Birthday Rockin' Week 5/5: The Hold Steady
Bringing it on home.
Heaven is whenever
We can get together.
I must admit, before I left for the show, I was worried I'd regret getting tickets to the Hold Steady. I had a full weekend of rock music. I napped all afternoon and was still tired. I was still more excited about the Dismemberment Plan than I was about the idea of the Hold Steady. But, once they came on stage, I was so, so glad I stuck around for one more show. Going in, I thought I'd just stand off to the side and be low-key about it, but at the very last minute I was Up In It, jumping around with everyone else.
Venue: The Music Hall of Williamsburg, still one of the good eggs even though the volume is quite intense and the coat-check is slow. Venues need to have more than one person staffing a coat-check booth at the end of a concert.
Seats/Position in Crowd/Up-In-Itness: We got pretty close to the front, but off to the side. I very much enjoyed my neighbors, who seemed to be into it without having any interest in brushing up against me. Jesse was more in the middle, and said it wasn't as crazy at it had been in Music Hall shows past, so I guess it was just a good crowd overall.
OPQ (Old-Person Quotient): Medium. The venue was close to our apartment, and there wasn't a blizzard in-between like there was when we went to see Liz Phair. But it started on the late side--THS came on around 10.
Opening Act: The Gay Blades. They were certainly energetic and sounded tight as a band. I might've enjoyed them more if I were less tired. But they also did stupid things, like spit or say that they were going to "give it to" the crowd, so my first neutral impression is probably the correct one.
Setlist: Jesse posted the setlist, as is the custom. Lots of Separation Sunday and Boys and Girls in America, and so many highlights I don't know what they could've held back for tonight's show.
High Point: I joined Jesse in the front for "Your Little Hoodrat Friend," and was rewarded with "Stay Positive" and "How a Resurrection Really Feels," all right after "Hornets Hornets." Man, what a way to close a show!
Low Point: What? I can't hear you. The invisible choir is too loud.
Exuberance: I've never been to a Hold Steady show that wasn't exuberant. Jumping, pointing, shouting along. The band never looks like it's tired of being the Hold Steady--they look like they'd be overjoyed to do this forever.
Thus concludes my Week of Rock. I think that's pretty much all I could handle, too. I've officially run out of steam--I don't know how Jesse found the energy to go back tonight. But, I turned a round number with a lot of rock 'n' roll noise, and other birthdays from now on are going to have a lot to live up to.
Heaven is whenever
We can get together.
I must admit, before I left for the show, I was worried I'd regret getting tickets to the Hold Steady. I had a full weekend of rock music. I napped all afternoon and was still tired. I was still more excited about the Dismemberment Plan than I was about the idea of the Hold Steady. But, once they came on stage, I was so, so glad I stuck around for one more show. Going in, I thought I'd just stand off to the side and be low-key about it, but at the very last minute I was Up In It, jumping around with everyone else.
Venue: The Music Hall of Williamsburg, still one of the good eggs even though the volume is quite intense and the coat-check is slow. Venues need to have more than one person staffing a coat-check booth at the end of a concert.
Seats/Position in Crowd/Up-In-Itness: We got pretty close to the front, but off to the side. I very much enjoyed my neighbors, who seemed to be into it without having any interest in brushing up against me. Jesse was more in the middle, and said it wasn't as crazy at it had been in Music Hall shows past, so I guess it was just a good crowd overall.
OPQ (Old-Person Quotient): Medium. The venue was close to our apartment, and there wasn't a blizzard in-between like there was when we went to see Liz Phair. But it started on the late side--THS came on around 10.
Opening Act: The Gay Blades. They were certainly energetic and sounded tight as a band. I might've enjoyed them more if I were less tired. But they also did stupid things, like spit or say that they were going to "give it to" the crowd, so my first neutral impression is probably the correct one.
Setlist: Jesse posted the setlist, as is the custom. Lots of Separation Sunday and Boys and Girls in America, and so many highlights I don't know what they could've held back for tonight's show.
High Point: I joined Jesse in the front for "Your Little Hoodrat Friend," and was rewarded with "Stay Positive" and "How a Resurrection Really Feels," all right after "Hornets Hornets." Man, what a way to close a show!
Low Point: What? I can't hear you. The invisible choir is too loud.
Exuberance: I've never been to a Hold Steady show that wasn't exuberant. Jumping, pointing, shouting along. The band never looks like it's tired of being the Hold Steady--they look like they'd be overjoyed to do this forever.
Thus concludes my Week of Rock. I think that's pretty much all I could handle, too. I've officially run out of steam--I don't know how Jesse found the energy to go back tonight. But, I turned a round number with a lot of rock 'n' roll noise, and other birthdays from now on are going to have a lot to live up to.