Sean Gillies (Posts about music)https://sgillies.net/tags/music.atom2023-12-31T01:26:20ZSean GilliesNikolaLive music 2022https://sgillies.net/2023/01/02/live-music-2022.html2023-01-02T20:06:46-07:002023-01-02T20:06:46-07:00Sean Gillies<p>I went to multiple live rock concerts in 2022 for the first time in years and
it was all a result of my 17 year-old daughter's prompting. In July she was
visiting a best friend in Montpellier, France. Her friend's parents went to see
The Smile, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood's band, in the <a class="reference external" href="https://www.festivaldenimes.com/the-smile/">Arènes de Nîmes</a>. My kid discovered that the
band would be in Denver in December 2022 and insisted I get tickets. I did. And
then we started looking into which bands were playing at Red Rocks at the end
of that venue's season and found tickets to see King Gizzard's long-delayed
Red Rocks debut. I got tickets for that, too.</p>
<p>I hadn't been to Red Rocks since the 20th century (Lyle Lovett in 1998, if
I remember correctly). All the good things about this venue remain,
particularly the views over the plains at thunderstorms or the Moon. King
Gizzard was amazing. They took some selfies, referred to us affectionately as
"cunts" (they are Australian millenials), invited us to "get fucked up and love
each other", and then rocked everyone's socks off for 3 hours. Here's the <a class="reference external" href="https://www.jambase.com/show/king-gizzard-the-lizard-wizard-red-rocks-amphitheatre-20221010">set
list</a>
and a <a class="reference external" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB28qmyGXyA">full recording of the show</a>. They kicked off with "Mars
for the Rich", which is increasingly appropriate.</p>
<figure>
<img alt="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52604180883_716cba15cd_b.jpg" src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52604180883_716cba15cd_b.jpg">
<figcaption>
<p>Moonrise from Red Rocks</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Getting to Red Rocks and back from Fort Collins is a slog. Denver's Mission
Ballroom is much more accessible. I relaxed in the passenger seat while my
daughter drove and we killed some time in a River North pub. In the line for
the door my daughter and I met a couple from Kansas City who were there for
their second show and who had all kinds of stories and advice for navigating
the venue. The Mission Ballroom has less than half the capacity of Red Rocks
and feels more intimate. We were seated, not on the floor, but could easily see
the band. The band played a bunch of yet unreleased songs and treated us to an
extra heavy version of Bending Hectic in the encore. We were super satisfied!</p>
<figure>
<img alt="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52604101200_63000fa778_c.jpg" src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52604101200_63000fa778_c.jpg">
<figcaption>
<p>Denver's Mission Ballroom</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These shows were great musically and a great chance to connect with a teenager
in the context of different adult audiences. The King Gizzard crowd was young,
like 5-10 years older than my kid, and exuberantly high. The Smile's audience
was about 10-15 years older than that and much more subtly high. If you're
a parent of a high school junior or senior you may know what it's like to go to
shows like this. The chance to have candid conversations about partying and
intoxication and the consequences is something you have to seize if you can.
Find a band you all like and do it!</p>
<p>We don't have anything on our future concert schedule except They Might be
Giants in May, but we're looking. The two of us are the more natural late night
rock-and-rolling team of the family and are looking forward to more.</p>Minutemen at The Stone 1985https://sgillies.net/2017/11/28/minutemen-the-stone-1985.html2017-11-28T21:35:48-07:002017-11-28T21:35:48-07:00Sean Gillies<p>Youtube is many things good and bad. On the good side, it's a trove of live footage of bands from the golden age of punk.
This set of songs will rock your socks off.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OCQOoOtKjms" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen> </iframe><p>According to user N Hoey at
<a class="reference external" href="https://archive.org/details/minutemen1985-05-13.flacf">https://archive.org/details/minutemen1985-05-13.flacf</a>, Minutemen
were opening for James Blood Ulmer at The Stone on 412 Broadway in San
Francisco, CA. I think I ran right by that address on my way to the Coit Tower
the last time I was in SF for work.</p>
<p>For me, the highlight is "I felt like a Gringo" at 46:47.</p>Minutemen Live at Brett's Partyhttps://sgillies.net/2017/10/19/minutemen-live-at-bretts-party.html2017-10-19T08:34:22-06:002017-10-19T08:34:22-06:00Sean Gillies<p>I can't get over the amazing video time capsule that is Minutemen playing in
a backyard in Rancho Palo Verde in June, 1985. From the uploader:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>It was 1985. Brett & my bdays are in June. We had both just graduated from
college. We had a birthday/graduation party at his mom's house on the
outskirts of San Pedro. The Minutemen played. It was a great day.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Many of the 6258 views of this video are mine.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/k4W5jP_Gmrg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen> </iframe>