Favorite Concerts 2007

In 2007 I was lucky enough to attend a lot of wonderful concerts, primarily in San Francisco, which is loaded with terrific venues that play just about everybody. At first I was planning on ranking the concerts, but with second thoughts, I just didn't think it was right to do that, since I had a lot of fun at each of them. However, I would like to like to point out 5 of them that stood out for me, with a couple honorable mentions. These are in no particular order:

The Weakerthans at Slim's

This was probably the biggest surprise for me and a very pleasant one. When I see the words "Reunion Tour", the thoughts of "We need money" or "We're feeling nostalgic" pop into my head, which doesn't always lead to a great concert. I don't have much of a feel for how this band performed prior to their reunion, but I thought they were awesome in the present. Their style is very subtle compared to the cathartic outpouring I've seen with many other bands on stage (see The Mountain Goats, The Hold Steady), but they're still powerful. I think this is due mainly to the compelling quality of their song lyrics, but I also thought that they had great chemistry on stage and came with a nice balance of crowd pleasing numbers from "Reconstruction Site" and some nice new tracks from "Reunion Tour". The sly smile from front man John Samson at the end of each set seemed to radiate a thought that his audience still gets it and his band has still got it.

Memorable numbers: Reconstruction Site, Sun in Empty Room, Psalm for the Elks Lodge Last Call, Benediction, Our Great City, Plea From A Cat Named Virtue

Great Lyric:
Buy me a shiny new machine
that runs on lies and gasoline,
and all those batteries we stole from smoke alarms,
and disassembles my despair,
It never got me anywhere
and never once bought me a drink.

The Frames with Marketa Irglova at Regency Grand Ballroom


As much as I loved the movie Once, which starred Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, I was even more pleased to take in a live performance by these two, along with some Frames players at the beautiful Regency Grand Ballroom. After enjoying a delicious meal from Citizen Cake, my friend Frank and I just caught the start of the concert, which started with Glen Hansard on stage behind his holey guitar (It actually has big holes in it!), belting out Say It to Me Now. His lovely co-star joined him on stage soon after for a couple more songs from their hit movie, and then three more Frames members (a guitar, cello and violinist) entered to complete the group. What fantastic musicians they are. I felt some chills as they performed "Falling Slowly", especially when Hansard encouraged us to help with the chorus and was blown away by his solo performance of "Leave". Irglova is his secret weapon, sitting primarily at piano, but also taking his beat up guitar from him at times and coyly stepping into the spotlight. I loved her rendition of "All the Way Down". Hansard was hilarious and engaging between songs, describing the background of each one, some times rather clumsily, which made it all the funnier. While making references to Joyce and Wilde, as proud Irishmen tend to do, and interacting with a fairly Irish audience, I felt as if I was transported over seas to an enormous and elaborate pub. The concert itself was an enormous and elaborate treat.

Memorable numbers: Falling Slowly, If You Want Me, Lies, Leave, All the Way Down, Once, Star Star

Next time I hope they play: Everything they played the first time

Great Lyric:

Star, Star teach me how to shine, shine
teach me so I know what's goin' on in your mind
- Star Star

The Hold Steady at Slim's and The Mezzanine,

I received two doses of this Brooklyn based (yet heavily Twin Cities laced) band. The first was at Slim's and the second at the Mezzanine. They were supposed to play at The Warfield the second time, but I suspected that they hadn't quite built the fan base for that venue yet. Whatever the real reason, I was not disappointed in the move as I think they belong in a bar, performing for an intimate, standing crowd while knocking down a few cold ones. They perform at 100 MPH bringing a hard rockin', guitar slaying style to the Indie pop scene mixed with colorful lyrics from front man Craig Finn who mouths his lyrics on the side after spouting them into the microphone, both times at a fevered pace. The Mezzanine was an interesting new place to see a show, especially with their movie projector shining live footage of the band superimposed on different settings (e.g. on a beach at night) onto a wall to the right of the stage. Finn and his band mates ended both shows dripping in sweat and calling attention to the the joy they were feeling being able to do what they do best. You couldn't help but get caught up in the fun. Both times I felt as spent as the band looked as they staggered off the stage.

Memorable numbers: Stuck Between Stations, South Town Girls, Chips Ahoy, Chill Out Tent, First Night

Next time I hope they play: Arms and Hearts

Great Lyric:
There was a stage and a PA up in western massachussetts.
The kids came from miles around to get messed up on the music.
- Chill Out Tent

The New Pornographers at The Warfield

I was happy to see this Canadian band come south for a tour, fresh off of their new album Challengers, one which I enjoyed at first listen and even more so after frequent takes. Yes this will sound so cliche', but they sounded much better live, much more so than I could have imagined. Fronted by an amazing vocal trio of A.C. Newman, Neko Case and Kathryn Calder they tore through most of their latest album's best along with familiar favorites. Dan Bejar of Destroyer, who contributed to 3 Challengers tracks, added a nice change up to their repertoire. His cryptic lyrics and androgynous nature meshed beautifully with the pornographers leading to what I thought were the most fun parts of their set. Combined with Newman's lyrical magic and Case's astounding vocals, it wouldn't be hard to label them a "supergroup". There was a moment after their first couple of songs where Newman stared into the two-tiered audience and said something to the effect of "It's weird to be putting on a rock concert...Does this mean we're rock stars?" Yes, I think you are.

Memorable Numbers: Challengers, My Rights Versus Yours, Unguided, Myriad Harbor, Entering White Cecilia, Mutiny, I Promise You, Spanish Techno, Letter From an Occupant, Testament To Youth In Verse

Next time I hope they play: Adventures in Solitude

Great Lyric :
Complex notes inside the chords,
on every wall inflections carved
Deep as lakes and dark as stars
Remember we were the volunteers
- My Rights Versus Yours


The Mountain Goats with Pony Up! at The Independent and Bottom of the Hill

The Mountain Goats were probably my first Indie Pop crush, having heard an interview on NPR with them followed by performances of Love, Love, Love and Dance Music. After making a wise and important move of borrowing a couple big chunks of my friend Chris's CD collection (loaded with Indie Pop), my eyes grew wide when I saw four albums magic markered with their name. I was hooked. Soon afterwards I had the treat of seeing them at "The Bottom of the Hill" and vow to see them whenever they appear there. I received back to back doses of them in 2007, the first being at the Independent, which was a great show, but not quite like at the place front man John Darnielle calls his "second home", where I could lean up against the bar, with beer in hand and stand within 15 feet of the stage, caught up in the nostalgia of their music. Darnielle plays with his heart on his sleeve, nasily crooning his distinct lyrics almost seeming to relive the moments he's recounting, wide-eyed, seeming to be amazed at his own intensity. Side kick Peter Hughes is more subtle, strumming base guitar and providing some vocal harmony at times. They added drummer Jon Wurster to their 2007 tour, which I think was nice move. Though I saw them in 2006, I couldn't leave the Mountain Goats off of this list, definitely one of the more satisfying evenings for me in 2007.

I mention Pony Up! because I think they may be the best cover band I've seen. These four girls (check their ID!) from Montreal were a lot of fun. Part of the advantage of the back to back concerts for me, was that it gave me a chance to get familiar with their sound and songs, which I really appreciated. The two lead vocals complement each other well and the band seems to have a nice balance of taking their music seriously, but not themselves.

Memorable Numbers: Dance Music, Broom People, Palmcorder Ganja, Wild Sage, Get Lonely, Maybe Sprout Wings, Boys are Back in Town (cover of the Doobie Brothers)...Pony Up!: Dance for Me, What's Free is Yours, Truth About Cats and Dogs (is that they die)

Next time I hope they play: Linda Blair was Born Innocent and The Best Ever Death Metal Band out of Denton

Great Lyric:

Ghosts and clouds, and nameless things
squint your eyes and hope real hard,
maybe sprout wings
- Maybe Sprout Wings


Honorable Mentions:

The National at Regency Grand Ballroom - They backed up their wonderful album Boxer with an awesome performance, mixing in songs from this album with ones from Alligator. Matt Beringer's haunting yet melodic voice is surrounded by talented band mates that put on a great show to a receptive audience.

Tori Amos at The Paramount (Oakland) - My only "big name" concert of the year didn't disappoint. She was probably the most talented musician that I saw, some times playing two pianos simultaneously while using a beautiful voice to weave through an anthology of songs. The Paramount is a gorgeous, art deco styled venue, which almost made having no beers on tap forgivable.