The Bravery/Switches

Finally had the opportunity to see The Bravery tonight with members of "Team Sea Wolf 2.0" and friends.

Show was opened by English up-and-comers, Switches.

For a band that is over a month away from their first proper release—these guys played a solid set with plenty of confidence and charisma to boot.

The best part of Switches was their manner in which they played. It was clean but raw—and you could tell that they were having a good time playing for the crowd.

Based on their set and the current 3-track single being marketed at the show (featuring the A-side: "Drama Queen"), good things are definitely in the cards for Switches.

Get over to their MySpace page for a taste of what you'll be listening to this Spring.

As for The Bravery—I got exactly what I expected: skillful musicianship, just over an hour of music and a lot of cockiness.

Don't get me wrong, I really like their catalog to date (and their set tonight was really good). However, there is this sense of entitlement that they exude and it really is slightly unbecoming.

The good part is they live up to their own hype.

If you have the chance, make a point to see them. You won't be disappointed.

Pictures on Flickr

Sea Wolf 2.0

After missing their original date last year due to van problems, Sea Wolf made their way back to SLC with an appearance in support of their release Leaves in the River at Kilby Court.

While the support bands didn't offer too much of a warm up (except for Emme Packer who was brilliant)—Sea Wolf played a fantastic set.

From the first note, you knew you were in the presence of real talent.

Sea Wolf, the brainchild of front man Alex Brown Church, currently consists of Alex Brown Church, vocals and guitar; Lisa Fendelander, keyboards; Theodore Liscinski, bass; April McLean, cello; Scott McPherson, drums and Aaron Robinson, guitar.

For those of you counting at home, that's 6 members in this band.

If you've heard Sea Wolf's music, you might think it slightly overkill to have 6 people in the band to reproduce the songs live. That's what I thought. However, seeing and hearing them perform those songs demonstrated just how intricate the music really is. The subtle nuances I had not perceived in the studio recording were skillfully revealed by every member in the band. It didn't take long to see why 6 was totally appropriate.

The set included the album tracks as well as b-sides from their single Get to the River Before It Runs Too Low.

The main thought I had during the set and after the show when we had a chance to talk with the band members was, "I'm so glad that I got to see this band in this setting". It's not often that a band of this caliber plays to an audience of a few hundred people gathered in a garage. And while they're not new by any means—it's always satisfying to see a band before they break out and end up on everyone's iPod.

Because the music was so good and their stage presence so polished, it's only a matter of time until Sea Wolf gets a wider mainstream audience.

So, while they're still relatively unknown, check them out now and start listening to one of the best albums of 2007 that will become one of your favorite albums of 2008.

Seriously, this is a band that is going places.

UPDATE: If you are in town for Sundance (and have credentials) try to check out Sea Wolf at one of their appearances during the festival.

Special thanks to Daniel Singer for bringing Sea Wolf to my attention and to all the members of Team Sea Wolf 2.0 for making the trip a memorable one . . . twice.

Morrissey

When we first found out that Morrissey would be playing at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, UT (approximately 30 miles south of Salt Lake City) we knew this would be a rare opportunity to see a musical icon. To date, we had never been to a Morrissey show (beside the Zephyr show in '02—which was probably the best Morrissey show we've attended) in a venue that held less than a few thousand people.

Thankfully, we weren't disappointed. Morrissey was in rare form.

We were concerned that with a smaller crowd and not selling out the venue, we could be in for a short set. We've had the short sets at Morrissey shows before. The Poly Pavilion show in '91 was a nightmare at less than 25 minutes (but that crowd was insane!). Anticipation for a longer set was high as had been the case in the Los Angeles dates over the 8 days in Los Angeles. However, after the opening act (which was much better than expected) we started having doubts about the length of the show as the crowd SUCKED!

To start, although we had front row seats, we decided to sit back a few rows because several individuals had conveniently "opened up shop" in front of our seats. Additionally, during the intermission video where there was no sound, the place was completely silent. We mean—like uncomfortably, why are these people even here—silent. While valiant attempts were made to get the crowd to at least talk, most people there just quietly waited for the show to start.

This would have been THE night for live recordings (if you have one, drop us a line).

When the curtain dropped most people moved to better positions and waited for Morrissey and the band to take the stage. Surprisingly, the crowd picked up during the show and thankfully, Morrissey and company played a full set.

Most of the songs nearly matched the first night's set played at the Palladium including the same encore. With four other songs played on different nights in Los Angeles, the Utah set was as follows (as written on the printed set list):

stp me if ?
2morrer
s i'm a p
london
loop
ripper
why don't you f ?
stretch
i like you
crashing b's
all you need is
billy b
disco dancer
lemme kiss
paris
one day goodbye
shirtlifters
killed me
gawd
hsin ?
first

Unlike most of the shows that we've seen, Morrissey was VERY conversational. Not only did he talk between every song, but he also turned the mic over to people several times during the night for statements and comments. He briefly spoke with an 8-year-old boy who was up front (did we mention that this audience was very well behaved?) and at one point gave Morrissey a shirt?!?

Another fan apparently had a "It's my birthday today" t-shirt on. Morrissey asked,"How old are you today?" (inaudible answer) "26? That's a serious age. It's all down hill from here."

Morrissey made comments about Rolling Stone magazine, the end of Tony Blair's time as Prime Minister and (of course) the end of George Bush's term next year—stating, "Next year the monster (or possibly munchkin) will be gone. And believe me, if you travel, believe me, the whole world—not just utah—the whole world will be relieved."

Our favorite quote from the night however was between Jack the Ripper and Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself when he said, "I've been banned in 12 states . . . for cruelty to humans." Oh, Morrissey.

Of course there were audience members young and younger that made the pilgrimage to the stage that-oh, so-many before them have attempted. A few were successful with little or no "wackyness". And, there were those that got a little dose of reality from the lurching security squad as well.

Overall, the show was great. While at times it felt a little like watching Morrissey play a show in a high school gym, the quality of the band was light years beyond any band that would be playing in a high school gym.

Whether this may or may not be his last tour for awhile (or for good) make every attempt to see one of the remaining dates. Not only will you see a true master at work, you'll be witness to a musical legend that will not be soon forgotten.

Click here for pictures of the event.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT: a high held "cheers" go out to the trio from the SF Valley! They made the trip up, watched the show, and turned right around to drive the 9 1/2 hours back to be at work in the morning. Only Morrissey fans are this devout.

They Might Be Giants . . . someday

Due to good fortune, we were able to secure tickets to a free, corporate sponsored show for They Might Be Giants. While the headlining act was good, the most impressive part of the night was the opening band: Oppenheimer.

The duo consisting of Rocky O'Reilly & Shaun Robinson, both hailing from Belfast, Northern Ireland, brought an honest energy to the night that, frankly, wasn't matched at any other point for the duration of the evening.

When they took the stage, there was a sense of something . . . amiss. We weren't sure if they were stage hands or groupies who had found their way onto the stage. One looked like a 15 yr old, video game playing, husky, Jack White; the other, a dead ringer for a young, shorn headed, Dana Carvey. We didn't know what to expect.

A quick introduction and they broke into the first song. Immediately the atmosphere changed. It was a welcomed surprise to here the clear and tight sound of some seasoned musicians. Just as things got hot—Rocky's guitar strap broke. He was able to kneel on the stage and finish up the song while playing it upright like a stand up bass. The great thing was, they were both all smiles.

While Rocky prepared his backup guitar, Shaun, the lead vocal/drummer, told the tale of their last minute arrival and of all the days events that lead to their moment on stage.

A failed transmission in the tour van, backed up traffic and getting lost on the way to the venue all lead up to a mad dash to show time.

With that kind of a day, most opening acts would just want to get the set over with and behind them. This night, however, proved to be a great show. They handled the situation like real pros.

The crowd was with them and pretty charged up. The deeper the band got into the set, the more the crowd responded. Although a little more mayhem ensued (see blog excerpt below), you could tell that everyone, band included, was having a great time.

From Rocky O'Reilly's blog:
"He thinks the transmission is destroyed we were going up hills at approx 11 mph.
we thought we weren't going to make it.
I think it was bad fuel, that made gerry's anger blossom somewhat.

Long, swear-filled, story short - we make it to the venue (after traffic is backed up due to an accident - and we get lost!) one minute after doors open.
The Giants people - who are all amazing and have been so nice every night are there to help load our gear in and get set up and plugged in.

I cant believe we made it.
My guitar fell to pieces in the first song - need to re screw the strap into it tomorrow.
I hit myself in the face with the 2nd guitar,
but apart from all those things, we had a great day!!! "
Oppenheimer has all the right things going for them: Solid showmanship, Irish accents, and a stylized mix between Mixel Pixel, The Postal Service & Zapp's Roger Troutman—minus the funk. The fact that Shaun made reference to "Twin Peaks" only puts them that much higher on our list.

You can never go wrong with a TMBG show. They've got a formula that has kept people's attention well into the last three decades. This time, however, get to the show early. Oppenheimer is opening each date through November 24th.
www.oppenheimermusic.co.uk/

www.myspace.com/oppenheimer