only planned one encore, and the lights on the sides of the stage came on (those really bright flourescent ones), but the band came out for a second encore.  At least half of the crowd had left, so it was super cool.

[kmb187]

Originally posted by MyraEllen:
  Letter to an Occupant was on their set list as the last song of the encore, and it was requested by an audience member and Carl said they'd play it later and they never did    

The songs on the setlist for the encore were marked as "possibilities," or something like that. But Carl's earlier comment about "bad politics" made me think they'd play it, too. Oh well.