Yeah Right

The Year in Concerts

I only hit up 69 concerts this year (I'm slipping!) and without going to SXSW the number would have been much smaller. I covered 9 states (including DC), the 9:30 Club was my most visited venue (with The Anthem and the Black Cat close on their heals), and Weezer (4 shows, though one was awful and another one was meh) was my most seen band (though I saw several bands multiple times, including The Relationship, Downtown Boys, Priests, The Secret Sisters, and The Black Lips). 

Here's the full list:

1. Kyle Morton at Sixth and I
2. The Relationship at Valley Bar 
3. Japandroids at 9:30 Club
4. Save Ferris at Black Cat
5. Flaming Lips at 9:30 Club
6. Priests at Black Cat
7. Regina Spektor at DAR Constitution Hall
8. SXSW Showtime House Party at Clive Bar – Bleached headline 
9. SXSW Official Showcase at BD Riley’s Irish Pub – Muncie Girls headline
10. SXSW Japan Nite Preview Day at Valhalla – CHAI headline 
11. SXSW Brooklyn Vegan Day Party at Cheer Up Charlie’s – Beach Slang headline
12. SXSW Official Tulsa Showcase at Bungalow – Broncho headline 
13. SXSW Midgetmen’s Jumpstart at Side Bar – Lee Baines III and the Gloryfires headline
14. SXSW Floodfest at Cedar Street Courtyard – Black Lips headline 
15. SXSW Crush Music Official Showcase at Brazos Hall – Weezer headline
16. SXSW Rachel Ray’s Feedback Party at Stubb’s – Weezer headline
17. SXSW Burgermania at Hotel Vegas – Meatbodies headline
18. Laura Stevenson at Black Cat
19. Thao at Rock and Roll Hotel
20. Aimee Mann at Lincoln Theatre
21. The Revolution at Fillmore Silver Spring
22. New Pornographers at 9:30 Club
23. Black Lips at Black Cat
24. Twin Peaks at 9:30 Club
25. Jenny Lewis and Ryan Adams at Merriweather Post Pavilion
26. DC101 Kerfuffle at Merriweather Post Pavilion – Weezer headline
27. Pixies at Lincoln Theatre
28. Secret Sisters at Jammin’ Java
29. Boston Calling Day One – Chance the Rapper headline 
30. Boston Calling Day Two – Mumford and Sons headline
31. Boston Calling Day Three – Tool headline
32. Tim Kasher at DC9
33. Iron Maiden at Jiffy Lube Live
34. Mary Timony at Rock and Roll Hotel
35. Lizzo at 9:30 Club
36. Olivia Mancini and the Mates at IOTA
37. Margaret Glaspy at Rock and Roll Hotel
38. Planes Mistaken for Stars at DC9
39. U2 at First Energy Stadium 
40. Metallica at Sun Trust Field
41. Puddles Pity Party at the Kennedy Center
42. Ben Gibbard at Lincoln Theatre
43. Cymbals Eat Guitars at Black Cat
44. Lee Baines III and the Glory Fires at DC9
45. Queen w Adam Lambert at Verizon Center
46. Roger Waters at Verizon Center
47. Slothrust at Rock and Roll Hotel
48. Olivia Mancini and the Mates at Black Cat
49. Waxahatchee at 9:30 Club
50. Downtown Boys at DC9
51. Mynabirds at DC9
52. Torres at Rock and Roll Hotel
53. Secret Sisters at Hamilton Live
54. Andrew WK at The Anthem
55. Foo Fighters at The Anthem
56. Against Me! at 9:30 Club
57. Phoenix at The Anthem
58. LCD Soundsystem at The Anthem
59. Guns ‘n Roses at the Verizon Center
60. Queens of the Stone Age at The Anthem
61. Dresden Dolls at 9:30 Club
62. Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile at The Anthem
63. Tegan and Sara at The Anthem
64. Bleachers at the Fillmore Philadelphia
65. Lady Gaga at Verizon Center
66. St. Vincent at The Anthem
67. Wolf Alice at 9:30 Club
68. Jake Bugg at Sixth and I
69. Ex Hex at Black Cat

File Under: Funny

The best column of the year, Dave Barry's year in review, is out. Commence reading.

Song of the Week

I saw Ex Hex last night, rounding out my last show of 2016. Since I've already used all of my favorite Ex Hex songs for this feature before, I'll go with "Wolfbite" -- a track from a sideproject of Ex Hex's bass player:

Yeah Right Best of 2017 Picks

Album of the Year: So, so many great albums this year. How great? LCD Soundsystem put out a stellar album this year. It doesn’t even crack my top 10. I could say the same about a lot of other great bands. For me the top spot comes down to two albums – The Secret Sisters’ You Don’t Own Me Anymore and Brand New’s Science Fiction. While Science Fiction is a perfect swan song for a band that I’ve loved and seen evolve quite a bit since college (it is easily their best album) The Secret Sisters finally captured the joy of their stellar live show on an album. This is their moment to shine. It’s a genre that won’t make them superstars, but it is the year’s best album nonetheless. FWIW the rest of my top 10 (in no particular order) is: The Orwells – Terrible Human Beings, Lorde – Melodrama, Dan Auerbach – Waiting on a Song, Waxahatchee – Out in the Storm, Downtown Boys – Cost of Living, Queens of the Stone Age – Villains, Bully – Losing, and Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile – Lotta Sea Lice.

Music Video of the Year: I loved Wavves’ clip for “Million Enemies”:

 2017 Playlist:

The Secret Sisters – “Little Again”

Queens of the Stone Age – “Head Like a Haunted House”

St. Vincent – “Young Lover”

Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile – “Over Everything”

Downtown Boys – “A Wall”

Dan Auerbach – “King of a One Horse Town”

Lorde – “Green Light”

Bleached – “Can You Deal?”

Arcade Fire – “Creature Comfort”

Priests – “JJ”

Cover of the Year: As if this JT song couldn’t be sexier, the XX elevate it:

Song That Got Played To Death But I Still Love: I loved the return of Kesha. Her album as a whole was overrated, but “Praying” is her best song yet.

Concert of the Year: Finally seeing LCD Soundsystem live was a dream come true. I have to give them the top spot. But the rest of my top five put up quite a fight: 2) Queens of the Stone Age at the Anthem, 3) Foo Fighters at the Anthem, 4) New Pornographers at 9:30 Club, 5) Roger Waters at Capitol One Arena.

Festival of the Year: I finally made it to SXSW this year. It was exhilarating, exhausting, and (most importantly) full of amazing artists.

Book of the Year: I finally read Dreamland and it was amazing, but that came out a few years ago. In typical fashion, Chuck Klosterman put out a book (X) and it was my favorite of the year. Honorable mention to John Pfaff’s Locked In.

Meme of the Year: It probably started last year, but I didn’t notice it until 2017. Trump Draws was my favorite thing on Twitter this year.

Sports Moment of the Year: Chelsea won the league again, but nothing compared to the joy of seeing Roger Federer win two majors in 2017. Especially satisfying was his stint at Wimbledon, which was dominating in the fashion that you have expected ten years ago, not today.

Celebrity Moment of the Year: I love a good Halloween costume, and it’s pretty hard to beat Gwyneth Paltrow’s costume this year.

Best TV of the Year: The Fatwa sex episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm was the single best episode of TV this year (and probably the best episode of anything since the last season of Curb). But the mini-series Big Little Lies was enthralling (I hadn’t read the book). Easily Reese Witherspoon’s best role to date and the rest of the cast was amazing as well. I’m annoyed that they are trying to do a season two (let good things be!) but we’ll always have the original.

Movie of the Year: I could not have enjoyed The Disaster Artist more. What a fitting tribute to the best worst movie ever made, The Room. James Franco probably won’t get an Oscar, but he deserves one.

2018 Pop Culture Moments That I’m Most Looking Forward To: I’d say the World Cup, but the USMNT screwed the pooch on that one. So sports wise I’m placing all of my hopes on an entertaining Winter Olympics, music wise I’m stoked for Lucy Dacus’ new album due out in March, and TV wise get ready for season two of Westworld!

Belated Mini Concert Reviews

Wolf Alice at 9:30 Club – I missed the opener because traffic was horrendous and it took my Uber an hour to go from Arlington to U Street (I hate you sometimes, DC). But a lot of other people must have been caught in the same traffic because I still got a decent place to stand. Wolf Alice were a lot better live than on their album – much more power to the music. They opened with “Heavenward” off their latest album and played several other newer songs early in the setlist. “Bros” and “Lisbon” were mid-set highlights off My Love is Cool. “Sadboy” and “Moaning Lisa Smile” were also strong points before the band ended with “Fluffy” and returned for a two-song encore of “Blush” and “Giant Peach.” Nothing too flashy, but a solid show.

Jake Bugg at Sixth and I – Shelby Blondell opened and was not my cup of tea (too much talking in the middle of songs to tell you what the song is about), but it was a short set so no harm, no foul. I hadn’t seen Jake Bugg perform since his first album came out. I hadn’t paid much attention to him after his third album was a dud, but he’s doing this tour solo acoustic, so that was too tempting to pass up. I’m glad I went – it was excellent to hear his songs in that format. He’s a guitar wizard, but all of his songs sounded great on a more simple arrangement. That held even more so for the tracks on his third album. Turns out those are also great songs, the production on the album was just way over the top.

He opened with “Hearts That Strain” off his new album. About halfway through the set “Trouble Town” kicked off a stretch of excellent songs from his self-titled debut, including “Country Song.” “There’s a Beast and We All Feed It” and “Slumville Sunrise” were the standout performances from his second album. He covered Danny O’Keefe and Glen Campbell before ending with the solid trio of “Two Fingers” “Waiting” and “Lightning Bolt.” No encore, but admittedly it’s a weird venue for exiting the stage so a lot of performers don’t bother with that. The show was good enough that I guess I have to pick up his new album.

Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile at the Anthem – This was my first seated show at the Anthem. The comfort of the seats is pretty variable around the venue by section. I was in the third row center and we had the most lush seats. The side sections on the floor were padded (but not as thick). And the seats on the back platform were pretty janky looking. So I won the seat lottery there. I was pleasantly surprised that this was a seated show. But a lot of other people bitched about it. I could see how that goes both ways – their joint music is right on the cusp of energy level where you could sit or stand.

Courtney’s partner Jen Cloher opened the show with a solo acoustic set and was killer. I’m seeing her again with full band in the spring, so that will be a fun contrast. Courtney and Kurt opened with their single “Over Everything” and covered most of their fabulous collaborative album. They also played a handful of their own songs, which was neat to hear under alternate arrangements. They are basically the perfect musical compliment to each other. The only downside is that Kurt’s vibe doesn’t lend itself of some of Courtney’s rockers that are more dangerous in their energy. So don’t expect a tame version of “Pedestrian at Best” in the setlist. “Depreston” “Dead Fox” and “Avant Gardener” were the Courtney selections while Kurt repped “Life Like This” and “Pretty Pimpin.” They also did a stellar Gillian Welch cover in the encore.

Tegan and Sara at the Anthem – This was part of the Con X (mostly acoustic) tour, so they opened with all the tracks from the Con before transitioning to an assortment of other stripped down songs. So the setlist was very different than the last few shows I’ve seen them do. It was great to hear all the Con tracks (I’m firmly in the “I love full album tours” camp, haters be damned). It’s nice to see a band that is so versatile. They crush the folk rock one minute, then churn out a club burner the next. The only song I didn’t enjoy on the evening was the set-ending “Closer.” The acoustic arrangement didn’t do that song any favors and it just felt forced. All the other newer songs they put in the setlist were thematic fits with the Con and sounded good stripped down. “Closer” just didn’t. But they presumably felt pressure to play it anyway, and that was a little sad.

Cool Art Alert

Giant skulls edition

Hat tip: Stefanie

Song of the Week

It's hard to oversell how good the Secret Sisters' latest album is. Truly outstanding. So let's go with "Carry Me" as the SOW:

Download These Songs Now (And Thank Me Later)

Bat Fangs – “Wolfbite”

Screaming Females – “Glass House”

Lavender – “You are in the Right Place”

Brett – “Emperor Tho”

Lucy Dacus – “Night Shift”

File Under: Awesome

A great Tiny Desk Concert from Phoebe Bridgers:

Concert Review: Lady Gaga

I was nervous all fall that Lady Gaga would have to cancel her second-US-leg Joanne tour, after she canceled her international dates late in the summer for medical reasons. But thankfully she recovered in time to hit up the Capital One Arena at the end of November, and I was there to enjoy the spectacle.

Gaga’s live shows are my favorite of the big pop stars. I’ve seen Pink and Beyonce and others and they are great, but the theatrics of a Gaga show are really enjoyable. She changes up pretty much everything from tour to tour, so it always feels like something new. For example, she changes which songs she performs as piano ballads and incorporates most of her most recent album. The costumes and stages are always new and interesting. She’ll also bust out one or two deep cuts from former albums and it is really fun to see what she selects. Plus, you can’t beat the people watching. Since this tour is to support the stellar Joanne, pink cowboy hats were pretty common throughout the arena, though I opted for a “Telephone” inspired outfit.

We got a unique show in DC because Gaga was performing on the American Music Awards that night. So we were treated to “The Cure” first, whereas she normally closes the set with it. The performance itself was great (and looked amazing when I watched it on my DVR the next day). The communication about said performance was less than great. Her choreographer came out to explain what was happening, but that was more of a hype man scenario vs. actually explaining useful information. And they tried to hype us way too early – you can’t sustain 15 minutes of standing and cheering when nothing is happening. Also, after the performance there was 30 minutes of nothing before the rest of the show started. It was weird.

Once the main show started, things improved greatly. “Diamond Heart” was a surprising pick for opening number. The next song “A-Yo” was much better received and felt like that was when the show really started. “Poker Face” (always awesome) and “Perfect Illusion” (the worst song on Joanne by a mile, how that was the lead single astounds me) rounded out the first mini set. I was glad to see that the weird videos were back as the transition pieces between sets – most of them aren’t even very good but they are always interesting. “John Wayne” kicked off the next set which featured the deep cut of Scheiße along with “Alejandro.” The third set of old songs (“Just Dance,” “LoveGame,” and “Telephone”) was interrupted so Gaga could accept the AMA that she won, which was a neat thing to see live. Art Pop didn’t get a lot of love in the setlist, though Applause (the worst song on the album, again – how on earth was that a single) made it into set four, along with “Come to Mama,” an excellent piano ballad of “The Edge of Glory” and “Born This Way” (which started as a ballad but transitioned into a more up-tempo number). Act five busted out “Bloody Mary” “Dancin’ In Circles” and arguably my favorite Gaga song, “Paparazzi.” Then Gaga slowed things down with my 2^nd and 3rd favorite Joanne tracks – “Angel Down” and “Joanne” before returning for the set closer of “Bad Romance.” The ending of “Bad Romance” was awkward and abrupt, but considering that’s when the show normally transitions to “The Cure” as the closer, that is presumably why. Gaga came back to her piano (conveniently located on the side of the arena where I was seated) for an encore of “Million Reasons” (my favorite Joanne track).

All in all a great show and in contention for my favorite Gaga arena tour.