It's the triumphant return of Waits Wednesday...

MP3 Tom Waits - "Big in Japan"
Matt Meyers, who taught independent producing back when I was @ NYU, once said in class: "Like Tom Waits, I'm big in Japan." I think he was talking about how some actors draw larger audiences in foreign markets than they do in the U.S. (Peter Gallagher of The O.C. fame apparently does well in Europe), but that's besides the point. "Big in Japan" is the lead-off track from Waits' late-90's comeback album Mule Variations, and it sets the tone nicely for the rest of the insanity that follows. It stomps around, uses lots of weird & random noises, and features Tommy-Boy growling & grunting better than any man alive. It also does a suprisingly decent job of expanding upon the point of Matt's lesson, fwiw.

MP3 Britt Daniel - "Let The Distance Bring Us Together"
Here's a fun track from Spoon frontman Britt Daniel. It's off of the fourth volume of Home, a split-cd series from Post Parlo records. Home IV features two tracks apiece from Britt & emo-mainstay Bright Eyes (O.C. viewers have heard of him, I'm sure), who I believe are semi-frequent collaborators. Naturally, it sounds a lot like a Spoon song, which is always a good thing.



I had the pleasure of catching Spoon play a sold-out show @ the 400 Bar last nite, and thank god for JRDN, who had the brilliant foresight to get advance tickets. Thanks again, pal.

Britt & Co. played a solid set & two encores, performing 4-5 new songs (including the recently posted demos) which may appear on their next LP, tentatively titled The Beast and Dragon Are Adored (according to Pitchfork), which should be out later this year. BTW: JRDN thinks the next album is going to break them, and he might be right. JRDN was also delighted to hear "30 Gallon Tank" among other things during the show, while I was happy to hear MP3 "Car Radio" during the second encore. Other highlights for me included "Small Stakes", "Everything Hits At Once", MP3 "Paper Tiger", and the closing "Jonathan Fisk" - oh, so many great moments.



It was all good times until the very end of the main set, when two lame kids, who looked about 15 to JRDN & I (though 400 Bar is 21+), pushed their way to front row center & were completely obnoxious. The girl was screaming & flashing the devil's horns repeatedly, while the guy was flailing about like an idiot & getting in the way of those around him. They were pissing a lot of people off, and a Spoon crewmember even told the guy to calm down after the first encore. Just before that, Britt had been looking down at these two w/an annoyed glare, which the girl later squealed about (thinking Britt was really connecting with her, I suppose). At the time, Spoon was playing "Take A Walk", and I wished Britt had told the guy to do just that. JRDN & his buddy Nick (who joined us upfront in a much more courteous manner) took initiative & pushed forward, doing their part to contain the guy's moronic behavior. Thankfully, we didn't let any of this ruin what was a fantastic show.

For those interested, there are some live recordings of some new Spoon songs at this website, which I found through catbirdseat.



Oh yeah, Spoon also played another of my favorites, "The Fitted Shirt". It even included a little sing-a-long by the audience that was actually quite nice. The song always reminds me of the simple-yet-great concert poster by the local guys over at Aesthetic Apparatus, which is pictured above. That poster is sold out, but check out their website for other cool designs, etc.

This entry was posted by mr gilbert at 6/23/2004 06:20:00 PM.