Ash

[redsock]

I felt like I needed to start a topic about the real band that played tonite at the BC. Ash totally rocked, and I was so pissed off that they got stuck opening for the miserable Bravery. What a bunch of posers. Man has fame gone to their heads. Abd their music is so sadly derivative and been done already. In and of itself not horrible, but it has been done so much better.
 
 I haven't started a topic in awhile, but this required something to be said. I hope Ash comes back with some real rock bands opening for them. Instead of some poster boy NME wannabes ala the Bravery

[kosmo vinyl]

i concur, what stated as an Ash tour has turned into a co-headling tour with the Bravery.  So once again Ash is the HOTTT bridesmaid to the homily bride.  
 
 A killer 45 minute set from Ash.  I really  like the  new stuff better live than on the CD.  Strip away the gloss and metallic bits, and it's fits in better with the rest of Ash's catalog.  Tim is the rock star and Charlotte has become the rocker.  About a third of the crowd left after Ash finished playing.
 
 Next stop for the Bravey is the OC.  Their audience was that of squealing girls and at least a couple guys wearing thier baseball hats backwards.  They opened with the one song I knew and probably their single. It was downhill for there, couldn't even make it past the  third song.  Lots of borrowed style and very little substance. The Revillos would like thier image back...
 
 According to another discussion site, The Bravery have roots here, which would explain the several relative units in attedence.  This maybe why the flip flop occured...

[Herr Professor Doktor Doom]

I guess one's mileage may vary, but I enjoyed Bravery more than Ash.   Ash had their great moments, but a lot of filler in between, and (nobody I've spoken to agrees with me on this) some of that filler sounded a lot like the slicked-up pop metal of the Cult.  
 
 I just found Bravery more interesting, although certainly neither band would win awards for originality.  Bravery wore makeup and stage dived, which I guess increases their "poseur" quotient, but really, who's not a poseur these days?
 
 I was told not to miss Crimea, but alas, I did just that.
 
 ps - Manny and Olga's sucks!
 
 pps - Kosmo, thanks for the tick.  

[MiloGTC]

Originally posted by redsock:
 I hope Ash comes back with some real rock bands opening for them. Instead of some poster boy NME wannabes ala the Bravery

Hey, at least a Bravery/Ash tour might win Ash some new fans. The last time they did a nationwide U.S. tour, they were opening for - yuck - Saves the Day.
 
 (Ash have gotta be the only band in the world who can open separate tours for Coldplay, Saves the Day, and the Bravery, and bring it off...)

[wxdude]

Wow, I'm so glad now I saw the show in Philadelphia where the correct band (Ash) was the headline act.  Like I said in another thread, The Bravery are not bad, but they have a ways to go.  Ash rarely missed a beat, and their 75 minute set was great. I also agree that the new material from Ash sounds even better live.

[kosmo vinyl]

I cranked up the Meltdown live bonus disc for the first time today and it very representative of last nights show.  And never thought about it before but I can see the Cult similarities.  Ash did start out life as an Iron Maiden cover band. Cult comparasions aside, boy do I like me a good rock retread.  Plus Ash have already released doubled the amount of great singles verses The Cult.
 
 Don't think Ash will ever find the perfect touring partner to win over new US fans with.  They will either end on going on tour with bands sharing the same fanbase, or  an indifferent crowd.  It's rough trying to be a support act when people are out to hear the headliners hit single.  They'll yack through the openers set who are merely just standing in the way of what they came to see.  Unless of course they tour with The Kings of Leon whose fans appear to except anything if the somewhat positive reaction to Vargenius is any  indication.
 
 Honestly, I didn't give the Bravery a fair shake.  Ash had just done a great set, they made me smile and moved my withered body as much as it can be moved these days.  But, the guitar player and his herky jerky stage moves really worn thin quickly.  Had they been the middle band I might have stuck it out.
 
 The Bravery has the advantage of playing to a generation of fans who have never heard of The New Romantics, Gary Numan, Gary Glitter or the Revillos.   To many it all seems fresh and exciting, for some of us they are a merely a bunch of posers.  Twenty years ago, they would be an Arlington band roundly dismissed as a bunch of wannabies, yet still waiting for some record company to come and sign them to a fat contract.  Sort of like Army of Me.
 
 My predictionsâ?¦ If there was an Hfestival they would be part of if.  Within a year they will be headlining the 9:30 club with two other The bands who will probably be better then them.  Tickets will cost 21.50 and much moaning will ensue over the quick presale.  If all goes well within 18 months the CD will be re-released with a live DVD, and theyâ??ll be playing a  field house somewhere.
 
 For Ash hopefully another show at a three forth  full Black Cat, where Lulu and I will be jostling for position to see Timâ??s big belt buckle.  Oh oops what I meant to say is Miss Marple and I will jostling for position to see Charlotte when sheâ??s out promoting her solo record.
 
 Next up for the slicing and dicing of the Kosmo Ginsu Knife?  The Kaiser Chiefs

[lily1]

ash was on fire last night! *pun intended*
 
 bravery=franz ferdinand
 
 i can't remember how many times i cocked my head and said "is this franz ferdinand, is this the bravery? i can't tell!"
 
 i spoke with a member of the black cat staff that said it was NOT their decision to flip flop the line up (she was very emphatic about that- clearly an ash fan), but that the tour management had made the decision because "i guess bravery is more popular or something."

[Arthwys]

Didn't end up seeing this show, thought I was on the fence about it until a few days ago.  IMHO, The Bravery had 4 very promising songs, which are the ones that were the free mp3's on their site a while back, and so I was rather psyched that they'd turn out to be something good.  nme.com has posted the entire album online, and guess what, the rest of it is just so so.  Nothing special at all.  Oh well.
 
 Oh, and Kaiser Chiefs = overrated

[ratioci nation]

this is amusing, the Kaiser Chiefs dont even have a full length out here yet and backlash has started

[kosmo vinyl]

After looking at the setlist for Philly it appears that only a couple songs were dropped in DC.      Ash have never been big on long sets to begin with.  Although it might be nice if they pair a couple 45 minute sets with a acoustic interlude.
 
 Listened to the Kaiser Chiefs last night and my intial thoughts are it's got the same sort of songwriting that bugged me on the Kasabian record.  Track One Franz Ferdinand, Late in the album it's Fun Boy Three, then Blur, then Roxy Music. "I Precdict A Riot" is the real standout track on the record.  Not all of this is a bad thing, I will definitely prefer this over Kasabian more of the influences I like.  So is it just me or more new bands taking this approach of songwriting in an effort to determine what sticks on the wall best.
 
 Off topic again you can Brenden Benson to that list of supports act better than the headliner.  He is going to do some shows with Keane.  He joins the few and the very mighty.  Sloan, Ash

[xcanuck]

I showed up a bit late last night and missed about half of Ash's set. I am so pissed that The Bravery took the headlining spot. I've decided that any band that NME, Mojo, Q, etc hail as the 'next great thing' is a band to be avoided.
 
 I love the balls out rock combined with pop sensibilities of Ash. These guys know how to write a song.

[poultrynow]

Just to concur that Ash put on a rocking set, and the sound seemed right for the first time in months at the black cat, though Tims vocals were a bit smothered.  My god the Bravery, I could barely stand 2 songs before I had to bail, I think the guitar player with Ben Stiller's hair from "something about mary" put me over the top..
 And a tangential rant, I'm so freaking sick of the urban/suburban posing in a second tier city like DC where most of the "urban hipster" types are either from Terre Haute, Orange County, or Hoboken.  Had to suffer through 3 young white kids loudly talk about how they hate suburbanites from maryland, and their new condo is great because its away from the "Boojie" areas and near the "ghetto", like their neighbors are some freaking sideshow to validate their urban experience.  Ok rant done.

[kosmo vinyl]

no kaiser chiefs backlash here, they write good songs just for other bands.  plus ain't nothing wrong with being a great singles bands.  on kos-mo-meter they are a 7.5

[HoyaSaxa03]

Originally posted by kosmo vinyl:
 Off topic again you can Brenden Benson to that list of supports act better than the headliner.  He is going to do some shows with Keane.  He joins the few and the very mighty.  Sloan, Ash

fuck.
 
 i hate going to shows and leaving before the headliner.

[Fico]

Ash's set was fookin' mega!!.. Gotta hand it to them, they rock regardless of the situation..be that 12 people at the Area 2(or 1) festival, opening for Saves the Day/Dashboard Confessional or the Bravery in DC...Most bands of their stature would've given up by now trying to break the states..
 
 Kosmo, tried to find you to give you a cd but couldn't..I flyered at the end of the show but saw no familiar faces so most likely you all left before the end of the Bravery...
 
 Hope to see some of you at Iota tomorrow...