This is me

As usual, I went to A LOT of concerts.  I don’t have ticket stubs for most.  I mostly went back to check out pictures to jog my memory.  I’m happy with my choices below and hope you agree.  Also, apparently I didn’t make a list for 2011, but here’s my list for 2010.

Medeski Martin Wood with special guest Nels Cline – Blue Note – I usually don’t rank anything, but this was the best show I saw in 2012.  It was 75-minutes of improvised jazz fusion.  Nels can get weird with MMW, but he can also shred and lock in on one of their grooves.  Every section of their set was a complete surprise.  In short, they need to record together.

Wilco – Celebrate Brooklyn – My fifth Wilco show.  Easily the best one I’d seen.  The aforementioned Nels adds so much to this group as well.  This particular show was a nice mix of their entire catalog.  It didn’t get too weird, too country, or too rock.  Plus at $40 a ticket, I felt I got my moneys worth with 2 hours of amazing songs.

Alabama Shakes – Roseland Ballroom – I’m just going to throw it out there.  The fans that night were the worst to the point where I left Jack White’s set about 30 minutes in.  That was exacerbated by the fact that the Shakes went on over an hour after their intended set time.  However, they CRUSHED it.  Of the 6 times I’ve seen them, that was easily the best.  The energy was there.  The room was packed with all eyes on them.   And they delivered beyond my expectations that night.

Fiona Apple – Music Hall of Williamsburg – First time seeing her.  Nearly impossible to get tickets, but I called in a favor to make it happen.  She could have used a steak or five to bulk up from her 80 pound current weight, but her energy, passion, stage presence, and 97% of her voice were still there.  It was such a treat to be there with 500 people.  That will probably never happen again.

Shuffle Culture – Brooklyn Academy of Music – I had no clue what to expect other than seeing that Reggie Watts, Deer Hoof, Questo, and a cast of other random musicians would be sharing the stage.  The reality was that the music seamlessly jumped from classical to jazz to rock to hip-hop and every combination in between.  No slow points.   Even better, I was quoted in Rolling Stone.

Squarepusher – Webster Hall – I bailed on SXSW just to see Squarepusher.  This guy doesn’t record new records ever and doesn’t tour half as much.  This time around, he was doing both and I had to go.  I’m a long time fan of his jazzy bizarro drum n bass.  What I saw was 80 minutes of intense, in your face music and bright flashing lights coming from everywhere including his mask.  Check that off my bucket list concerts.

Ben Sollee – Backyard Brunch Sessions – Ben and I have been friends since I first tried to get him to perform almost 3 years ago.  I was very happy to get the message from him that it could work last minute.  The show was moved indoors because of weather.  The AC was turned off because it was too loud, so we were treated to two sets (with a water/AC break between) of new songs and requests of older songs.  You can check out a video here and download the whole performance here.

Preservation Hall Jazz Band – McKittrick Hotel – I have been to New Orleans a handful of time and every time I went I always made a point to go check Preservation Hall.  The staff of Sleep No More turned their upstairs lounge into a makeshift New Orleans bar with two stages.  Preservation played two sets of music with guest performers and burlesque dancers.  They are doing this residency again, so don’t miss out!

Sigur Ros – Mann Music Center – Sigur Ros is easily in my top 10 bands ever.  I still buy all their records, which I can’t say about many other bands.  They don’t tour ever, so I try to catch them as often as I can.  This was their first show in 4 years.  You could slightly tell this was the case, but even on their “off” nights, they’re still better than most bands on their best.  I look forward to seeing them again at MSG.

Andrew Bird (solo, duo and trio) – Riverside Church – If you get past the kitchy whistling, you find a very creative, quirky musician who makes sounds I never knew existed from a violin.  This show in particular was a part of his Gezelligheid solo series.  The church was BEAUTIFUL.  The sound was acoustically perfect.  His performance was warming, relaxing, but never a dull moment as he shifted between electric and acoustic with a guest bassist and guest vocalist/guitarist.

Honorable Mention:  Crossing Brooklyn Ferry featuring Buke and Gase, St. Vincent, and The Antlers – Brooklyn Academy of Music – Second time seeing St. Vincent.  First time for both Buke and Gase and The Antlers.  All three exceeded expectations and amazing to have all three for the same price of admission.  The highlight though was St. Vincent dropping her guitar to sing an old punk song in the audience and continue to finish the song off whilst crowd surfing.