a little slice of rock.

The past month has found me actually going out to a few (okay 2?) live rock shows. One was Dave Alvin at City Winery which I only went to so I could see my old friend Mr. Danny Bland (ex-Dwarves, ex-managerguy for the Supersuckers) who currently works with Mr. Alvin. The opener seemed cool (although I can't remember her name), and Alvin was great - even handled a recalcitrant broken string really well. What wasn't so great? the venue itself. Now I know they have a rep for treating musicians really well so I'll keep my negative comments to a minimum but...this whole having to have an assigned seat in a restaurant throughout an entire 2+ hours performance is just uncomfortable & no way to see a band. I was stuck back in the farthest corner of the VIP section (which is just the upper/balcony level) on a stool at a table with 2 total strangers. The sight lines were terrible and the beer prices worse. And the waiter? never brought me my change: $20 for 2 beers? I don't think so. That said, again it's a good place if you want to do sort of a dinner-theater thing & it's great that NYC has at least one venue that treats musicians well & I'm really grateful to Mr. Bland for the guest list action & it was really great to see him & all but...it'll be a long time before I come back to this place. The 2nd show I went to see? Mudhoney at the Bowery Ballroom. It'd been years since I'd seen them & while they remain one of the few bands I worked with that I still listen to, I just didn't want to go see them all those times they played in Brooklyn. Since I live 10 mins (?) from Bowery, I had no excuse. I met friends from Seattle for dinner @ some pseudo-German bar/restaurant nearby & we made it there in time (?) to catch the last couple of songs from Pissed Jeans. Not a fan. But I see why people like them. The singer? should keep his shirt on. Mudhoney played a killer set & aside from the very confused kids in the mosh pit who seemed to think they were at a Pearl Jam show, it was a really great time. If you want more, just check out Brooklyn Vegan where you can find video, a set list, and still photos. The only other live music I've seen in the last 2 months was Kristin Hersh doing her reading-the-new-book (Rat Girl), talking, then playing some songs thing at Barnes & Noble's "Upstairs at the Square." She was charming, funny, and the music was as good as the stories she told. Thanks to Mr. John Hancock 3, I had a great seat right next to the mixing board. Stayed after & caught up with my long ago New Orleans' partner-in-crime, Bobby Rust (keyboard player extraordinaire) and heard about K & B's great new place in...again, New Orleans. Apparently, all roads lead there. Or the Universe is just trying to fill me up with fond memories and a big heavy load of nostalgia-based regret. Great.