Comments on: 2005: The year in shows

By: Heather P.

Heather P. — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 23:21:45 +0000

This year I saw Green Day, Ben Kweller, and John Vanderslice. I had not planned on Green Day. We were in Poland, in a city called Katowice, on the night they happened to be playing there. Ben Kweller was a free show at the University of Utah. A lot of fun. John Vanderslice was also great. I would’ve liked to have seen Calexico/Iron & Wine and maybe Tori Amos. I was wanting to try to go to Sigur Ros in Denver next month, but it’s already sold out.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 17:54:08 +0000

I went to a few all day festivals this year (Live 105 BFD, Inland Invasion, Download Festival) so I saw a lot of bands. I agree with Susan about Beck – I am really kicking myself about not seeing him play an 800 seat house in Santa Barbara earlier this year.

But.

My favorite find of the year was Ozomatli.

Hands down, one of the best, if not the best live performance by a band that I have ever seen. They really rock live – a lot of passion and fun. My husband was dancing, and he never moves during concerts.

The best part? It was a free show at the Mid State Fair.

By: Susan M

Susan M — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 04:59:11 +0000

I wish I’d caught the Decemberists Dallin.

King’s X are still around? I’d love to catch them.

By: FaithHopeLove

FaithHopeLove — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 03:21:54 +0000

I just realized that I haven’t seen any shows this year (did BNL come to SLC this year?) but I saw two great live shows last year:

Even Lower : I worked with the guy who does part vocals and bass guitar for this punk band. They stood out from the other offerings with some really nice harmonies. The show was in this little, tiny place in Provo called (I think) Starry Nights. If you turned sideways, one hand could touch the back wall while the other could touch the microphone.

King’s X : My favorite band EVER (screen name taken from my favorite album of theirs) I think people are calling them prog rock now, although I’ve always thought of them as Hard Rock, semi-Metal. They put on an amazing show, lots of energy, incredible guitar playing, and the occasional shriek from Doug.

I really should go see more local bands – it’s a pity that most of them play in bars in Salt Lake. I usually enjoy myself.

By: Dallin I

Dallin I — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 18:26:06 +0000

I also managed to get out and see Ted Leo live. He certainly doesn’t disappoint. I too am amazed that he can pull those songs off live. There was actually somebody in the audience named Mia who requested you know what. Ted was visibly sick that night, but still played with amazing energy.

My favorite show was the Decemberists/Okkervil River, especially when they played The Mariner’s Revenge Song. A great tune for audience participation – they ask you to scream like you’re going down in a ship being swallowed by a whale and the whole crowd gets really into it.

In second place was the Drive-By-Truckers show. They are great live and with the three guitars they kick up a mighty sound.

Also saw M. Ward in a very intimate setting (perfect for him).

By: Allison

Allison — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 15:11:57 +0000

Tom, I haven’t listened to all that much Ben Folds recently. I was a fan when he was with the Five, but kind of lost interest after that. Greg really liked his subsequent solo stuff, though, so I took him to the concert for his birthday. I was really surprised by just how good he was. And although he had a drummer and bass on stage with him for parts, for a good chunk of the time he was alone with his piano. I definitely appreciate his new stuff more than I did.

By: BTD Greg

BTD Greg — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 14:42:13 +0000

Does Ben Folds still rock like he did when we was with the five? What IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ve heard of his solo stuff sounds like boring conventional pop. I miss the fuzzy bass

Folds’ line up was exactly like it was with BF5: drums, bass and piano. Although they didn’t actually play a ton of BF5 stuff, the effect was the same. It made me appreciate the new stuff better, too.

By: Greg

Greg — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 08:15:28 +0000

Thanks for the reviews, Susan, and others.

I have to be very selective these days. This year I caught Wilco, Ted Leo, The Mountain Goats (twice) and Sleater-Kinney. All of ‘em were terrific. I’m still kicking myself for missing Lucinda Williams when she came through over the summer. Low will probably be my first show of 2006.

By: Tom

Tom — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 04:53:27 +0000

Allison,
Does Ben Folds still rock like he did when we was with the five? What I’ve heard of his solo stuff sounds like boring conventional pop. I miss the fuzzy bass.

It’s true what you say about opening acts. I hate seeing a band giving it their all while the audience is totally disengaged, having conversations, barely applauding. I feel really bad for them. The Fiery Furnaces opened for Wilco when I saw them and it was terrible. I actually enjoyed the band (even though the audio was very hissy), but the audience was barely there. Between songs the audience just continued their conversations. It made it difficult to enjoy the performance. At the Jeff Tweedy concert the opening act was Glen Kotche (Wilco’s drummer) and it was a totally different experience. The audience was quite attentive even though the music was not super-engaging, in my opinion. Kotche kept thanking the audience for actually paying attention for a change.

By: Susan M

Susan M — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 04:18:51 +0000

Allison, probably best to start with Feast of Wire or Hot Rail by Calexico, but they’re so awesome, I love everything. Drop me an email if you’d like me to make a you mix.

I’ll have to check out the Nourallah Brothers.