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Concert Report 5/2/03

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Mr_Pleasington:
Last Friday I hiked across the width of Illinois to meet up with some friends to see a much anticipated Pete Yorn show in the Egyptian Room in Indianapolis.  

I've got to say that Pete puts on a really good show...and somehow doesn't move his mouth when singing. He played virtually everything off both his first and just released second album with a good mixture of slow songs and upbeat ones.  The show wasn't sold out by any means, but there were a lot of people in there.  It was a nice venue and smoke free  ;D

Pete brought two opening acts with him.  Rooney and Grandaddy, neither of which I'd heard of before. Rooney took the stage first and was absolutely spectacular.  Best opening act I've seen.  Thier music is comparable to if Weezer had a baby with the Pixies and it was raised by The Four Seasons.  Quirky alternative with a lot of harmony.  I will buy their album without hesitation.

Grandaddy was second on stage and was a big, big downer.  They were just far too mellow for the crowd that was pumped up by Rooney.  They did not go over well.  However, after listening to the free sampler CD I got upon leaving the show I realized that I really like their stuff...I just wasn't in the mood for it. Their music is best described as  very haunting, mellow alt-synth.

All in all, well worth admission.  Best show since I saw Wilco at the Pageant here in St. Louis!

The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers:
Sounds vaguely like when I went to see a $10 show at the 9:30 club. Smash Mouth opened. Tres cool. Bunch of guys just having fun, they were loose, confident, and it was a blast to watch them.

The second band, Plexi, is certain to be the spawn of Satan. I have never seen a band blow more than them. It was like the worst parts of bush and megadeath mixed and then flushed down the toilet.

The "headliner" for the show was Sugar Ray, which admittedly, I had only heard one or two songs from at that point. Unfortunately, the album apparently has little or nothing to do with their singles, and they sucked too. It was like he thought he DESERVED to be worshipped because he was headlining a show in a small club with a $10 charge. Wanker. I wanted to have my friend hold him down while I pooped on his head. Needless to say, we decided we had spent ten bones to see Smash Mouth and we left quite early.

Kid_Kilowatt:
I sympathize with your puzzlement at Grandaddy, Pleasington.  I have NO idea why they are touring with Pete Yorn - not only is there almost zero overlap between their respective fanbases, Grandaddy is not right at all to set up a crowd for Pete Yorn.  Rooney is a much better choice for an opening act.  On record, though, there is no contest - Grandaddy blows Rooney out of the water.  I'd love to see a Grandaddy show, but they are coming to SLC with Pete Yorn, so I'm just going to skip it.  Watch for their new one, "Sumday" - it comes out in a month or so.  If you like Wilco's "Summerteeth", it should be right up your alley.

Mr_Pleasington:
Wow, you actually know of the bands...   Where'd you get the buzz as no one I've spoken to has heard of them.

Summerteeth is actually my least favorite Wilco album, but the songs from the sampler CD, which are three from Sumday, sound a lot like the stuff from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot which is my favorite Wilco album.  I'll definitely be picking it up.

stacer:
I have no idea who any of these bands are, aside from Smashmouth and Wilco. I'm so out of the loop when it comes to current popular music (I'm more a country/folk fan, which puts me in the minority, I know).

Have any of you ever heard of David Wilcox? I'm going with some friends here in Boston to see him in concert tomorrow. It's folk music. I'm going more out of hanging out than because I'm a big fan--I've only heard samples of 3 of his songs, and honestly, I have to say that folk singers today have no sense of originality or rhythm. I used to think that my friends performing folk music at ward talent shows just weren't as talented as I'd like, but then I heard several professional American folk singers.

(I don't include folk singers from other countries, at least from the UK, because I'm all about that--Kate Rusby, John McCusker, Cliar, Battlefield Band, Malinky, and Anne Martin--all great stuff.)

Compare current American folk singers, like the guy Kate Rusby opened for in Chicago (and I have to tell you, we wished this guy would just get off the stage and let Kate come back!)--the Americans all sound the same, whiny, weird, and nonmusical vocals. Usually the instrumentation is great, but the singing is impossibly matched, nonrhythmic, too slow, etc. The songwriting is amateurish, compared to the British groups I've listened to.

Makes me wonder what's up. Am I just listening to the wrong American groups? Maybe my expectations are too high. I'm hoping for more along the lines of the quality of the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, but not necessarily bluegrass. Maybe I just need to listen to more bluegrass and write the American folk scene off for good.  ???

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