Archive for the ‘concerts’ Category
Yes Concert Review, Austin TX 3/20/2013
March 20, 1964. That’s my middle brother’s birthday. He died just over a year ago but he was a huge Yes fan and subsequently I became one. Yes played the Moody Theater at ACL Live last night and it would have been his 49th birthday. He especially loved Fragile and Close to the Edge and both of those albums are very special to me.
When I saw it announced that Yes was going to play The Yes Album, Close to the Edge and Going for the One in their entirety, I had to go. Especially since it was going to be at the fantastic Moody Theater. It’s my favorite venue in town.
I typically buy 2 tickets to most shows that I want to see, one for me and one to sell to a friend or to offer as a special gift. My friend Chuck is a huge Yes fan and a phenomenal bassist and he was the first I thought of when I scored front row center balcony seats. That’s my favorite spot in the theater. It was Chuck’s first time there and he liked it a lot.
The show started slightly after 8PM and they opened the show with the Close to the Edge album. I hadn’t yet seen/heard the new singer, Jon Davison. Now let me drop back and say that I’ve seen Yes twice before with Jon Anderson…one in 1998 with The Alan Parson Project(!!!) and again in 2000 with Kansas. That show in 1998 was incredible while the 2000 show left me pretty bored.
But last night I was not bored. They came out and nailed it for the most part. The new singer left me not really even noticing or even missing Anderson. Davison has the pipes and he sounded incredible. The band went right into Going for the One, and album of their that I love. I’ll admit that my 3 faves are Drama, Tormato and Going for the One. After getting through GftO, they took a 20 minute intermission.
The closed the set out with The Yes Album. It was great.
I’ll admit to getting a little verklempt during the song Close to the Edge. Memories of my brother flushed through me hard. During several songs throughout the set I got chills, mainly because of the awesomeness of the songs…mainly And You and I and Wondrous Stories.
Sound-wise, I thought the keyboards were a little overbearing and the bass was a little low in the mix. Even though it was a phenomenal show and probably the last time I’ll ever see them, they weren’t perfect. Compared to the previous shows I’ve seen, they’ve collectively lost a step. While Steve Howe is one of my favorite players, he’s always had a bit of a choppy style. Last night he was missing some notes and it even sounded like he missed his cue in a few solos. However, vocally he still sounded great. His acoustic piece, Clap, was pretty awesome. Chris Squire seemed spot on and his vocals were great, too. Finally, Alan White. He wasn’t playing with the power that I had seen before, but he is 63 and still touring, so there’s that. And again, Jon Davison’s vocals were stellar. That dude can flat out sing.
The encore was Roundabout (see below).
If they do end up touring again, I’d certainly go. Glad I got to see them again, for sure.
Eric Clapton and The Wallflowers Concert Review, Austin TX 3/17/2013
It was the tail end of SxSW 2013 and my ass was worn the hell out. Come show day I really didn’t want to go as I was just so damned tired and sore from the previous week’s festivities. Not to mention that I had trouble finding someone to go with me. Fortunately my friend Leah was in town and was able to accompany me.
Historically, I’ve always been a moderate Clapton fan. Cream and Blind Faith had some great songs and I like some of his solo and Derek and the Dominos songs. His 80s/90s ballads/MTV Unplugged stuff totally turned me off, though. Some of his 80s pop stuff was fantastic like Forever Man, It’s In The Way That You Use It, Rock and Roll Heart, She’s Waiting, Pretending etc. Lots of good stuff. Oddly enough, I never really paid attention to his guitar playing. Sure I know he’s considered a legend and a great blues player, but I just never noticed anything beyond taking in his songs as the whole and not in its parts. Add to the fact that in general I’m not much of a blues fan.
Last night changed my perception of him a bit. Watching him play his riffs and solos was pretty mind-blowing. The dude is almost 70 and still can play like a bad ass. Even the slow blues stuff he played, primarily with no pick, was pretty impressive to watch. His voice is still strong too. Am I going out and buying his back catalog? Absolutely not. I have the songs I need from him, but I do have a new appreciation for his playing. The setlist pretty much left out his 80s pop stuff altogether which was a bit disappointing, but it was enjoyable. Jimmy Vaughn came out and did a song. The one thing that made the night more special for me was that he had Paul Carrack on keyboards. Who is Paul Carrack? You may not know his name but you’ve certainly heard some of his music. I was pretty excited to see that Tempted (Squeeze) and How Long? (Ace) were on the setlist. They sounded great. Of course the rest of the band was killer, especially Steve Jordan on drums.
The Wallflowers opened the show and I was a-ok with that. Bringing Down the Horse is a fantastic album and last night’s show had 4 songs from that album. They sounded great in general and I’d been wanting to see them for quite a while.
Unfortunately I have no pictures to share. We had decent seats but my camera sucks. However, I will be uploading Tempted and How Long? to YouTube later this week.
Glad I went. I’m seeing YES later this week. Rock on!
Red Lamb Concert Review, Austin TX 3/9/2013
I’ve been an Anthrax fan ever since I found a used copy of Spreading the Disease on cassette at Unicorn Records in 1986. That tape was in regular rotation in my old 66 Nova 4dr and subsequent Ford Ranger for many years. I’ve worn out countless copies. Seen them 6 times since 1987 and they always rocked it live. The John Bush era really never did it for me but the one time I saw them live with him, they were good.
In the last year or so, Dan Spitz, former lead player of Anthrax, has been working on a new project called Red Lamb. I’ve always like Dan’s solos and was happy for a chance to see him play live…and of course to have an opportunity to get the book signed.
I got to the show in north Austin around 10pm and pretty much just hung outside during the opening acts. I just wasn’t interested. I think it was sometime around midnight that Red Lamb hit the stage. I had listened to a song or 2 online and while it’s not my kind of rock, it’s not bad. Dan’s solos make it worth it for sure. Patrick Johansson (Yngwie Malmsteen) had recorded the drums on the album but unfortunately didn’t tour. The touring drummer, Kevan Roy was just fine. His footwork was pretty impressive. Don Chaffin handled the vocals duties and sounded good. Bassist Alan Goldstein (Aghora) was pretty awesome to watch. While not needing to be very busy with this type of music, you could still see moments of the dude’s talent. C’mon, he’s in Aghora! No slouches in that band.
And then there’s Dan. His playing was sharp and his solos were quite awesome, as expected. He certainly seems like a quiet guy, very reserved and I imagine that the heart attack and subsequent triple bypass probably slowed him down a bit. He didn’t speak much and talked about this tour being done to help promote Austism awareness. He mentioned that his twin sons, Brendan and Jaden, both have the condition and that the song Puzzle Box (co-written by Dave Mustaine) was about his family’s daily struggles. I can’t even begin to imagine.
They cut 2 songs from the end of their set. There was plenty of time left. One they finished, Dan promptly got off stage and went straight to the bus. There were only about 20-30 people there. So no meet and greet time. I hung out for a bit after to see if he’d come out and was talking with the bassist. I asked is he could get Dan to sign the book. I had some CD covers in there as well, but told him that the book was most important. He took the stuff on the bus and came out a few minutes later with everything signed. What a champ! Alan was a super nice guy, too. He said, “Dan said thanks a lot for coming and for bringing some stuff to sign.” I’ll take that! I went home right after that…driving through a deluge for 20 miles.
It was a good time. Go see the tour!
My pics suck horribly. The lighting was awful and so is my camera.
Faster Pussycat Concert Review, Houston TX, 3/7/2013
I’m on temporary work assignment in Houston and saw last week that Faster Pussycat was playing right up the street from my hotel. I’d seen them a couple of times before including being able to open for them in 2003 when they were on tour with Pretty Boy Floyd and Enuff z’Nuff. That was a fun night for sure. On to last night…I had been sick all day and laid up in my hotel room from diverticulosis. Lucky me. By dinner time, I was feeling a little bit better and had enough energy to go and grab a bite to eat. I drove up the road to find the venue after dinner and hung out in my truck for a little while trying to decide whether I was going to go in or not. Ultimately (and obviously) I went in. Quite an interesting crowd at this north Houston venue. The groupie girls were definitely in full effect, most of whom are really past their prime. Sorry ladies, you’re looking rough these days.
While sitting there wading through some opening bands who were so horrid that they shall remain nameless, Danny Nordahl, bassist for Faster Pussycat, walked in. When we played with them in ’03, he and I talked for a long time, mostly about Thin Lizzy. The custom guitar picks I was using at the time had Phil Lynott on them and I gave him one, since he said he was out of picks. Last night I mentioned to him about that show and he said something to the effect of ‘you’re the dude that gave me that guitar pick with Phil on it. I still have that!’ Sweet! We hung out for a few while the last opener was clearing the stage and then it was showtime.
They were slated to go on at 10:30 but ended up being closer to 11. I was getting really tired but I stuck around for for about half of the set. Taime was his typical self. His voice sounded pretty good and the band was pretty solid. I think my favorite thing about the show was that Taime held an unlit cigarette in his hand the whole night. It was quite funny.
Faster Pussycat is one of the few “hair bands” that I like and their first 3 albums are pretty good.
I stayed for 6 songs, but could only recall 5.
Testament, Overkill, Flotsam and Jetsam & 4arm Concert Review, Austin TX, 2/5/2013
Not too long ago it was announced that Testament, Overkill, Flotsam and Jetsam, and 4arm were coming to Emo’s. What a lineup! I bought a ticket as soon as they went on sale.
Let’s just get right into this. You’ve seen me talk about The Book several times and my outer metal nerd was in full effect yesterday. I left work and went straight to the venue to do some hanging around trying to catch up with Bobby and DD from Overkill and the Flotsam guys.
There was a guy and his son hanging out as well who had made a nice huge canvas screen print of a current Overkill photo with their logo on it. When those guys rolled up, they signed it cheerfully. I had Bobby and DD sign the book and got the usual question of, “What the hell is this?” Right after Overkill headed to their hotel, Gene Hoglan came out of the venue and I spoke with him for a little bit. Ten years ago I gave him a ride from his Strapping Young Lad show to go see Nuclear Assault at another venue. We laughed about shoving his huge frame into my little Saturn wagon.
A few minutes later I saw a friend of mine who works at the venue and he went ahead and walked me in with him before they started letting people in. Testament was doing their paid meet and greet on the patio and I was standing at the merch booth when Eric AK from Flotsam walked up. I shook his hand, talked to him about my F&J history of seeing them in Virginia. He remembered both venues saying something to the effect of, “The Peppermint Beach Club? Cool place on the beach? Loved playing there. But the Boathouse was a dump.” Mustaine said the same thing about the Boathouse when I met him in ’06. I loved that place (RIP), but whatever. Mike Gilbert came up as we were snapping a picture and photo-bombed it. I then had both guys sign the book and again a “WTH?” reaction. Eric said, “Come find us after the show, we’ll get Kelly and Ed to check this book out.” Sweet!
The doors open up and a small crowd shuffles in. Australia’s 4arm was the opener at 645PM. I had just listened to a few of their songs earlier and while not overly impressed, I didn’t think it was awful…other than their name. They had a 30 minute set of standard thrash and were solid. I heard a little Slayer meets Bay Area Thrash in their sound. They were solid enough, but nothing groundbreaking.
Up next came Flotsam and Jetsam. They sounded great and to be honest were the band I was most excited about seeing. The last time was 1992 opening for Mercyful Fate. They were only given 35 minutes for a set and just came on and killed it. They sounded great in general, minus some sound issues from Ed Carlson’s amp…snap crackle and pop were all in attendance. Haha. They played Hammerhead and Escape from Within and 3 others. They were super solid, though. Kelly’s drumming was still as spot on as it was 20 years ago. I stood about 3 people from the barricade with a huge smile on my face the whole time they were on. Just great. Eric’s vocals started a little rough in the first song, but by song #2, he was in full AK mode sounding great and powerful. I’m ready to see them again ASAP and hopefully with a longer set. Eric told me after the show that they’d definitely add Der Fuhrer and She Took An Axe when they tour on their own. I almost squealed like a little girl.
Overkill was up next and to be honest I wasn’t enthused about it. I absolutely love Feel the Fire and Taking Over and a few tracks each from Under the Influence and Years of Decay, but without Rat Skates’ insane drumming and Bobby Gustafson’s uniquely styled riffs, they lost a lot. That this man’s opinion. Overkill hit the stage and I got what I expected, a cross section of their long career. They did Rotten to the Core and Wrecking Crew and while I love those songs, they just didn’t feel right last night. Way too fast and a tad sloppy. Almost like ‘let’s just get through these as fast as we can’. I’m such a curmudgeon. They also played Elimination and Fuck You, but I only heard them from outside the venue and my friend Carlos who was getting ready to interview Flotsam called me to their bus to get Ed and Kelly to sign the book. Score! I’d missed Overkill the last 2 times they were here and I had heard that they were both good shows and that they had even played Deny the Cross(!!!). But not last night. Oh well.
Last night was my 7th time seeing Testament since ’87 on The Legacy Tour opening for Anthrax. They’ve never put on a bad show in my opinion and tonight they were on it. I think Chuck Billy’s voice sounded better than it has in years. He used his cleaner voice more than the rough voice he’s done a lot live in recent years. The setlist was a good mix of old and new with all of the usual suspects except for one, and to me it’s a major one…Disciples of the Watch was not played. To me, that is the defining Testament song. I can’t have everything, right? But overall the band was great. The new album is good and a lot better than Formation of Damnation. Gene Hoglan was on the kit again for this tour and the guy is so incredibly awesome that it hurts my soul a little. He’s so fluid in his playing that it makes it look like he’s not even trying. Skolnick’s playing was spot on as always but I always get the feeling that he’d rather be doing his solo jazz thing these days.
Overall it was a great night for $20! I bought a shirt from both Flotsam and Testament, Overkill didn’t have a design that I liked. Saw lots of friends and made some new ones. Flotsam said they’ll be doing a US tour after their new album, Ugly Noise, comes out in April. I hope they can make some Texas dates. Great to see Austin continuing to get some quality metal tours.
I didn’t get any shots of Overkill or Testament as I was playing the “old man” and hung out near the back of the venue.
4ARM
More Flots
Erik AK says, “Horns up!”
Eric AK and I being photo-bombed by Mike Gilbert
Sigs from “Blitz” and DD of Overkill in The Book
The Metal Files 
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