I attend many concerts -- some weeks, as many as 3 or 4 shows. That means that some of the shows are epic and amazing. That also means some are pretty bad or disappointing.
Lowlights:
Todd Rundgren at the LC in November: I have enjoyed Mr. Rundgren's music since the '70s. In addition, over the Summer, my wife and I enjoyed his contributions to the Ringo Starr and His All-Star Band show we saw in Kettering. In fact, at that show, he sang three of his hits and they sounded great. In addition, he tossed out a guitar pick at the end of the show that I caught. So I was feeling very positive headed into the LC for the show. I left shaking my head wondering what Todd was thinking. There were fewer hits played than at the show in Kettering (yes, that is true!). Instead of the hits, the show was filled with odd covers and obscure songs. No thanks, Mr. Rundgren, no thanks.
Twenty One Pilots introduced covers and "Nigel": I have seen the local band Twenty One Pilots five times. The first was with about 300 people at Musica in Akron, where after the excellent show my son Sam and I met the band and they signed autographs for us. So I started on a high note. Since then I have seen them in 3 other states: in Maryland at Sweetgreen 2013, in Illinois at Lollapalooza 2013, and in Kentucky at Forecastle 2014. Each of these shows were excellent, each covering similar material. With time, the band has grown in stage presence. I really enjoy these guys! However, the LC show on 9-4-14 was very disappointing. They broke up the shows momentum with oddly chosen cover songs. And worst of all, they used a voice over in between songs they referred to as 'Nigel'. This was a poorly chosen gimmick that got very old after a minute -- but was used much longer. Fellas: stick to your songs and drop the gimmicks!
Quit shouting out songs you want to hear when clearly the set list is set: In April, the Indigo Girls played with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra at the Ohio Theater. There clearly had been substantial preparation time for the orchestra to learn the songs. And Emily and Amy were not going to play as a duo at night without the backing of the orchestra. That did not stop the crowd from frequently shouting out requests. **Sigh**
Tune-Yards opened for Arcade Fire: I enjoy a wide selection of music from many genres. I am shocked that many people find Tune-Yards enjoyable. I found that hard to sit through.
Arcade Fire opens up the encore with songs by Devo and Ohioans sit on their hands: Arcade Fire on their recent tour would give tribute to local art-rock bands by playing songs by the band during their encore. As Arcade Fire played songs by Devo to open up their encore, the crowd sat in near silence. No love for the Ohio guys? Or just a young Arcade Fire fan and have no idea the debt they owe to Devo and so many other bands? Hmm.
The Kinfolks Soul Food Festival in Dayton: I was very excited to see this all day festival. So many funk bands I wanted to see! Morris Day and the Time were good, even with just three original members. Midnight Star were enjoyable, although the Calloway brothers were missed. SOS Band and Lakeside put on good shows. Then Confunkshun did not play at all (and it was never explained). The time between sets dragged out. By the time Bootsy Collins, a Cincinnati native, hit the stage, the crowd was not happy. Half way through his set, many in the crowd had left. And although Bootsy looked and sounded fine, his set seemed to drag with too long of jams. So the show was good but had a chance to be great.
Lorde at the LC in September: I was not sure what to expect when Lorde came to town. I respect her story and like some of her songs. I was not impressed with too much interpretive dancing and not enough stage presence otherwise. Keep trying because you are capable of more.
So much talk about Jack White vs. the Black Keys: I very much enjoy both the Black Keys and the White Stripes/Jack White. I saw them both this year and love each show I have seen (each 4 times now). A lot of talk about White vs. Black drove me crazy. Give it up. They are both very talented. They like each other's stuff. They both have music that was born of similar artists. Every artist carries the debt of previous bands. That is how it works.
Sunday, December 28, 2014
2014 Concert Roundup -- Highlights
I attended a ton of shows in 2014. Looking back, I had some really great (and some not-so-great) concert experiences.
Highlights:
That time a stranger and I hugged and cried at a concert: I have seen Bruce Springsteen in concert 18 times. I had never heard him play the legendary "Sad Eyes" coda. In April at Nationwide Arena, Bruce and the band played it. The middle aged gentleman standing next to me that I had met a short time before and I cried and hugged in excitement.
My selfie with a soulful cancer survivor: At the end of her performance at the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Sharon Jones was walking out the backstage exit and I was exiting the VIP area. I was able to talk with her briefly and I have a great selfie to commemorate the moment.
That time the lead singer stole my hat and punched me: I was front and center for the New Bomb Turks show at Ace of Cups in October. Eric Davidson, the lead singer, snatched my Blue Jackets hat, wore it for a few moments, threw it back, and then gently punched my arm later (a thanks for playing along love tap?). Quite the rowdy, fun show!
Being front and center for rare shows by icons of the alternative '70s and '80s: I am so grateful I was able to see both Paul Weller (Cleveland's HoB show) and Bryan Ferry (Tower Theater in Philadelphia area) this past year. I had not seen either in the past. Both shows were epic. I was front and center for each show. I was able to get three (!!!) Paul Weller guitar picks at the HoB show along with a set list. And I got Bryan Ferry's personal set list at that show. I left both shows VERY happy!
That time my wife and I saw an R 'n' B legend: My wife and I flew out of town twice this year to see shows. The first was Queen with Adam Lambert in Las Vegas in July. The second was an amazing show in Atlanta by Stevie Wonder. My wife and I were so happy to cross him off our "How have we never seen them in concert?!" list.
That time I got to strum a budding star's guitar: St. Vincent released one of the top albums of the year and came to town in October. My friend Ken Zakel and I were in the front of the crowd near stage left. When Annie Clark (St. Vincent) played her guitar in front of crowd while ridding on a security guards shoulders, she encouraged the crowd to strum her guitar. Both my friend and I got to strum the guitar. And we were lucky enough to get guitar picks at the end of the show -- thanks Steve!
That time I saw Billie Joe Armstrong play with his heroes: At the Forecastle Festival, the Replacements hit the stage as part of their most recent tour. Although I knew Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day had played some shows with the 'Mats on this tour, I was pleasantly surprised when he took the stage with the band. He sang back up vocals and played guitar. A great moment happened when he helped Paul Westerberg with his microphone stand then smooched Paul on the cheek.
Those times when I learned how social media really are great ways to reach out to musicians: It was not very clear after a Mayor Hawthorne show in the Cincinnati area whether Mr. Hawthorne would come out to sign autographs. As I waited there, I sent a tweet to him and he responded right away. Nice! Then in September, the band Joywave and I connected through Twitter and they commented about this blog and the post about their show.
The concert t shirt that started many a conversation: I was blown away with the power of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds at their show in Detroit in July. I purchased a concert t shirt at the show. I wore the shirt to a show by Strand of Oaks and to the above mentioned Paul Weller show. Tim Showalter, the leader of Strand of Oaks, and I had a great conversation after the show. Much of the conversation centered around my description of how great the Nick Cave show was after Tim asked my about the concert shirt. In addition, the bassist for Chamber Strings (opener for Paul Weller) asked my about the shirt and we had a great conversation about how intense Nick Cave and the band were live.
Highlights:
That time a stranger and I hugged and cried at a concert: I have seen Bruce Springsteen in concert 18 times. I had never heard him play the legendary "Sad Eyes" coda. In April at Nationwide Arena, Bruce and the band played it. The middle aged gentleman standing next to me that I had met a short time before and I cried and hugged in excitement.
My selfie with a soulful cancer survivor: At the end of her performance at the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Sharon Jones was walking out the backstage exit and I was exiting the VIP area. I was able to talk with her briefly and I have a great selfie to commemorate the moment.
That time the lead singer stole my hat and punched me: I was front and center for the New Bomb Turks show at Ace of Cups in October. Eric Davidson, the lead singer, snatched my Blue Jackets hat, wore it for a few moments, threw it back, and then gently punched my arm later (a thanks for playing along love tap?). Quite the rowdy, fun show!
Being front and center for rare shows by icons of the alternative '70s and '80s: I am so grateful I was able to see both Paul Weller (Cleveland's HoB show) and Bryan Ferry (Tower Theater in Philadelphia area) this past year. I had not seen either in the past. Both shows were epic. I was front and center for each show. I was able to get three (!!!) Paul Weller guitar picks at the HoB show along with a set list. And I got Bryan Ferry's personal set list at that show. I left both shows VERY happy!
That time my wife and I saw an R 'n' B legend: My wife and I flew out of town twice this year to see shows. The first was Queen with Adam Lambert in Las Vegas in July. The second was an amazing show in Atlanta by Stevie Wonder. My wife and I were so happy to cross him off our "How have we never seen them in concert?!" list.
That time I got to strum a budding star's guitar: St. Vincent released one of the top albums of the year and came to town in October. My friend Ken Zakel and I were in the front of the crowd near stage left. When Annie Clark (St. Vincent) played her guitar in front of crowd while ridding on a security guards shoulders, she encouraged the crowd to strum her guitar. Both my friend and I got to strum the guitar. And we were lucky enough to get guitar picks at the end of the show -- thanks Steve!
That time I saw Billie Joe Armstrong play with his heroes: At the Forecastle Festival, the Replacements hit the stage as part of their most recent tour. Although I knew Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day had played some shows with the 'Mats on this tour, I was pleasantly surprised when he took the stage with the band. He sang back up vocals and played guitar. A great moment happened when he helped Paul Westerberg with his microphone stand then smooched Paul on the cheek.
Those times when I learned how social media really are great ways to reach out to musicians: It was not very clear after a Mayor Hawthorne show in the Cincinnati area whether Mr. Hawthorne would come out to sign autographs. As I waited there, I sent a tweet to him and he responded right away. Nice! Then in September, the band Joywave and I connected through Twitter and they commented about this blog and the post about their show.
The concert t shirt that started many a conversation: I was blown away with the power of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds at their show in Detroit in July. I purchased a concert t shirt at the show. I wore the shirt to a show by Strand of Oaks and to the above mentioned Paul Weller show. Tim Showalter, the leader of Strand of Oaks, and I had a great conversation after the show. Much of the conversation centered around my description of how great the Nick Cave show was after Tim asked my about the concert shirt. In addition, the bassist for Chamber Strings (opener for Paul Weller) asked my about the shirt and we had a great conversation about how intense Nick Cave and the band were live.
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