Re: Thoughts on Charlottesville


"rcb30" <MY_INITIALSmail@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:67tulvF2pureoU1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Lemme see if I can add a few other notes that Adam didn't already cover (and
he got a lot of good ones).

SOUND: I was surprised at the sound. Instruments could get a little muddy at
times, but unlike DC, where if you didn't know the words you might miss a
lot, Bruce's vocals were especially clear throughout.

**The sound was just about perfect upstairs in Sec. 308 (straight back from
the stage, way above the soundboard. Unfortunately this was the sitting
section. I split my time between my seats in 308 and walking around/dancing
elsewhere. Sound was very muddy in the corners of the lower level. I never
did find sound approaching that perfection in 308.

VENUE: Hadn't been there for about a year and a half. Forgot how small it
feels, especially in the lowers. There is no bad seat in the 100s. It's
built to create a "we're right on top of you" vibe for hoops, so the 300s
get a little steep and have a lot of rows. But otherwise, it's a great, cozy
place.

**I love this venue, too. My second concert there. Worth the drive from my
house, about 90 minutes away (and a good excuse to visit "The Hook", where I
lived/schooled for 5 years)

CROWD: Also unlike DC, this crowd was a little inconsistent, from my
perspective. Clearly not that familiar with the new songs, and did not show
the intensity at some numbers that you might expect. There was sitting in
the lowers in some surprising places. HOWEVAH, they were open-minded about
the stuff they didn't know that well, and were open to some good
old-fashioned showmanship. Very strong response to Gypsy Biker. I was a
little worried about the room at first, but it all worked out.

**Totally lame crowd in 308. We decided the people in front of us (who were
first row above the portal) were on downers. We even asked them to dance,
so we'd have a reason to stand, and they were practically asleep.

DOWNSIDES: Dinner with our siblings-in-law ran late, got no chance for a
quick hello to Adam or FerretBill, et al. No Reason To Believe or BTR>DITD
duo in the encore, imo two highlights of this tour. AdamRaisedACain might be
my least favorite Darkness tune, but it was a solid performance. And I still
appreciate the premise but still think Last To Die is too blunt too late and
with a second-tier riff.

Oh, and getting what appears to be the fewest songs in quite some time. But
back to the crowd comment, to Bruce's credit, I'd say he accurately gauged
that this crowd wasn't up for a mammoth show, but what he did play he played
with top-notch intensity. I'd rather have that than a 25-song set where the
frontman reflects that he just isn't feeling it.

(Serving water bottles without the caps because they're getting used as
projectiles. What is WRONG with people?)

UPSIDES
- Eight songs that were not played *either* night last November in DC.
Thanks, Bruce.
- Loose Ends! One of my 3 favorite outtakes, and they sounded good doing it.
A real luxury for a longtime fan, especially when you know 80% (or in this
case, 98%) of the room doesn't know the song.
- Danny story / For You. When this tour is done, someone should consider
making a compilation of all the Danny story/song slots. Nice band
performance, admirable vocal, again thought that "but your life was one long
emergency" is such a terrific line.
- Clarence. He had a big workload up front and sounded good all night.
- Mary's Place. This was just fine without the rap, and another oddity: from
the crowd response at the end, you would've thought it was a Greatest Hit.
- Devil's Arcade - I really like this and think it works well in the set.
The deliberate, melancholy solo reminds me of the one in I Wish I Were
Blind, another favorite.
- Meeting/Jungleland. Better pace/delivery than earlier tours, thankfully.
Steve on the first solo. Clarence and the band's majestic 2:45 in the
middle. Still get goose bumps when Roy tears away from the last sung
"Jungleland". Bigger-picture, how many of us went through the '90s thinking
we'd never see this band do this song again? I know if you'd told me I would
see a show with Loose Ends, a full-band For You, She's The One, and
Meeting/Jungleland, I would've rolled my eyes.
- It was nice getting the obligatory reminiscing about Richmond as a hotbed
of support in the early days. Of course, I was about 4 at the time, but
still, I was down in the Marshall Street Parking Garage in spirit! And yes,
Bruce totally faked us out re Robbin Thompson.
- 10th Ave. - Like Mary's Place, it was a real pleasure to hear a regular
arrangement of this. He may be doing it every night, but for some reason I
really enjoyed getting the "this is the important part!" bit.
- The missus had another good time, her second show. She's always amazed by
Max's posture throughout. This time, she noticed that his hair doesn't
really ever move, either! Seeing him cut loose in Badlands was a treat.

All in all, a good show with 3-4 true emotional/sentimental highlights that
more than justified the price. And the screens justified themselves for
doing nothing more than letting the rest of us get a good look at the Nils
solo. Wow.
..
**I thought the show was top notch! Highlights for me were For You>Adam (I
love this song), and Jungleland... which is complete goosebump territory for
me, too. 10th Ave. was great, too.

rcb
--
----------------------
The Middle 8
http://www.middle8.blogspot.com/
Just music.


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