Death Cab/Ted Leo

[chokeychicken]

lost a lot of virginities tonight.
 
 first time visiting DAR, first time seeing Death Cab, first time seeing a seated show for a band i really like.  maybe that's a lie.
 
 ted leo was in a great mood as always, and had witty  comments to share about the planets, the word "gnarly," etc.  Most of the crowd hadn't arrived yet, but Ted played about 35 minutes, played a good mix of songs and sounded great.  Only complaint I have is that his two pharmists looked like they wanted to commit suicide the entire set.  No lie.  They looked miserable.  
 
 Death Cab - you either love them or you hate them.  And if you love them and aren't going to the show tomorrow night, I encourage you to pick up some cheap tickets somewhere, because tonight's show was fantastic.  The band sounded great, they had incredible amounts of energy, especially considering how slow most of their songs are, and Ben's voice was just dead-on all night long.  I also have to compliment the band for play at least one song from every one of their releases, including several from their first record - while the fact that the band had albums besides Plans out, it came as a sweet surprise to longtime fans such as myself.  
 
 DAR wasn't half bad - the outter concourse and downstairs lobby were both very classy, and the venue looked great.  I was sitting in the first 5 rows, so maybe my ears were a little biased, but I thought the acoustics were great too - not sure if that was the case in the upper level or in the back of the ORCH.  
 
 Regardless, good time had by all. If I didn't have important things to do, I'd be back in the city seeing the show tomorrow night.

[Herr Professor Doktor Doom]

DAR is not a bad place to see a band if you can get over the sit-down arrangement and the overall stuffiness of the place.  The accoustics are good and its small enough so that there aren't too many bad seats.
 
 I caught the Pixies there a while back (something I owe a solemn and eternal debt of gratitude to the 930 and this message board for) and it was an awesome show.  I can imagine it might have felt a little weird for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, being used to more intimate venues... maybe that's why they looked miz.

[vassego]

Originally posted by chokeychicken:
 Only complaint I have is that his two pharmists looked like they wanted to commit suicide the entire set.  No lie.  They looked miserable.

Last night was my 8th time seeing Ted & I can tell you that Dave & Chris have looked like that everytime.  I obviously love Ted and I thought last night's set was great.  It was clear that Ted was trying to make a statement with the pilot jumpsuit, "My Vien Lin," "Army Bound," "Counting Down the Hours," "Dial Up," and "Walking to Do."  They were in top form.
 
 Death Cab brought the rock as usual.  It was great to hear older stuff to keep us old tyme fans happy to (i.e. "President of What?" "Company Calls," "Photobooth," and others).  The new stuff sounds great though.
 
 I'm not a huge fan of DAR, but it works. I really wish DC had some better theatres that had shows.  Although, I used to live in Minneapolis, and having 3 theatres within 2 blocks of each other that regularly hold concerts spoils a guy.
 
 Great show, looking forward to BSS tonight.

[challenged]

Ted played for 45 mins and was terrific as usual.  One guy near us was dancing his ass off during Ted's set.  I wish I could be that unselfconscious.  Dave and Chris are always looking uncomfortable at shows.  It's amusing.
 
 Death Cab were great, and they do rock pretty hard for such a quietish band.
 
 There are still great tix available for tonight.

[kookiemnstr8]

Originally posted by vassego:
  Death Cab brought the rock as usual.  
 

?!?!?!  Death Cab brought the ROCK?  I never thought I'd hear that.

[sweetcell]

relieved to hear that the show was a good one and looking forward to tonight's performance.  i've always maintained that DAR is ok acoustically from anywhere i've ever sat (admittedly i've never been high up on the sides or at the back).
 
 were people seated for most of the DCFC set or on their feet?  i'd suspect that the front rows might have been standing while most other people spent most of the evening seated.
 
 

There are still great tix available for tonight.

last time i say this, i swear: i have some extra tickets, box seats, below cost.  PM me if interested.

[dfmcpete]

"Walking to Do."  

Dammit. They haven't played that the last few times I've seen them. Dammit.

[alex]

Originally posted by sweetcell:
 were people seated for most of the DCFC set or on their feet?  i'd suspect that the front rows might have been standing while most other people spent most of the evening seated.

Nearly everyone on the floor was standing, and nearly everyone was sitting in the upper sections.
 
 Not a bad show at all, I've never been a Death Cab fan, they've always kinda bored me and the vocals annoy me, but I bit the bullet and took my girlfriend who is a huge fan...which wasn't so bad, considering I LOVE Ted Leo/The Pharmacists, and they put on a rockin show as usual.  As for Death Cab, I do give them credit for their live show, which was a bit more upbeat than I expected...I definitley wasn't bored watching them, which is always a plus, even if I still wasn't won over as a new fan.
 
 I was in the 10th row, but on one of the side sections on the floor, kinda in front of one set of speakers, so the sound wasn't the best, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected given all the horror stories I've heard.

[ggw]

Ted Leo needs to do fewer opening slots and more headlining gigs.

[challenged]

Originally posted by ggwâ?¢:
  Ted Leo needs to do fewer opening slots and more headlining gigs.

Agreed.  But there was a headlining show at AU in September and in Baltimore in August.

[alex]

Yeah, dude comes around and does headlining shows in our area like 4 times a year.  I think he can allow himself a few big gigs like this.

[sweetcell]

so, quick field report on night #2: not bad, above average, but not mind-blowing.  not that one should expect it from DCFC.
 
 Ted Leo: The two Pharmacist must have been reading reviews of night #1 on this board, 'cause they looked kinda alive tonight.  nothing spectacular, but acceptable stage presence.  damn i love a good dose of country-punk, which is what most of their set sounded like.  i wished they played longer than 40 mins, i quite enjoyed it.  between-song banter was entertaining but a tad forced at times ("you, miss, are a professional - you know about tuning a guitar!" - ugh)
 
 as a DCFC fan, they met expectations tonight... but not a whole lot more.  the band was tight, songs flowed smoothly, i was impressed by their musicianship - that's what i come to their shows for, and got it.  i felt the crowd was below-par, which had an impact on the band.  i suspect that last night's crowd was a tad higher energy that tonight's, since peeps who really wanted to see the band bought tickets for that show (second night went on sale only after first night sold out, and fan club presale was only for first night seats).  same as last night: orchestra all standing, boxes/sides all seated.
 
 looking forward to reading reviews/thoughts/impressions in the BSS thread about tonight's 930 show...

[vassego]

Originally posted by Graace:
   

Originally posted by vassego:
  Death Cab brought the rock as usual.  
 

?!?!?!  Death Cab brought the ROCK?  I never thought I'd hear that. [/b]

I've always thought they were good live performers. Despite Ben's voice, which is painful live, they've got great energy, and I love that they don't just play their songs as direct record translations.  I would expect as poppy and popular band as them to do so.
 
 The lameness of my statement, yes, a 10...I fully realize it and accept the negative consequences accompanying it.