Post Show Banter >>>>

[kosmo vinyl]

That was my impression seeing Marr live years ago. He sucks.

As my better half said it will never be The Smiths unless Morrissey is there, with that said surely there are singers Johnny could be using to breathe new life into those classics.  My thought last night was if Kirsty MacColl were still alive she could be that singer.  I also found it quite ironic that he would about half through his set asked if there were any songs people wanted to hear, given he does the same exact set every night.  As a solo artist Johnny is coasting on his name at this point, but he's Johnny Fucking Marr so I guess that's all that matters and the audience was there for it.   

My Space observation for the evening, was yet again we ended a couple rows behind a band's biggest fans who during the James show were flailing around with added bonus of lifting up their elementary aged children so they could see the band throughout the set.  No ear protection was seen for the children either.. And then of course for Johnny's set two very tall people who sat during James were now standing right of me.

[grateful]

I’ve heard this many times, alas people keep showing up to see him

I mean, he’s no Dylan…

[hutch]

Good one.

[Bombay Chutney]

I thought JAMC was a bit dull last night. Many songs have that same slow/plodding tempo and droning guitar that gets old after a while. It's relatively dark and they never move, so they're not much to watch. "Psychocandy" was one of the great albums of the 80s and they mostly ignored it. I like them, but I'm not their biggest fan.  I was ready for them to be done after about 45 minutes.

The Furs, however, were wonderful. Nice mix of old/new/hits. Richard sounded great.  Mars was definitely missed though. Seemed a bit rushed and no encore, but what they played sounded terrific. I could have used another 30 minutes or so of them.

I was kind of surprised The Anthem wasn't more full, considering there were 2 big bands.  It never felt crowded and by the end the floor seemed about 1/2 full.  Fun night though.

[nkotb]

How was the show?  Looking forward to it, though I had the Birchmere.  Insanely short drive, but I still need to get there early to find a good seat.

Mountain Goats on Tuesday

Tonight

[grateful]

It was great!

The show was the tour opener, and the first without Peter John didn't seem to have a setlist on his side, so he prompted Matt to call out the songs. They turned it into a running joke which was entertaining. He also flubbed a song or two and had to start over, but that's the special sauce that makes a concert feel like a "one time" event. Wurster was spot on and entertaining to watch as he's both plugged in and in his own world at the same time. Don't know how he does it.  They brought up their roadie, Ben, to play bass for a few numbers late in the show. He pushed through the nerves and held his own, but was understandably flat.

After the show he handed me Matt's (i.e., John's) setlist. Another for the collection!

The opener, Tift Merritt was fantastic, if not nervous. She hadn't been on tour in maybe a decade, so she was verrrry self-conscious on stage. She's descended from the traditions of Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez and maybe a sprinkle of Dolly Parton. Really talented and would have hit greater success in the 70s, thoroughly enjoyed her set.

And yes, get there at 5 and grab the first number to secure your spot for order of entry. The best spot is a front row table just left of center. That'll be in front of John with a good view of the very awkwardly placed piano. (People on the right can't see the piano player.)

I hadn't been to the Birchmere in literally decades and its just as bad as I remember. It's not very, ummm, "rock-n-roll".

[Dejecty-hatch lııllı|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|̲̅̅=̲̅̅|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|llıl]

I hadn't been to the Birchmere in literally decades and its just as bad as I remember. It's not very, ummm, "rock-n-roll".

sounds like you didn't eat there?

[grateful]

I hadn't been to the Birchmere in literally decades and its just as bad as I remember. It's not very, ummm, "rock-n-roll".

sounds like you didn't eat there?

Ha! I ate at Water Park before the show. The other people at my table didn't seem at all pleased by their chicken tenders.

[nkotb]

I'll have gone to the Birchmere (I think) 3 times: tonights show, the last duo MG show, and a Yo La Tengo show 1,000 years ago.  It's the worst.

grateful, about when did they go on?  And do you have a general vibe of when it started to get busy?  I'm going solo, so it's usually not too bad to find a seat, but I also dont' want to get there too early if I don't have to

[grateful]

Timing:

Box office / line: 5pm
Venue opens: 6pm
Opener: 730pm
MG: 830pm

There were still a few open seats all night, even though it was sold out. That said, I'd try to get there by 615 / 630

[hutch]

Never had a bad time at Birchmere but I avoid it

[Dejecty-hatch lııllı|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|̲̅̅=̲̅̅|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|llıl]

Bad Nerves put on a great albeit short (35mins) opening set

the venue was about 60% full (2500?), but quite the difference from the show I saw in Richmond 6 months with about 50 people (although that set wasn't a whole lot longer, they have fast short songs)

98% of the crowd was there for nothing but thieves
but there were a fair number of Bad Nerves fans bopping about in the crowd, they weren't hard to spot

The mix did get kinda lost in that big venue, sounded better when NBT took the stage
the guitars sounded very crisp, the vocals were muddy

Bobby Nerves did a great job getting the crowd engaged and I could tell they turned on a lot of new fans after that set
There was a funny moment where he said normally, he'd have his sunglasses on for this song, but he just broke them and asked if he could borrow one from the audience...which a number of people offered up a pair.  although he jumps around so much, they didn't last more than a few seconds, but really built up the tension as that song got started and then just exploded



so left about 45 mins into the NBT set, to later find out they covered where is my mind
they really were not that memorable of a band, but the crowd was into it and seemed to know all their songs

[hutch]

Z

[Dejecty-hatch lııllı|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|̲̅̅=̲̅̅|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|llıl]

welp  ********* lots of redacted highly volatile content that could have changed how the world operates

[grateful]

How was the show?  Looking forward to it, though I had the Birchmere.  Insanely short drive, but I still need to get there early to find a good seat.

Mountain Goats on Tuesday

Tonight

What did you think of the show?