More YouTube: Son Volt "Beacon Soul" & "Who"

Here are the final two videos I captured at the Hard Rock Café on Tuesday when Son Volt played...again, it was not very well lit, but you get the idea how intimiate the show was.

Son Volt: Tear Stained Eye

More Son Volt from Hard Rock Café, San Diego, June 5, 2007.

Tuesday Recap: Son Volt at Hard Rock Café San Diego

It is surprising to me in many ways how many of my friends lately have told me they've never heard of the local radio station KPRi. It sits on the FM dial at 102.1 and, as far as I know, is the only truly independently owned station in San Diego. It has two co-owners, and one of them, Bob Hughes, is also the afternoon drive dj. The station's tower is in North County so reception can be spotty, at best, south of downtown, but if you're like me and still listen to terrestrial radio when you're getting from point A to point B, I highly recommend setting one of your station presets to KPRi. I like it for the blend of 90s alt-rock, classic stuff, and the new stuff that they spin before anyone else would consider giving it a chance. You can see the last six hours of variety here. Just glancing at it, Rolling Stones, Men At Work, Crowded House, Joss Stone, Marc Cohn, REM, Paolo Nutini. Yeah, there's some stuff you might not like every once in a while (like how I HATE Steely Dan), but it's a great station and does a lot in the local community.

One of those things are the Private Listener Concerts, which I've talked about several times here before, but want to stress because they have some great ones and sometimes, the lack of an audience is shocking. Last night Son Volt performed at the Hard Rock Café for the station. The show was free, they played a full set, and the lack of people there, while good for those of us up front who felt like we had Jay Farrar in our living room, it was sad that the band made the effort to come down and play for such a thin audience. Tickets for these events are distributed at various station sponsor locations and listeners are notified via e-mail on where to get tickets. But sometimes, like last night, they pretty much let anyone walking by come in, even without a ticket. I have been asked not to publish their events and because I respect the station, you'll see them in my listings as the show and "Private Show" without the location revealed, but if you sign up for the emails, you'd be in the know, too.

All that said, last night three-fifths of Son Volt played for a small audience of diehard fans at the Hard Rock Café. Jay Farrar was so close to me, I could've touched his nose (which makes taking pictures very awkward), and despite mobile speakers, the sound was good. There's something rustic about seeing Son Volt at venues like the Hard Rock or Belly Up, with their hardwood floors and moody lighting, that just enhances the alt country sounds of the band. They mostly played songs from the latest Son Volt release, The Search, and a couple from Okemah and the Melody of Riot, but also played a couple songs from Trace that just have to be played. (Does Sony discourage songs from the Warner Brothers releases?)

Here's the setlist and then I wrote it out for you for clarification.

Son Volt Setlist, 6/5/07, Hard Rock Café

Satellite (The Search)
Circadian Rhythm (The Search)
The Picture (The Search)
Underground (The Search)
Beacon Soul (The Search)
Highways and Cigarettes (The Search)
Methamphetamine (The Search)
Who (Okemah and The Melody Of Riot)
Exurbia
Tear Stained Eye (Trace)
Bandages & Scars (Okemah and The Melody Of Riot)
Afterglow (Okemah and The Melody Of Riot)
________

Windfall (Trace)

Also, Jay promised that a double LP will be released in July. Exurbia is a track from that collection.

I also recorded four songs. This is the first of those clips. It was the last song but since very few songs have ever made me feel as good as this song has made me feel over the years, I thought I'd start with it. Per usual, sorry for the loss of focus and the lack of light, there are a lot of things I just cannot control. Thanks to Greg for coming with me and to SouthCoast Johnny for letting me hide behind you when I was recording.

Hard Rock Hotel San Diego Issues Press Release

The Hard Rock Hotel San Diego will be opening its doors this fall. You can find the really stuffy press release here. A whole lot of blah, blah, blah about movers and shakers and being the "it" spot and the exquisite features (300 count sheets! bfd.) I was hoping there would be something more about the music venue, but alas, it is just an afterthought. As far as I know, the current downtown Hard Rock will close it's doors when the hotel opens, so I was hoping for more info. But here's all you get:

"The hotel also boasts a spectacular 5,000-square-foot entertainment venue for
concerts, celebrity DJs, movie premieres, corporate gigs and non/traditional
weddings."

Neat-o. I bet it will be San Diego's number one hot spot. I for one hope that one day I am rich and famous just so I can stay in the Rock Star suite that is being designed by Black Eyed Peas. It's a normal room but the bed has pee stains. (I. am. so. hilarious.)

Monday Night Recap Part 1: Augustana At Hard Rock Café

Last night, three fifths of Augustana performed an 'acoustic' Private Listener Concert for KPRI at the Hard Rock Café. Michael Tiernan opened the show, but as I'd misread the invite, I arrived just after 8:30 while Augustana was in the middle of "Stars & Boulevards". I talked to Jared (finally) for a few, then schemed as to how I would get close enough to snap some pics. They played sans drums and bass and Dan admitted that they only ever do a couple acoustic songs, so a whole set of it was a challenge, so he played several new songs. It was nice to be there with the older crowd, and when some guy made an off color remark, Dan told him nobody forced him to be there and he could turn around and walk out. Good for him...I'm tired of assholes heckling bands. If you don't like the music, it's very easy to leave and seek out something more suited to your tastes. And if that guy was there because his girlfriend dragged him there, I hope she kicked his ass for embarassing her.



I saw a friend near the front and maneuvered to him, then some people shifted and a pro photog pushed some other people outta the way, kinda clearing a path for me to sneak in a couple shots.





Then a little gap opened up and I asked a girl if she minded if I knelt in front of her. Let's just say it's been a really long time since I was on my knees (bar. har. har.) but I dealt with the pain of the hardwood floors to get the following videos. Watch them before I get a C&D.

Augustana "I'll Meet You There Someday"



Augustana: "Boston"

The sound was perfect, no crazy girls screaming, just really good music. It occurred to me that Dan's songwriting style reminds me of Counting Crows, which was my all time favorite band for many years. Maybe less so in delivery...Adam Duritz's voice is like none other, but stylistically, I can see some overlap. That, to me, is a good thing.

Augustana's stint back home was brief as they're heading back on the road today. They are playing on Thursday in Boston after a Celtics v. Pistons game. Amazing. Seeing a band in a room with 200 people then they're on morning shows, late shows, and playing in sports arenas in front of thousands of people and broadcast to millions. That's something pretty damn special. Thanks, Augustana.