a few thoughts on PJ last night... ok fine, many thoughts.
we kicked things off at KEXP HQ, which had a pre-show party and a PJ poster display/sale/auction. i'm not a poster guy so i didn't look into how to buy (there was some app & QR code thingy) but the assembled poster collectors were clearly in heaven. the posters seems to span their entire career, and there were some really nice ones.
the openers, Deep Sea Divers, were decent. they would have been better in a club, but what a great opportunity for a local band to get exposure and experience on the big stage. best part was a riser at the front of the stage that read "GUITAR SOLO BOX". they ended their set with their lead woman doing an extended guitar solo - atop the box. truth in advertising.
when PJ hit the stage there was so much energy. i thought the pacing of the show was... interesting. "Release" was up first - a beautiful sing-along, very cathartic, but a strange choice to start a show IMO. then they went into "Thin Air" which is barely a step above a ballad. it was a great performance, but the song's energy didn't match the crowd's, IMO. the show was a slow burn, i found myself constantly wanting more, culminating with a blistering performance of "Rearviewmirror" - good gawd that RAWKED - FINALLY - unfortunately it was the last song of the main set. just as the band seemed to finally match the energy level of the crowd, they walked off stage ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
luckily the encore (second set?) was more in tune with the masses (or was it my expectations?). after an eddie solo acoustic "Just Breathe" and the harmonium on "River Cross", they got back into the swing of things (Running, Do the Revolution, Alive, All Along the Watchtower, etc.). they brought the plane in for landing with "Yellow Ledbetter" and "Setting Sun", a perfect send-off. overall, the second part of the show worked better for me than the first.
eddie's voice was in top form. last time i saw the band was verizon center 2006, as far as i can remember, and i swear he sounded better last night than back then. he was also noticeably tipsier too
during "Daughter", eddie climbed atop the GA barricade and held the hand of a 7 or 8 year old girl who was perched on the shoulders of her (presumably) father. t'was an endearing/saccharine moment (and yes, she was wearing over-ear hearing protection).
for the gearheads: mike and stone played a parade of top-shelf guitars - a gold-top 355, a Karina explorer, a gorgeous mid-70's Les Paul Custom, an endless stream of vintage Strats, etc... even Jeff got in on the look-at-my-axe show with some tasty custom basses (looks like he had an 8-string Alembic at one point). the band had two keyboardists/multi-instrumentalists behind them, who also occasionally rocked some tasty sixes.
great show. tempted to sneak out tomorrow for night 2...
setlist and
a few pix.
