club D

I'm a 38-year-old gal, living in the Washington, DC area, who loves going to concerts of all kinds. My blog tracks most shows I attend. Hope you enjoy, and feel free to comment!

Friday, July 28, 2006

Editors Headline the 930 Club

July 27
Recommended Beverage to go with this show:
Bass brown ale (in the absence of acid)
Editors are a welcome newcomer on the post-punk scene. Their 2005 debut album, The Back Room, went platinum in the UK and soared to number two on the British charts. It featured the debut single "Bullets," followed by "Munich," perhaps the catchiest on the album, and "Blood," which would hit the UK top 20.

The band tackled their album with incredible energy at the 930 Club. Live, in particular, they sound like the New York-based band Interpol...on speed,
though singer Tom Smith's rich voice probably sounded even more like Joy Division's Ian Curtis, if that's possible. Smith certainly emulated the late Curtis with his state of unnatural euphoria, which was particularly distracting during his two stints at the keyboard.

Yet another similarity between Interpol and Editors is the amount of commentary during the show, which was equally non-existent, except for the "thanks for coming." Often newer bands, even despite thick accents, will try a bit of small talk to connect with the crowd, perhaps explaining the inspiration for a song. I, for one, would love to know the story behind "Munich."

Editors have a much more fast-paced sound than the more shoe-gazing Interpol. On certain songs, Editors' guitar hooks were reminiscent of early U-2. Most fun to watch was Editors drummer Ed Hay, who had great stage presence and did a fine job keeping the beat.
Many heads bopped to the beat at the packed club as the British foursome sailed through their hour-long set. Editors have had an incessant touring schedule since their album's release and are just becoming known in the States. In DC, they got a boost as the opener for StellaStar* at the 930 Club earlier this year.

Opener Lake Trout played an eclectic, ethereal set that provided the perfect complement to the Editors show.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Ben Folds Performs with the Baltimore Symphony

June 28, 2006
Columbia, Maryland
Recommended beverage to go with this show:
something hoppy but, really,
it’s a “battle of who could care less”

Ben Folds is quite the entertainer. From brilliant piano playing to utter wit, his show with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Merriweather Post Pavilion was pure joy. His raw talent and personality shone through during the performance and his music lent itself perfectly to the full, rich sounds of orchestral accompaniment.

In the mid 1990s, when he’d led Ben Folds Five (who were actually just three), we heard potent, anger-tinged rock ballads about being the underdog—from having his lunch money stolen as a kid to dealing with obnoxious ex-girlfriends as an adult—and we cheered at his success, the ultimate revenge for every bully and b*tch he’d ever confronted. The band released three studio albums, featuring several hits, before Folds went solo in 2000 and garnered much success, particularly his critically acclaimed latest album, Songs for Silverman.

He performed a healthy mix of Ben Folds Five and solo songs. He and the orchestra played five songs from the hit BFF album Whatever and Ever Amen, including the melancholy hit "Brick." Another song from that album, “Steven’s Last Night in Town,” he said paid tribute to a friend who kept resurfacing despite the repeated goodbye parties thrown for him; it benefited greatly from the horn section.

The romping “Philosophy” from BFF’s first album opened with the unmistakable, powerful piano intro and the audience happily chimed in during the chorus. Some guys later yelled out a request and Folds playfully warned that the orchestra wasn’t accustomed to heckling. Throughout the night, he was gracious with the crowd.

“The Ascent of Stan,” one of five songs he’d perform from his Rockin’ the Suburbs solo effort, sounded exceptional with the backing orchestra. “Narcolepsy,” from BFF’s Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner, sounded richer and fuller with the benefit of the string section.

Folds is fascinating to watch live. He becomes one with the piano—as if it’s an extension of his body. At one point, mid-song, he plucked the strings under the grand piano’s cover.

Part of Folds's appeal is his ability to transform the intense range of emotions of an average guy into beautiful, expressive power ballads. This concert was a triumph and, most noteworthy, it exposed a younger generation to the beauty and power of the orchestra.


SETLIST
Zak & Sara

Smoke
Ascent of Stan
Philosophy
Mess (solo)
The Last Polka (solo)
Fred Jones Part II
Lullabye
Landed
Steven’s Last Night In Town
Annie Waits
Brick
Boxing
Evaporated
One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces
Not the Same
Narcolepsy
Encore: The Luckiest

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Feelin' Groovy: Paul Simon Plays Merriweather

July 12
Columbia, Maryland
Recommended beverage for this show: an icy cold dacquiri
to help beat the heat and humidity

Paul Simon and his band at Merriweather Post Pavilion (from the 18th row, center).

The legendary Paul Simon entertained fans at Merriweather Post Pavilion with a nostalgic set packed with best-loved hits. The 21-song set mostly featured songs from his solo career—including six from the much-revered Graceland album celebrating its 20th anniversary—interspersed with a sampling from his new album, Surprise, and even a few Simon & Garfunkel songs.

Relaxed and in good spirits despite the onerous humidity, Simon tugged at the heartstrings with such classic ballads as “Still Crazy After All These Years” and “Slip Slidin’ Away,” and had the crowd on its feet for such classics as “Cecilia” and “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard.”
Simon introduced the 1970 Simon & Garfunkel song “The Only Boy Living in New York” as an old song he’d forgotten about until it resurfaced recently on the Garden State soundtrack. That preceded another song by the famous duo, “The Boxer,” which he introduced by saying he’d try to sing the part of Simon. The crowd continued to chuckle after he stated—while shaking his head and slyly smirking—that he felt he never really got enough credit back in the Simon & Garfunkel days.

I’d spent part of April, and most of May, brooding over having missed Simon play the New Orleans Jazz Fest this year despite having attended it that weekend. I was on a plane “homeward bound” during his set there, having booked the flight before they’d released the detailed schedule. So I was especially thrilled at this show to hear Simon play “That Was Your Mother,” the zydeco track from Graceland, complete with accordion and washboard, offering up that infectious New Orleans sound.

After all these years, Simon continues to write soulful songs with inspiring lyrics. He performed four songs from his latest album, which reflects on everything from fatherhood to war. In the gorgeous ballad, “Father and Daughter,” he sings, “I’m gonna watch you shine, gonna watch you grow, gonna paint a sign so you’ll always know…there could never be a father who loved his daughter more than I love you.”

In the haunting “Wartime Prayers,” he sings, “A mother murmurs in twilight sleep and draws her babies closer. With hush-a-bies for sleepy eyes and kisses on the shoulder. To drive away despair, she says a wartime prayer.” He also performed the new, rocking track “Outrageous,” with the clever, catchy chorus “Who’s gonna love you when your looks are gone?”

What keeps Simon’s music so refreshing and unique is his ability to fuse musical genres. Graceland is replete with examples, fusing folk-rock with South African rhythms and zydeco. Earlier, “Loves Me Like a Rock,” from the 1973 There Goes Rhymin’ Simon, incorporates gospel rhythms. “Duncan,” from his 1972 self-titled album has a Celtic flair and sounded beautiful live. The original recording incorporated an Incan pipe.

Opening the show, The Jerry Douglas Band served up a rich blend of American roots, country, and bluegrass. The 12-time Grammy winner from Nashville, TN, dazzled the crowd on his dobro—a six-string resonator guitar he often played with a slide. Having come through Merriweather last year on tour with Alison Krause, Douglas and his band returned with a rollicking set. He included several cuts from his new album, The Best Kept Secret, including the country-rock “She Makes Me Want to Sing” and the rowdy bluegrass tune “Who’s Your Uncle,” during which his fingers were flying. Douglas humbly stepped aside when a bandmate played a solo and later joined Simon on stage during the first encore for “The Boxer.”

(above) Guitarist and 12-time Grammy winner Jerry Douglas, who opened for Paul Simon, shares a candid moment backstage with his upright bass player, Todd. [Thanks for the tix and pass, Todd].

Few musicians have had a long, successful solo career after a split from a successful duo. Yet Simon’s solo career has spanned more than three decades and his music has touched the hearts of young and old with timeless songs that likely will be enjoyed for generations to come.

Setlist:
Gumboots
Boy In The Bubble
Outrageous
Slip Slidin’ Away
You're The One
Me & Julio Down by The Schoolyard
How Can You Live In The Northeast
Mrs. Robinson
Loves Me Like A Rock
That Was Your Mother
Duncan
Graceland
Father & Daughter
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
Still Crazy After All These Years
Cecilia

First encore:
You Can Call Me Al
The Only Boy Living in New York
The Boxer [performed with Jerry Douglas]

Second encore:
Wartime Prayers
Bridge Over Troubled Water

Band/crew dinner:
I was backstage for a bit before the show, hanging with Jerry Douglas’s bass player who’s a friend of a friend, and I got to partake in the yummy buffet. Want to eat like a rock star? Here’s the grub that gave them sustenance.

Salad
Meatloaf (first time I actually enjoyed meatloaf.) *
Ahi tuna
Grilled veggies
Assortment of beverages
Dessert: assortment of cakes and pies, blueberries & raspberries, banana pudding

*I said to myself, yet out loud, "wow, these meatloaf slices are huge" at which point a guy came up behind me and offered to share a piece with me. Later, watching the concert, it occurred to me I'd just shared meatloaf with Simon's guitarist, Mark.