Monday, September 20, 2004
Saturday night I went to see some bands at the Knitting Factory; bands whose music I had never heard before. I went based on reading a lot of nice comments on a mailing list and the L.A. Weekly. The first band up was Six Parts Seven and they were an instrumental band. If you're working in this vein you should probably try a little harder to differentiate yourself from sounding like Tortoise. They played well, and I really liked the fact that they had a vibes player, but ultimately it came down to "I've heard this before." The next guy to play broke his hand so he didn't end up going on. M83 were then up next, or I assume they were next because I had no idea what they looked like. Maybe I sat through some other band after the other act was unable to go on thinking it was M83. It must have been them because the audience seemed to know the songs and I don't think that would have been the case if it was a last minute add on to the bill. The descriptions of this band really intrigued me. It sounded like they would have some variation of that "shoegazer" sound that I love so much. I guess their sound was reminiscent of that, but for whatever reason it just didn't really move me. I really didn't like any of their songs, but rather only certain fragments of songs. I would hear a snippet of guitar and enjoy that and suddenly it was gone. Nothing caught my attention for the duration of a whole song. They also had an occasional keyboard sound that I didn't like at all. They were by no means bad; I was just unmoved. I was a little disappointed because I used to crave this kind of sound, but it seems my tastes have changed a bit.
Last night I went to see Siouxsie of Banshees/Creatures fame at the Anaheim House of Blues. When I was in 10th grade, if you would have asked, I would have stated that the Banshees were my favorite band. They were the first concert I ever went to in 1984 when I was 16. It was at the Santa Monica Civic and Test Department was the opening act. It was very overwhelming for me. I got there very early waiting to get in so I could get a spot up front. Once in I had to get a tour shirt and program first. I feel grateful nowadays that I was able to see Test Department back then, but I don't remember anything about them live. Actually all I remember about the Banshees live is Siouxsie coming out to the strains of "Dazzle." I don't remember much, but I know I had a blast. So last night I am ready to revisit the past. The night didn't start all that great. I arrived at 8:30, thinking that shows go on early there, and was greeted by a long line waiting to get into the club. So I wait about an hour or so to get into the club and then I wait another hour for Siouxsie to hit the stage. My feet were killing me and I was pissed off. Finally they came on stage and I forgot about the bad start. It was really more of a Creatures show and the Banshees songs that were played were done more in a Creatures style. Much of the show could be referred to as "drum and bass." Budgie and a percussionist were simply awesome playing the drums. It was very tribal and sounded great. Siouxsie's voice sounded great; even better than I ever remember hearing it. She is such a presence and one of the great "women in rock." The Cure got huge and Siouxsie's popularity seemed to plateau in the early nineties. It's somewhat of a mystery to me. I like the Cure, but I found Siouxsie much more interesting. She's a great frontperson and they had really good songs. One thing I loved about the Banshees is that they always played songs you would never expect them to play live. Their concerts always had the ability to surprise rather than simply be about playing the hits. I'm glad I went last night. It was nice to see Siouxsie still in top form even if the set was not quite as surprising as I had hoped it might be.
Last night I went to see Siouxsie of Banshees/Creatures fame at the Anaheim House of Blues. When I was in 10th grade, if you would have asked, I would have stated that the Banshees were my favorite band. They were the first concert I ever went to in 1984 when I was 16. It was at the Santa Monica Civic and Test Department was the opening act. It was very overwhelming for me. I got there very early waiting to get in so I could get a spot up front. Once in I had to get a tour shirt and program first. I feel grateful nowadays that I was able to see Test Department back then, but I don't remember anything about them live. Actually all I remember about the Banshees live is Siouxsie coming out to the strains of "Dazzle." I don't remember much, but I know I had a blast. So last night I am ready to revisit the past. The night didn't start all that great. I arrived at 8:30, thinking that shows go on early there, and was greeted by a long line waiting to get into the club. So I wait about an hour or so to get into the club and then I wait another hour for Siouxsie to hit the stage. My feet were killing me and I was pissed off. Finally they came on stage and I forgot about the bad start. It was really more of a Creatures show and the Banshees songs that were played were done more in a Creatures style. Much of the show could be referred to as "drum and bass." Budgie and a percussionist were simply awesome playing the drums. It was very tribal and sounded great. Siouxsie's voice sounded great; even better than I ever remember hearing it. She is such a presence and one of the great "women in rock." The Cure got huge and Siouxsie's popularity seemed to plateau in the early nineties. It's somewhat of a mystery to me. I like the Cure, but I found Siouxsie much more interesting. She's a great frontperson and they had really good songs. One thing I loved about the Banshees is that they always played songs you would never expect them to play live. Their concerts always had the ability to surprise rather than simply be about playing the hits. I'm glad I went last night. It was nice to see Siouxsie still in top form even if the set was not quite as surprising as I had hoped it might be.
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