As soon as the band started, I pushed my way towards the front of the stage and stayed there for the first half of the set. The crowd was a heaving mass of bodies, constantly pushing in every direction and screaming the chorus to every song as MC Ride towered over us. It was an amazing experience, one that's hard to compare to any club show I've ever been to. (The Black Lips came close). After about six songs, the dehydration started to take over, and I fought my out to get water and a bit of fresh air.
From the back of the room, the show was a disaster. I'm 5'11", and I could barely see Ride popping up over the top of the crowd. Zach was impossible to see. The sound was atrocious. The backing track overpowered everything else, with Zach's drums occasionally ringing out to weak effect. You couldn't hear Ride at all, save for the choruses, which were almost certainly boosted by the track. It may as well have been karaoke. It's hard to say whether it was the band or the Rock and Roll Hotel causing the issues, but it was disappointing in any case.
A tale of two shows, for sure. Worth the money, but only if you plan on getting a little roughed up in the pit.
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I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to do this whole thing. I figure I'll list the albums I listened to during the day and talk about them a bit. I'm going to give them ratings on RateYourMusic as well--a site I've been meaning to dive into for years now. Beyond that, I'll list the changes I made and address any conflicts I had with my selections. Hopefully it'll work out and be mildly interesting.
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PLAYLIST:
The United States of America - The United States of America
I know I'm supposed to love this album way more than I do. It's solid, and probably one of my favorite psychedelic albums, though that's a much weaker genre than anyone's willing to admit. It's total sacrilege, but I'll take any Broadcast album over this, any day. (3.5 stars)
The Strokes - Room On Fire
Seeing the Strokes on SNL in 2001 was my equivalent to seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan. One of the true life-changing musical events I can remember. Room on Fire isn't Is This It. Not even close. But there are enough decent songs to still make it memorable. (4 stars)
Low - I Could Live In Hope
There are a handful of bands that seem truly incapable of making bad albums. Low is one of those bands. Easily one of their best albums. (4 stars)
Belle & Sebastian - Tigermilk
Speaking of bands that can't make bad albums. Blissfully entertaining as always, but lacks some of the great tracks that put their later albums on a different level. Except for "I Don't Love Anyone"--love that goddamn song. (3.5 stars)
Back From The Grave - Part Three
I am an absolute garage rock fiend, and Back From The Grave is one of the best compilations out there. More primal than Nuggets, less pop-oriented than Pebbles, and more chaotic than damn near any other comp you'll ever find. Choice cuts include "My World Is Upside Down," "The Kid From Cinncy," and "Varsity Club Song." (4 stars)
The Wildebeests - Go Wilde In The Countreye
Speaking of garage rock. These guys seem virtually unknown (around 1,000 listeners on Last.fm), but they shouldn't be. They ape Billy Childish a little too much for my taste, but then again who the hell doesn't. The covers are clumsy, but otherwise a fine album from one of the few garage revival bands I don't despise. (3.5 stars)
The Velvet Underground - Loaded
One of the greatest albums of all-time. Certainly one of the greatest pop albums of all-time. Evidence that when Lou Reed wasn't actively fucking with his listeners, he was a songwriter almost without equal. Too many great songs to mention--they're all classics. (5 stars)
The Kinks - Face To Face
This is apparently considered the start of the Kinks' "classic period," and it sure sounds like it. Better than the cookie-cutter albums before it, but lightyears behind the albums that were still to come. Though it is fascinating to hear the trademark Ray Davies-style in it's infancy. (3 stars)
Death Grips - The Money Store
I was admittedly disappointed the first time I heard this album. The immediacy and sheer violence of Exmiliatry seemed to have given way to a much more commercialized sound, albeit one that was still warped and twisted in Death Grips fashion. Further listens uncover a depth to the gloss, and the hooks dig into you harder and harder every time. A visceral experience that makes you dance and sing along to the madness. Time should be very kind to this album. (4.5 stars)
Death Grips - Exmilitary
Still jarring album, no matter how many times I listen to it. One of the few albums I know that truly sounds dangerous. It's music that constantly threatens to go off the rails, a constant stream of menace and paranoia and pain that is simply astounding to experience. Doesn't hold up quite as well as The Money Store, but it's easily better than No Love Deep Web. (4 stars)
Bedhead - Beheaded
Everything about this album is lazy, right down to the title. The songs aren't fleshed out, the trademark crescendos are weak, and a excessive amount of tracks are reduced to thin guitar and barely-delivered vocals. The lyrics are bleak as usual, and arguably pack more of an emotional punch than that of WhatFunLifeWas, but the songs themselves simply do not compare. It's still Bedhead though. (3.5 stars)
Circle Jerks - Group Sex
Classic L.A. hardcore that doesn't take itself too seriously. The songs come fast and hard, Keith Morris barks out his treatises with knowing command--what's not to like? (4 stars)
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Extra Width
For my money, this is the most perfect band ever. Maybe not the best, but certainly the most perfect. They have the formula down to an absolute science--endless riffs over a stone-cold groove, setting the foundation for Jon Spencer's shaman-James Brown declarations. This album finds the band at it's peak. Manic trash funk fueled by guttural death rattle blues, delivered like it's the Gospel itself. And who are we to say it isn't? (5 stars)
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CHANGES:
- Lowered the volume on Extra Width
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DELETIONS:
- None. Closest I came was with Face To Face, but even mediocre early Kinks albums are still enjoyable. Can't say the same for the later albums. *COUGH*muswellhillbillies*COUGH*
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