john posted some photos, they're fantastic!
link in the photography section:
http://sliplive.com/bboard/viewtopic.php?t=2843
rock me, mr. davis!
Moderators: Cleantone, harrymcq, Phrazz
Thanks for those pics from John, there are some great shots, especially of the farm gig on Sat. afternoon!
Musically Thursday was really the highlight for me. The Independent isn't my favorite venue for many reasons, including the absolutely horrendous lack of local parking, (though to be fair we did get a spot 2 blocks away on our first run-through, virtually unheard-of!) small bathrooms and the packedness of sold-out shows, it is a great place to see a show for the quality sound and light show for a venue of its size. We got there early to set up taping gear and heard the Sensations soundcheck and were pleasantly surprised. It is the guitar and bass players from the Mother Hips with a different drummer (I believe) and they had a good rockin' sound. Their set was fun as well with a good old psychedelic freakout towards the end.
Mr. Davis came out to a packed (but not sold-out) house and I believe they did a magic trick but I was unable to grok it from the balcony. I do need to get some glasses. Holly Would was a great start to the evening with shimmering guitar work from Brad. It was nice to hear Hunny as well, that one hasn't been hitting the Mr. Davis setlist all that frequently it seems. We then were treated to excellent renditions of Everything Must Go, Red Sky, Poor Boy, To You and When a Woman. Skull and Bones was a treat, the 2nd performance ever I believe. I had gotten a couple of phone calls earlier in the evening first asking for the lyrics and then saying they weren't needed so I had a good idea this one was coming. I Hate Love isn't my favorite song but it was a well played version with Brad doing some vocal ad-libbing including saying that "everything must go" and "fuck it!" Nathan introduced Unprotected sex by talking about his new love and hoping that he was going to get some soon. The real meltdown was in 19th Nervous Breakdown though. I didn't think anything could top the 19th from High Sierra this year and though I still love that version for different reasons this one was epic, 23 minutes long with a countdown to 19 (the different nervous breakdowns I suppose) by Nathan interspersed with a huge drum solo, a nice duet from Marc and Brad and some shouted lyrics from Brad that I still haven't identified.
The only unfortunate thing was that it signaled the end of the show which was relatively short by that point. I have to admit I was hoping for two sets especially as I hadn't even seen another band billed until a few days before the show. Luckily we got a big encore which included Tell Me More which I believe debuted with Mr. Davis in Brooklyn in September. The only bummer to the show was Nathan's Sapporo banter. The promoters had Sapporo on board as a sponsor and I believe they paid for Mr. Davis' flights out. Nathan at one point thanked Sapporo for the free beer and then started talking about how good it was but it seemed that when he realized what he had done he made a couple more comments along the lines of "I hope you all realize that Mr. Davis isn't just an excuse to sell you Sapporo" or something like that. He was joking around and I don't believe they had to mention Sapporo at all but it was kind of a bringdown.
Anyway I should get back to work but I did want to start giving some reports of these shows before they got booted from the old short term memory...
Musically Thursday was really the highlight for me. The Independent isn't my favorite venue for many reasons, including the absolutely horrendous lack of local parking, (though to be fair we did get a spot 2 blocks away on our first run-through, virtually unheard-of!) small bathrooms and the packedness of sold-out shows, it is a great place to see a show for the quality sound and light show for a venue of its size. We got there early to set up taping gear and heard the Sensations soundcheck and were pleasantly surprised. It is the guitar and bass players from the Mother Hips with a different drummer (I believe) and they had a good rockin' sound. Their set was fun as well with a good old psychedelic freakout towards the end.
Mr. Davis came out to a packed (but not sold-out) house and I believe they did a magic trick but I was unable to grok it from the balcony. I do need to get some glasses. Holly Would was a great start to the evening with shimmering guitar work from Brad. It was nice to hear Hunny as well, that one hasn't been hitting the Mr. Davis setlist all that frequently it seems. We then were treated to excellent renditions of Everything Must Go, Red Sky, Poor Boy, To You and When a Woman. Skull and Bones was a treat, the 2nd performance ever I believe. I had gotten a couple of phone calls earlier in the evening first asking for the lyrics and then saying they weren't needed so I had a good idea this one was coming. I Hate Love isn't my favorite song but it was a well played version with Brad doing some vocal ad-libbing including saying that "everything must go" and "fuck it!" Nathan introduced Unprotected sex by talking about his new love and hoping that he was going to get some soon. The real meltdown was in 19th Nervous Breakdown though. I didn't think anything could top the 19th from High Sierra this year and though I still love that version for different reasons this one was epic, 23 minutes long with a countdown to 19 (the different nervous breakdowns I suppose) by Nathan interspersed with a huge drum solo, a nice duet from Marc and Brad and some shouted lyrics from Brad that I still haven't identified.
The only unfortunate thing was that it signaled the end of the show which was relatively short by that point. I have to admit I was hoping for two sets especially as I hadn't even seen another band billed until a few days before the show. Luckily we got a big encore which included Tell Me More which I believe debuted with Mr. Davis in Brooklyn in September. The only bummer to the show was Nathan's Sapporo banter. The promoters had Sapporo on board as a sponsor and I believe they paid for Mr. Davis' flights out. Nathan at one point thanked Sapporo for the free beer and then started talking about how good it was but it seemed that when he realized what he had done he made a couple more comments along the lines of "I hope you all realize that Mr. Davis isn't just an excuse to sell you Sapporo" or something like that. He was joking around and I don't believe they had to mention Sapporo at all but it was kind of a bringdown.
Anyway I should get back to work but I did want to start giving some reports of these shows before they got booted from the old short term memory...
-
magpie
- Flood of Joyful Existence Waters
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heheh, i thought the sapporo banter was hilarious actually. the band had each just been given a new can (placed on their respective amps), and when nathan noticed his and took a swig, i suppose he felt compelled to say something (as he usually does...).. .i wondered whether he was serious about liking it though, cause i thought it sucked (then again, i don't drink lighter beers like that- blech). i only bought one towards the end of the night cause it was such a cheaper deal.
fuck, you know, sponsorship is so often seen as a sell out, and i think that's why he was joking about it, but you know... after being musicians for so long and still trying to get the money to happen, a little sponsorship probably isn't a bad thing.
the indy was indeed a great show... my favorite night was friday @ moe's though. the farm and sunday sure were sweet too. i mean, it was *all* good... but i'll have a chance to revisit more after i get outta town for the holidaze... later...
fuck, you know, sponsorship is so often seen as a sell out, and i think that's why he was joking about it, but you know... after being musicians for so long and still trying to get the money to happen, a little sponsorship probably isn't a bad thing.
the indy was indeed a great show... my favorite night was friday @ moe's though. the farm and sunday sure were sweet too. i mean, it was *all* good... but i'll have a chance to revisit more after i get outta town for the holidaze... later...
<i>become...
but remember that you already
are</i>
but remember that you already
are</i>
Yeah, a little sponsorship isn't necessarily a bad thing and Nathan and Mr. Davis aren't sellouts at all to me. The humor just rubbed me the wrong way a little bit as some of Nathan's self-deprecating humor can. I mean the last thing in the world I thought was that the show was just an excuse to sell Sapporo but it sure did end up getting mentioned a lot...
The tix were super cheap though, $10 if I recall correctly, and I do believe that 90% of the crowd at least would have gladly paid $20-$25 which seems a fair price to me considering most bigger acts coming through SF charge $30-$50. The promoters are really nice guys and it seems like their hearts are in the right place so I'm not trying to put anyone down, just giving my 2 cents as I have been known to do.
More on the rest of these awesome shows tomorrow though! I want to read some more of The Subtle Knife before I call it a night..
The tix were super cheap though, $10 if I recall correctly, and I do believe that 90% of the crowd at least would have gladly paid $20-$25 which seems a fair price to me considering most bigger acts coming through SF charge $30-$50. The promoters are really nice guys and it seems like their hearts are in the right place so I'm not trying to put anyone down, just giving my 2 cents as I have been known to do.
More on the rest of these awesome shows tomorrow though! I want to read some more of The Subtle Knife before I call it a night..