SlipLive

Did anyone catch Davis? I am betting these were the hottest shows of the tour and so far no setlists or recordings...

Thanks to kikimartini there is one video I've seen:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iN09fYPp3I

Hello. I didn't keep a detailed setlist of Union hall, and hopefully someone can help me out with the order, but if memory serves me at all, it went something like this: (I missed the first 1 or 2 songs)

Union Hall 4/16/2010
?
??
Roses in Bottles
One Sick Knave
Hollow
Home Away from home
Emily Green
I'm No Good At All
I Hate Love
New Nathan Tune (solo ukelele)
Duo Tune? (La da da da da dadada)
Nowhere From Here To Go
Rubber Ball
Joelle
As The Crow Flies
E: I wanna get to heaven before I die

I can't remember if there was a second encore. I was disappointed by the early ending until I found out that they had to stop playing around 1:00 because of some house rule or Park Slop neighborhood ordinance. There were multiple calls for Reddish Moon, which makes me wonder if it made an appearance at the Mercury Lounge. But aside from this having been a very technically impressive performance, there were no real surprises to be found here. Just good solid showmanship... Improvisationally, Andrew seemed to be the only one really taking any major risks, with Marc and Marco really just feeding off his considerable energy, making for one of the better rhythm sections I've heard for SMMD. So while I think this may have been one of their more technically impressive and particularly rhythmically solid performances, I felt it was a little safe and even, dare I say, uninspired... I would have liked to hear that Reddish Moon, for example. I can't fight the feeling that the real spontaneity that I love about each of these members individually was somehow a bit lost in the production; a couple of notable exceptions were Sissyfuss [predictably awesome], and hollow, with Brad creating some apparently spontaneous atmospherics by slowly pulling a string off of his guitar, creating this eerie sound. Overall I would probably give it 3.5 stars out of five. The Bell House show, their last Brooklyn appearance, was very similar in terms of setlist, but the tunes were alot fresher, the club allowed them to play later, and the vibe was more intimate and improvisational. Much of this probably has to do with the fact that we were all smashed into a small underground room in the basement with less-than-perfect acoustics, a far cry from the spacious, outdoorsy, barn-like feeling of the Bell House. So whether or not it's a fair comparison, as a fan who just wants to see these guys keep improving, I was a little underwhelmed, even as I was completely blown away as usual. A strange paradox, to be sure.

P.s. How could I forget Sissyfuss, which was after nowhere from here to go and before Rubber ball, I believe.

tote

not surprised to hear they didn't play Reddish Moon. Never heard Davis play that one, and the 2009 tour was the first time The Slip had played it in like 3 years.

Cool, thanks for the report, tote!

Union hall was fun, but far from perfect. The show started a bit late, which is unnerving when the advertised end of the show is 11:30, but luckily the show went a good while past that anyhow.

The venue was certainly intimate, but also a bit shady. We caused confusion when we tried to enter the venue a few minutes after the advertised opening time - I guess Annie and The Beekeepers hadn't shown up yet. At one point a projector broke loose from the ceiling, bounced off of a seriously drunk chick in front of me and hit my girlfriend in the face (don't worry, she was only bleeding for a half-hour or so). The drunk girl looked fine, but I'm guessing she woke up in the morning with a pretty serious bruise.

The performance was indeed magical - I wasn't sure whether or not to expect Marco there, so I was pleased to see him when I walked in, and he provided a lot of the high points of the night. I was also really pleased to hear Rubber Ball - my favorite thaMuseMeant song. The guys really sound great together, and the show sounded flawless - probably too flawless, but then again they really didn't have time for any serious exploration.

I was also a bit puzzled by the call for Reddish Moon - was it ever played by SMMD? I don't understand calls for a particular song at a Slip or SMMD show - isn't that just a few steps away from asking Brad to play in a specific key or 'Drew to drum with a fish? I know I'm being a bit hyperbolic, but they're up there crafting a show, not taking requests for Freebird.

Still, it was a great night. It also gave me a chance to pick up the new Barr Brothers CD, which is absolutely fantastic. I really wish it was available somewhere online. It also struck me as funny that no one seemed to be manning the merch table (I guess I should expect that since Nathan is now leading the band instead ) - I just ended up paying Brad and Marco directly for the discs I bought.

Rubio seemed to be doing it all (including Merch) at Passim, so maybe he had to step away from the Merch table when you tried. I def wish I picked up the Barr Brothers CD. Its def not available online anywhere yet?

Pete:

I really loved that review... it explains SO much more to me. And wow. 11:30? in NYC? Rly??

Anyway, all things considered it was a great show. I should have bought the Barr brothers CD instead of the Davis LP, which is free in streaming form on their website anyway; what's that line from something learned about overpaying?

As far as Reddish Moon, I know what you're saying but I don't think it was quite as outlandish as the perennial freebird and darkstar requests that people throw out at shows just for laughs. Maybe I'm being a bit unfair, but it was an example of a bigger senitment on my part. Also, I know they played it recently as The Slip. I remember when A. Davis used to do Slip songs (they still apparently do Duo songs btw), and B. The Slip used to take tons of requests, as long as they were reasonable, and damn the torpedoes. Tis all I meant by it.

tote

I am guessing the 'Duo song' in question is Real Morning Party which is actually a Marco tune.

Here is a partial setlist from the Mercury Lounge from my buddy Evan:

Tombstone
Roses
If you Knew (really dig this song- Brings to mind Skin It Back)
Summer of my fall
Emily Green
One Sick Knave
I'm No Good At all
Joelle (sick, moving Brad solo I think during this tune)
Skull and Bones (w/Joe Russo and Jeremy Black)
? (Maybe Nowhere from here to go, not sure)
Sissyfuss (real nice, all left stage except for marc and andrew for a few minutes of drum and bass; the end feels like the end of a YEM Jam)
That's the Way
Nathan song? ( was playing a uke )
Home away from Home (which I have been singing all day)

E: Brad noodling>Poor Boy>Long way to the top if you wanna rock n roll, As the Crow Flies

Tote: Overall I agree with you, I was just in a bit of a bad mood when I posted earlier. Hell, I've shouted out requests at Slip shows, back when I was a younger lad. I guess it's a matter of whether or not you think the band is in a mood to take requests, and that can certainly be interpreted differently by different people. Still, I cringed a bit at the show when the "Reddish Moon" chants started.

If the Barr Brothers album is available online somewhere, I can't find it and I've been looking for quite a while. What's more, http://www.thebarrbrothers.com/ seems to be down. I signed up for the mailing list yonks ago when the site was launched, but haven't seen anything show up in my inbox. I'm really impressed with the recording - the whole disc as a very rich, warm feel to it - something that I've never really experienced from a Slip studio recording. It's certainly heavily produced, but there is none of the resulting coldness and distance that came through, say, with Eisenhower. I just might have to plan a trip to Canada to see them perform. Of course, I might be a bit biased - Beggar in the Morning has been my favorite work of Brad's since I first heard it a year or so ago.

Oh, and yes, the "Duo Tune" was indeed Marco's Real Morning Party.