Best Gig of the Year?

We've asked you for your fave albums of the year...tune in Tuesday at 10 am to hear the results, now before we stop looking back at 07, we'd like to get your votes for best live show of the year?

Danny posted some of his and told a great story on Musicheads about seeing Wilco up in Duluth. Give us a short review of why it was so good and perhaps what makes a great show for you, is it the fact that the artist can perfectly reconstruct the sound of your fave songs live, the rapport that an artist has with the audience or an amazing sight that you thought you'd never see, like Tori Amos ejecting audience members?!?!

We'd love to hear from some of our listeners in other cities too, so be sure to name the venue and location. I love getting calls and emails from listeners about their live show experiences, especially as I can't get to as many as I used to with this work schedule! This email is from local listener Linda Brooks who went to Tourcoing, near Lille in France to see Beirut; "Lead singer Zach Condon, who's from New Mexico, revealed in perfect French, that he and trumpeter Greg Paulus were very sick and might not be able to sing and play all night. Speaking for all the crowd one Frenchman shouted "Sing and play all night!"
This is especially poignant as the new cd has a big French flavor and songs named after French towns AND Linda's son went to school with Greg Paulus here in the Cities. She also related a story about Ronnie Wood of The Stones being on the same TV show as Beirut in the UK and congratulating them as he is a fan. I had actually read that he asked for their autograph! I also read in the same Word magazine that Robert Plant's fave gig of the year was Arcade Fire, it's great to hear these legends grooving to the new bands too!

To live vicariously like me check out a local blog that does a great job of re-creating the vibe of shows HowWasTheShow.com And I've really been enjoying some of the slide shows on City Pages website including shots from one that we did get to Andrew Bird at the Guthrie;

He and local phenom Martin Dosh use looping machines live so they can play a snippet and then hit a pedal that makes it repeat over and over while they play something else. On the first song of the set they had trouble getting the intro right. Andrew stopped each time with a pithy comment and after the 5th time said "it's not embarrassing yet is it?" On stage banter is one of my favorite parts of a gig and he totally won me over with that and many other smart asides all night, plus they never stopped again the whole night and the looping sounded amazing!!

So tell us about your live moment highlight of 07 and ...
Happy New Year Everyone!!

The Unknown Order at the Varsity Theater, November 16th. It was four amazing local bands, Ari Herstand, White Light Riot, The Alarmists, and This World Fair. They drew the bands from a hat to determine the order in which they would play. It was a fantastic night. It ended with an encore of Hey Jude, with all the bands on stage together. Local music is the best!

Patti Smith in Dresden, Germany this June.
It was at an old Slaughterhouse converted to a concert venue - a steamy, hot summer night and a great show.
Drove up from Praha, Czech republic through Poland into Germany. Driving from a city untouched by war to one that was devastated by war - to see Patti perfrom an incredible show.

I made it to Lollapalooza but missed the entire first day, including Daft Punk. But I got to see the Hold Steady there, and what a show they played! Another highlight was Of Montreal last spring, which was one of the funnest concerts I've ever been to.

Finally someone asked! The best show by far in the Twin Cities I saw this year was the cancelled first Kings of Leon show at First Avenue. Snowden was set to open for them, and since the Kings were sick, they were the only band for the night and they were absolutely awesome!! I've been to many shows this year, Heartless bastards, Art Brut and that other band that I fail to mention here because they're annoying, TV on the radio (well that was fall 2006 wasn't it), Jose Gonzalez, and even the Arcade Fire, but Snowden topped them all because they actually made their music sound better live than it sounds on record. I know that many people think bands in general sound better live than recorded, but this one really did. The bass sounded richer, actually making my body move for me and I couldn't have stood still if I wanted to. The drums were multilayered and tight and with bassist Corrine Lee adding jumps and headbanging at the right moments, it was impossible not to get into this show wholeheartedly and bounce along! Because of the intimate nature of it, what with not many (unfortunately) sticking around to hear the "opening act", the sound must've been reverberating off my molecules and sounded just that much better! I kept waiting for a show to top it, but none did!

I've gotta say, anywhere I've heard him, Charlie Parr has put on a great show. I saw him at Macy's Day of Music (Orchestra Hall), the Turf Club, the Mill City Music Cafe, the 331, and even the acoustic sunrise gig at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The magic of studio electronics makes a lot of music fairly easy to produce, so perhaps Charlie Parr doesn't the "wow" factor on radio. In person, you can appreciate all of his different picking, the wall of sound he can produce with one guitar or banjo and his voice and, of course, his stompin' box. When he brings his washboard-playin' freak friend, Mikkel Beckmen, it's even better!

Artic Monkeys at 1st Avenue on May 7th was a great show. The band members look like they are 20 years old, but play like pros. Elvis Costello was watching the show from the VIP room. This created an added energy to the event. Elvis was in town because he was playing the next night at The Myth.

Two shows, for different reasons.

The Dan Wilson show at the Guthrie a few weeks ago. My girlfriend and I had picked out (and I bought) her engagement ring earlier that day; for all intents and purposes, that was our engagement night (I proposed and she accepted the next day). I don't think I'll ever be able to hear a Dan Wilson or Jeremy Messersmith song without thinking of that night, which is a good thing, because it was one of the happiest nights of my life. Also one of the coldest.

Patrick Park played the Entry this fall. A solo, acoustic gig, which stripped his songs down to their barest core, and of course, they were as wonderful as always.

Mine would have to be travelling to Lollapalooza this year and seeing Muse. Right as they were about to hit the stage, it started to mist and the stage got a effect of steam off the instruments which made it a great visual effect as well as cooled everyone off from the heat from the rest of the day. The music was so heart-felt and solid it made me wonder why i never got into them years ago. Great show, don't know if i'll miss another Lollapalooza ever again!

It's hard to rank shows. The best evenings are made up of a bunch of things - the music, the crowd, your mood, etc. For me, the best combo came together for the Stars show at the Pantages. It was a show full of theatric energy and emotion. Sometimes Torquil Campbell takes it a little over-the-top, but it was a great change of pace from the sorta blah, standard indie pop bands I had been seeing around the same time. Brilliant fun. And on that particular night, it was exactly what I was looking for.

This is gonna be short and sweet. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings at First Ave was the best live show of the year. What a performance! When Sharon Jones came on stage she promised us a fantastic show since it was her first ever sell-out, and she delivered!

Cloud Cult at First Ave. back in June. Once it was over, a friend turned to me and said "I feel like I just won something." That pretty much summed it up.

Lots of great shows this year though. I wish I had gone to MIA...

I didn't make it to many live shows at all this year. Mostly the MPR Fakebook shows. I loved the Laurie Lindeen show with Westerberg, Zuzu's Petals, Dan Olson, Steve Wynn, etc. It was a great flow of music and memories. Paul W's version of "I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face" still brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

And, of course, John Waters rocked.

Daft Punks Alive 2007 was the most amazing experience i have ever had. I drove the Red Rocks show in Colorado and witnessed the perfect harmony of visual bliss and amazing techno. Another amazing performance which i unfortunately missed was the JusTice concert.

A few shows stick out:

Elvis Perkins at the 400 Bar - First time I got to see Elvis and I was completely blown away by his songwriting, his humble attitude, and his tight, wonderful band. They just all worked together in a way that made me sadly joyful (listen to his album Ash Wednesday and you'll understand). Afterwards I got a chance to talk to him and he was the nicest person. Just a wondeful show.

However, I saw over 150 shows this year, and the absolute BEST was The Polyphonic Spree at The Fine Line. Tim DeLaughter cried at the end, The Spree played an extra 35 minutes longer than intended because the crowd just wouldn't let them go. They were beautiful, loving, high-spirited, and just kick ass. I floated home that night like I never have before. I was lucky enough to catch them a few times after that experience (I hestitate to call it a show) and it wasn't the same. That show, that night, those people... perfection. Everything a live rock show should be.

devendra banhart - first ave


only saw a few shows this year, but this was hands-down the best, and maybe the best show ive ever been to. he sounded great and put a lot of emotion into each song. prior to the show, i was worried it would be too mellow for me. this was definitely not the case. do yourself a favor and check him out.

So many to choose from... Probably the best concert was LCD Soundsystem. Even though the main act for the evening was Arcade Fire, noting tops James Murphy and company.

The other notable one was Justice. My friend Hannah and I didn't have tickets, but we saw one 1/2 of Justice across the street at the ATM from the Foundation. We got to talk to them and he said that they put alot of fake names down for their concerts so kids that don't have tickets can get in. I will always have a place in my heart for the phrase "El Toro" and slickly dressed French men.

Other great concerts were Editors, Cold War Kids (Although Tokyo Police Club was stuck in a snow storm), Bloc Party and Albert Hammond Jr. in Chicago, and Thunderbirds are Now!

My biggest gripe though is how some great acts seem to miss the Twin Cities because of the lack of a good midsized venue. The Northrop kinda sucks sound wise (James Murphy is a production wiz so he sounded great) and I can see why some artists don't want to play the Myth. Hopefully 2008 brings even more bands through the area.

Wilco at Northrup in October. It was my first time seeing them and I just sat there with my jaw on the floor. Then 24 hours later - Spoon at First Avenue. KILLER.

I'd have to say a toss up between the Scissor Sisters show and the Arcade Fire/LCD Soundsystem show, which by the way, thanks Current for the free tickets. ;]

Rage Against the Machine over at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin was one of the most incredible shows I've ever seen.
Saw my first Bruce Springsteen show at the Excel, that was phenonenal.
The Austin City Limits Music Festival in TX with Muse, Arctic Monkeys, Bjork, Bob Dylan, Ziggy and Steven Marley, Lucinda Williams, plus tons more was spectacular, as was the Arctic Monkeys show at First Ave in May.
Also 10,000 Lakes Festival was a blast as well.

Deerhoof at the Walker was totally awesome. They're like Peanuts characters from space. Great energy. Great music. Greg Saunier (one of my idols) sat in our row to watch the opening act. Good times...good times... The Old Time Relijun show at Big V's afterwards was incredible as well.

Scout Niblett at 7th St. Entry was also really awesome. The new tunes were excellent and the classics never sounded better. I enjoyed her set even more than St. Vincent who was headlining that night.

By far hands down best show of the year here in Mpls was The Unknown Order at the Varsity in November! White Light Riot, The Alarmists, This World Fair and Ari Herstand took the stage...in an unknown order thanks to Sacre Blue wine...fuckin sweet too bad if you missed this one! but yeah this show is definitely the one that sticks out in my memory..best show of 2007 = The Unknown Order!!!!

Best show of the year for me was the polyphonic spree at the fine line. That actually made my top concerts of all time, right alongside bjork at 1st ave. and flaming lips/beck at the orpheum. Not my favorite venue, but I think the polyphonic spree changed my mind about the fine line and I was able to see another great show there later... Lucero... Also a great show.
Other shows of note for the year were seeing redstart and cloud cult at First Avenue. Conor Oberst at the 400bar and I saw my first Atmosphere show...
Plastic Constellations and tapes 'n tapes was also pretty great at 1st Ave.
Unfortunately I saw the brian jonestown massacre twice this year... yuk! what a jerk???? why be that way?

Vampire Hands cd release at Big V's.

The show that will forever remind me of 2007 was The Fiery Furnaces at The Turf Club. They were superb.

Definately would have to be Arcade Fire and LCD Soundsystem. I didn't know much about LCD, but they were explosive. Arcade Fire for their "spunk" they displayed.

So I was lucky enough to go to a lot of shows in 2007. The most shows I think I have ever gone to in one year. They ranged from Justin Timberlake to Booker T & the MGs to the Roots to Girltalk. I enjoyed all of my concert going experiences. But I think my most favorite was Blowfly at the Triple Rock in late June. I went with 3 guy friends of mine. I mention this only because Blowfly seems to appeal to the male species a little more then the female. At one point during his flamboyant and funky set my friend leaned over to me and said "you really like this?". For those of you that don't know Blowfly is the original "porno" rapper (2 Live Crew might call him an inspiration).For example he has a song entitled "To Fat to F***" amongst many other elegantly titled anthems. Watching a 70 year old porno rapper sing about how awesome he is at getting the ladies guaranteed to be a good time. Did I mention he wears a wrestling mask the whole time and his fingernails could compete in the race for the Guinness Book of World Records? Amazing.

For me, my favorite show was seeing Girl Talk at Bonnaroo. He had the unenviable position of playing opposite fest-favorites The Flaming Lips, but for the couple thousand that showed up for his set at one of the smaller tents, I don't think one person went away saying they would have rather went to the Lips. The people were there to party, and he brought a party. I saw his show at First Ave a few months later and that one just couldn't come close to the energy level that was at Roo. It's one of the few shows I've ever seen that I can honestly say blew me away from start to finish.

I had four favorites.

Prince at Target Center. The vibe of the whole day was amazing. It was like an all day affair!

Meshell n'degeocello at the fine line. Probably the most underated artist around. It felt like I was witnessing a secret jam session of funkadelic esqe rock/soul. Her cover of "All The Critics Love U In New York" was fantastic!

The Hold Steady at the State Theatre! Just because I love the Hold Steady.

Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings because they put all the eMpTyV randb artists to shame!

THE ENGAGEMENT/MAUDLIN/GABRIEL AND THEE APOCALYPSE/OBLIVION @ CLUB UNDERGROUND 2 WEEKS AGO!

Prince at First Ave. Hello!!!! Most amazing energy at a show EVER!!! Worth the 5 hour wait in 95 degree heat? Yes. Would I do it again? Maybe.

Band of Horses at 7th St. Entry. Got to party with the guys on a roof downtown afterwards. Awesome!

TV on the Radio at First Ave. was nice and

LCD Soundsystem/Arcade Fire was very nice!

Ryan Adams at Cedar Cultural Center - this was the third time I'd seen Ryan and I guess third time was the charm! It was a tight set with him just singing and nursing his arm/hand injury so that he couldn't play guitar. There were no sound problems that plagued his concert a few months later.

I have to say that I also really enjoyed Metric at 1st Ave. Even though they did not play a couple of my favs, it was still cool to see Emily Haines live.

definitely gogol bordello:

gypsy-punk-revolt played the most amazing show i've seen for a sold out first avenue in front of a giant banner of "think locally; f*** globally." frontman eugene hutz beat on his guitar until he was drenched in sweat and then played for another hour, stopping only to pick up a fallen drummer girl. the energy was incredible, he's a true showman, selflessly devoted to putting on an epic show. He didn't take any of the energy for himself, it was all about the fans and his band mates. the tradition in his approach to music is what live music is all about.

also M.I.A. deserves a major shoutout for climbing around first ave, mounting the extra subwoofers she brought, inviting a few dozen girls on stage, crowd surfing, being beautiful, and lets not forget... getting into the country.

Once again thanks for replying to this string!! Some really great stories and I filled an hour with a few of them at 8pm tonight, which is when we will regularly check in with this weekly blog discussion. The tunes by a bunch of your suggestions...especially the Daft Punk, Justice, Muse set ...were awesome, you helped create programming!
Emails and calls came in during the hour;
Sunny & Olivia went to see BillMike with Carnage, there was a small crowd but the guys gave their all.
m from mpls went to see Califone at The 400 Bar, I'd heard that was a great show at the time.
Melissa from Rochester wrote; "Spoon was the best show I saw last year. It was the first night they played...not the second. I remember Mary Lucia saying that she was "underwhelmed" by the second show". I also heard that those shows were really different, setlists and everything.
Eric at the U of M, adds to 'jms' above; "We went to NY and saw Gogol Bordello in their "home town." It was seriously one of the best shows I have been to in a while. The entire club was going crazy...."

I read several reports of how live music is a booming business internationally right now, which is good to hear, there really is nothing like a great live show experience, let's hope 08 is just as good!

I have been listening on the radio to the best gigs of the year comments. You faded out about menomonie and now I am home ...I hope I am not too late to weigh in.

My best musical moments was one that also happened helped launch a career...one that keeps rolling up critical acclaim and accolades almost daily. For instance City Pages named "Bon Iver" one of its artist of the year just yesterday.

The gig was in Eau Claire at the House of Rock. I went to see The Rosebuds and Land of Talk. Opening for then was somebody named "Bon Iver". As it turned out Bon Iver was Justin Vernon an eau claire native known by his own (solo) name and as DeYarmond Edison. It was the first time anybody has heard the fruits of his "good winter". See an interview with Vernon in the Boston Globe that explains the name (Indeed evidently it was Kelly who had suggested it) Link: http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2007/11/30/a_new_voice_name_sound___and_success/

Kelly and Ivan of the Rosebuds had known of this project of Vernon's but had never heard him perform. It was at Vernon's suggestion that they do a tour stop in Eau Claire. The Rosebuds were promoting their release Night of the Furies on which Vernon had been a principal producer and they had asked him to join their tour on guitar. He offered to openin EC and they accepted.

For so many people it was a magical moment. Vernon performed all his Bon Iver songs solo. He had laid them down and they were in pressing but the CD was not to be released for another six weeks.

I can't desire the moment any better than Ivan Howard did on his Merge Records Blog when he named his best musical moments of 2007. This gig was number 2 on his list. Her is what he had to say:

" 2.) Watching Bon Iver's" first show ever at our Rosebuds' show at the House of Rock in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We drove all night from Chicago to get to the afternoon show on time, and Justin (aka Bon Iver) who was our guitarist on tour kept telling us about how awesome his hometown was and about this place called The Joynt down from the venue where his parents met. Well what was awesome was the Bon Iver set. That was the first time any of us ever saw Justin play those songs. When he played "For Emma, For Ever Ago" and dedicated it to Kelly and me, it was all I could do to even watch the song it was so good. If I would have been more of a man I would have just balled my eyes out like I wanted to right there in front of everyone. But I kept it together that time." For Ivan's whole list see

http://ohmerge.blogspot.com/2008/01/2007-top-10-lists-ivan-howard.html

Kelly was so visibly shaken and since it is a small place and Eau Claire a freindly town, I, a stranger, asked her if she was okay. She had never heard Justin before and couldn't believe what she had just heard.

Here is how the career got launched. The Rosebuds and Land of Talk/Lizzie Powell who was also blown away started singing his praises to everybody who would listen. Georgio Angelinni the bass player for the Rosebuds was on the phone before the night was over and had through his insistence got the Bowery Ballroom in Brooklyn to book Bon Iver for an august gig. Brooklyn Vegan and My Old Kentucky Home (blogs) got wind of it. Brooklyn Vegan signed Bon Iver to his CMJ showcase. PitchFork gave his CD an 8.1 see http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/45817-for-emma-forever-ago

Kelefa Sanneh of the New York Times gave Bon Iver's CMJ performance a thumbs up. See

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/17/cmj-music-marathon-once-obscure-now-with-something-to-prove/

And Kelefa hit on why any of Bon Iver's shows have been my best of 2007. He can bring a room to dead silence. Sanneh said: "At Piano’s, though, Bon Iver still seemed like a shared secret. It’s not faint praise to say that the best part of the pretty finale, “The Wolves,” to say that the best part was when Mr. Vernon paused longer than anyone expected — long enough that you could hear the thumping sound system in the front room (next door)."

Jon Behm, a local writer, made a eerily similar observation about Bon Iver's set at the Uptown in MSP: "
Consider the chorus to The Wolves (Act I & II) “what might have been lost / don’t bother me.” There is a mournful quality to Vernon’s wail, but so too is there an unmistakable feeling in the lyrics that the singer is ready to move on. This song was a particularly lovely on Friday, as instead of layering his vocals as he does on the album, Vernon asked the crowd to sing the chorus part. It’s a rare moment when an entire bar is nearly silent except for the patrons all joining in to sing together. It’s also a testament to the artist when the opening band can bring an entire venue to a standstill" See:

http://www.howwastheshow.com/index.cfm/action/reviews.view/reviewKey/794

It are moments like these--better described by others--that made him my fav of the year. I will only add that in a world increasingly dominated by noise isn't it interesting that some of the best musical moments of the year were silence.

BTW Local Reveille magazine has said nice things too: http://www.reveillemag.com/features/artist-feature/bon-iver-believe-the-hype

Too bad Bon Iver didn't have an official spot on the top 89 of the year. He had to be a write in vote. His official release will be in 2008 on JagJawar in February. Although I see he made the list of several of the 89.3 hosts.

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Start the year off right. Easy ways to stay in shape in the new year.

I, too couldn't pick just one favorite. So... here goes.

The Polyphonic Spree at the Fine Line in July. It was the first I had gotten to see of their Fragile Army tour, and the first Polyphonic Spree show for a couple friends of mine. It's fun to see someone's reaction to a show that you know will blow them away. Their shows are like out of body experiences.

Johnette Napolitano at the Varsity Theater was another favorite. She was touring in support of her solo album, Scarred, and played a fantastic show with only herself and a guitar. At one point during the middle of a song she spun around, causing the cable to come unplugged from the guitar. But it didn't phase her, she stopped, talked to the crowd for a bit, then plugged back in and continued rocking. She's very powerful and a great performer.

I also have to mention the Meat Puppets at the Varsity Theater. I was lucky enough to have this show fall on my birthday, so I was treated to a great night of music from one of my favorite bands- especially since I'd never gotten to see them before! They opened with "Attacked by Monsters" and my girlfriend said something like, "oh yeah, they brought the rock show tonight". The energy and talent of those guys is incredible.

So I guess those were my big three of last year. Looking forward to 08!

Best: Ryan Adams at the Cedar.
Worst: Ryan Adams at the State.

Stars at the Pantages. Amy gave me a rose and we all sang our little hearts out. It was actually the best gig of my life.