Audience of One

COLD WAR KIDS. ALEC OUNSWORTH (of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah).
THE FILLMORE. JANUARY 23, 2010.

Have you ever seen Cold War Kids live? Have you seen them from the second row? Have you seen them at The Fillmore?
Do it.
So I had seen Cold War Kids twice before, and at the first show I only knew probably three of their songs. Then last year I won tickets from Soundcheck for a show in April at the Fillmore. By then I knew probably half of their canon of songs. But the quality of their live shows was INSANE. I just remember being totally annihilated by the symphonic noise of their shows. Like they invite chaos in and then somehow get a leash on it and make it do what they want. And the songs know exactly when to twist themselves into something new, and they hit you right in the gut. Brittany says it's like their songs already exist and they are just pulling them out of this place that we all know but have forgotten. I think that's a pretty accurate assessment.

I had been looking forward to this show since I first heard about it back in October. Thank my paranoia that I bought my tickets in November, because man did this show sell out.

And then when Britt and I got there we pushed our way to the front (right when doors opened, way before the music was going) and planted ourselves in the center of the second row.
The second row, you see, is the place to be. No neck aches from craning to see the band's faces, like you get in the front row. A perfect view.

So we got there and finally, after puzzling over which songs they would play (I had woken up with "Mexican Dogs" stuck in my head that morning and hoped I'd get to hear the real thing), the opening band came on. It was one of those side bands created by a bunch of members from other bands, and the main guy was Alec Ounsworth of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. There was also a distinguished, mustachioed fellow who looked just like a younger Inspector Japp (of Agatha Christie's Poirot mysteries). The band had a solid enough sound but I didn't like Alec's voice at all - it was that whiny, I'm-intellectual style of singing that just always gives me a headache. I was so anxious for the main event that I didn't really enjoy their performance. Also they kept having technical difficulties and various sound people were trying to fix it onstage, which was just awkward and distracting.
But I will say that I have never been so impressed by a bassist before. That guy could strum.

Finally they left and the anticipation was building. The girl in front of me was all excited because it was her birthday, and these younger guys who were front row, center were plotting how to give Nathan Willet this weird Valentine they had made. One of them grabbed the set list for Alec Ounsworth from the stage. Um, I wasn't jealous.

There were these four t.v. screens set up on the stage behind the band, and during the openers they were just blank and turned off. I started to get really curious about them and then...

It started with Nathan singing, in his thoroughly indescribable voice, "How's it gonna feel when summer ends?" and went uphill from there. The crowd, especially those of us in the first two rows, went nuts. I mean, singing along, dancing, just plain getting lost in it all. The band is so fascinating to watch because it's like they try to create this chaos, but it is theirs. They own everything that goes on on that stage, but barely.
The t.v.s played all these images that sort of matched the songs. For "Coffee Spoon" there was a black and white video of a girl who looked sort of retro. For "Hospital Beds" there was footage from what looked kind of like Vietnam. I don't remember what was playing during "Sermons" because I was too busy singing along.
There is just this magnetic energy running through them that is hard to describe and impossible to appreciate if you haven't seen it. SEE IT.

The boys got their Valentine to Nathan, who was pretty stumped about the whole thing. The girl managed to tell him it was her birthday, so he dedicated a song to her. After playing "Santa Ana Winds," he was like, "That song was about a town south of here, but now I'm gonna play one that's about YOUR town." I flipped through my mental catalog and immediately landed on "Golden Gate Jumpers," whispered the title to Brittany, and the birthday girl heard me and we all shared a moment of appreciation for this band together. Everyone cheered when he said that, but he was like, "Well, maybe you shouldn't cheer for it," and we were like, "Yeah, I guess it IS about attempted suicide..."

They played so much of their catalog and they played for a long time, but it went by so quickly. They didn't play "Mexican Dogs" or "Every Man I Fall For," but I'd seen them perform both before so it wasn't too sad. I swear, when they did "Hospital Beds" and "St. John," it was a religious experience. When it was all over and we were filtering out of the Fillmore, I said to Brittany, "That was like...church." And she shrugged and was like, "Not really. If church was like this, I would actually GO."

Amen.

We Cooked the Tilapia, Mama, Just Like You Showed Us!

Like WHOA.
Having pledged to save my money and limit the amount of shows I attend to perhaps one a month until it seems like I should start going to more, I didn't expect to have very much to add to this little blog for January.
Wrong.

SCISSORS FOR LEFTY, I THE MIGHTY

So first, there was Scissors for Lefty. Bryan very casually announced (via facebook) that, after a very long drought, show-wise, they would be playing at Bottom of the Hill the first week in January. My immediate thought was, "Oh man tell everyone to request Friday night off because we are GOING." But then I discussed the show with said everyone and we came to the (practical, boring) decision to skip this one and be responsible with our lives. I was totally at peace with this (practical, boring) decision when I went and checked my email. I'm on the Scissors for Lefty mailing list, you see, and they had sent out an email saying that the first five people to reply back would get on the guest list for the show. So of course I emailed them, saying "por favor" and all that jazz.
That night Brittany, Danielle and I went to trivia night, and then Saturn Cafe, and while at Saturn I checked my email, which said something along the lines of "sorry Jessica, you didn't make the cut.... BUT we really love you and want you to come so if you do tell the people at the merch table that Bryan has set a new t-shirt aside for you." Okay, they might not have said that they really love me. But it was implied. Anyway, I read the email out loud and Danielle was like, "we HAVE to go," and Brittany was like, "we can go after my shift," and I was like, "you will have to close fast," and it was decided that we would go.
So we left once Britt finished her shift, which was pretty quick for a Friday night, but I think we got on the road around 9 or so. And we got to Bottom of the Hill right at 10:30, which is when Scissors had said they would be going on. But as we got to the door I could hear a very distinctive voice coming through the walls, and was disheartened to see that they were already playing. So we ran up to the front and had to stand on the side of the stage, sort of in front of the bathroom and right along the walkway that everyone was using to get to the bar and back. It sort of felt like the B line Metro in Rome. Which is not a good thing.
BUT it was Scissors for Lefty and things were exciting and we started moving right away. It was an all ages show and it just seemed like there were a lot of high school kids who were either too self conscious or too sober (or both) to let themselves dance like you should for this band. I expressed my concern about the stillness of the crowd and the guy next to me was like, "they should have a thing where the floor opens up and all the people who aren't dancing fall into a pit and can't come out until the end" which was sort of a weird concept but also probably a good idea considering everything.
Anyway we sort of scooted into the front towards the last couple of songs. Bryan was a lot less engaging than usual, which probably had to do with the lameness of the crowd. But he only stepped out onto the speaker once, and he waited until the last song (which was a perfect "Mama Your Boys Will Find A Home") to come out into the crowd. I had tried to plot with the girls to stand on the left side of the floor, because it always seems like that's where he tends to wander, but it was too late for us to make our way over there. It was where Bryan headed, but we weren't there, so we missed out on most of the magic. It felt like such a short set (probably our fault for getting there late, but still) and they just didn't seem as energetic as usual, so it was sort of a let down. Plus, they were actually opening for the next band, who were called I the Mighty, because it was supposed to be I the Mighty's CD release party. BUT, when the I the Mighty dudes got up there, they explained during one of their many technical-difficulties-induced music lapses that they actually didn't have the CD ready and didn't really think they should've followed Scissors. These guys were really young and just didn't seem to have it quite together. The equipment kept failing and they didn't know how to engage the crowd in a way that would keep the whole thing moving. I think it takes awhile for bands to learn how to preserve the crowd's momentum in moments of crisis, but it's really such an important skill (see entry: COLD WAR KIDS).
I the Mighty wasn't really my kind of music, and the crowd by this point was almost completely high school kids. We embraced it though. Sometimes you just gotta rock out with it. Maybe someday they'll grow into their sound, but for now it's all a little bit awkward and predictable.
Then I went to the merch table to get my free shirt and it was SUCH a hassle. C'mon guys, get it together. The girls at the table thought I was lying, or something, and they made me wait until James the drummer came over, even though I had the email to prove that I was supposed to get a shirt. It was kind of annoying. But James was super nice about it. He is SO tall! I'm sure he gets tired of hearing about it, but seriously. He's like 7'2" or something. Part Dutch, obviously.
Anyway, the show was a little lackluster and I think our original impulse to stay home might have been a wise one. I'm hoping they were just getting their sea legs back and that their next shows will have the old spark. And I hope they come back to The Crepe Place!




Scissors for Lefty




I the Mighty and friends

WEST INDIAN GIRL, MOON CADILLAC

Honestly I don't have very much to say about this one. It was a spur of the moment, trivia-night-is-annoying-tonight-what-else-can-we-do kind of decision to go, and it was fun and I'm glad we went. Moon Cadillac had good energy and did a good job of playing the kind of music they play. Sort of a rock-blues something. I don't know. I'm really bad at classifying music genres and we only saw about three or four of their songs so it didn't really stick. But there was potential for sure.
West Indian Girl had three and a half vocalists, and two and a half of those were women, so I was waiting to hear with some trepidation. I know it's awful to be so anti-female-vocalist, but I'm always so picky about them. I think women just have a smaller range of ways to make their voices sound good, whereas men can do all sorts of funky things with their voices to make it work. It's not fair but it's how I feel.
There was some reason for me to be worried, because ehm, these girls were not the prettiest of voiced. Most of the time the sound of their voices worked for the music, even when it really didn't sound pretty, but there were definitely a few instances of screechiness.
The music itself was pretty fun, though. Very 1970's San Francisco. I read later that apparently West Indian Girl is a famous type of LSD, which is really fitting for them. It was all a little psychedelic.
I'm glad I saw them but I'm also glad that it was a cheap, $10 show at The Crepe Place. It was a fun way to spend an evening but nothing really exciting, so that was perfect.

I gotta update on Cold War Kids, but that show is something that I think should get its own post. So that's it for now!

2009 - The Music Was Fine

Thanks to this transition into a new decade, I've been thinking a lot about the shows I attended in 2009. I've read a lot of Best of the Decade and Best of 2009 lists online and in magazines, and all of them seem pretty well compiled. Apparently you are not a person if you don't love Kid A. That was the thing I've noticed most consistently in every list. BUT ANYWAY, I'm not writing a Best Albums of the Year/Decade. I think it's been covered and yes, I would have a few more to add, but most of them would be local music and the best way, I feel, to address this is by making a BEST SHOWS I ATTENDED IN 2009. So that's what I'm doing.
Let me start by saying that when we get to the top ten or so shows, it really becomes impossible for me to say which beat which for the best. So I'm ordering this from life altering to least exciting, and I want to be clear that even the least exciting shows were still wonderful in their ways. I just never regret live music. HOWEVER, sometimes shit got weird.
And then the other thing is that when it gets to the top ten, I'm not going to order them. I really can't choose the best among certain shows. My love is as deep for Jenny as it is for Jack.
The other thing is that this is a long list. I wrote out all the shows I attended in 2009 and it came out to about 30, which is basically to say that I spent the equivalent of a month out of the year going to live music. It's a tough life, but what can you do? Also, there are a lot of different shows for the same band, and I might condense a few of them, but for the most part I'm gonna address each show separately.
Okay, ready? Here goes.

TOP TEN SHOWS OF 2009
- in no particular order (allegedly) -

1. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band (surprise cameo by Jenny Lewis) – Outside Lands
-This one because it was so electrifying to see Conor, from the second row, and to spot Jenny Lewis backstage before she came on, and to anticipate her arrival on stage because I had seen her sitting in the back. And it was the most gorgeous day and the sun was going down behind the trees and I kept glancing at the clock that was posted on the side of the stage, trying to stop the minute hand from moving so that he could just play forever. Didn't work. But oh, this show.






2. Cold War Kids – The Fillmore
- You have not seen a band perform until you've seen Cold War Kids live. I can't explain it, but their songs just hit you right behind the heart. They're really powerful and synchronized and the music just pulls you in. Seriously. Buy your ticket for their next show NOW.

3. The Dead Weather – Outside Lands
- Um. Jack White. Alison Mosshart. And then Dean Fertita (total babe) and Little (creepy) Jack Lawrence. I think this was a little less than a month after they released Horehound, but Britt and I knew every song (except the new ones) and we were in the second row and Jack White Jack White Jack White. When he and Alison got really close to sing together at the mic for "Will There Be Enough Water" the wind started blowing, and it was this really gray day, and their raven hair was whipping around their faces, and it looked like they were about to make out, and it was all voodoo magic.





4. Jenny Lewis (with Jonathon Rice), The Sadies – The Rio Theater
- Oh Jenny. This woman has the most amazing voice and lyrics. I am also not so secretly envious of her hair. But anyway, oh this show. I had already seen her in October of 2008, so I knew the value of my ticket before I got to the show. I knew that she would sing for two hours, drinking Red Stripe and her voice never once showing signs of any strain. She sang the fun songs ("See Fernando") and the sweet ballads ("Sing A Song For Them" - although halfway through she forgot the lyrics and we had to shout them at her - "Shitballs," she said. "You guys don't know how weird this feels."). She did an acoustic version of "Silver Lining" without her band, and everyone in the crowd sang along, making it sound so achey and haunting. The band played "Handle With Care" (I love that cover!) and for the encore they all gathered around one mic, arms around each others' shoulders, and sang "Acid Tongue." And it was perfect.




5. Blind Pilot – Great American Music Hall/The Rio Theater
- I already wrote a review here for these shows, so I won't repeat myself. I'll just say that this band was better live than on the album, and the album is beautiful enough that that statement really has some meaning. They just released an EP with five of their songs performed live, and if you value good things, you should go download it.



6. Scissors for Lefty – The Crepe Place / The Uptown
- So I couldn't pick which of these two shows was better. The Crepe Place was a wonderfully small show, we were right in front of the Garza and Krimmel boys' faces, and we couldn't stop dancing and EVERYONE from work showed up for the show. By the second half of their set, Bittersweet employees outnumbered all the casual Crepe Place attendees. And of course it was the first time I had seen them live, so when Bryan came out into the crowd and stroked my hair and sang right into my eyes, it was a magical experience (it still is, mostly, but it's also expected, which kills the amazement just a little).
But then at The Uptown Bryan took his pants off. So it's really a toss up.




7. Monsters of Folk – The Fox Theater
- Conor Oberst. Jim James. Mike Mogis. M. Ward. Playing their songs for two and a half hours. In a beautiful venue that even had little floor vents to keep the audience cool. Did I mention it was Conor, Jim, Mike, AND Matt? Is that not enough to convince you?



8. Audrye Sessions, Hottub, The Soft White Sixties, Manatee – The Uptown
- I only saw Audrye Sessions a few times this year, mostly because they just didn't play as many shows as they have in years past. I'm kind of cheating by counting this one as 2009, because they actually came on right after the year changed to 2010. But I'm going to count it. The best thing about this show was that they played for so long, and The Soft White Sixties were openers, and I was DD so I didn't have a drop of alcohol but I still danced and loved every instant of it. Hottub was weird. But everything else was pretty much perfect.







9. Dave Smallen, The Soft White Sixties – The Rickshaw Stop
- SUCH a good night. I wasn't driving, but I was drinking, and when The Soft White Sixties came on I didn't know them at all but I was drunk and dancing and even through the alcohol I could tell that I was enjoying them because they were talented, not just because of the buzz. And then Dave played, and I think it was his first show since he'd started releasing the song a month deals. I remember singing along to "Waiting for the Pills," and him smiling at the end of the song, saying "That was the first time I've ever heard people singing along to that song. It feels really great," with his Dave smile. It felt great from the audience, too.


10.
Band of Skulls, White Rabbits – Bimbo’s
- This show was too short but Band of Skulls killed it live. White Rabbits did a tight, long set. We were right up front. I had new boots on. Things were good.


THE REST OF THE SHOWS I ATTENDED IN 2009
- which were also pretty awesome -

* Dizzy Balloon, The Jakes – The Crepe Place
* Audrye Sessions – Bottom of the Hill
* Scissors for Lefty – Bottom of the Hill
* Scissors for Lefty, The Lovemakers – The Catalyst Atrium
* The Expendables – The Catalyst
* Dizzy Balloon, The Cataracs – The Catalyst Atrium
* Donovon Frankenreiter – The Catalyst
* Dizzy Balloon, The Jakes – The Parish Publick House
* BFD – Audrye Sessions (~), The Limousines, Glasvegas, Mute Math, Metric, DJ Steve Aoki, Dizzy Balloon, Dead Confederate, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Shorline Amphitheater
* The Morning Benders, John Vanderslice – The Rickshaw Stop
* Dave Smallen, Dizzy Balloon – The Nickel Arcade
* MIA, The Black Eyed Peas, Modest Mouse – Outside Lands
* Zion I – Outside Lands
* Portugal. The Man, The Morning Benders, Atmosphere – Outside Lands
* Band of Horses – Outside Lands
* The Cave Singers – The Crepe Place
* The Matches, Judgement Day, Dizzy Balloon, Dave Smallen – The Fillmore
* Dizzy Balloon – The Catalyst Atrium
* White Rabbits – Slim’s
* Dave Smallen, The Soft White Sixties, Lite Brite – Bottom of the Hill

... and that covers it. I probably forgot a couple, actually. But still.

GOOD YEAR for live music. And you know what? I think it's getting better.

Everytime I Leave (I Leave for Good), New Year's Day, I Know What I Am.... Picking Up The Slack

Okay so I've really been slacking. I'm gonna go over all the shows I've been to from November to the end of the year, because I guess I just got distracted and haven't gotten to any of them yet. So without further ado...

WHITE RABBITS.

This show was on my birthday. A bunch of my friends and I went up to the city, stayed in a hotel that bordered the Tenderloin and Union Square, drank lots of vodka cranberries, and sometimes added a little champagne to them for good measure. It was TASTY, and by the time we left for the show Lindsley was trying on my shoes. If you knew Lindsley you'd know that this was a sign that it was going to be a good night.
Anyway we walked to the show, which was at Slim's and therefore not very close to the hotel. BUT it was in a familiar area, thanks to a couple of trips to the Rickshaw Stop earlier in the year. And I love walking in the city, and there were six of us, and it wasn't really dark yet, so all was well.
White Rabbits was already playing when we got there and they were killing it. We sort of pushed our way to the front (Brittany and I have a habit of letting people know that we will be in the front, and her cousin was already there right in front of the guitarist, so it was easy to act like we deserved to be there. Anyway it was my birthday and I'm pretty sure it's okay to force your way to the front when it's your birthday). So we were all right up there, dancing all over the place and taking lots of awesome close-up pictures of the guitarist and the (lefty!) bassist. I'm sorry if you're the guy whose feet I kept stepping on. It was worth it.
I really only knew their song "Percussion Gun," but the whole set was awesome. I mean, people kept buying me drinks because of the whole birthday thing (it's really nice to not be a Jehovah's Witness sometimes), so of course the show was fun. But the songs were very skillfully performed and they had SO many people on stage it was pretty amazing that they were as coordinated as they were. And then they left and came back for an encore, and after playing one of their songs, they did a cover of "Instant Karma" that just made me oh so happy. Everyone was singing and jumping and John Lennon is never a mistake in my opinion.
The show ended really quickly but they played a nice long set, really. Then the bouncer came around and told us they were closing (so early!) and we had to hike it back to the hotel (this time with some help from MUNI). I left feeling pretty impressed by those silly rabbits. It's not like they're necessarily my favorite type of music, but they were perfect for the evening and great when you're in the right kind of mood.
And tops when you're looking for a band that'll kick off your birthday evening with enough energy.




White Rabbits

DAVE SMALLEN. THE SOFT WHITE SIXTIES.

I was looking forward to this show for a long time. It was the day after Thanksgiving and a very welcome treat/celebration (it also happened to fall on the evening of my last day of work at a certain coffee shop, and I was ready to bring in that change with a little help from Mr. Smallen). The show was at Bottom of the Hill, which is always a good sign. I was there with Danielle, Britt, and Kristain, who had all come with me to another Dave show in like June or July (they are so trusting of me - I tell them it'll be fun and they're in, and I can't even express how much I love them for that).
We got there super early and ended up killing some time at Peet's before heading in. The first band, Lite Brite, started and it wasn't so great. I mean, they were really young, for one thing. I think the lead singer was trying to be Jack White a little bit, with his crazy curly hair and so pale it looked like he had face powder on. Usually I notice at Bottom of the Hill I end up loving the final two or three bands and never really appreciate the openers the same way. It wasn't so much that they weren't good, it was just that they were a different genre and didn't really seem to fit.
So then The Soft White Sixties came on and things got interesting. They had played at the Dave show over the summer, and I didn't really remember their songs specifically, more just that I had really enjoyed the tempos and influences of their songs. I remembered sensing a strong sixties influence - a definite plus for me. But during the summer show I had been - er - a little tipsy, and I really hadn't been paying attention to them. This time it was different. I was one drink in and the second they started playing I just felt super enthusiastic about their music. We were all really digging it, standing right up front next to a pod of girls who turned out to be related to someone in the band and knew every song. Kristain loved the drummer, who was full on grinning through the whole set. I was pretty partial to the lead singer, who would grab the mic and a tambourine and wander around the stage, dancing and singing and basically grooving. These guys were awesome. I mean awesome. I really can't wait for them to release an album of some kind.
Finally Dave started setting up. We were still in the front and got to watch all the little interactions on stage, which I kind of live to observe. Mike from Audrye Sessions was Dave's guitarist for the evening, and a couple of guys from Brilliant Red Lights were the bassist and drummer. All these guys from these Bay Area bands are friends, right, and you can usually spot at least three or four members from random East Bay bands in the crowd at these shows. The Dizzy Balloon boys are always at Dave's and Scissors for Lefty's shows. I've seen Alicia from Audrye Sessions and Scott formerly of Poor Bailey at Dave's a few times. Anyway, you become a fan of one of these bands and pretty soon you're going to know a dozen of them. And they're all super talented.
So finally Dave started playing his songs, starting with "Every Time I Leave (I Leave for Good)" - I think, but it's really been awhile. He played with the full band for about five songs, then he did some acoustic numbers by himself, then the band came back. One thing I love about Dave is that he's such a love - he smiles during a lot of his songs, and it's the kind of smile that reaches his eyes, and you can just see how good natured he is. Danielle and Kristain complain that some of his songs are pretty dark, and I get what they're saying. Sometimes it's a little bit of a downer - a few of his lyrics are just so dark. But I also am grateful to him for going there, even if sometimes he goes a little too far for my taste. A lot of his stuff attains some poetry. A lot of his songs have been released when I really needed to hear them. I think a lot of people probably need his brand of drama, even if it can sometimes tend to the self-indulgent. Still, my favorites of his songs are definitely the lighter ones, like "All My Life" and "I Think It's Getting Better."
Towards the end of the set, he stopped and just said that with the current economy it seemed like a lot of people were sort of losing hope and kind of giving up on their dreams, and that he thought they shouldn't do that. Which was pretty good timing personally, since I had just finished working at a place for which I really had no love in order to pursue a more enriching life. So thanks for the encouragement, Dave!
Anyway the set was really fun and then afterward I went and bought The Soft White Sixties' seven inch (which came with a digital download of five of their songs, mega score)and chatted with a couple of them. The bassist assured me that they'll be getting an album out, so that's definitely good news. Then I bought Dave's official CD, even though I've been buying his one-song-a-month songs and only had one left to buy to complete the collection. The actual CD is worth having, though. It has all of his block prints - one for each song - printed on the insert. And I like having a real CD, and I like supporting musicians who really work for what they love and are original and talented. Alicia from Audrye Sessions was selling the merch, so I mentioned that I was looking forward to their New Year's show. She seemed relieved to hear that someone was planning on coming to it, and was very sweet. "You better come say hi," she said, and I promised I would.
There was a huge line of (mostly girls) waiting to talk to Dave or get him to sign their CD's when I passed him on my way to the restroom (also saw Petros of Dizzy Balloon), which really isn't surprising. I would've been one of them but I figured I'd probably see him at another show soon enough.
So then we all piled back into Britt's car and didn't get home until like 2:30 in the morning, knowing that the lack of sleep was definitely worth a night of such great music and company.



The Soft White Sixties



Dave Smallen

THE LOVEMAKERS. BAND OF SKULLS. WHITE RABBITS.
(LIVE 105's SOUNDCHECK HOLIDAY BALL)

The main draw of this show was Band of Skulls, whose album I had bought after getting easily addicted to "I Know What I Am" and acquiring a substantial gift certificate to Streetlight Records for my birthday. And then discovering that the rest of the album was at least as good as that one addictive song.
It was the same group - Britt, Danielle, and Kristain - and the venue was a new one for us - Bimbo's in North Beach. We got there a little on the late side, completely missing the openers The Downer Party, which was fine with me because I wasn't too in love with them from what I'd heard on Soundcheck. We walked in during The Lovemakers' last song, Lisa in lingerie and dousing herself with a water bottle. It was pretty comical because we'd been talking on the ride over about how showy The Lovemakers were, and how none of us were really a big fan of Lisa and her overexposed underwear. It just feels like such an obvious ploy. So we sort of laughed about that and then Britt and I led the way to the front for Band of Skulls.
Ugh, they were so good! The girl seemed slightly nervous, maybe, but they sounded so much like the album. There are only three of them, and they've only been a group for a little over a year I think, but they really know what they're doing. It was sort of disappointing to see the guitarist/vocalist, Russell, in person though, because from his voice Britt and I were convinced that he had to be hot. Um. Not so much. But still yes because of the music. The only bad thing about their set was that it was really short and they didn't play either of my two favorite songs, "Cold Fame" and "Fires." They sort of stuck to the really upbeat songs and did an awesome job with them. It was just a bit unsatisfying and I've definitely resolved to see them when they come to town for a tour that's focused on them specifically. The holiday shows are just a different experience.
White Rabbits came on and it was like a deja vu of my birthday except it was more memorable without all the vodka cranberries. So many members in the band! It's kind of nuts. But they can handle it.
That was the last show I went to before Christmas and it was lovely. Bimbo's, by the way, is really beautiful and you sort of feel like you should be hanging out with Frank Sinatra and drinking martinis when you're there. I mean, there's an attendant in the restroom. Classy.



The Marquee



Band of Skulls



White Rabbits

MANATEE. THE SOFT WHITE SIXTIES. HOTTUB. AUDRYE SESSIONS.
NEW YEAR'S EVE SHOW.

Oh, Oakland. You are not always sketch, but it always feels like you will be. At least on New Year's there were cops everywhere. I've never felt so good about seeing police cars on every other block.
This show was at The Uptown, and it was 21 and over, so little Britt and Kristain couldn't come, which was sad. I went with Danielle and probably would've gone alone if I'd had no other options. That's how excited I was about this one. I would've taken on an extremely drunken Oakland by myself for it.
Since it was New Year's everybody put their best suit or dress on... no, not really. You pretty much couldn't tell from looking at people that it was an occasion. I mean maybe there were a few more dresses than usual, but no stilettos. I had new boots that I bought with some Christmas money and was very excited about that. Is there any clothing item more wonderful than a pair of new boots?
So Manatee was the first band and we went in and sat at one of the tables for them. It was pretty empty at that point and freezing - the smoking patio is behind the dance floor and the door is always open, so yeah. Teeth were chattering.
Manatee was fine, definitely kind of a newer band. Kind of the perfect openers, because they were just good enough to get the evening going and not so exciting that you'd cry if you missed them. I expected The Soft White Sixties to come on third, but the lead singer for Manatee said they were up next, so once Manatee left Danielle and I headed to the stage and got pumped.
The Soft White Sixties were awesome again. Their family fan club was there again, singing all the songs with them, and this time I was completely sober and still enjoyed every song. So I can officially say, from personal experience, that The Soft White Sixties kick ass whether you're sober, tipsy, or flat out drunk. Which is true of a lot of good bands, but not all of them. I noticed that one of their songs has a really similar opening riff to Rilo Kiley's "Silver Lining" and another of their songs sounds so much like a Kinks song I can't quite identify, but the familiarities are definitely not imitations. It's more like influence, and I just appreciate that they choose some awesome people as their influences.
Okay, so that brings me to Hottub. Um. There are no words.
Danielle and I went to the bar after TSWS, which is in the other room. You can see what's going on in the main room on a big projector screen they have set up in the bar. I watched the initial set up for Hottub, which looked like two DJ's. I had read a description of them somewhere that I thought had said "electronica," so that's what I was prepared for. They took forever setting up and then... these three chicks come on stage... in leotards... and crazy hair... holding microphones... and start, um... rapping? Oh god, it was the weirdest thing ever. One girl had crazy medusa hair and was wearing one of those full body leotards from American Apparel, but it was made of lace and had spaghetti straps and you could tell right away that if a strap fell it was all gonna be over. And with the way they were bouncing around the stage, I was sure a strap would fall. And oh boy it did. Twice. And they were shouting "M-A-N B-I-T-C-H, man bitch man bitch," and one of them was like, "is there a man out there who can handle 180 pounds of woman? I wanna sit on someone's FACE!" and then they brought a bunch of the audience on stage and they were almost all girls and all dancing and Danielle and I were cracking up but scared for our lives. Danielle kept being like, "Really, Audrye Sessions??? Why??? How does this fit with the other bands?" But then of course we were in Oakland. So the people were digging the hip hop.
Hottub was on stage for so long. It was kind of painful. But finally they left, and a bunch of people filtered out, and once we were sure they weren't coming back for an encore and they weren't gonna start scooping people onto the stage again, we made our way to the front for Audrye Sessions.
Oh Audrye Sessions. How I love you.
They started setting up just before midnight, and they were all on stage for the countdown. Mike was with his girlfriend (who looked a lot like Alicia) and the Judgement Day brothers, Anton and Lewis, were there, and Ryan started looking forlorn, searching for someone to kiss and finally landing on James (seriously! I thought it was hilarious. They're such a little family). And we all sang along with "Auld Lange Syne" and you could tell Lewis didn't know the set list because he was taking pictures of it with his camera phone. When everyone was finally set up, and tuned, and on stage, there were the four official members: Alicia (Bass), James (Drums), Mike (Guitar), and Ryan (Guitar, Lead Vocals, Occasional Keyboard), plus Anton (Violin), Lewis (Cello), Scott (Washboard, Acoustic Guitar, random things), and the lead singer from Manatee for a couple songs (he looked a lot like he and Mike could be brothers) playing the bongos or something.
It was awesome to be in the front row, and awesome to see my favorite live band as the first thing of the new year, and awesome that they were sort of disorganized and chatty and goofing off. They played at least four new songs, probably more. I'm a little obsessed with the song "Hands Full" so please release that one as soon as possible, Audrye Sessions, okay? And of course they played "New Year's Day," which may not be the most upbeat song but it's so pretty and I remember when I first heard it when they played it live on Soundcheck, and I remember listening to it on New Year's Day in '08 and '09, always along with "The New Year" by Death Cab. Anyway they played a really long set and when the crowd demanded an encore Ryan came back on stage and said "I don't think they're going to let us, but I guess we could try..." and we cheered enough that they decided to try. Screw the noise ordinances. And he played "a little tiny baby song" that Alicia and Lewis had only rehearsed once before: "Our new year's resolution is to practice this song more," Mike said. It was this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSBF0WEdURM and it sounded really good with all of them playing it. So the set finished at around 1:30 and then everyone dispersed.
We passed Dave Smallen on the way to the Ladies Room, ran into Alicia at the door to said room, where I told her they played a great set and she told me she had to pee (well, not quite, but basically). Then we decided to leave because we wouldn't get home until like 3:00 in the morning and some people (not me) had to work at 6:30 that same morning. Not fun. Believe me, I've done it. We passed Ryan talking to James on the way out so I told him it was a great show and wished him a happy new year, and then it was a quick walk back to my car and a loooong drive home.
And worth it, oh so worth it.
It's always, always worth it with them.



The Soft White Sixties




Hottub


Audrye Sessions


Happy New Year everyone! If it's as great as its start was, things are looking up...