Random Top 10 II

[strat-0]

maarts said:

Ten reasons why I hate going to gigs:

1. People chatting incessantly next to you- what are you here for? A gig or dissecting your social life? Fuck off to the pub!

2. Mobile phones going off during quiet numbers. Stick 'em up yer....

3. People taking pics or recording on their mobiles. What are you, Youtube-journalists?

4. Seats in arenas. What the fuck? I want to dance at Bruce Springsteen, not sit in a chair and being warned by people to sit down when The Boss strikes up Dancing In The Dark. Which lunatic thinks that people don't want to move? Older people? Let them fuck off to the arena rings and take a seat there while the real fans have gfun in the middle!

5. Prices. Have the drugs become so expensive that we now have to pay double for our tickets? Man, an evening out is now something you have to save up for months!

6. The bar. Seven bucks for a bottle of beer? Get fucked! Never been so sober in all my life.

7. Bad PAs. Do the technicians realise how a band needs to sound to the people on the floor? Many a gig was ruined by a crap mix- basses completely drowned or overpowering the sound, guitars on screeching point or uner the weather in the mix- sometimes you felt like some band members had better not shown up. And tell me, why do we have to have the music on some occasions SO FUCKING LOUD? It takes care of pet peeve number one for sure but since My Bloody Valentine have been responsible for damaging my hearing permanently 14 years ago I'm getting a bit sensitive about it....I hate big venues that look from the onset that they would be better served to hold cremation services in them- the sound drops flat at the back and the backlash of the echo thuds inconveniently in the midst of the music played at the front.

8. DJs not staying in the sprit of the night- why do I need to listen to housemusic when I've just enjoyed a rock gig? Hang that DJ! Cunts!

9. Incompatible support acts- seriously. The whole concept of a support act is laughable to begin with but sometimes promoters really are testing our spirits in putting shit bands together with the headliners. Famous example- Bumblebeez at the Radiohead-gig- you may have read something about it in the Timezone. Scott, Mellie, Kat and I were ready to storm the stage to tar and feather the idiots. Supports also make the headliner come on later, sometimes much later than needed/anticipated. In the time of me having to catch the last train home it meant missing parts of the gig you came to see.

10. The guest list. Why do those fat cat cunts who only happen to be (mates of) the sponsor pick up the prime seats? Do promoters really want to show the performing band a prime view on all those saggy executives who probably couldn't even whistle a tune of the performer if you pulled a gun on them? Love to engage them in a moshpit sometimes, rough 'em up. Pricks.

Maarts, You nailed this one. I hope to come back in with some commentary later... POD? No, I think maybe POY.

[skovrecky]

Maarts, whatever you do, don't come to SXSW. I think you'd have a heart attack.
Agreed with Post of the Year. Man, this was genius.

[maarts]

Genius? It is true!

[bowiglou]

actually there are some that opine that 'genius' is one of the most overused words in our lexicon!!

hey Maarts....ever been to Bells?......I think you're supposed to have a big swell and a major surf contest

maarts said:

Genius? It is true!

[maarts]

Bells Beach is Victoria...been in Melbourne a few times but never close to the shore.
Has some of the finest but also the choppiest waves I hear.

Lived near Newcastle Beach long enough to see some top surf there- the yearly festival there has drawn some great competitors. It's Luke Egan's home and he certainly has done a lot to promote surfing there.

[bowiglou]

Partial list of bands/artists post 1990 that I would have really been into in my late teens/twenties that due to RS.com that I have been introduced to despite my advanced age

(1) Manic Street Preachers
(2) Supergrass
(3) Yo La Tengo
(4) Grant Lee Buffalo
(5) the Go-Betweens
(6) Luna
(7) Low
(8) Pete Yorn
(9) The Clean
(10) Super Furry Animals

[upinkzeppelin2]

And I've only heard one of 'em:

(3) Yo La Tengo

Out of the other 9, which should I start with, bowiglou.....from what you know of my tastes?

[upinkzeppelin2]

Correction: I do have one Supergrass song on a disc somewhere and I remember pretty much digging it.

[upinkzeppelin2]

That's a good idea, btw. In next day or so I'll probably post a list of bands that I've discovered from hanging out here and at the old RS.com boards.

[upinkzeppelin2]

Radiohead stands out head and shoulders above the rest. Before I came to RS.com's message boards I had heard Karma Police. Other than that I remembered "Creep" and thought they never were anything special and also thought they weren't around any more.

[phil]

Band/artists I've discovered here ...

- PORCUPINE TREE (thanks Maarts!!)
- Radiohead
- Wilco
- British Sea Power

[Thorngrub]

Ten reasons why I love going to gigs:

1. People everywhere. I'm down with people, usually. The ambience of mingled expectations charging the air, the wandering over to the merch booth, checkin out the T-shirts and posters and vinyl selections. Often you can meet members of the band there, hawking their wares, and easily get records or posters signed. If there's alcohol being served, then its fun grabbing a pitcher or whatnot and drinking with friends. Speaking of, shows are a great place to meet new friends. For instance you might see someone cool with a DREDG T-shirt, and how could you resist walking up to them and commending them for a fine band shirt ? Sometimes they just grunt but other times, you make a new friend. New friends are cool.

2. I love using my mobile phone to either record a really cool part of a song, or text my friends on the other side of the arena. And even with a relatively crappy camera phone, you can sometimes snap the perfect pic of a favorite musician. But I really want to upgrade my old cellphone just so I can have one that takes as great pictures as the teenyboppers I see around me do. This one chick at the free instore appearance held by Coheed & Cambria the other day kept snapping the most perfect pictures of Claudio and the band. Meanwhile, the lighting wasn't good enough for mine to work. So I didn't get squat. Note to self: *get better camera phone!*

3. As George Romero's latest movie DIARY OF THE DEAD pointed out all too well, the internet will be the only place where legitimate journalism can be found (ironically); and YouTube is destined to become one of the few filters wherein the *unvarnished truth* may be depicted. So yes, the legion of regular folk out there with cellphones uploading images from the latest rock concert are at least performing a more legitimate form of journalism than most of the crap you see on official networks these days. Going online to the pertinent band's website message boards will often reveal tons of these pics, and many are amazingly captured moments.

4. Seats in arenas suck! I agree wholeheartedly. But they are nice to have as a choice to sit down for awhile and rest from all the dancing and/or moshing you may have been inspired to do. I'm all for a GA floor area, and the rest to be seats. That way its the best of both worlds.

5. 50 bucks today equals 10 bucks yesterday, so the price of anything these days, well I just won't let it bother me or get in the way of an otherwise fine opportunity to chill out at a show. In fact 50 bucks has become a standard price to see the major bands that I love, these days. The type of band that commands prices in excess of 100 dollars just isn't my type of music. (The one band that I truly am devoted to which has gotten pretty close to averaging 80 bucks a pop for good seats, is RUSH. I don't mind making an exception for them.) Whereas most of the shows I go to are held in small dive bars and range from $5 to $12. (Explosions In The Sky was $12 the other day, and it was a real sweet set they played. I enjoyed one 22-oz $7 beer, actually paid $9 cuz my pal only had $5 on him, so he could have his cold brew too.)

6. I fucking hate having to pay 7 bucks for a beer, but I'll drink one, maybe two, and not worry about it. There's ways around this of course, just sneak some hard alcohol in to supplement your one 7 dollar beer, or get half tanked before the show. I ain't about to let a few dollars stop me from seeing the bands I crave.

7. Bad sound quality is a relative thing at most shows; I adjust my position in the venue accordingly. I won't even bother going to a show if I'd have to be stuck in the nosebleed seats (unless I'm relatively certain I can bumrush the floor... which I've done on many occasions). The Japanese post-rock band MONO almost destroyed my hearing once - my ears buzzed for 3 days after their show -- but I seem to be back to normal, now. Maybe going to all these heavy metal shows (not to mention Pink Floyd back in the 80s) has strengthened the "muscles" of my hearing. I don't know; I'm still enjoying the hell out of local shows nearly every week, be they heavy deathmetal, or otherwise.

8. They don't have DJs after shows around here, not that I'm aware of - at least, not to the shows I go to. I suppose if a DJ started spinnin' some bullshit music after a gig, well I'd probably already be gone by then. I mean, why stick around -?

9. Opening bands are ok with me whether they're merely incompatible, or outright lousy. For one thing, incompatibility sounds to me more like "diversity", and that is a good thing. For instance, I'd be more wary of a show that featured 3 lousy metal bands opening for one good metal band than I would a show featuring a mix of styles. Why not have a post-rock band, then a country band, and THEN the metal band ? In any order (depending on who's headlining). If all the bands on a gig are in the same vein, I will be less likely to show up early...

10. Gotta love it when you end up on the guest list (as I often do). The more people you know, the more likely you are to get on a guest list. I've been on the guest list for The Supersuckers, Staind (ok I lied about this one to the teller but it did get me into the show), Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Acoustic Junction, and way too many deathmetal bands to count. All I can do is envy all the other peeps who manage to get in on a guest list.

[Thorngrub]

11. Oh yeah, the music

[bowiglou]

Go-Betweens....just a splendid group!!!

upinkzeppelin2 said:

And I've only heard one of 'em:

(3) Yo La Tengo

Out of the other 9, which should I start with, bowiglou.....from what you know of my tastes?

[upinkzeppelin2]

.....and I shall.....thanks