TV on the Radio - First Ave - 10/20/08

TV on the Radio came back to Minneapolis for another two night gig at First Ave, just like they did the last couple times they came around The Cities. I really looked forward to the show because of how much I have enjoyed their new album thus far. Openers The Dirtbombs were entertaining in that dirty guitar driven rock sort of way. They made their way through what seemed liked twenty 3 minute rock songs, none all that different from the other. TV on the Radio also played a really good, energetic set. Songs such as "Dancing Choose," "Halfway Home," and "Crying" were the best of the evening. "Wolf Like Me" from their last release really got the whole crowd jumping as the noise level seemed to go through the roof. Older songs such as "Staring at the Sun," "Young Liars," and "Wrong Way," though great to hear, sounded a bit off as it seemed like they experimented the songs for the live settings. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the show. Check out pictures taken from the show below.

Openers The Dirtbombs. The lead singer was a big dude.

The saxophonist was a great addition, especially for the newer tunes.

Tunde decided to take a piece of the drumset for himself during "A Method."

My Morning Jacket

Let's split this into two sections, as I did actually venture to see these guys on two occasions within a week (one being extremely uplifting and one being extremely disappointing). First stop was their show here in the Twin Cities at the Orpheum Theater on 10/2. I was super pumped to finally see these guys, as the 4 plus years I've been up in the cities, they have only come around once before and we made the decision to see Broken Social Scene that night at First Ave instead of MMJ at The Quest. It's still debatable as to if we made the right decision or not, as BSS was a pretty darn good show and the Quest was a shitty venue.

Let me just first say that the band lived up to their reputation as one of, if not the, premiere live act to see. Their set relied heavily on their new album Evil Urges (which unfortunately doesn't live up to their previous three efforts) but they certainly did not neglect choice selections from their previous four albums. Jim James was a showman on stage, as he had a lot of room to move around and took advantage of it. A couple times he shed the guitar and threw on a cape during a few songs off the new album. What also surprised me was how much I enjoyed "Highly Suspicious" from the new album. The song has a lot more to offer live as it does on album, as the guitar work was absolutely phenomenal and it was stunning how long JJ was able to hold the high note at the climax of the song. The lighting crew also did an amazing job, matching them up with the psychedelic vibes during "Off the Record" and "Wordless Chorus," and blasting the audience with a chaotic frenzy of different effects during the jam sessions in "Anytime" and "I'm Amazed." Ending the set with "Anytime" followed by "One Big Holiday" probably made new fans of anyone that wasn't before and certainly left everyone craving for more. My one regret was not hearing "Run Thru," probably my favorite song by the band, and dubbed one of the 100 greatest guitar rock songs of all time by Rolling Stone. Check out the pictures and the set list below and be jealous if you weren't there, as it was it was a show to behold.

Jim's silhouette breaking through the thick cloud of fog.

The purple and yellow lights gave an appropriate odd and psychedelic feel during one of their stranger songs "Highly Suspicious."

Video Clip of "Anytime."

At Dawn (At Dawn)
Golden (It Still Moves)
Sec Walkin’ (Evil Urges)
It Beats 4 U (Z)
Evil Urges (Evil Urges)
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream #1 (Evil Urges)
Off the Record (Z)
The Way That He Sings (It Still Moves)
I’m Amazed (Evil Urges)
Phone Went West (At Dawn)
Thank You Too! (Evil Urges)
Two Halves (Evil Urges)
Remnants (Evil Urges)
Gideon (Z)
Librarian (Evil Urges)
Steam Engine (It Still Moves)
Smokin’ From Shootin’ (Evil Urges)
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream #2 (Evil Urges)

ENCORES:
Nashville to Kentucky (Tennessee Fire)
Worldess Chorus (Z)
Highly Suspicious (Evil Urges)
Anytime (Z)
One Big Holiday (It Still Moves)

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The show was so good in fact, that Kally and I decided to drive 5 hours to Iowa City on the following Tuesday to see the band again. The show started off with just Jim James coming out and singing "Bermuda Highway," a lovely acoustic track from one of their earlier albums At Dawn. Following that the set was pretty similar to the Minneapolis show all the way through "Off the Record" when IT happened. Following the extended jam on the latter half of the song the all the lights went out signaling the end of the song. At that point, Jim took a step on the stage where there was no stage and took a tumble. Nobody really knew what happened except for the people that were on that side of the stage right up front. There was a lull and then the rest of the band left the stage. About 5 minutes later some dudes announces that Jim fell off the stage and that they were assessing his injury. Another 5 min later, the drummer comes out and tells us the same thing and that they promise to come back out and play if at all possible. Another 5 min later, the rest of the band, sans Jim James comes out, and we all knew what they were going to say before they even said it. Jim was too injured to play anymore and they had to take him to the hospital. The show was canceled. Our hearts were bumming. Everyone in the audience understood this was beyond their control and applauded. I was extremely impressed by all the understanding and good vibes. No way would the crowd react this way at a Rage show.

The following day I saw the entire set-list of what they were going to play and on it were the two songs I was super excited to hear that didn't get played in Minneapolis = "Run Thru" and "Dondonte." Hopefully they will reschedule and we will get another opportunity to see the Jacket again as they truly are something special. Check out the pictures I was able to get as well as the set-list of what was on the docket before JJ took a spill.

Jim performing "Bermuda Highway" solo.

Orange hazy lights rose from behind the band during "At Dawn." A wonderful touch.

We were just a few rows deep on the floor, as the show was general admission.

Bermuda Highway
At Dawn
Golden
It Beats 4 U
Evil Urges
Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt. 1
Off The Record <-------Jim falls at very end of song
----SHOW CANCELED----
Wonderful Man
I'm Amazed
Lowdown
I Will Sing You Songs
Sec Walkin
Two Halves
Laylow
Gideon
Librarian
Dondante
Smokin from Shootin
Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt. 2

ENCORES:
Wordless Chorus
Highly Suspicious
Run Thru
Anytime
One Big Holiday

Sigur Ros - Orpheum Theater - 9/25/08

Having seen Sigur Ros two times already in the past 2 or 3 years, you always expect the next show to be somewhat of a let down. This band does not let down. Every time I have seen them, their songs are always so full of emotion and authenticity, that it is impossible not to get wrapped up in their performance. This show was no exception. Stripped down a bit with their new album, this performance did not have the back up string section Amina that they've brought on tour with them the last two times they came around. This gave their set a somewhat more intimate appeal. Set highlights included the English sung "All Alright, "Festival," and the ridiculously titled "Gobbledigook" all from the new album. The band took a page from the Flaming Lips guide to live shows for the ladder of the three. Confetti was shot out of large cannons from each side of the stage, showering the audience while they all stood and clapped in unison, guided along by the lead singer from the band. The set closed with the final track from their Untitled album, just as their past two Minneapolis shows did. You will hear no complaints from me on this, as this song is without a doubt their most powerful song. Check out pictures from the show below.

River Rocks Music Festival - Harriet Island - 9/20/08

I need to mention before I start writing this post that I just heard an Interpol song on a Georgio Armani cologne commercial..... Wonder if they will get lambasted as much as members of Metallica did for shopping at an Armani store? Yea, probably not.

ANYWAY..... the last 2 weeks I have had the privilege of seeing 3 very good shows. Starting off with the River Rocks Music Festival on Harriet Island 2 weekends ago, which turned out to be one of the last beautful summery days. While this was a 2 day gig, a buddy and I just went on Saturday, mainly to see the Roots. Other acts performing were locals The Alarmists and Heiruspecs, Mike Doughty, Semisonic, and the apparently still alive and kicking Live (who knew?) as the headliners of the evening.

We saw the set by the Alarmists, who I just can't seem to really catch on with. I do recommend checking out their first single from their latest album "Hired Gun." The Heiruspecs, a local hip hop act with a live band, a la The Roots, were an extremely pleasant surprise. The live instruments offered more to their act than just your same old local hip hop artists, who as they themselves put it are "a dime a dozen." What really captured me was one of the guys vocalized scratching ability.





The Roots were up next, and they did not disappoint. These guys seem to have so much fun on stage, and the way the interact with each other during their songs allows you to enjoy their show even more. Black Thoughts seems to get a bad rap as a boring MC, but I found him very charismatic. While you might not enjoy their albums if you are not a fan of hip hop, their live performances are on a whole 'nother level. The energy is through the roof and there is never a second in which music is not being played.







Mike Doughty, known for fronting the 90s college rock/indie darlings Soul Coughing, performed next with just an acoustic guitar along side a stand up cello. While I will say Doughty has a great lead singer's voice, when it's just him playing his songs tend to sound pretty redundant. It was fun to hear a few Soul Coughing songs thrown in his set, but overall he was fairly forgettable.



Minnesota music lovers will probably chastise me for this, but we really had no desire to see local favorites Semisonic, as well as Live. Thus we left after Doughty's set. One act of 90s alternative rock nostalgia was enough for me.