Remembering the Encores

Who: Darren Criss with Theo Katzman When: June 10, 2013 Where: The Varsity/ Minneapolis, MN With: So. Very. Many. Children. Of Note: This is among the more ridiculous things I've done, so there's that. Okay, so, sometimes I'm kind of ridiculous. Like, there was no real reason to fly halfway across the country to see Darren Criss in concert. But, I was peeved that he was in SFO when I was in Ohio and... I guess there's no real reason not to fly halfway across the country to see Darren Criss in concert? And, in fairness to me, I got my geography all mixed up so I thought Minnesota was, like, where Montana is. Whatever, I had a free flight. So off to Minnesota I went. It's worth noting that this was exactly the long week-end I needed - I shopped, I ate frozen yogurt, I read books, I went to the movies, I became kind of obsessed with the Mall of America , I got a pretty big work promotion when I talked to my boss Friday when I landed. It was an awesome w...

Robin Thicke / Blurred Lines And thus, we have found my summer jam.  The call & response "I know you want it" (especially the bass part!) and the kind of squeaky "tried to domesticate ya" are both magic.  I anticipate a whole bunch of sunroof open sing alongs in my future! 

Who: Trey Anastasio and the National Symphony Orchestra When: May 22, 2013 Where: The Kennedy Center Concert Hall/ Washington, DC With: Tim Of Note: 'Phish: The Musical' plus people who can't behave in public Every once in a while, a work trip coincides with something awesome going on in the destination city. This was one of those times. One of my co-workers saw that Trey was playing with the National Symphony Orchestra our first night in DC and asked if I wanted to go. Of course, I did, and holy crap it was amazing. Let's break down what made this night so awesome: 1. The Kennedy Center is beautiful. I mean, you can essentially feel the opulence seep into your pores when you walk in the place. The acoustics in the concert hall are among the best in the nation, I believe. It was a gorgeous setting. 2. The cognitive dissonance of the audience and the surroundings. Obviously, there were some Pops subscribers and buttoned up types, but there wer...

Who: Gotye with Chairlift and Zammuto When: September 20, 2012 Where: Molson Canadian Amphitheater/ Toronto, ON With: Barb & Hillary Of Note: Yes, I'm going to talk more about Buffalo...deal with it I have skinned both of my knees in the last few weeks - my right knee tripping over my own two feet walking home after tailgating & a baseball game, my left knee diving for a volleyball. As a result, I've had Chairlift's 'Bruises' stuck in my head. So, I figured I'd write about when I saw them. So, Gotye was totally a thing, right? The thing I loved about Gotye was that everyone was so obsessed with 'Somebody That I Used To Know' - and how could you not be? It was a song about one of the most universal human emotions paired with absolute ubiquity and approximately nine bajillion internet covers (sometimes I still go back and watch WalkTheEarth's 5 People 1 Guitar because it was so awesome). But, the rest of the 'Making Mirrors...

Robert DeLong / Global Concepts This is so much more electronic than I usually listen to but I am so struck by the lyric "Did I leave my life to chance/ Or did I make you fucking dance?"  that I can get over the random bleep bloops in the middle.  The melody on the sung part is riveting. P!nk featuring Nate Ruess / Just Give Me A Reason Further adventures in my "I'd listen to Nate Ruess sing anything" series.  Plus, who would have thought that Miss "I'm Coming Out" would be behind some of the most gut-wrenching and honest looks at heartbreak the last decade has seen? The Lumineers / Dead Sea Everyone is sick of Ho Hay anyway. Ben Howard / Keep Your Head Up SQUEE!!!!  This whole album is amazing and has been on repeat for days, but this is the one I find myself singing along to most. Sit Kitty Sit / Purge I saw these guys in my neighborhood and really liked them.  I LOVE the piano intro on this one. The Mowgli...

Who: Goo Goo Dolls When: July 4, 2004 Where: Niagara Square, in front of City Hall/ Buffalo, NY With: Jenn, Melissa, Amanda Of Note: Buffalove, Buffalonian Pride, SO MUCH RAIN So, the 90s are back in full force this summer, huh? I mean there's The Package Tour with 98 Degrees, New Kids on the Block, and Boyz II Men (I wonder if Nick Lachey and Shawn Stockman are excited to hang out together?), the Last Summer on Earth tour with Barenaked Ladies, Ben Folds Five, and Guster and then the co-headlining Goo Goo Dolls/ Matchbox 20 tour. That's a lot of musical nostalgia for one summer. Anyway, as a result, I've been thinking a lot about the 90s/early 00s lately. And, as a by-product of my recent relocation, thinking a lot about Buffalo. So, this seems to be a good time to tell the story of a concert that is so uniquely Buffalo. 2004 was a bit of a tumultuous year. I graduated from undergrad, convinced that my two degrees with honors and three years of retail ma...

Who: Charlene Kaye & Alexz Johnson with Misty Boyce and Jay Stolar When: March 24, 2013 Where: Brick & Mortar/ San Francisco, CA With: a burning desire to get out of my squatter apartment Of Note: so I live in California? Someone I follow on tumblr (mostly for Glee related commentary, shut up), recommended going to see Charlene Kaye. I checked out the schedule and saw that her tour would be in San Francisco shortly after I arrived there. Thus, this concert has the honor of being my very first San Francisco concert as a San Francisco resident. Truthfully, I was just excited to get out of my then still empty apartment. It was a great night of music and I'm really glad I went. First up was Misty Boyce, a blonde with a pixie cut, big glasses and a slightly awkward demeanor. She was a perfectly serviceable opener. There were two things I remember about her set. First, the song 'Perfect Wheel' was AMAZING. I mean, stuck in my head afterwards, grips yo...