Found out The Dismemberment Plan were reforming while scrolling on my phone in the toilets while on a stag do. Drunkenly went home and bought tickets, flights and a hostel stay in Harlem. Woke up the next morning and forgot about it. Remembered later that morning and was a hell of a surprise. Ended up interviewing them and seeing them twice in Webster Hall, zero regrets.
Saw Handsome Furs in an abandoned hospital on the edge of Dubrovnik. Caused an argument with my girlfriend at the time because she wasn’t up for it so came to a compromise that I went by myself. Was better than I expected, and a novel venue, but mostly remember feeling dread about the tension the whole thing caused.
POSITIVE (x 3): I saw GY!BE twice in Toronto in an early 20th century ballroom on the lakefront in 2003 where they played mostly different sets each night and blew me away each time.
I saw Q & Not U and Fly Pan Am play together in a Berlin club in 2004. The latter band’s set was probably the best live set I’ve seen full stop. Changed my mind about music.
I was living in Istanbul for a wee bit and Peter Brotzmann’s group dropped in for a 3hr freeform set that was wild as hell in parts and incredibly generous and brilliant.
NEGATIVE (x 1): Follakzoid in Prague last November was hideous. They turned from bongcloud space rock exploration into Executioner’s Bong with worse music. Insipid piss, frontwoman is now Bez in her own project. Left after 40 minutes.
Remarkably, despite being a big fan of city breaks, I’ve never been to a non domestic gig. I seem to have impeccable timing in that all of my trips coincide with when nothing is happening e.g. in 2003 if I’d only gone to Toronto a week later I could have seen Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds and Daniel Johnston with Yo La Tengo (although I could have seen the Delgados the night I arrived but I was jetlagged and didn’t have my bearings).
While visiting New Orleans entertaining myself while my girlfriend-at-the-time was at a science conference there, I went around the city watching the various artists from the TV show Treme since I’d been watching it, and most of them play in various venues there like twice or three times a week. Remember learning the hard way with Rebirth Brass Band that in NO when it says doors 8pm, the band probably won’t start till like 1am, so it ended up with a lot of hanging around.
Highlight though was definitely going to the Treme Candlelight Lounge to see the Treme Brass Band, when Wendell Pierce (of Treme the TV series) walked in wheeling in what I assume was his dad. During the set, the Treme Brass Band started playing the Treme theme song which prompted the start of the TV show Treme to get up and start dancing along. All in Treme. Treme.
Only done it once, Sunn 0))) in Amsterdam. Gfs a fan and it was at a venue that was an old church. Support band was Nadja who just stood behind keyboards. Not great. Sunn 0))) came on surrounded in smoke and synchronised lifting their arm slowly and playing a chord. For 90 minutes.
The dullest thing I’ve ever sat through in my life
If I had the chance to go anywhere back in time, it’d be to when I was outside that venue, I’d pretend I had a headache so couldn’t go and slunk off to meet you
I went all the way to Toronto, Ontario, Canada for this. Probably one of my favourite festival experiences ever. The run from Dangers → No Man → Cerce was the greatest run of bands I’ve ever had.
When Pixies first reformed, I was living in Dublin, and the only Irish date was supporting the Red Hot Chili Peppers at Phoenix Park. Obviously I wasn’t going to that, so we decided to go to one of the Brixton shows and flew over. IIRC ours was scheduled to be the very first reunion gig, but when an extra date was added it was tacked onto the beginning of the run, so ours ended up being the second, which was and is a mild irk. But then again we got to see the drummer doing a magic show as the support act, and look at that setlist.
oh an absolute mind-melter I saw in the dull Dutch city of Tilburg was Sightings (NYC “no wave” group) absolutely drive themselves into the floor headlining over a sweaty and antic set from pre-cancellation John Maus and a very good local dubby post-rock group called Eklin.
Sightings’ set was filmed - this bit from an unreleased song was hair-raising, especially when the soundman realised the drummer’s trigger pads should be higher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDj-HvQkqCU
013 is cool and the city definitely punches above its weight culturally. I used to go out with someone from Goirle, which is nearby, and there’s an oppressively pious atmosphere that reminded me of how Sundays used to be in the UK. Bad memories I guess.
Big Thief at the Neptune Theatre, Seattle on the third night of our honeymoon.
Hadn’t planned to see them, and it was a sold out show, but we got talking to a couple of folk in a bar the day before who turned out to be selling their tickets, which we gleefully took the offer up on.
It’s probably my favourite ever gig: beautiful wee venue, setlist was perfect (Adrienne did a acapella version of Mary to start the show where you could hear a pin drop), and obviously the honeymoon aspect and the excitement at starting a 3 week roadtrip down the West Coast made it all hit harder.
We were travelling around Scandinavia for a month in the late 90s. Happened to be in Stockholm when the free Water Festival was on, thought we’d see what was on and Sonic Youth were onstage! We were expecting low key local acts as it was free! A treat, followed by fireworks over the water. Lovely memories of that.
