I Am Trying To Review Wilco

So, Wilco live at The Tivoli is the next show I attended. I only decided at the last minute to go to this one. It was overpriced ($80) so I resigned that if there were tickets available at the door I would make the effort to go. As is always the case, I didn't regret it (a tip for young players-you wont ever regret going to a concert, even if it sux; you'll only ever regret NOT going to a concert).

There was about 1000 punters inside the Tivoli, which is a nice, comfortable number for that venue. A schedluing conflict denied me seeing the support act, but there's something to be said for walking into a room with only 5 minutes to spare before the headliner comes on.

Wilco were exsquisite. One of the best F.O.H. mixes I've ever heard, and each member of the 6 man group played with absolute conviction and all their heart. Frontman Jeff Tweedy was in a positively jovial mood, and jokingly berated one audience member for shouting out that they were from the States, telling him they came to Australia to get away from people like him, and that it might be a good idea to keep the fact they he was American to himself. Somewhere during proceedings the night took on a pirate theme, which stayed right 'til the end, but I won't go into details on that one, you just had to be there.

They played 2 of the 4 songs that I desperately wanted to hear ("I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" and "I'm The Man Who Loves You"), and turned me on to a swag of new tunes that I'm currently hunting down. I bloody love it when that happens.

I don't have any pics from this show. It's not that I didn't have a camera with me, it was due to the simple fact that not one person there was taking pictures. You didn't even see any mobiles being held up in the crowd, so I didn't want to be the one asshole who spoils it for everyone. It was so nice to be part of a genuinely respectful, downright awestruck crowd-I've not seen anything like it for a long while.

So, in conclusion, Wilco live = Total Awesomeness.


Coming up next, Slayer + Mastodon @ The Riverstage.

Fishbone Is Red Hot

So it's been a ridiculously stupendous and dense month of live music for me so far. I figured I'll try and post about each show seperately.

Fishbone live @ The Arena kicked it all off. I've tried but I can't think of what adjectives I would be able to use in order to do justice to how amazing this show was. I thought the show would have sold out, given their cult underground following, but as I walked through the doors with only an hour before Fishbone were due on stage, there was only about 70 people in the crowd.

Angelo Moore was hanging around (in a 3 piece suit and hat no less) organising the merch and I was genuinely embarrassed at the turn out. Numbers grew a little closer to show time and peaked around the 250 mark, but it was still less than acceptable.

The upside of this was myself and a friend were able to stake out a position in the front of the mosh pit, jammed against the punter barrier facing the centre of the stage. That's a position I haven't held for many, many moons and If I'm going to be honest, I was less than confident my atrophied body was up to it, but this was Fishbone, and there was no way I was going to settle for anything less than a spiritual experience.

As I said, I can't rightfuly go into specifics, but the show was astounding. Angelo spent the entire set dancing about, stage diving, carth-wheeling, crowd surfing-there was even a commando roll-all this from a guy who is 41 years old and has been in the same band for over half his life.

Someone told me once that the true nature of a rock and roll show is you should never know what is going to happen next. I'm not entirely sure I think rock and roll should be anything, but I had the very real sense that I had no idea what the crazy bastards on stage were going to do next.

After a 2+ hour set, half the band then came down to hang out with the die hard punters (yours truly included) and sign autographs. Even off stage these guys are inspiring.

It's not right that these pioneers, who are all masterful musicians and are sighted by the likes of Primus, Jane's Addiction, RHCP and No Doubt as large influences, only play to 250 people when they come over.

It's not right that they still have to scrounge out a living touring relentlessly and aren't lauded as the musical heroes that they truly are.

Even if you don't like their music, you have to respect the fact that they're still out there doing it, and for that, we should all give thanks.

Brain Stew

It's 5:30 in the morning.

We don't have any news yet because everyone's still at home, asleep

in their comfy, comfy beds.

Bill Hicks, on Easter

"I was over in Australia during easter, which was intersting. Interesting to note they celebrate Easter the same way we do; commemorating the death and resurrection of Jesus by telling our children a giant bunny rabbit, left chocolate eggs in the night.

Now, I wonder why we’re fucked up as a race, anybody? Anybody got any clues out there?

Where do you get this shit from you know? Why those two things you know? Why not ‘Goldfish left Lincoln Logs in your sock drawer’ you know? As long as we’re making shit up, go hog wild you know. At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on it's back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous conotation to it.

'Mummy, I woke today and there was a Lincoln Log in me sock drawer!'.


'That's the story of Jesus'.

Who comes up with this shit?! I’ve read the Bible. I can’t find the words ‘bunny’ or ‘chocolate’ anywhere in that fucking book".

-Bill Hicks

Party At Ground Zero

I'm about to walk out the door and go and see Fishbone play live.


Fishbone.


Live.


In my city.


Yikes.