I made it to somewhere around 70-80 shows this year (most of which fell between July and now) so I thought just for kicks I’d make a little list. Here of my 5 most memorable days of live music in 2010.
September 4th: Bumbershoot (Day 1) - The Spits @ the Funhouse - Throne of Bone @ Bumblefuck
I could probably write a book about the awesomeness of September 4th 2010. The day started off with Jerry, Nik and I in the Seattle Center for day 1 of Bumbershoot. Idiot Pilot, HEALTH, Feral Children, Ozomatli and the definite highlight of the day Atlas Sound. After that, the 3 of us went across the street to catch The Spits at the Funhouse. Not only were the 3 of us there, rocking out harder than I thought was even possible, but we rocked shoulder to shoulder front and center, like a Wall of SRG. Probably one of the happiest moments in my concert going life so far. When the show was over, we were covered in sweat, slightly bruised and grinning from ear to ear, but not done for the night. Next up we headed to the Belltown Underground Events Center for Bumblefuck, to catch Throne of Bone playing a 2 AM set. It was without a doubt one of the weirdest experiences ever. Walking down a random stair case, into a random unmarked door, then greeted by a guy at the door that didn’t want us to come in because he thought we were cops….yeah you could say it wasn’t just another show. I hope 2011 gives me a day half as cool as that day was.
September 16th: Verellen Amp Night @ Neumos – Helms Alee, Narrows, Akimbo
One Verellen brother playing on a stage anywhere in a 2 hour radius of Seattle is reason enough for it to be a must see show, but put them both on stage in the same night at the same venue and you have a recipe for a ridiculously great show. Add Akimbo, and you have what could have been the show of the year. I hope a Helms Alee, Narrows show turns into an annual kind of thing. That would be fine by me.
October 9th: Reverb Fest in Ballard
Kinski, Idle Times, Absolute Monarchs, Throne of Bone, My Goodness, Vultures 2012, Dog Shredder, He Whose Ox is Gored, and Smooth Sailing…..in one freakin night? Yep, I saw it. Yep, it was awesome. I have gone to see most of those bands by themselves, but thanks to Reverb Fest I got to see all of them in day, I don’t know if I could of asked for a better day of good local rock! Well, okay there’s one obvious missing ingredient (see September 16th).
October 23rd: Escalator Fest Night 2
Climax Golden Twins, Edibles, Midday Veil, Moon Duo, and the Curious Mystery. Not the type of music I usually make it out to see but damn that show was great. The biggest highlights of the night for me was Climax Golden Twin’s completely improvised set, as well as the Moon Duo set. Everything about that night was amazing though, and all the bands kicked a ton of ass. I loved the trippy visual's that were projected as the backdrop to the stage, and the venue (Lo-Fi) is the best venue in Seattle. The mood and vibe I got from everyone there was great. Basically to sum it up real short and sweet: every component of the show was awesome….the end!
December 9th: Thee Oh Sees, Night Beats @ Chop Suey
What was awesome about this show? 1.) John Dwyer played = Awesome! 2.) Only two opening bands = Awesome! 3.) Night Beats are a fucking amazing opening band = Awesome! 4.) It was FREE = Awesome! 5.) John Dwyer played = yeah, fucking Awesome! I can say with 100% confidence that John Dwyer (singer/guitarist of Thee Oh Sees) is without a doubt my favorite musician playing right now. If the man is in town and playing a triangle on stage somewhere, I will be there.
BONUS: 5 Favorite Videos I Shot in 2010
1.) Moon Duo @ Escalator Fest 10/23/2010 (ENTIRE SET HERE)
Like I said above, everything about that night was amazing. I shot the entire Moon Duo set, it wasn’t the plan originally but once they started I couldn’t stop. The music is awesome, the sound is good, the visual art is amazing….it’s just my favorite.
2.) Smooth Sailing – Solo From Freebird & Red Panther @ Galway Arms 8/19/2010
I love the overhead angle I was able to get at Galway Arms by standing on the table off to the side. Anybody from that angle would look cool, but put Smooth Sailing in the mix and it’s fucking beautiful. For the record, I could of easily put 5 Smooth Sailing videos in this list.
3.) The Spits – Live In A Van @ Bumbershoot 9/6/2010
It’s the Spits….there’s fire…..it’s at the EMP….nothing else needs to be said.
4.) Cold Lake – Well Fed Fuck w/ Spencer Moody @ the Showbox 10/16/10
This is one of my favs for a lot of reasons. A) Nothing cooler than when bands are joined on stage by other musicians, especially when it’s somebody as cool as Spencer Moody joining a band as cool as Cold Lake. B) The song they’re covering is awesome, but they make it sound even better. C) The overall quality of the video is pretty legit, I was close, it sounds good and looks good. Can’t ask for much more than that.
5.) Melvins – Pig House (Jared Goes After Fan) @ Hell’s Kitchen 9/27/10
I only took 2 videos that night and I was lucky enough that one of them happened to be the song where Jared hit a member of the audience with his bass and then jumped in the crowd to escort him out. Pretty fuckin cool if you ask me. Plus I think it’s just a good video, it looks and sounds good.
Words and Videos by Palmer Sather
0 Comments:
Post a Comment