18 March 2006

Silver Jews @ Webster Hall - 17 March 2006

I never thought I'd see Silver Jews play a live show as they just haven't been a band that tours at all. Given that fact, I was excited when this current tour was announced but then also considered that they might not be the tightest band I've ever seen. Turns out they were a bit better than I expected but still clearly haven't worked out all of the kinks in their live show. David Berman was clearly a bit nervous at first and he had a music stand with a light on it which he used to read his lyrics as he was singing. It struck me as funny that many people in the audience probably know his writing better than (apparently) he does. However, it did seem that they were getting more comfortable towards the end of the show and I'd imagine the show tonight will be even better than last night.

Once again the sound was an issue but I'm starting to expect such problems at Webster Hall. Overall it could have been louder, and any kind of simple mix would've been nice, but whatever. I get the feeling that the crappy sound in Webster Hall really differs depending upon where you're standing. Since we got to the show slightly late we were stuck towards the back and underneath some JBL speaker that was putting out ONLY the vocal tracks. Fact is, there are plenty of other venues in the city better suited for Silver Jews to play and I found myself wishing I could've seen them at some really sweet outdoor venue on a summer night.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

This was one of the top five concerts I have seen of all time. That includes the Grateful Dead, Pavement, Bonnie Raitt, Kraftwerk, you name it - the whole spectrum. Besides the small contact bugout at the beginning, I thought the lyric setup was clean and well-lit, just the way Mr. Berman probably wanted it. Amen.

Good sound or bad sound, I could care less, all I really wanted to hear was Mr. Berman sing the lyrics we love and cherish so much.

"Now there's a lot of things that I'm gonna miss
like thunder down country and the way water drips
when you're running for the door in the rain
read the metro section...see my name."

I unexpectedly came, like buckets, during that part of the show and had to use the bathroom briefly. Nice bathroom in the Webster. Did everyone not enjoy peeing on ice? I know I did.

Thank you, Mr. Berman, for giving me such joy on such a bizarre holiday.

Living with it, TFG