Rant cancelled

I was going to rant about the flakiness of the live music scene, how I've been screwed countless times by bad information or just lazy venue website dudes, how more people might come out if shows were more user-friendly to the workin' man, etc. etc. etc., but I realized it's stupid and pointless, so nebermind.

9/5/07 - Parata, Glen Farris, Dust Congress

Went to another free night at Rubber Gloves:

Dust Congress - i've seen him before - one-man band (guitar/banjo, kick-drum, high-hat, etc.). amazing how much sound one man can generate on his own. this time, he added a 4-mallet marimba player and a trumpet player. nice additions, but more instruments means more things to keep in tune and together, and that was a problem here and there with the trumpet player. nice songs, definite leonard cohen/loudon wainwright vibe. voice a bit thin and strained (he even apologized for it).

Glen Farris - really looked forward to this, after hearing the haunting, chill-inducing stuff on his myspace page. wondered how he would duplicate that live, and alas, he did not. Just him and his guitar (and harmonica). definitely a talented musician and songwriter, but in the end, it was just another dude with his acoustic (although a very talented dude).

Parata - these guys were fantastic. two guitars, bass, keyboard and drums. fairly complex songs - lots of tempo and mood shifts. everyone in the band had to keep on their toes, and they did. great songwriting. lead vocals a bit reedy, but good enough. really enjoyed the set - will be watching their page for their next gig.

Old Canes - cancelled "a couple days ago". rant to follow.


decent crowd once again. two stumbling drunks. way too much smoke. AC blower a real distraction during the quieter acts.

9/3/07 - RTB2, Hardin..., Childlike Fear, Florene

Went to the first night of Rubber Gloves' Free Week. godblessem, they must know how broke I am right now (long story).

Florene - totally cool. two guys, four keyboards, one guitar, and a mac. no vocals, per se. sort of a panda bear/mogwai vibe, really nice songs, would love to see them again.
A Childlike Fear - OK. guitar, bass, drum. Liked some of the music, but didn't care for the croaky, strained vocals
Hardin Sweaty... - entertaining as usual. not really my thing, musically - it's a bit harsher than i normally like, but the sense of humor and energy make up for it
RTB2 - one guitar, drums and tracks. great pipes on lead. some real heart-felt bluesy tunes

decent crowd for a monday night. froze my arse off in there - will bring parka next time.

9/1/07 - Chemistry Set, JDW, Shibboleth

Hailey’s - 9/1/07 Walked to SHQ first to check out the art show - very, uh, interesting. lots of boobies.

Anyways, the show at Hailey's:

Shibboleth - nice instrumentals, some keyboard-led, some guitar-led. very catchy.
JD Whittenburg - great tunes, loved the harmonies (amanda from boca tinta), lead vox a bit nasal
The Chemistry Set - fantastic as usual. "world in reverse" an amazing song - someone must be a radiohead fan. great set.

the sound mix was, as is all too common, lousy. it always amazes me that the sound guy, who's standing about 10 feet away from me, can't hear what everyone else can - the backup vocals can't be heard, the drum's too loud, or whatever. very frustrating.

hailey's was damn near empty - where was everybody? I figured since school had started, crowds would be picking up, but nope. oh well, they missed a great show.