it's not the band i hate...

Oh Happy Day!

Colin Sings, Annamaria Swoons

First up, Kerri was my lovely date for the Decemberists show at Clutch Cargo's; terrible venue but fan-fucking-tastic show. Everyone on stage was lovely, and the audience much younger that I anticipated—I know that I'm approaching 30, but I really shouldn't be amongst the older members of the crowd yet, should I? In deference to the kiddies in the room, the show was a non-smoking event...Kerri and I audibly groaned when we saw the signs posted asking us to step outside to smoke. Here's something I've never understood—you're at a bar, presumably imbibing spirits, you're at a rock show, presumably listening to the devil's music, and smoking offends people's sensibilities? We're already going to Hell, why not light up on the way down? And before I get the “second hand smoke kills” lecture, so does drinking and driving (more and quicker!) but I've yet attend a dry concert aimed to prevent drunks from killing themselves and others. Fuck, listening to music at exceptionally loud volumes will fuck up your hearing but good—is the sound booth going to account for that, too?

/rant.

Besides the non-smoking thing (felt like I was in LA again!), the show was amazing. Really good mix of old and new, though I would have loved to hear When the War Came or Summersong live. I think I might be the only person that actually likes those songs, though! I was pretty excited to hear July, July! which was, to me, the biggest surprise on the set list. The Perfect Crime No. 2, hands-down my favorite track on the new album (indie-rock purists be damned! I like my Decemberists sounding like Steely Dan...and I hate Steely Dan!), was so good live I might never be able to listen to the studio version again. I noticed the arms-crossed-over-their-chests and imperceptible-head-bob-used-to-approximate-dancing hipsters even shook their asses a bit during that number.

Hurdy Gurdy Man

The highlight of the evening, and I think it's safe to assume that I speak for all Michiganders here (and it is Michiganders, Colin, not Michiganians), was not only ending the show with A Cautionary Song but having Chris, Lisa and John parade through the crowd with drums, tambourines and cymbals, which finally culminated in a reenactment of the beheading of Anne Boleyn. I'm so not making this up.

Oddly, all those paper lanterns were red, even the
one that appears to be white in this picture.

After the show, I figured nothing in the world could make me a happier girl...and then as I was driving home listening to the election results on NPR* I discovered that Rick Santorum lost his Senate seat. I don't know that I've ever felt such peace and joy.

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*Thanks to Carina for sending me text message updates on the election results during the show, solidifying my nerd status once again.

posted by annamaria @ 12:22 PM