Now Hear This » Fillmore

Avett Brothers video/Fillmore shows in May

Michael — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 06:43:23 +0000

I’ve been an avid Avett Brothers fan ever since Emotionalism made my Best of 2007 list but sinister forces have conspired to prevent me from catching their live show, which I hear is spectacular. That will certainly change when they play the Fillmore two nights in May (Friday the 15th & Saturday the 16th). Rumor has it Magnolia Electric Co. will be opening. What a night of alt-folk bliss! Tickets go on sale this Sunday @ 10 AM. The video below comes from a nifty little corner of Bruce Springsteen’s website called Hangin’ Out On E Street where an eclectic assortment of folks (Ted Leo, Wylcef Jean & Birdmonster to name a few) present their take on the Boss and wax reverent about his influence on their careers. Guess whoever’s in charge was unaware that Sleater-Kinney used to do a rippin’ cover of “Promised Land.” God I miss those ladies…

I love how the stock clerks rockin’ the storeroom look fits perfectly with Bruce’s blue collar oeuvre. How much fun would it be to jump behind that drum kit?

More tour dates at the Avett’s website.

Calexico at The Fillmore

Michael — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:29:18 +0000

Calexico delivered a fabulous set at The Fillmore Sunday night dominated by songs from the new record Carried To Dust. I’m sure Joey Burns and John Convertino are just as tired of the term “return to form” as Mike Mills and his compatriots in R.E.M. I don’t know what everyone’s’ prattling on about. I loved Garden Ruin and thought Sunday’s version of ‘Roka’ was good enough to hope for more off that record. From the limited listens I’ve been able to give the new album I agree it feels more like their breakthrough Feast Of Wire (which provided five songs to the set) but implying Garden Ruin was a misstep does it a grave disservice. Of course when all is said & done Calexico is first and foremost a live band so the fact that they only played one song from Garden Ruin gives NHT the impression that John & Joey aren’t very fond of that record either.

Anyway, below is my attempt at reconstructing Sunday’s show. Unless otherwise noted this is from their show at The Fillmore back on 7/16/04 (at least it’s the same room). I’ve included a few bonuses since I don’t have a recording of Calexico doing the fantastic Jorge Ben cover that Jairo Zavala sang or the new song my old friends from Chico Barbara and Terry Manning came out to play (they do a great version of The Handsome Family’s ‘Too Much Wine’ too BTW).

Calexico at The Fillmore 9/28/08 (reconstructed)

Gypsy’s Curse #

Roka #

Bend To The Road *

Across The Wire

Man Made Lake * @

Sister City (improvised song?)

Sunken Waltz

Writer’s Minor Holiday *

El Gatillo (Trigger Revisited) *

Inspiracion *

Two Silver Trees *

Quattro (World Drifts In)

Slowness *

Alone Again Or (Love cover)

The News About William *

Not Even Stevie Nicks

Victor Jara’s Hands*

Crystal Frontier

—encore—

Minas de Cobre

Better by Bounds (featuring Barbara & Terry Manning)

Fractured Air (Tornado Watch) *

Comanche (Jorge Ben cover)

Jesus And Tequila (Minutemen cover)

Guero Canelo

* – These are all new songs. If you want to hear ‘em buy the new record here.

# – recorded in someone’s living room in front of about 100 people in Berlin on 4/1/06 (I kid you not & that’s all I know about this recording)

@ – from a Morning Becomes Eclectic session circa 2002

Bonus Tracks

Alone & Forsaken (Hank Williams cover with Neko Case from the same ’04 Fillmore show)

Comanche (from the debut record from Jairo Zavala’s regular band Depedro, based in Madrid)

All Tomorrows Parties (Velvet Underground cover with Iron & Wine from the 9:30 Club in DC on 11/30/05 while touring to support their brilliant collaboration In The Reins)

Setlist courtesy of the Calexico setlist archive. BTW: Calexico’s very taper friendly. If you want more live recordings check out the Internet Archives for shows posted by fans and the band themselves

Spoon live in ’05

Michael — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 19:24:29 +0000

Spoon starts a three night run at the Filmore tonight. I came to the Spoon party well beyond fashionably late so this will be my first time seeing them. I know, I don’t get out much. But since falling hard for Gimme Fiction (made my best of 2005 list) forces have conspired against me finding myself in the same room. Their latest effort Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is just as strong, making my best of ’07 list. Barring any further twists of fate I’ll be catching the closer Wednesday. I’m also really looking forward to opening act Heavenly States. Kudos to Britt & Co. for giving a fine local act an opportunity like this!

The Sly Oyster has posted a couple of new songs (one featuring Janet Weiss) from frontman Britt Danile’s solo set in Portland earlier this month. Check them out here. Unless his long rumored solo debut is actually going to happen it’s very likely these will show up on the next Spoon album proper. Here’s hoping they pull these out for the Fillmore run but what would really make my life complete (for the next couple of weeks anyway) would be seeing their killer cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Rocks Off”.

Rocks Off (from their set in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park back in July thanks to the bottomless well that is the Internet Archive, the whole show is here.)

Since Gimme Fiction will always have a special place in my heart I thought I’d post this live set from 2005.

Spoon live at Village Studio, L.A. 5/13/05 (broadcast by KCRW)

The Beast And The Dragon, Adored

The Two Sides Of Monsieur Valentine

I Summon You

Sister Jack

Utilitarian

Everything Hits At Once

Someone, Something

My Mathematical Mind

Here’s the whole deal in a zip file if you want to save time (caveat: lesser quality mp3′s but the interview in the middle is included…)

Spoon coming to the Fillmore

Michael — Fri, 09 May 2008 18:15:00 +0000

Tickets for Spoon’s three night run at the Fillmore in SF (9/22-24) go on sale this Sunday. They’ve been near the top of the lengthy “must check ‘em out” list for some time now and the chance to hear material from one of my Top 20 records from last year at one of the best live venues in town pushes the pull-out-the-wallet button in a big way.

There’s been talk of pre-sales ending at 5PM today but after becoming a signed up fella for one of the big mersh stations here in the Bay Area it looks to me like the damn thing’s either broken or sold out… I’ll just have to hop on the phone at 10AM Sunday like ever’body else.

For an idea of how fabulous an evening of indie pop this will surely be check out WYEP in Pittsburgh’s stream of an in studio performance they did last Wednesday here. If mp3′s are your thing Gregor over at Captains Dead has posted their live set from Sydney in January here.

All that literate, hook laden songcraft for only $25? I’m in!