@ZackTeibloom A band with a song on their new album called “Crash Years” is just begging for a crash, aren’t they? Well, that’s why I’m here. It wasn’t the first time I’ve crashed a New Pornographers show. They weren’t leaving unattended badges at the check-in this time. I had to try a new tactic.

“Woo, Dodos! The New Pornographers suck!” I walked up to Stubbs yelling this, hoping fans of the opening band would reveal themselves on their way out and hand over their red Stubbs wrist bands. I hadn’t seen a red wristband at Stubbs before. In my pocket I had a full double rainbow of wristbands, with an orange, brown, two shades of green, yellow, pink, blue, etc. Apparently my double rainbow wasn’t full, since I had no red.

I did a lap around the perimeter and, I gotta say, Stubbs does a real strong job guarding their exits. An armada of guards at the front, multiple check points at the restaurant entrance, and even the barbed wire fence has a back-up guard. You could attempt to sneak in by the port-o-poty’s where the barbed wire fence needs mending, but that’s just asking to be seen. The bottom line is that you need a wristband, and I didn’t have one, so I had to find someone who did. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Patience is a virtue on a crash. Having the right wristband helps too. I’ve started a little Stubb’s wristband collection. Unlike baseball cards and DVDs from the mid-to-late 90′s, this collection should pay off one day.

I brought my collection with me and was a bit disappointed to see that today’s color was blue. I hadn’t acquired a blue yet. I decided dark green was close enough and decided to go in through the restauraunt. The issue was that at 8:30, it wasn’t dark enough for a dark green to look like a blue. Especially when the guard had a flashlight. He turned me away.

I made my way to the main entrance and was waiting for enough of a crowd swell to make a move where all I’d have to do is flash the wristband. Unfortunately, my hovering technique caught the attention of a female guard who whispered something along the lines of “that guy in the Led Zeppelin t-shirt who needs a haircut has the wrong wristband” into the wristband checker’s ear. (I’m not just being paranoid. They looked at me while whispering.) Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom TV on the Radio has a crisp, clear sound on their albums. A haunting, melodic sound. Unfortunately that sound didn’t come across tonight, due to a bad mix at Stubb’s.

They opened the show with “Dirty Whirlwind,” which is a perfect description of what was coming through the speakers. I figured they’d find a way to cut some of the bass out of the mix it was dominating and smooth out the pockets of distortion, but it never really happened. It wasn’t bad enough to ruin the concert, but it was pretty noticeable. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Well, my Guitar Hero dreams went down the drain this weekend. I’ve come to the realization that not only will I never reach that zenith level of Guitar Hero skill, I really don’t want to. I saw where it takes you.

It takes you on stage at Stubbs in front of several thousand people, opening for Metallica, playing Guitar Hero Metallica on a giant screen. It leads to a fat, Mohawk’d DJ calling you a virgin. It leads nowhere. The dream is over. I’m perfectly OK with that.

I can still play with more style than anyone. And that’s really all I’m going for.

@ZackTeibloom I’m a sucker for bands playing albums in their entirety, but I can’t stand The Decemberists’ lead singer Colin Meloy’s voice.

I’d heard The Hazards of Love was a sprawling concept album and figured I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see it performed in its entirety the day after it was released.

Could the addition of My Brightest Diamond’s Shara Worden bolster the whiny Meloy enough to make it a classic show like NPR hoped when they streamed it live? Almost. Read the rest of this entry »