2006: The Year In Concerts
December 28, 2006 at 7:21 pm | In Best Of..., Boston, Music, Music I Love, Video, mp3 | Leave a CommentI’m not huge on “Best of” lists (no offense Alex), but I did go to a bunch of amazing concerts this year and I feel the need to share them. However, those of you who are fans of all the “Top Ten” bullshit, be warned, this will not be ranked. Also, I went to tons of shows this year and for the sake of time I’m only including the highlights. So, without further adieu, aSNM presents: 2006 – The Year in Concerts.
Firstly, it must be stated that I have seen Apollo Sunshine 14 times live (15 after tonight. They’re playing in Andover and I will be posting a concert review with video) and this band still blows me away every time. This year I saw them on May 2nd at the Middle East Downstairs with the craziness that was the Boston Leauge of Women’s Wrestling (B.L.O.W.W.). Other than that weird ass opening act Apollo was fantastic that night. Hands down I saw the best version of their songs “U & I” and “Lord” that night. In September, I saw Apollo Sunshine again, this time at The Paradise with The Self-Righteous Brothers and Amoroso; two great bands. Despite a few technical problems (the entire left side of the stage had no power!) Apollo managed to bring the same energy and entertainment they always do. Here’s a short clip of this show I found on YouTube, the song is “Magnolia.”
I saw KD three times this year. First time was in July with the full Goddamn Band at T.T. the Bear’s. Next was at the Paradise as part of the awesomely enjoyable Hotel Cafe tour. Then I saw him perform as an opening act earlier this month on the Straylight Run tour at the Axis. Kevin has an uncanny ability to make every performance so intimate and different. I could probably see him 5 times a week and never get sick of it. 2006 was a huge year for KD, with the release of his first album with Capitol Records titled “Put Your Ghost to Rest” (read my review here) and an absolutely relentless touring schedule. With that in mind, it would have been totally understandable for him to have a less-than-spectacular show in December due to fatigue. Yet, he managed to pull out one of the best opening sets I have ever seen. He closed with one of my favorite concert moments of the year by covering Elliott Smith’s “The Biggest Lie.” And wouldn’t you know it, some super-amazing person caught that moment on video and posted it on YouTube. Thanks whoever you are!
Lyrically, this band cannot be topped. This year I was privileged to have seen The Weakerthans for the first time at the Paradise. They are great live and bring a lot of energy. You really get the sense that they love what they do, which makes the concert experience that much better. Although no announcements have been made yet about the follow-up album to Reconstruction Site, they did play a few new songs that put me on the edge of my seat waiting for details on their fourth full-length album. Here's two of their new songs, these were recorded in Germany, but lets just pretend it was in good ol' Boston.
MP3: The Weakerthans - Night Windows (Live)
MP3: The Weakerthans - Sun in an Empty Room (Live)
So there you have it. I saw many other concerts this year too. I saw As Tall As Lions three times, and they blew me away at every show. I saw Cassino (whose pending early Spring release of their debut album is probably my #1 reason why 2007 will be a great year) twice in 2006, and I am thoroughly convinced that, while I loved Northstar, the breakup of that band and subsequent formation of Cassino has made my music world a better place.
Now I must go as I am about to leave to go see what will be my last concert of 2006. How fitting that is Apollo Sunshine with their homecoming to the place I first saw them way back in 2002, The Olde Town Hall in Andover. Videos and pictures will most likely be posted tomorrow.
POSTED BY: Chris
No Comments Yet »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
Leave a comment
Alex’s Recent Tracks- Chris’s recent tracks
- elbo.ws > Top Tracks
- 1. Yeasayer - Ambling Alp
- 2. Dragonette - Easy (Buffetlibre Remix)
- 3. The Raveonettes - The Chosen One
- 4. Pants Yell! - Cold Hands
- 5. Sambassadeur - Days
- 6. The Bravery - The Spectator
- 7. Julian Casablancas - 11th Dimension
- 8. Music Go Music - Warm In The Shadows (Fred Falke reMix)
- 9. The Plastiscines - Barcelona (Lifelike reMix)
- 10. Spoon - Mystery Zone
Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.
