LCD Soundsystem at Roy Wilkins Auditorium - October 23, 2010

Saturday night was the end of an era for me and the couple thousand people that came to the LCD Soundsystem show. This, in all likelihood, was going to be LCD Soundsystem's last show anywhere near here. Ever. Nevertheless, the show had a very jubilant feel, at least in the crowd.
Opener Hot Chip was one of the best warm-up bands I have ever seen, and they played a near-perfect set. All the hits sounded great, but Over and Over translated especially well. A steel drum was used, to my amazement, extremely well throughout their set on about half the songs they played. Alexis Taylor and Joe Goddard's vocals contrasted perfectly, and the rest of the band served as great musicians and dancers. As it was throughout the night, the cave-like Roy Wilkins didn't effect Hot Chip's sound at all, and closer Ready for the Floor served as a great goodbye.





After about a twenty minute break, the lights went down and the magical opening notes of Dance Yrself Clean started playing, and members of the band walked on one-by-one. Then a crabby looking James Murphy, one of indie rock's high princes, walked onstage in unusually casual attire. No matter what his mood was the performance was great. As the opening song built up, so did the crowd, until the three-minute mark when everything exploded. It was actually like a bomb went off. From then on it was a huge dance party, with a few change ups here and there. Songs of off their first album got the strongest showing, and Daft Punk Is Playing at My House, Tribulations, and Movement were three of the highlights of my night. During Tribulations, a giant disco ball dropped down, the lights went off, and an amazing moment was created. A slowed down version of All My Friends didn't translate as well live, but since it's literally my favorite song it was still great. Home closed the set in truly emotional fashion, at least for the fans. Everyone knew this would be the last time we saw LCD Soundsystem, and the fans truly appreciated the performance. All James Murphy could do to say goodbye one last time was to give a disgruntled little wave. Regardless, it was one of the best shows I have ever seen and they will be sorely missed. Who can blame him for being a little tired anyway? He's only recorded three of the best albums of the decade, produced great albums, written movie soundtracks, and put on one of the greatest, most energetic live shows on earth.





My camera would have blown out by the speakers, but here are some videos that I didn't take to give you an idea:

The Flaming Lips at Roy Wilkins Auditorium - September 19, 2010

Well that was fun. Both bands that played at Roy Wilkins Auditorium Sunday Night, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti and the Flaming Lips, entertained and amazed in different ways. Ariel Pink came on at exactly the scheduled time, 7:30, the first signal that it was going to be a good night. The second sign was that Ariel Pink was wearing a blue and red plaid woman's suit. The third sign was that the suit worked, and wasn't the weirdest thing about him. After their first song, Ariel Pink exclaimed "Thank you for coming to see MEEEEEE!" That pretty much set the tone for the rest of their 50 minute set, with Ariel Pink lying down near the end of the stage, acting like a diva, and playing air guitar furiously. It was fun to watch, and some of the music was decent too. "Beverly Kills" and "Round and Round," both from this year's great Before Today had the same punch live that they do

on record, even in the cavernous spaces of the Roy.

Ariel Pink

Next came the elaborate stage set-up for the Flaming Lips. From the get-go it was hard not to like them. Each member of the band set up their own instruments and reacted with the crowd, something that you rarely see. Then, as the lights went dark, each instrumentalist was born out of the screen and Wayne Coyne took a victory lap around the crowd in his giant hamster ball.

The Flaming Lips

The set was great too, although it seemed like the band was determined to drag every song out a couple of minutes longer than it had to be. Instead of this, next time, they should consider playing at least one song from The Soft Bulletin. Each song seemed to have its own gimmick though, which was fun. From laser hands to Wayne walking around with a strobe light strapped to his chest, there was never a lagging moment. All of the members seemed to be thoroughly involved with the show too. After closing with an emotional version of "Do You Realize??" the members left the stage. It wasn't until after they were gone that I realized how amazing the show they put on is, how much work, dedication, and energy it takes. That's not something you get from a lot of bands nowadays.

Laser Hands

Lollapalooza 2010 (Videos Only)

Sorry it took so long, but here are some videos from my amazing trip to Lollapalooza.

Wavves - King of the Beach

The Walkmen - The Rat

The Big Pink - Velvet

The New Pornographers - Moves

The Black Keys - Tighten Up

The xx - Crystalized

Spoon - Got Nuffin

Cut Copy - Lights & Music

Basilica Block Party Day 2

Chester Bay

Best Moment: Chester Bay kept it fun throughout, and drew a much larger crowd than Robert Francis, the next act to follow. The ska-tinged sound was perfect for the atmosphere.

Worst Moment: After a while the sound started to get tiresome and the useless saxophonist

was annoying as hell, dancing around with his eyes closed mouthing the words to every song.

Robert Francis

Best Moment: There really wasn't one, this is one of the worst sets I have ever seen. It was so bad in fact that I didn't even care when he sat down right in front of me for one of his many "guitar solos."

Worst Moment: The whole set. Every song seemed to start with some motivational words along the lines of 'I'll pick you up if you're down,' and they got worse from there. Each song seemed to drag on for ever, featuring a guitar solo and some terrible humming/moaning.

V.V. Brown

Best Moment: Songs such as "Shark in the Water" that showed off the skills of her backing band were strong. She was the perfect act for people waiting for the Avett Brothers, as she changed up the pace nicely.

Worst Moment: Songs that featured mostly pre-recorded tracks weren't as good as other songs, but everything was pretty fun.

The Avett Brothers

Best Moment: Everything was great, but songs from Emotionalism and Four Thieves gone were stronger than I and Love and You stuff. "Colorshow" was great, as was songs I haven't seen live before such as "Weight of Lies," and "Distraction #74."

Worst Moment: "Living of Love" and "Pretty Girl From Cedar Lane" dragged a little bit, but everything was really amazing.

Edit this setlist | More The Avett Brothers setlists

Basilica Block Party Day 1

Here's a quick summary of the bands that played the M&Ms stage on Friday July 9th at Basilica Block Party.

Hunter Hero

Best Moment: The second-to-last song this "Battle of the Bands winner" played skewed away from their country tinged sound and took on a more enjoyable tone.

Worst Moment: The band seemed to be trying too hard. The bassist had an American flag pinned to his bass, and the lead singer looked like he was trying to be different, with two

stripes of black paint under his eyes.

Rogue Valley

Best Moment: Although their was a non-existent crowd, Chris Koza's crew seemed to be having fun. This was especially on second song "Red River of the North," where the band led a clap along for the few dozen people that were actually paying attention to them.

Worst Moment: After a couple of songs, the set dragged, plagued with slow numbers that failed to grab people's attention.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals

Best Moment: Grace Potter's backing band, the Nocturnals, captivated my attention for most of the set. The three men in the group all had color-coordinated suits and cool hair, and the chemistry between them was great. Grace Potter's voice was a force, and the audience quadrupled in size during her set. The drum circle was during "Medicine" was also extremely fun.

Worst Moment: Grace Potter playing a flying-V guitar as big as her was funny, but she even pulled that off.

Edit this setlist | More Grace Potter and the Nocturnals setlists

Spooooooooooooooooooooooooooon

Best Moment: I love Spoon, so I can't say anything bad about them. Their set was tight and loose at the same time. It flowed perfectly, and reverb and improv were used at the right time and in the right amounts. Britt Daniel's croon can't be matched.

Worst Moment: My one complaint would be that not enough tracks were played off of their best CD, "Kill the Moonlight."

Edit this setlist | More Spoon setlists

Rock the Garden 2010

I have so much to say about this event, too much in fact. So I will highlight the bests and worsts of each performer of this wonderful day.

Retribution Gospel Choir

Summary: Hard, boring, repetitive Rock and Roll.

Best Moments: When they walked on stage, because it meant that Rock the Garden had started. Alan Sparhawk's emotions while going through his dozens of guitar solos were also mildly entertaining.

Worst Moments: Everything else. Not a memorable sound, everything blended together and sounded the same. "Hide It Away," was a lone standout.

Ok Go

Summary: Energetic, Creative, Fun, Prince-infused Pop. A definite crowd pleaser.

Best Moments: Pretty much everything, my personal highlight of the day. Confetti was constantly shot out, and every member of the band was engaged. "This Too Shall Pass" and a version of "What To Do" played only on handbells were both amazing.

Worst Moments: The only lagging parts were the couple of slow numbers, but even those were hugely entertaining.

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings

Summary: Practiced, synchronized, beautiful soul music.

Best Moments: A funky Woody Guthrie cover of "This Land Is Your Land," and new album track "I Learned the Hard Way." Sharon Jones was a dancing bundle of energy. Watching members of MGMT and Ok Go enjoy the set from the side of the stage, dancing and singing along.

Worst Moments: The middle of the set lagged, and the group struggled to give any sense of variety in their one and a quarter hour set.

MGMT

Summary: Sloppy Yet Fun Electro Rock, No Stage Presence

Best Moments: Oracular Spectacular Hits "Electric Feel" and "Time To Pretend," and Congratulations tracks "Brian Eno" and "Congratulations."

Worst Moments: Lesser known tracks from the new album seemed to drag on forever. A fun band to hear live, not a fun band to see live, all Andrew VanWyngarden could manage to say after every song was "Thanks So Much." Overall an extremely enjoyable experience though.

MGMT Setlist:

Pieces Of What

Flash Delirium

Destrokk

Electric Feel

The Youth

Song For Dan Tracy

Weekend Wars

I Found A Whistle

Siberian Brakes

Time To Pretend

Of Moons, Birds, & Monsters

Brian Eno

It's Working

Someone's Missing

Kids

Congratulations

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros at First Avenue - June 6, 2010

Wow. What a great night. Two of my favorite groups at the moment, Dawes and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, were playing at First Avenue on Sunday night. One exceeded my expectations greatly, and one fell a little short, yet was still one of the more fun bands I've seen.

Dawes came on at around 8:45, and everyone was a little bit restless. Once the four men were on the stage however, everything changed. Their country-tinged sound on record wasn't evident at all Sunday night, and you could tell these guys were going somewhere. Two new songs were especially good, but the highlight by far was "When My Time Comes." Kudos to 89.3 The Current for playing this song so much, as it created a truly spectacular moment. During the last chorus, Taylor Goldsmith turned his microphone towards the crowd and 1200 people sang the chorus. I had goosebumps running up and down my arms, and you could tell the band did also. It was truthfully one of the most spectacular moments I have ever experienced at a concert.

Next, after a short wait that included a massive influx of people near the front of the floor, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros trudged on. Edward was dressed like a modern day Jesus, and often his lyrics sounded like one too. Opening with "40 Day Dream," the party was started right away, with everyone dancing and singing along.

Unfortunately, the 10-piece then rattled off three of the strongest songs from their only album, "Carries On," "Up From Below," and "Janglin." After those highlights, the middle of the show dragged on a lot, with Jade (who is clearly the star of the show) even leaving the stage for minutes at a time. Finally, things picked up again near the end with "Come In Please's" amazing guitars and every one's favorite song of 2009, "Home."

After ending with "Om Nashi Me," which built up beautifully and ended with a bang, the band walked off stage. What happened next was rare, a second magical moment. Five of the men from the band, including Alex Ebert (Edward Sharpe), came out and played the beautiful song "Brother." What made it particularly special was that Alex came into the crowd and sat down, urging all of us to sit also. He was only three feet away from me, and it was truly an amazing experience and a great way to end a fantastic night.

Set List:

40 Day Dream

Up From Below

Carries On

Janglin

Desert Song

River Of Love (Jade Solo Song)

Come In Please

Jade

Home

Black Water

Om Nashi Me

Brother

Note:

I wasn't able to take any videos for the show, but I'll post a couple that other people took.