Top 15 Concerts of 2012

These were the top 15 concerts I attended in 2012.  Feel free to make your own list in the comments.

15. Diamond Rugs - 06.24, Rumsey Playfield, New York, NY
"Totally Lonely" was exponentially better live than recorded, with all the members joining producer Justin Collins on the final refrain. For the set-closing "Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant," the group thinned its ranks to a duo of McCauley and Los Lobos' Steve Berlin. The fact that it was merely days after the summer solstice only amplified the beautiful sadness of the song." (Read full review)

14. Deer Tick - 12.19, Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn, NY

"With a loud "Kick it!" they crunched into "Fight for Your Right." Matt Vasquez of Delta Spirit now had the oft-traded Mustang, but his most memorable contribution to the song was throwing pitcher after pitcher of beer onto the crowd. This insane final display was the ultimate example of why we go to Deer Tick shows: Because anything can happen because it's a goddam party." (Read full review)

13. Alabama Shakes - 10.06, Merriweather Post Pavilion (Virgin Mobile Freefest), Columbia, MD

"While bassist Zac Cockrell still only moved slightly more than a well-timed bobblehead, Brittany Howard was absolutely magnetic.  She was wearing a blue dress with red dots and sporting a straightened hairdo, but you couldn't take your eyes off her face.  If you were a deaf person, you could've learned all the vowel sounds just by the way her mouth moved, soulful howls bursting out of the gaping hole." (Read full review)

12. Mayer Hawthorne - 04.16, Webster Hall, New York, NY
"This isn't a concert; it's a show," Hawthorne announced at the onset.  Backed by his band, the County, MH dazzled fans with a set of soulful originals from both of his albums, and even a few Hall & Oates covers.  For final song "Henny & Gingerale," Hawthorne played bartender and made drinks for those in the front row as he sang.

11. Matt Embree - 09.11, The Acheron, Brooklyn, NY

"The banter became downright ridiculous, Embree claiming he knew half the people in the room, even their "drunken-ass aliases, like when you get so drunk you're another person." While he may have seemed like another person between songs, his drunkenness had no effect on his musicianship. His guitar solo in "Taking Chase as the Serpent Slithers" was absolutely ferocious, and he proved his vocal prowess on a soulful cover of Hendrix's "Castles Made of Sand." (Read full review)

10. 10 Ft. Ganja Plant - 04.20, The Middle East, Cambridge, MA

This was the third ever live performance for the secretive reggae band.  The sweaty night of dub in the basement of the club was a night to remember... though due to obvious reasons, somewhat forgotten. 

9. Phish - 12.30, Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

"Disarmed by the first set, we were all ready for Phish to drop the real jams on us.  Kicking things off with "Down with Disease," the boys made it through the main part, and then unearthed a subterranean monster toward its end.  Knowing glances around the room as we lapped up the amazingly funked-out puzzle where all the pieces fit properly." (Read full review)

8. Ben Harper - 10.10, Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
"That was only the start of what would be the 54-minute encore, where Harper reached back into his catalog to revive old favorites like "Not Fire Not Ice," "Power of the Gospel," and "Welcome to the Cruel World."  The show could have bookended with the instrumental "Exhale," but surprisingly, Ben brought his chair downstage, even in front of the suspended stage mic, to play "Suzie Blue" on ukulele." (Read full review)

7. Kishi Bashi - 05.16, Le Poisson Rouge, New York, NY

It's hard to upstage the Barr Brothers, but with a violin, a microphone, and some looping pedals, he did it.  Everyone stared silently in awe as he magically constructed his songs piece by piece.  Best of the three times I saw him.

6. The Heavy - 08.30, Irving Plaza, New York, NY

A live staple for years, "The Big Bad Wolf" followed it like Little Red Riding Hood, but this wasn't the sneaky trickster from the children's tale.  This was a fucking monster.  With the crowd howling and screaming, "What you say!" it was incredible to realize that I was in a room full of adults singing along, "I'm gonna huff and puff, and blow your house down!" (Read full review)

5. Ben Taylor - 05.17, City Winery, New York, NYBen and band unveiled several new songs from his upcoming album Listening in the sonically sweet space.  Audience member John Forté sat in for a few tunes, including the fan-suggested encore "Digest."

4. Animal Liberation Orchestra - 07.23, Rocks Off Boat Cruise, New York, NY
"You guys are yelling out some really old ones," noted Dan.  "Should we do 'Sexo y Drogas?'"  And they did.  For the first time in over a year.  It was like watching 2004-era ALO all over again.  Before launching into the singalong "Walls of Jericho," I heard Lebo tuning a little ghost of "They Love Each Other."  My ears didn't deceive me, the Garcia ditty exhuming itself from the remains of "Walls." (Read full review)

3. Grace Potter & the Nocturnals - 06.14, Irving Plaza, New York, NY

"At 9:37, the band took the stage to the tribal drums of the title track off their newest  album, The Lion the Beast the Beat. Having released the LP on Tuesday, the set was heaped with fresh tunes, and Grace wasn't ashamed of it. "If you don't know it, just fucking pretend you do." (Read full review)

 

2. Band of Horses - 09.18, House of Vans, Brooklyn, NY

"What was evident was that these boys love playing music. Ben sang with such gusto, you could witness the veins bulging in his tattooed neck. Every member had a wide grin for the show's duration; even the typically stoic Ramsey sneaking out a smirk from somewhere in the center of his beard." (Read full review)

 

1. Neil Young & Crazy Horse - 09.29, Central Park Great Lawn (Global Festival), New York, NY

"Neil Young and Crazy Horse played a blistering mix of new songs from the upcoming Psychedelic Pill, and classics like the 15-minute opener "Love & Only Love." Young, Poncho, and Billy Talbot huddled together in the center of the stage, churning out waves of distortion into the crisp night air." (Read full review)

Phish 12/31 Review: Garden Party

Last night at Madison Square Garden, Phish completed their 2012 New Year's run, ringing in 2013 with a show low on sonic exploration, but high on joy.  Upon my arrival, the stage was now blanketed with AstroTurf, accented by small trees and shrubs like the sidewalks of the Flower District a few blocks south.  While it was a sight to behold from section 116, I can imagine phans who had to look through fucking tree branches for the entire show were peeved.

The lights dimmed a little after 8:30, and Phish took their places amongst the foliage.  They started things off with Rick Nelson's "Garden Party," a first for the band, and a fun little welcome to the fans.  "You can't please everyone, so you've got to please yourself," went the lyrics, and this was the mentality that Phish applied to the three-set show.  Nelson actually wrote the song about being booed offstage at MSG for playing country music instead of his bread-and-butter '50s rock, but no one would be booing Phish offstage this night.  Using the nature scene around them as inspiration, they kept the organic sound going with "Possum" and "Roses Are Free," when fans hurled loads of rose petals onto the stage.  "Rift," "Sample in a Jar," and "Alaska" followed.  While one might normally accuse them of playing it too safe with this setlist, the precision and energy was excellent.  At this point, I wasn't thinking of Phish as the purveyors of hallucinatory jams, but as Phish, the terrific rock band.  You could've taken your parents to the first set and they'd have been into it.  It was as if you'd hired them to play your "garden party" and all the guests would say, "These guys are really good."  "Mike's Song" busted open that trunk of funk they packed for their trip to New York, segueing directly into the James Gang's "Walk Away" instead of the standard "Hydrogen."  One nastily funky "Weekapaug" came next.  I couldn't help but dance, even if the legroom between the seats was inexplicably less than I had the past two nights in 106.  Glowsticks rocketed through the air, and the band carried that swell of adrenaline into a cheer-inducing "Character Zero" to close the fun first set.

 

A golf cart rolled up the ramp in front of the stage, and a caddy and group of golfers stepped out.  They teed up some soft golf balls and hit some into the crowd.  Eventually they made their way to the platform behind the stage, dumped out a bucketful, and took to it driving range-style.  I was glad to have some set-break entertainment because I've been jealous hearing that people watching the stream get little video vignettes.

 

Phish returned to a crowd anxious to hear more of the mind-expanding improvisation demonstrated in 12/30's "Down with Disease" and "Carini."  "Birds of a Feather" started things off okay, but really served as a séance for "Ghost."  Wait!  Now?  A lot of people thought Phish would be saving this one for the NYE stunt, spelling out "MSG" over the course of three years.  Balloons with skulls and vampires had been floating around the Garden already, and I assumed they had escaped from the gigantic bags of inflatables above.  Oh, well.  "Ghost" gave way to "Piper," but the tempo seemed rushed.  "Light" could've been its savior, but Trey found some bad notes.  It seemed like there was no way out, but it was New Year's, so he teased "Auld Lang Syne," and the crowd roared.  Smart move, Trey.  As the song finished, Mike and Trey nodded to each other, and in unison, stepped to their pedal boards.  With "Light" swirling around underneath, they transitioned into "2001," and what a funkfest it was.  As Mike's bass rumbled below, Trey sent whale-like squelches into the stratosphere, and the gyrating crowd accepted loudly.  "The Horse" and "Silent in the Morning" finished out the continuous song flow that began with "Ghost," but what would be next?  YEMSG.  I'm a fairly casual Phish fan, so don't bust my balls if you've seen seven better versions, but last night's felt pretty sensational, with on-point trampoline choreography, Trey dancing during Mike's stanky solo, and a pitch-perfect vocal jam with the crowd clapping in time.  "2001" and "You Enjoy Myself" saved the second set in my opinion.

 

Two guys dressed as landscapers pruned a few of the bushes onstage as the techs made sure everything was tuned for set three.  What would the stunt be with "Ghost" now off the table?  "Gumbo?"  "Guyute?"  Certainly not "Gone."

 

The lights went down and another golf cart went up the ramp.  Trey, Mike, and Page got out, each carrying clubs.  But where was Fishman?  A second golf cart arrived, and Fish got out, wearing a donut-patterned golfer's outfit.  They sliced some balls into the crowd, and retreated to their instruments.  "Party Time" befittingly opened the set, and served as the theme for the remainder of the show.  At its end, two golf carts went up the ramps and paused, facing each other.  As smoke billowed from their undercarriages, Phish began the "Kung" chant.  "We can stage a runaway golf cart marathon!"  And then it literally happened.  As the band revved up "Chalk Dust," the one golf cart pushed the other down the hill.  They rolled back around from behind the stage, and it became apparent there weren't just two.  As several golf carts zoomed past, golfers exited and commenced a choreographed dance.  A tiny golf cart driven by a little person appeared by Page's setup.  The dancers hit golf balls into the crowd, and another little person made her way to the front of the stage.  (With so much going on, it was hard to pay attention to the music, but I didn't hear any messiness despite the craziness.)  Although my phone said it was only 11:58, the little woman began the countdown, and the balloons unloaded from the ceiling.  Phish had played another joke on us: The "G" was for golf.  The token "Auld Lang Syne" switched gears into "Tweezer Reprise" and things got insane.  Balls showered out of cannons, the golf clubs glowed red, and a group of backup singers underneath umbrellas sang along.  Then one woman took the forefront and pierced ears with some high-octave screams that I'm sure led to an incredible number of buzzkills among the audience.  The stunt now complete, the dancers dissipated as the band got groovy with "Sand."  I've never heard a bad "Sand," so I don't know how this one compares, but it was super-danceable and a relief after that bitch destroyed my eardrums.  They segued into "The Wedge," but the big surprise was a bust-out of Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like an Eagle," which featured some tasty licks.  At the song's end, the jumbo screens on the center scoreboard activated, showing an image of grass.  Flying towards the camera, a golf ball, emblazoned, "Wilson."  The screens switched to a Phish ticket stub and the words, "Stay tuned," suggesting that more would be shown on the screens later, but that was also a joke.  "Wilson" was a little clunky, but it's always fun.  The bright stage lights came on again, and Phish made their way stage-right to the a cappella mic rig.  I guessed they'd be doing "Lawn Boy" for the encore.  But they did it then.  A cappella.  Page squeaked a few sour notes, but the novelty of it excused them.

 

What would they do for an encore?  "Punch You in the Eye" had yet to be played in the run.  Maybe that?  With so many surprises, it was best to stop guessing and just let them have fun.  And that was the best part.  It wasn't about melting our minds.  It was about them having fun.  Mike Gordon keeps time by nodding his head, so when you see him looking around during songs and smiling, it's pretty special.

 

When they came back, they started "Driver" and Trey flubbed it in the first few bars.  "Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  We wrote that song," he said with a laugh.  Fumbling a second time, he chuckled, and admitted, "Got it."  After "Driver," a roadie brought Page a wardrobe change of a cap and jacket.  McConnell walked out from behind his piano and said, "Happy New Year, everybody.  Whoa, how about that, huh?  We hope everybody has a wonderful 2013.  Is that where we're at?  We are about to begin the 30th year of Phish."  Thunderous applause.  He added, genuinely, "My 50th year's about to start too."  Looking back at his bandmate, he remarked, "How about a hand for Fish?  He's been killing it tonight, huh?"  More applause.  And then... a cover of "Iron Man" with Page on vocals.  It was weird.  It was New Year's.  It was Phish.

Previous nights' reviews:

12/28: Wolfman's Drummer

12/29: Getting Phunky

12/30: Digging Up Demons

PHISH - 12.31.12 - MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

SET ONE (1 hour, 10 minutes) - 
Garden Party / Possum / Roses Are Free / Rift / Sample in a Jar / Alaska / Mike's Song > Walk Away / Weekapaug Groove / Character Zero

SET TWO (1 hour, 8 minutes) -
Birds of a Feather / Ghost > Piper > Light > Auld Lang Syne (tease) > Light > Also Sprach Zarathustra > The Horse > Silent in the Morning / You Enjoy Myself > Birds of a Feather (tease) > You Enjoy Myself

SET THREE (55 minutes) -
Party Time / Kung > Chalk Dust Torture > Auld Lang Syne > Tweezer Reprise > Sand > The Wedge > Fly Like an Eagle / Wilson / Lawn Boy

ENCORE (14 minutes) -
Driver / Iron Man

Phish 12/30 Review: Digging Up Demons

Those disappointed in Saturday's straight-playing shouldn't have much to complain about now.  When the four members of Phish took the stage tonight, they had a mission: Start excavating some jams so in this banner year for your band, you'll be ready to attempt to make 2012 surpass '95 as the ultimate NYE MSG show.

With a crowd already riled up from having just navigated a confusing new maze of barricades directly inside the entrance (not to mention having the escalator turn into stairs while you're still on it), the energy was crackling as Phish catapulted into "Runaway Jim."  When the song ended with nary a jam, many were caught off-guard.  Following with Talking Heads' "Cities," smiles erupted on faces expectant of funky exploration.  When that too passed without a jam, puzzlement.  By now, Phish had moved into "The Divided Sky," a crowd-pleaser, but with a sloppy palindrome section.  Where would they go from here?  What was going to get them grooving?  As they started "Back on the Train," you could see the crowd shift off.  Phones came out.  People tapped you so they could make their way out to the restrooms.  Even the guy next to me who'd been dancing with his arms like he was fucking Anthony Kiedis stopped.  But I'm a Farmhouse fan, so I kept wiggling.  As the song continued, I noticed more and more people getting into it, and then Trey hit on a Chuck Berry-inspired solo that had people screaming.  The band attempted to capitalize on the mood with a rendition of Blues Image's "Ride Captain Ride," but it didn't really go anywhere.  Okay, so let's try... "Ocelot?"  Those returning from the restrooms traded places with those who were saving their seats.  And then it developed into a nice full-band jam.  "Ya Mar" threw some more gas on the combustible crowd, culminating in a wonderful melodic bass solo from Gordon.  During the pounding end of "My Friend, My Friend," Kuroda left the band in the shadows, hitting the cheering crowd with strobing red lights as Trey's screeching guitar crescendoed into "Run Like an Antelope," which would finish the batch.  Who would have thought that in a set with "Jim," "Cities," and "Divided Sky," that the jamming highlights would come from "Back on the Train" and "Ocelot?"

After fighting with Anthony Kiedis over my own jacket, I went for a pee and some lobsterless mac 'n' cheese.  Returning right before the second set to find my row arm-dancer-free, I smiled.  Disarmed by the first set, we were all ready for Phish to drop the real jams on us.  Kicking things off with "Down with Disease," the boys made it through the main part, and then unearthed a subterranean monster toward its end.  Knowing glances around the room as we lapped up the amazingly funked-out puzzle where all the pieces fit properly.  A not-so-smooth transition into "Twenty Years Later" was a little off-putting, but we were basking in the DWD glow too much to notice.  The "Kashmir" rip-off of a riff that starts "Carini" bugged me a little, but the arena was so full of joy, that I accepted it as part of the journey.  Having found the beast below the crust the first time, the boys went digging deeper.  Unfortunately, most of what was heard was the sound of the drill.  They almost snuck up on the monster again from this drone-angle, but Trey scared him away with an out-of-place lick, so they decided on... "Backwards Down the Number Line????"  A literal step backwards, it was the only set two misfire, because at its conclusion, Phish boogie-woogied into "Julius" to get the whole arena dancing again.  Transitioning into frequent closer, "Slave to the Traffic Light," they sealed their second night in a row with a no-breaks second set.  Oh, and just so things could be even more awesome, Page teased "Little Drummer Boy" from night one as the song wound down.

With two delicious courses consumed, it was time for dessert.  As the reggae intro to "Harry Hood" slinked out, we knew it was a hot fudge sundae.  And then they threw the cherry on top with "Show of Life."  This year's 12/30 has replaced last year's as my favorite Phish show so far.

With only one show left in the so far, so good run, talk has officially turned to New Year's Eve.  What will the stunt be?  Speculations are mounting that 2010's "Meatstick" and last year's "Steam" are starting to spell out "MSG."  Will the arena be overrun with ghosts?  Are the "Drummer Boy" teases hinting at something bigger?  Even though it would be a letdown (and they've already played it), wouldn't it be funny if they did "Grind" and then the countdown happened before the total, and they'd have to do it again to account for the additional day?  See you all tonight for the exciting conclusion.

PHISH - 12.30.12 - MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

SET ONE -
Runaway Jim / Cities > The Divided Sky / Back on the Train / Ride Captain Ride / Ocelot / Ya Mar / Horn / My Friend, My Friend > Run Like an Antelope

SET TWO -
Down with Disease > Twenty Years Later > Carini > Backwards Down the Number Line > Julius > Slave to the Traffic Light > The Little Drummer Boy (tease) > Slave to the Traffic Light

ENCORE -
Harry Hood > Show of Life

Phish 12/29 Review: Getting Phunky

Off to a spirited start with Friday's show, Phish continued what is shaping up to be a good run last night.  The band started things off a minute earlier than 12/28, this time with "Crowd Control."  A relative rarity, and not exactly a rager, it wasn't the ideal opener for the concert that would follow.  Next was "Mound," which has found new life during this era of Phish, and my brother lost his shit, having never seen it in his 50-odd shows.  "AC/DC Bag" was its crowd-pleasing self, leading into an extended take on "Rock & Roll."  "Reba" was a nice jammy centerpiece, especially because it was my first one.  This time, watching the show from the 100 level, Fishman-side, I was more in the thick of it, and discovered the marvel of MSG's second-phase of renovations during "Wading in the Velvet Sea," where trippy lights danced over an ocean of people, only broken up by one tan border between the Madison Suites and the 200 level.  "That first set was like a second set," my brother remarked, though he said the same thing last year on 12/29, and then was let down by set two.  Hopefully they would top it this time.

After a pee break and some lobster mac 'n' cheese, we returned to our seats just as the boys ripped into it with TV on the Radio's "Golden Age."  The glow snakes made their first appearance of the run, breaking into regenerative segments as they squirmed across the arena.  While I prefer TVOTR's original version, I still love the song, and they stretched it out to new lengths last night.  Gordon tacked on what I thought was going to be a funky back end, but then the song spaced in a new direction, which seemed to be the theme of the second set.  There was no break between songs, but the set seemed oddly disjointed to me, switching from hard funk to heady balladry.  The best parts were when they kept with a style between songs to build momentum, from a supremely meaty "Boogie on Reggae Woman" to a Page tour de force on "Suzy Greenberg."  To go to "Bug" after such a high proved less of a relief than a step backwards.  It took the slap bass of "Cavern" into a energized "46 Days" to mend everything back together, but then the set was over.

They returned to the stage for an encore that kept everyone guessing.  After "The Squirming Coil," the guys stood up, leading us to believe that was the end.  When they started walking in the opposite direction of the backstage steps, we breathed a collective sigh of relief as the roadies set up the mics for a barbershop "Grind," with their combined age now over 70,000 days.  That had to be it, right?  Cheers as they returned to their instruments for "First Tube," which could've been funkier given the night, but I won't bitch.  Another solid show, though I preferred 12/28.

PHISH - 12.29.12 - MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

SET ONE -
Crowd Control / Mound / AC/DC Bag > Rock & Roll / Sugar Shack / Reba / Halley's Comet > Limb by Limb / Wading in the Velvet Sea / Bathtub Gin

SET TWO -
Golden Age > Waves > Prince Caspian > Boogie on Reggae Woman > Suzy Greenberg > Bug > Cavern > 46 Days

ENCORE -
The Squirming Coil / Grind / First Tube

Phish 12/28 Review: Wolfman's Drummer

Phish dove into the jams early for their third consecutive New Year's run at MSG last night.  Before I go any further, I'd like to advise the reader that I am not a tie-dyed in the wool Phan.  Last night was my fifth time seeing Phish, and every time has been at the Garden.  That being said, I do review concerts, so I'm going to every show in the run and will be chronicling them here.  Basically, don't jump down my throat if I was impressed by what you considered a ho-hum version of a song you've seen them play 50 times.  Discussion is welcome in the comments, however.

I was fortunate enough to have seats in the highest suite, directly opposite the stage, so I got a great bird's eye view of everything.  I felt like an emperor... or at least Evita.  At 8:20, when Phish took the stage, the Garden still wasn't full.  If you had GA West tickets, you could feasibly approach the fourth row from the stage.  I think they surprised most people who took opener bets when they launched into "Stealing Time from the Faulty Plan," which I never would have banked on.  Thirty seconds in, MSG was filled to capacity.  Having not performed together since September's incredible Dick's run, the boys literally got off to a faulty start, not reaching some high notes in the next few songs or necessarily meshing like they can.  The sound could have just been different at the venue's apex, but Paige's organ was too shrill, and Trey's guitar was too hot.

Five songs in, they found their way with "Tube," segueing into a jammed-out "Stash," which really opened things up for the set.  The second part of "Kill Devil Falls" was urged along by Chris Kuroda's excellent lighting design, and "Free" brought the house down.  The show's shining moment came next, with a funky "Wolfman's Brother" delving into "The Little Drummer Boy."  Three days removed from Christmas, the holiday classic was still fresh in our minds, and everyone had to smile as they brought it into the mix and returned to "Wolfman" at the perfect time before it got cheesy.

One set down, and it got increasingly better.  What would they have in store for us next? We popped down into the concourse in a lower level, but returned to the suite once we saw all the lines.  The private bathroom and beer delivered in a bucket are definite perks to the suite life.  At 10:18, Phish regrouped and started the second set with "Tweezer," sending the guy with the TWEEZER sign behind the stage into a frenzy.  When Kuroda switched on the brights to illuminate the crowd, puffs of pot smoke shot up like geysers all around the arena.  The jammy "Tweezer" eventually ran into a "Maze," and when they finally got to its end, they found not cheese, but another "Little Drummer Boy."  Fishman hadn't gotten a chance to solo in its prior appearance, so he got to run with it a little before they oozed into "Twist."  They revisited "Drummer Boy" at the songs finale before slinking into "Theme from the Bottom," which seemed a slightly odd choice.  Two jam odysseys "Fluffhead" and "David Bowie" closed out the second set by 11:37.

Three minutes later, they returned for an encore of "Bouncing Around the Room," a happy memory for all, but essentially a pop song.  Led Zeppelin's "Good Times Bad Times" followed, somewhat disappointingly for me, who was hoping for "Tweezer Reprise" with another "Drummer Boy" tease to wrap things up with a Christmas bow.

I went the 29th-31st last year, but missed the 28th, which several have claimed was the only good show in a shitty run.  Hopefully history doesn't repeat itself this year.  I'm gonna go check out Mr. Miner to find out how I did, and I'll see you tonight.

PHISH - 12.28.12 - MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

SET ONE -
Stealing Time from the Faulty Plan / The Moma Dance / Funky Bitch / Army of One / Tube > Stash / Nellie Kane / Kill Devil Falls / Free / Wolfman's Brother > The Little Drummer Boy > Wolfman's Brother

SET TWO -
Tweezer > Maze / The Little Drummer Boy (tease) > Twist > The Little Drummer Boy (tease) > Theme from the Bottom > Fluffhead / David Bowie

ENCORE -
Bouncing Around the Room / Good Times Bad Times

Top 10 Albums of 2012

The Top 10 Albums of 2012

10. Ben Taylor - Listening
If Another Run Around the Sun is his Sweet Baby James, Listening is his JT: still rootsy but more pop-oriented.  He has a similar honey voice to his father, but made by feistier bees.  The last track "Next Time Around" uses the same progression as James' "Bartender's Blues," which someone should've noticed, but overall, still a solid record.

9. ALO (Animal Liberation Orchestra) - Sounds Like This
When a band meshes so well onstage, sometimes that energy doesn't translate into the studio, but ALO have done it... with the first six songs on this album.  "Cowboys & Chorus Girls" ends with a funky keyboard jam, but then the songs start to sound like different renditions of tunes they've already recorded.  "Bark of a Tree" recalls "The Champ."  "Combat Zone" is "Monday" with different lyrics, and "Room for Bloomin" is similar to "I Love Music."  Fortunately, aside from "Bloomin," they are better versions.

8. Bill Baird - Career
Sound Team's Movie Monster is one of my favorite indie records ever. Unfortunately, the band split, with Bill Baird going solo and Matt Oliver and Jordan Johns forming TV Torso. Fortunately, both are still making good music.  Baird took a more experimental route in crafting Career, a noisy grab bag of lo-fi ambition.

7. Gary Clark, Jr. - Blak & Blu
Some are dubbing GCJ a "legend in the making," and while his eclectic major label debut may not confirm that, it's a fun ride.  In fact, Clark had previously released all but 5 of the songs in some manner, but it's exactly these songs that show his experimentation, from the horn-accented opener "Ain't Messin' 'Round" to the Lenny Kravitz-esque "Glitter Ain't Gold."

6. Diamond Rugs - Diamond Rugs
John McCauley rounds up a different batch of friends, including Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, for a 14-song drunken romp.  "Call Girl Blues" is an easy contender for song of the year with its bouncy horns and catchy backup vocals.  I saw them perform it straight-through in June, and it holds up live too!

5. Kishi Bashi - 151a
At nine tracks, it's a breeze, but it's the only violin-based album I've been digging this year.  It's clear Kevin Barnes' influence has worn off during his touring with Of Montreal, and yet Mr. Ishibashi manages a sound all his own.  Beat-boxing, loops, and an impressive vocal range only add to its diverse beauty.

4. Jack White - Blunderbuss

First off, I've never liked the White Stripes, so this came as a shocker even to me.  After seeing White and the Peacocks play Virgin Freefest in October, I was intrigued enough to check out his solo debut.  "Sixteen Saltines" is a fucking rocker, the "I'm Shakin'" cover is fun and faithful, and oodles of piano move the album along nicely.  My brother said that Jack White would convert me, and he has.

3. Rayland Baxter - Feathers & Fishhooks

I had to specially order the vinyl from a record store in Texas, and it proved entirely worth it.  It's a beautifully textured country/folk album, with accomplished songwriting that belies Baxter's 28 years of age.

2. Fun - Some Nights

While not as stylistically variant as their debut Aim & Ignite, this collection of songs makes a nice addition to the Fun canon.  The singles were picked correctly, but "Stars" is the hero of the album, with its self-referential lyrics building to an Autotuned climax.  I listened to this album more than any other new release this year, and correctly predicted their Best New Artist Grammy nom.

1. Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Psychedelic Pill

After seeing Neil Young & Crazy Horse play new songs at Farm Aid and Global Festival, this became my number one LP to pre-order.  Though the 27:35 opening track "Driftin' Back" makes this a daunting listen, those who make it through will be well-rewarded.  Fellow 16-minute+ epics "Ramada Inn" and closer "Walk Like a Giant," with its whistling and dinosauric instrumentation, are the best songs on the album.

Deer Tick Finale Ends with Horns, Beastie Boys, and Lots of Beer

I was too exhausted after last night's Deer Tick Brooklyn Bowl finale to stay up and write, but now that I've had some sleep and a shower to wash off the beer, it's time to share.

"We're gonna play a bunch of songs," announced Ian O'Neil, fronting a band of Jeff Bailey, Chris Murray, and Julian Veronesi. Six is not exactly a bunch, but it was anyone's guess as to which songs they'd be playing because so many of Ian's songs are on Divine Providence and the Tim EP, which Deer Tick would be performing later. "The Dream is in the Ditch" started things off right, and the second time hearing it, I was already singing along. Ian revealed that they had stayed up until 5am when he heard Julian playing a new tune that he liked so much, he said, "We've gotta play that tomorrow." And they did, Ian handing over the reins to his former Titus Andronicus bandmate. "Hope is Big" made its third appearance of the residency, making it one of only three songs played every night. For the last tune, the band left O'Neil and Veronesi behind to do "a song we've been playing together for a long time," Chuck Berry's "Maybelline."

Alex Bleeker & the Freaks were next, and they sucked. Jangling between the same two chords on John McCauley's Mustang, Bleeker attempted jams that went nowhere, and sang in a boring, whiny voice. Drinking from a bottle of Jameson, he offered, "Thanks again for hanging out with us," but it's not like we had a choice. All the doors had "NO RE-ENTRY" signs on them.

Shirtless and gripping a pint, comedian Dave Hill had the honor of introducing the band. Although he was told he'd be prefacing Danzig, he chose the same intro: "They're gonna fuck you in the face with hot rock!" Deer Tick took the stage, and McCauley stated, "Ladies and gentlemen, Divine Providence." Within the first notes of "The Bump," the energy was palpable, with the crowd shouting back the lyrics. For "Funny Word," the boys were joined by a three-piece horn section that included Cochemea Gastelum (The Electric Sound of Johnny Arrow), Jordan McLean (Antibalas), and Dave Smith (TV on the Radio). The fullness of the horns brought so much to the table that they would appear on eleven more numbers throughout the night. After the rowdy punk dash "Let's All Go to the Bar," McCauley remarked, "That's the stupidest song I've ever written, and that was the hardest song to write." "Clownin Around" lacked its circus outro, which was strange, given the horns. Viking Moses played keys on "Chevy Express," though the song was muddled by a disruptive hair-pulling scuffle in the crowd. A surprising twist to the end of the album, "Miss K." transitioned smoothly into "Summertime Blues" before the band departed.

Personally, I feel that Divine Providence contains some of the band's best-written songs, but the album's sequencing doesn't serve them well. It blows its load right at the beginning with three ragers and never gets that mometum rolling again. "Let's All Go to the Bar" should end the album, as it often does their shows, sending the listener out to get wasted as a reward. Using the rest of the album as the soundtrack for the journey to the saloon doesn't work quite as well, namely because if you were just trying to get drunk, you wouldn't spend 30 minutes getting there; you'd just go around the corner. Regardless, the horns livened things up enough that it didn't get boring, though their delicate shading on "Electric" was overpowered by McCauley's wails.

A minute later, Deer Tick and the horn section returned for "Mr. Cigarette." "I mean we made you wait on the album too," said McCauley, though thankfully it wasn't the thirty minutes of silence before the hidden track as it is on the CD. This time the horns were louder than McC, obscuring Paul Westerberg's clever lyrics. I'd never heard "Born at Zero" before, which was decent, but the medley of the Nirvana-esque "Walls" and the previously-unplayed "Virginia Gal" was thrilling. McCauley took the microphone out of its stand and walked around, pretending to solo on Rob Crowell's sax and patting Ian on the shoulder. You could tell they were having a blast. "That's the first time we've ever performed that song. We've been doing a lot of firsts with this residency. It's been really nice," McCauley admitted. "She's Not Spanish" made its third residency appearance, though the first for the band, making me realize that I like O'Neil's DT songs more when he actually plays them with Deer Tick. A cover of Elliott Smith's "Between the Bars" was just okay, but it segued into a version of "Ashamed" that knocked 12/5's off of the map. Taking it at a slower tempo to start, the song built into a vehicle for each horn and guitarist to solo. The horn blasts combined with the crowd chants made this quite possibly the best performance I'd seen in the three shows. "Cake & Eggs," a song in the key of D and "sort of about oral sex," cooled things down a bit after the epic "Ashamed." "We'd like to end this by celebrating a very bad man," said McCauley, and they launched into Jim Croce's "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown," playing it so well you'd have thought they wrote it.

The band ascended the backstage stairs, but John remained on the side of the stage. Gesturing us to keep up the applause, he returned to sing "Diamond Rings" with Dennis Ryan on harmony. "No So Dense" was the crowd-pleaser it always is, and as it wound down, the horns and others made their way into the lights. "This one goes out to the people of Brooklyn," and with a loud "Kick it!" they crunched into "Fight for Your Right." Matt Vasquez of Delta Spirit now had the oft-traded Mustang, but his most memorable contribution to the song was throwing pitcher after pitcher of beer onto the crowd. This insane final display was the ultimate example of why we go to Deer Tick shows: Because anything can happen because it's a goddam party.

Deer Tick, like Band of Horses at Manhattan Center, missed one song from their repertoire: War Elephant's "Long Time," but no one cared. Fully rocked, slightly sore, and reeking of booze, I made my way out onto Wythe to get back to the train. John McCauley was standing outside the back door, and I had to congratulate him on the best show of the three.

Reviews of previous Deer Tick shows:
12.12.12 Brooklyn Bowl
12.05.12 Brooklyn Bowl
10.03.11 Death by Audio
08.11.11 Pier 54


IAN O'NEIL - 12.19.12 - BROOKLYN BOWL (21 minutes, 10 seconds)

SET -
The Dream is in the Ditch / Funky Song (I Will Forget)* / Grow Tired of You in Time* / Be Kind to Me / Hope is Big / Maybelline

DEER TICK - 12.19.12 - BROOKLYN BOWL (1 hour, 43 minutes)

 

SET -

The Bump / Funny Word / Let's All Go to the Bar / Clownin Around / Main Street / Chevy Express / Something to Brag About / Walkin Out the Door / Make Believe / Now It's Your Turn / Electric / Miss K. > Summertime Blues

 

ENCORE I -

Mr. Cigarette / Born at Zero / Walls > Virginia Gal / She's Not Spanish / Between the Bars > Ashamed / Cake & Eggs / Bad, Bad Leroy Brown

 

ENCORE II -

Diamond Rings / Not So Dense > Fight for Your Right