I'm off to Sleep Train for the big show with Arcade Fire, Dan Deacon and Spoon, and haven't even watched these, but here are the videos of the Britt Daniel at The Lafayette from today's Loud @ presented by FM 94/9.
Showing posts with label spoon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spoon. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 05, 2014
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Spoon at Soma, 10.1.2010
On Friday night, me and Josh headed out to Soma to catch Spoon. We grabbed dinner at Chili's as the Soma crowd comingled with the Carrie Underwood crowd playing the adjacent Sports Arena. We walked over to Soma and had some time before Spoon started to hang out with the rest of the Casbah crew for a bit. I've seen Spoon so many times now but it really never gets old, and with the full locally hired horn section, they sounded fantastic. Here are some of the videos from the night.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Street Scene 2008 Photos: Day 1
So I loved Street Scene this year. Yes, there were the positives...back downtown has that urban feel people in San Diego long for...and the minuses...like I drank a goddamn energy drink that made me feel like shit for the entirety of Saturday, but I endured. Not one band's set disappointed, the sound was great on every stage (and during The National I didn't experience the bleed people spoke of because I hung on the left side of the stage) and the ins and outs plus a photo pass plus hanging with friends who were OK to let me run off on my own but still hang out when it was time to call it a night made it an amazing weekend. I will attempt to write a little about everything I saw and experienced, but mostly, since I uploaded, I wanna post the pics, so after the jump, you can see my version of Street Scene 2008.
On Friday I was rearing to go but my friends took a little bit longer to motivate, so I did my thing at my place, then hopped on the bus to Petro and Kris' house while we waited for others to meet up. We had some beers, then some shots at Rosie O'Grady's before finally catching the bus downtown. It's a long ride, but it was fun being with a group of friends.
The busride to downtown
I was told my photo pass fell through, but while I was waiting to hand off tickets to a friend who was coming from LA, I thought I might as well try and see if the list went through, and sure enough, while not granted a full media pass, I was handed a photo pass. The lines at that point were chaos, but there was a media line and I cruised right in. MGMT were about to start, and that stage was crowded, but some way, some how, I squished my body through hoardes of people to make it up to the photo pit in time for their set. The band looked happy and healthy which was great, since the last time I saw them they looked a bit shellshocked and worn down.
MGMT
After the first three songs, as photographers were kicked out of the pit, I wanted nothing to do with the Zarabunda Stage, and wormed my way right back out, listening to a few songs from the very back of the stage area. I think of all the bands on the weekend, they were most inappropriately placed as far as stage and time go because they were incredibly popular.
I wandered to The Casbah stage and caught Foals within the 3 song allotment. This band is so incredible and I feel like they'll endure while other flash in the pan bands come and go. They're so entertaining and energetic on stage.
Foals
After Foals, I wandered to a beer garden to wait for TVOTR, but the lines were insane. It was about 7 and we had about 45 minutes, and I convinced Jake and Dagart to leave with me. We hopped on a cab and had drinks at Chee Chee, and made it back in time for TV On The Radio. I took pics of them at shows prior, despite them making kind of a big deal about no photos, which always makes me nervous that there will be a big Band of Horses or QOTSA outburst from the band, but with that in mind, I was among probably 40 photographers in the pit, and Kip made eye contact with me as they played and gave me a head nod and a smile, shirking my fear of bearded guys that hate photographs. Their set was incredible and they definitely delivered, though I could say that about pretty much every band I saw throughout the weekend.
TV On The Radio
After TVOTR, I made my way to Spoon's stage and posted up in a spot. There were so many photographers that I decided to only shoot 2 songs per band then move along so I wouldn't get bullied for using a point and shoot cybershot amongst all the crazy media peeps with gigantic lenses. I've seen Spoon so many times now but it never gets old. Britt blows me away. And with a full horn section, their set really rocked.
Spoon
After Spoon, I was done with the big stages and wanted to catch the Casbah stage again, since I think it had been nearly two years since I'd seen Devotchka. I guess their Eastern European sound kinda takes me back to my Polish roots and listening to polkas with my dad as a kid, and there is something about their sound that, while still indie rock, brings an element of tradition to it. They sounded amazing, but the lighting didn't work out so much for my P&S or PoS camera, depending on how you look at it.
Devotchka
Last, I made my way back to the nightmare chaos stage to worm my way through the crowd for Vampire Weekend. I still love this band, despite their unfortunate overhype and subsequent backlash. They make me happy, and when I met them all in the past, they were all sweet and humble guys just enjoying the ride while they can. Can't knock them for that.
Vampire Weekend
After Vampire Weekend, I attempted Beck but was rejected for not having a secondary special photo pass, which pretty much made me give a big middle finger and skip his performance. I guess with Beck I'm a fairweather fan. I only own/like Sea Change, and the last time I saw him at RIMAC I was bored to bits, so I wandered.
I did make one more stop at The Casbah stage for Antibalas who played furiously and had a great political message to their music, not to mention being the only band I danced to all night.
Antibalas
And that was the end of our Street Scene adventure. I caught a ride with Dagart and Jake and we hit the Chee Chee for a while after the show, then went to the Ken. It was a punk night there and it was packed and I ran into a bunch of friends there, so afterward a couple of them came over thinking we'd have a full on after party, but everyone else bailed I guess. Still we had a good time catching up and I finally crashed out around 4 am. Entirely not enough sleep for Saturday's festivities, but such is my life sometimes. I'll post a Day Two recap soon.
On Friday I was rearing to go but my friends took a little bit longer to motivate, so I did my thing at my place, then hopped on the bus to Petro and Kris' house while we waited for others to meet up. We had some beers, then some shots at Rosie O'Grady's before finally catching the bus downtown. It's a long ride, but it was fun being with a group of friends.
The busride to downtown
I was told my photo pass fell through, but while I was waiting to hand off tickets to a friend who was coming from LA, I thought I might as well try and see if the list went through, and sure enough, while not granted a full media pass, I was handed a photo pass. The lines at that point were chaos, but there was a media line and I cruised right in. MGMT were about to start, and that stage was crowded, but some way, some how, I squished my body through hoardes of people to make it up to the photo pit in time for their set. The band looked happy and healthy which was great, since the last time I saw them they looked a bit shellshocked and worn down.
MGMT
After the first three songs, as photographers were kicked out of the pit, I wanted nothing to do with the Zarabunda Stage, and wormed my way right back out, listening to a few songs from the very back of the stage area. I think of all the bands on the weekend, they were most inappropriately placed as far as stage and time go because they were incredibly popular.
I wandered to The Casbah stage and caught Foals within the 3 song allotment. This band is so incredible and I feel like they'll endure while other flash in the pan bands come and go. They're so entertaining and energetic on stage.
Foals
After Foals, I wandered to a beer garden to wait for TVOTR, but the lines were insane. It was about 7 and we had about 45 minutes, and I convinced Jake and Dagart to leave with me. We hopped on a cab and had drinks at Chee Chee, and made it back in time for TV On The Radio. I took pics of them at shows prior, despite them making kind of a big deal about no photos, which always makes me nervous that there will be a big Band of Horses or QOTSA outburst from the band, but with that in mind, I was among probably 40 photographers in the pit, and Kip made eye contact with me as they played and gave me a head nod and a smile, shirking my fear of bearded guys that hate photographs. Their set was incredible and they definitely delivered, though I could say that about pretty much every band I saw throughout the weekend.
TV On The Radio
After TVOTR, I made my way to Spoon's stage and posted up in a spot. There were so many photographers that I decided to only shoot 2 songs per band then move along so I wouldn't get bullied for using a point and shoot cybershot amongst all the crazy media peeps with gigantic lenses. I've seen Spoon so many times now but it never gets old. Britt blows me away. And with a full horn section, their set really rocked.
Spoon
After Spoon, I was done with the big stages and wanted to catch the Casbah stage again, since I think it had been nearly two years since I'd seen Devotchka. I guess their Eastern European sound kinda takes me back to my Polish roots and listening to polkas with my dad as a kid, and there is something about their sound that, while still indie rock, brings an element of tradition to it. They sounded amazing, but the lighting didn't work out so much for my P&S or PoS camera, depending on how you look at it.
Devotchka
Last, I made my way back to the nightmare chaos stage to worm my way through the crowd for Vampire Weekend. I still love this band, despite their unfortunate overhype and subsequent backlash. They make me happy, and when I met them all in the past, they were all sweet and humble guys just enjoying the ride while they can. Can't knock them for that.
Vampire Weekend
After Vampire Weekend, I attempted Beck but was rejected for not having a secondary special photo pass, which pretty much made me give a big middle finger and skip his performance. I guess with Beck I'm a fairweather fan. I only own/like Sea Change, and the last time I saw him at RIMAC I was bored to bits, so I wandered.
I did make one more stop at The Casbah stage for Antibalas who played furiously and had a great political message to their music, not to mention being the only band I danced to all night.
Antibalas
And that was the end of our Street Scene adventure. I caught a ride with Dagart and Jake and we hit the Chee Chee for a while after the show, then went to the Ken. It was a punk night there and it was packed and I ran into a bunch of friends there, so afterward a couple of them came over thinking we'd have a full on after party, but everyone else bailed I guess. Still we had a good time catching up and I finally crashed out around 4 am. Entirely not enough sleep for Saturday's festivities, but such is my life sometimes. I'll post a Day Two recap soon.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Regarding Britt Daniel at the Belly Up
Spoon fans, listen up. Frontman Britt Daniel is appearing solo at the Belly Up on Saturday.
The doors open at 6pm, and Anya Marina goes on at 6pm. She will play for approx 30 minutes, and then Britt will go from about 6:45 – 8:00 pm, doing a 60 – 75 minute set.
Tickets are going fast, but still available at the Belly Up box office, through their website and by phone at 858 481 8140.
This show, like all others, is 21 and up.
The doors open at 6pm, and Anya Marina goes on at 6pm. She will play for approx 30 minutes, and then Britt will go from about 6:45 – 8:00 pm, doing a 60 – 75 minute set.
Tickets are going fast, but still available at the Belly Up box office, through their website and by phone at 858 481 8140.
This show, like all others, is 21 and up.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Street Scene 2007 Recap & Photos Day 2
By the time my ride arrived to pick me up on Sunday, I'd already missed some of the bands I'd hope to catch. I was also pretty bummed that I chose to wear shoes that ended up giving me blisters on both of my feet within the first hour of being at Street Scene. My friends and I headed to the 5 stage to catch People Under The Stairs for a while.
We were kinda unsure what kind of access we'd have for Sunday, but my friend Pete had arrived and told me he got me passes with Z-Trip so I headed back toward the entrance and caught a glimpse of Brett Dennen.
I went out of the venue only to find the tickets were en route. I ran into Steve from Dynamite Walls and Chris from Augustana, so we hung out at the will call until our passes arrived. At that point Natalie sent me a text that we had photo passes for The Album Leaf. After waiting about a half hour, the passes arrived and we entered through the artist entrance.
After hanging in the artist area for a while, Natalie and I mosied to the Album Leaf stage.
The sound on their stage was perfectly crisp though I didn't want to clutter up the photo pit for too long so I watched from a ways back for the majority of their set. I wanted to catch Paolo Nutini, so I headed back to the main stage to catch a few of his songs as well. "These Streets" sounded so amazing on that huge stage.
I had separated from Kristian so I met he and the rest of our friends in the electronica tent for Simian Mobile Disco. They were great, but it was a dj set so I didn't hang for long. At this point the moleskin the first aid guys gave me for my blisters had gotten dusty from the tent and I had forgotten my earplugs, so I took a couple pics but then was on my way.
Sexy and single...Kristian, Dave and Chris
In the tent I ran into the most famous bald head in San Diego, Mr. Tim Pyles.
We were kinda unsure what kind of access we'd have for Sunday, but my friend Pete had arrived and told me he got me passes with Z-Trip so I headed back toward the entrance and caught a glimpse of Brett Dennen.
I went out of the venue only to find the tickets were en route. I ran into Steve from Dynamite Walls and Chris from Augustana, so we hung out at the will call until our passes arrived. At that point Natalie sent me a text that we had photo passes for The Album Leaf. After waiting about a half hour, the passes arrived and we entered through the artist entrance.
After hanging in the artist area for a while, Natalie and I mosied to the Album Leaf stage.
The sound on their stage was perfectly crisp though I didn't want to clutter up the photo pit for too long so I watched from a ways back for the majority of their set. I wanted to catch Paolo Nutini, so I headed back to the main stage to catch a few of his songs as well. "These Streets" sounded so amazing on that huge stage.
I had separated from Kristian so I met he and the rest of our friends in the electronica tent for Simian Mobile Disco. They were great, but it was a dj set so I didn't hang for long. At this point the moleskin the first aid guys gave me for my blisters had gotten dusty from the tent and I had forgotten my earplugs, so I took a couple pics but then was on my way.
Sexy and single...Kristian, Dave and Chris
In the tent I ran into the most famous bald head in San Diego, Mr. Tim Pyles.
I was running all over the place for most of the day. From the electronica tent, I went to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah for a few songs but this was my roughest point of the day...lack of earplugs, not enough sleep, blisters on my feet and I didn't hang at the stage for long.
I also had to catch Z-Trip for part of his set. It was familiar and felt like the same set he did at SoCo, but I knew he had a long set (an hour and a half) so I left to catch Spoon.
Britt and crew sounded awesome. I guess I've now seen them equally on small and large stages and I like both equally. I appreciate that the band is flexible and can pull off both quite well.
I then ran to see a couple songs by the Sweet and Tender Hooligans and I seriously think there are so many diehard fans of Morrissey and The Smiths, that I wouldn't doubt if the couple hundred people were at Street Scene only to see the Sweet and Tender Hooligans who really do the covers spot on.
Since Pete got me my passes, however, I had to make sure I arrived back at the electronic stage to catch his portion of the Z-Trip set. He blew it up yet again. The guy is amazing. I've mentioned before he's drumming for Z-Trip at the moment, but has also has played with Cake and Mike Doughty in the past. He blows me away everytime I see him.
After that, back to the artist tent for some tequila shots, a couple beers and a burrito before heading to catch Louis XIV on the main stage. Anya Marina came out to sing during "Finding Out True Love Is Blind" and Ray Suen has been playing violin with the band. He's definitely upping his demand by bands because he's absolutely amazing.
I spent the remainder of the night in the artist area. It was really fun back there, complete with a foosball table and an air hockey table, couches, and tv's to watch the acts.
Natalie and I had our geek out superfan moment backstage when we got the balls to approach Britt Daniels and get him to pose for some pics with us. He was really nice and didn't seem to mind us gushing like little schoolgirls.
Here's some more random backstage photos:
MC Flow & Crew
The one person I really wanted to meet was Joe Escalante of the Sweet & Tender Hooligans, The Vandals, and The Last of the Famous International Morning Show on Indie 103.1, but apparently he left as soon as their set ended because he has to get up early for his morning show. Bummer. I did talk to Jose for a while and he was really, really nice.
Jose, Sweet & Tender Hooligans
As things go, people were leaving and extra passes showed up, so we got The Roman Spring back in the artist area with us. Here's a pic of Joe.
Sean "Har Mar Superstar", Sean Na Na
All in all it was another amazing day at Street Scene. I am glad I took a chance and kept the faith about the event, and I know that no matter what form it takes next year, if it continues, I will be there. I hear the numbers didn't meet the expectations of LiveNation, but I enjoyed the space, the layout worked well, and the music was great. I guess the lawn stage suffered a bit from the Editors sound checking early which was lame, but as far as I could tell, the event went off without a hitch minus the usual complaints about charging for parking (when there is no alternative) and overpriced beer, but whatever. Those are pretty standard complaints about most shows.
I'm taking a night off from rock n roll and I'll try to get my things to do list up soon. Huge thanks to Dynamite Walls, Jason Burkhart, Conrado, Jake, The Album Leaf, Pete McNeal, Z-Trip, Kristian, Dave and especially to Chris for being my designated driver, and everyone else who was instrumental in making this an amazing weekend.
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