The Live Music Thread

[postjack]

I tried to watch the video but I slipped into a coma. How can you watch those guys straight, PJ?

i dunno, i like it. its a social thing, and a stat geek thing, but more then anything else its an energy thing. my girlfriend doesn't understand Phish at all, but she understands it is very, very important to me. if live music is my religion, Phish is like the Eucharist.

The last one that really mattered was Pink Floyd in Anaheim in 1977. Nothing since then has even come close.

the last concert that really mattered was in 1977? dude I see amazing concerts like twice a month.

Thats like listening to "London Calling" and saying "guess I ain't listening to music anymore".

[Voltron]

I was yanking your chain, Posty, but I honestly do not get their music much. To imagine being sober for those shows is even harder to figure. I am sure that the scene and the energy have a euphoric effect of their own, at least from the second-hand smoke and what-not. What is the statistics element, btw?

I gotta agree with you wholeheartedly that there are great and epic concerts all the time. Nice to have some historical high points, but there are plenty of shows that "matter" if you look for them.

[tyrion]

Posty, don't let Al get you down. Just take a look at some of his posts in the What You Are Listeing To Now? thread. I'm still looking for tickets for the upcoming run in Miami. Friday, tickets for Further goes on sale for a show in Orlando and Miami. I hope to catch the one in Miami.

[jvlgato]

Wow, okay. That's pretty awkward. Yeah, he's a weird one. But for some reason musicians and weirdness go hand in hand.

When I was in college, I dated a violin major. She practiced from morning 'till night, 8-10 hours per day. I'd go to the practice building to visit and she'd take a 5 minute break in the lounge to spend some time with me and the other musicians on break to talk music, then say she had to go practice. She'd go back to her tiny cubicle and practice until dinner. She'd have a break for dinner and say she had to practice. I'd pick her up between 8p and midnight to see her before bedtime and I'd have to drag her out of the practice room - everyone else was still practicing! We'd walk to her place while she lamented not practicing enough that day.

Now I love music and thought I can do nothing but talk about and listen to music all day, but I was wrong. I read about a master class once given by Yo Yo-Ma, and a young cello student asked, 'I'd give my life to have a career like yours, what is your secret?' Ma's reply? 'Well ... I gave up my life!' These musicians literally do nothing but practice music all day and night from childhood on! So I think it's a little weird already to have the skill to be a professional musician, but also, when you close yourself in a small cubicle all day and night your entire life, it makes it hard to socialize like everyone else. No offense to any musicians here, but am I wrong? And if anything, I'm amazed by your commitment!

[postjack]

I was yanking your chain, Posty, but I honestly do not get their music much. To imagine being sober for those shows is even harder to figure. I am sure that the scene and the energy have a euphoric effect of their own, at least from the second-hand smoke and what-not. What is the statistics element, btw?

oh yeah, I know you are just playing, but i get similar questions a lot and it always makes me think. The statistics element is the whole "man they haven't played 'peaches en regalia' since 1999, then they bust it out night two at the Garden" thing, or watching the setlists roll in all tour to try and figure out what they will most likely play at upcoming shows, "well we all knew we were getting that Hood tonight". Phish (and the Dead, and other jambands) have a history of playing with their fans, withholding certain songs like a tasty treat, then dropping them into random (or sometimes not so random) setlists, so if you are at the show and hear those first notes kick in you just freaking lose it.

Great example: fans wanted Phish to "bust out" Fluffhead (a strangely celebratory song about a guy with a drug addiction) for the longest time before they broke up, but they never did, probably because at this point they had stopped practicing, and Trey was constantly fucked up on opiates, and the band treated their fans with disdain (IMO). So 2004 they break up, ending with a two day festival that was the worst two concerts in Phish history and one of the worst weekends of my life, personally and musically. Trey was so wasted he was nodding out on on stage in the middle of jams. I got sober 9 months later. Fast forward to I believe winter or spring 2007, Trey gets arrested for possession and put through the drug court system, where he gets sober.

Fall 2008, Phish announces a reunion run in Hampton, VA. So the internet buzz begins, and the biggest question, as always: "what will they open with?" Speculation immediately trends toward Fluffhead, but anyone who mentions it is totally shot down, because A) it seems way to appropriate and we were all kind of used to Phish doing whatever they hell they wanted at this point, and not really keeping the fans' best interest at heart.

Well, I went to the reunion show, and they opened with Fluffhead. They opened with fucking Fluffhead! It was the greatest live music moment of my life. I don't think I will ever feel energy like that at a show ever again.

Posty, don't let Al get you down. Just take a look at some of his posts in the What You Are Listeing To Now? thread. I'm still looking for tickets for the upcoming run in Miami. Friday, tickets for Further goes on sale for a show in Orlando and Miami. I hope to catch the one in Miami.

Man, hope you snag some tickets. Melody and I will be present for 12/31 only. We are in the 300s somewhere, but I'm just happy to be in.

Edited December 9, 2009 by postjack

[mypasswordis]

When I was in college, I dated a violin major. She practiced from morning 'till night, 8-10 hours per day. I'd go to the practice building to visit and she'd take a 5 minute break in the lounge to spend some time with me and the other musicians on break to talk music, then say she had to go practice. She'd go back to her tiny cubicle and practice until dinner. She'd have a break for dinner and say she had to practice. I'd pick her up between 8p and midnight to see her before bedtime and I'd have to drag her out of the practice room - everyone else was still practicing! We'd walk to her place while she lamented not practicing enough that day.

Now I love music and thought I can do nothing but talk about and listen to music all day, but I was wrong. I read about a master class once given by Yo Yo-Ma, and a young cello student asked, 'I'd give my life to have a career like yours, what is your secret?' Ma's reply? 'Well ... I gave up my life!' These musicians literally do nothing but practice music all day and night from childhood on! So I think it's a little weird already to have the skill to be a professional musician, but also, when you close yourself in a small cubicle all day and night your entire life, it makes it hard to socialize like everyone else. No offense to any musicians here, but am I wrong? And if anything, I'm amazed by your commitment!

That is an insane amount of practicing. My school is not at a high enough level that that is the case for us. Even when I lived on campus I did not practice 8-10 hours a day. I usually started around midnight (I had classes pretty much straight up until 8 or 9pm most days) and stopped around 4am. There definitely is a different mindset with musicians, though, in that it really is pretty much a drug for us, and has to be for musicians to be able to get through all that practicing. I myself experienced withdrawal effects this summer when I went "all out" with only 6 hours of practicing a day on average and sometimes took a day or two breaks.

And I'm actually not a 'real' music major though I'm getting the degree, since I'm doubling in EE, which is where I spend most of my time. I went home for a quick hour or two yesterday morning just to shower and eat and have "slept" in the same lab for two days straight, trying to get work done. One person practically moved in here the entire first part of the week and just left yesterday night.

Yeah I really need to record some Bach now but have very little time. I'm thinking this weekend Sarabande and next weekend Chaconne. Sorry, Marc.

[Voltron]

Well, I went to the reunion show, and they opened with Fluffhead. They opened with fucking Fluffhead! It was the greatest live music moment of my life. I don't think I will ever feel energy like that at a show ever again.

Great story, Posty, thanks for sharing. Glad to know my stats guess was right. I know a lot of Deadheads and taper nuts and the like, and of course saw them and Jerry solo a few times. Never got into them.

Just to name drop a little, I knew Brent Mydland a little bit because he was a good friend of the older brother of one of my best friends in high school (and still). Brent was a very cool guy, very mellow and down to earth. He gave my buddy an electric piano that he had used on tours for the band we had then (I was the manager ) and I thought that was pretty cool of the Dead's keyboard player to do. Anyway, on the other theme of your post, both Brent and my buddy's older brother are dead now because of heroin. Glad you and Trey are both sober.

But watch out with that last comment, you were starting to sound like ronnielee54 and his Floyd '77 comment!

Edited December 9, 2009 by Voltron

[postjack]

Great story, Posty, thanks for sharing. Glad to know my stats guess was right. I know a lot of Deadheads and taper nuts and the like, and of course saw them and Jerry solo a few times. Never got into them.

Just to name drop a little, I knew Brent Mydland a little bit because he was a good friend of the older brother of one of my best friends in high school (and still). Brent was a very cool guy, very mellow and down to earth. He gave my buddy an electric piano that he had used on tours for the band we had then (I was the manager ) and I thought that was pretty cool of the Dead's keyboard player to do. Anyway, on the other theme of your post, both Brent and my buddy's older brother are dead now because of heroin. Glad you and Trey are both sober.

nice connection! brent was my favorite non-pigpen Dead keyboardist. unfortunately I never got to see the Dead live (the real Dead, not any of its various incarnations since).

But watch out with that last comment, you were starting to sound like ronnielee54 and his Floyd '77 comment!

nice, thanks for calling me out on my shit.

[guzziguy]

...

It was the greatest live music moment of my life. I don't think I will ever feel energy like that at a show ever again.

That's because you've never been to a Helen Reddy concert.

[ronnielee54]

i dunno, i like it. its a social thing, and a stat geek thing, but more then anything else its an energy thing. my girlfriend doesn't understand Phish at all, but she understands it is very, very important to me. if live music is my religion, Phish is like the Eucharist.

the last concert that really mattered was in 1977? dude I see amazing concerts like twice a month.

Thats like listening to "London Calling" and saying "guess I ain't listening to music anymore".

I guess I just worded it wrong. I have been to other concerts since then but it was the best I had ever been to. Maybe it was the drugs.

[Voltron]

I first heard of Davy Knowles in the last week and I just got back from seeing him and his band Back Door Slam at a small club called the Independent. He is a 23 year old blues rock guitarist and singer from the UK and he was blistering for about 2 solid hours. Here is a pic Davy took from the stage and already posted to Twitter, which is what he said he would do. You can see my left hand making a peace sign as the last highest hand in the back about a third of the way from the right of the frame.

Anyway, he can play the shit out of a guitar and has a great rockin' blues voice. He did mostly his own music, but with a good sprinkling of classic rock tunes that people know to keep everybody interested. He played a relatively short version of Oh Well by the old Fleetwood Mac ("I can't help about the shape I'm in I can't sing, I ain't pretty and my legs are thin But don't ask me what I think of you I might not give the answer that you want me to") that transitioned into a searing, lengthy rendition of Crosby, Stills & Nash's Almost Cut My Hair that would have made Stephen Stills hang up his guitar after his recent lame-ass effort at the R&R Hall of Fame concert. That was something, mother-fucking else! He also did Cortez The Killer, one of my favorite Neil Young tunes, so that was pretty awesome as well. His other cover that I can recall was by Rory Gallagher, who along with Peter Frampton (who produced his recent album) seem to be Davy's top heroes.

All in all, a great show even though my ears a ringing like a son of bitch. This was the last show on their tour, allegedly, but they also seem to be playing NYE in Philadelphia so they are not exactly on hiatus. Check them out if you can, and don't hold their lame band name against them. We hypothesized it must mean something different in the U.K.

[postjack]

Knowles came through Mobile and played a show at the Blue Gill on the causeway. I missed it because I had class. My buddy said he was amazing.

[Voltron]

I think you'd dig him, Jack. I will definitely go see him again.

Here is a video from the show I was at:

[kelvinz]

Saw Muse and Phoenix last Tuesday it was not great as then venue had horrible acoustics

[The Monkey]

Musica Sacra – Professional Choral Music at its Finest Concert Overview

[Voltron]

Currently at the Cracker van Beethoven show and we are in between Camper and Cracker. There is a a sitar player with his son on tablas playing something from his Sitar Power II record called Sitar Trek. Quite funky, as he said, with a disco funk music track playing. Wacky. Hoping Cracker is a little better than the Campers. Showing their age and seemingly not exactly "feeling it." Fun nonetheless.

[Voltron]

Oh well, they can't all be great. The Cracker set started out better and I had higher hopes, but it got boring and rote-feeling like the Camper set. We ended up leaving early because we too are old and it wasn't compelling enough. Favorite moment of the night was toward the end of the Camper song Club Med Sucks when David Lowery is punking it up singing "Club Med sucks, Authority sucks, I hate golf!" and then before the song even ends he leans down, puts on his reading glasses and checks the next song from his set list on the MacBook he has on a music stand next to him. With apologies to Pete Townshend, I thought to myself "The Punk Meets The Grandfather." My my my my my mmmm my my my. GGGGG-g-g-g-g generation. . . Sadly, he's only two years older than me and I use reading glass over my contacts, but at least I'm not supposed to be a rock star.

[The Monkey]

Al, you're a rock star and you know it.

[tyrion]

Phish 12/30, 12/31. These were both great shows. The only other experience that is close to a Phish show is a Dead show. The entire crowd, including me, was up from the first note to the last.

Last night caught The Word with a friend at a small local venue. The Word is Robert Randolph, John Medeski and the North Mississippi Allstars. I'm a huge fan of all of them and hearing them together was a blast. Robert Randolph has a way of getting you on your feet and moving.

[Voltron]

Sounds fun, Mike. Is that keyboard player dressed as a cocktail olive?

[postjack]

Phish 12/31. Mike, did the iPhone pic come out?

Three great sets of music. Phish has come a long ass way since their comeback show 3/6/09. As of 12/30, Phish played more original songs in 2009 then in any year of their career.

At the end of the show, Trey said, "See you next summer." Most likely they are taking a break because Page is having a kid this spring. Well I'm already chomping at the bit to be dancing on the lawn with my friends again.

Here is a sweet vid of the after midnight hi-jinx:

[tyrion]

It did. I posted it in another thread. After the two shows, I have a new appreciation for Phish. I'm listening to 12/5/09 Charllotsville, VA show in FLAC-HD from livephish.com.

Edited January 4, 2010 by tyrion

[GPH]

Montreal Symphony Orchestra concert:

GERARD SCHWARZ, chef d

[Dusty Chalk]

I love the Mendelssohn.

[matt fury]

Got two 3rd row tix for George Clinton & P-Funk on my bday next Saturday. Really fucking excited.