Thoughts on a show

Cross-posted at The Babbling Academy (Lazarus Edition)

Evening, all.

Thought I'd give a couple of concert reviews this week. The Dresden Dolls played the Crystal Ballroom last night, and The Decemberists will be playing the same venue tomorrow evening. I guess I'll leave the set list on the front page, and my thoughts on the show "below the fold."

So...

Tunes:

Sing (video), The Dresden Dolls
Backstabber (Live), The Dresden Dolls
The Perfect Fit, The Dresden Dolls
Truce, The Dreden Dolls
Just People And Leaves, The Red Paintings
Walls, The Red Paintings

Enjoy!

(Let's make believe that blogger is cool enough for me to do this in post/extended post format)

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The Dresden Dolls.
I got there at about 9:00. There were two opening acts. The Red Paintings played as a two piece combo. Apparently they've had a whole slew of problems this tour. Last night, one of their vehicles crapped out. Several of the band members did not make it to the show, so the violinist and the guitarist/singer performed together. It was great. They were very friendly, and the crowd really got into it. Ono, if you're out there, they're from your continent, so when they get back there, check 'em out.

Jason Webley followed The Red Paintings. Really high energy, got everybody on their feet pretty quick. Which is weird, 'cuz it's just him and his accordion. Think Tom Waits meets Jimmy Durante (credit to my friend Bean for that observation), with a dash of Weird Al. I absolutely loved it. Fairly short set, though. I think he did four songs, plus a guest appearance with The Dresden Dolls later on.

And then the Dolls went on.

Amanda was losing her voice, but it didn't sound bad. The scratchy voice thing really goes well with music that's as emotional as the Dresden Dolls. And damn, did they put emotion into that show. The entire set was great. Webley came out about halfway through and did an abbreviated cover of "Living On A Prayer", with Amanda playing drums and Brian on guitar. They also covered "Mad World" (Tears For Fears), with the singer/guitarist from The Red Paintings doing lead vocals and playing guitar.

Amanda said that they were going to do "The Jeep Song", but, because her voice was going out, she couldn't hit the high notes in the verses. So, The Brigade selected several members of the audience to come up and provide backing vocals. Sounded decent, all of the folks that got on stage knew the song.

"Half-Jack", "Sing", and "Girl Anachronism" were also fantastic, but I enjoyed "Backstabber" the most, I think.

I can't do them justice here, but The Brigade are a great addition to live shows. Much kudos to them

So, yeah. Overall, probably an 8 or 9 out of 10 as far as indoor concerts go (for me, at least). The venue is great. The whole floor is set on springs, the ballroom atmosphere is perfect for the Dolls, and the people were having a good time.

So, that's all I got.

Many blessings!

p.s.

Enjoy the unofficial video for "Backstabber"!