iamserio.us

The thing about an artist who is personable and charismatic is that every fan wants to be his friend. Everyone wants to make that special connection and be remembered by him. I understand. Everyone wants to be loved.

John Darnielle did an in-store performance last night at Easy Street Records to kick off the release of The Mountain Goats’ latest album Get Lonely. In between every song he would treat the crowd to a little story or anecdote about the song or something completely unrelated to music and in between every song it seemed like someone in the crowd would shout something out to him. He didn’t seem to mind that people wanted to participate in his performance but I got tired of it fairly quickly. It got kinda bad when this one guy in the front wouldn’t stop trying to converse with him and the people in the crowd told him, in no uncertain terms, to “shut the fuck up”. I also had one of the giddiest fanboys next to my mics so every time John made any kind of joke you will hear this high pitched giggle as he bursts out in lady-like laughter. Seriously, this guy thought John Darnielle was the funniest man alive.

And, to be fair, he’s pretty funny. He paces his sentences in the same manner that Mitch Hedberg did; sort of oddly accentuating certain phrases or words. He gets more excited and boisterous than Hedberg ever did, though.

In addition to being funny, he’s a damn fine songwriter. I’ve never really listened to The Mountain Goats before but now that I’ve seen John play live, I’m more inclined to check them out than I was before. His songs are sincere and straight-forward and sort of remind me of Ben Gibbard (and I know Mountain Goats fans would crucify me for saying that but whatever).

The recording itself turned out nice. It’s very hard to tape in-stores at Easy Street because they usually book acoustic acts and it’s never very loud. In the case of John Darnielle, he would go from near-silent to really-fucking-loud within one song so it was hard to guage the levels. The audience cheers clip like hell but I don’t care. The actual music sounds fine and I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

John Darnielle – 2006-08-21 Easy Street Records – Seattle, WA
Download: jdarnielle2006-08-21.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: jdarnielle2006-08-21sample.mp3

I did it. I didn’t think I’d be able to do it this quickly but I authored both DVDs with menus and all that jazz. The multi-cam wasn’t nearly as hard as I had anticipated.

I actually had to build a new computer in order to do this project since Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0 wouldn’t even install on my Athlon XP 1800+ system. The new system didn’t actually run my too much money (only about 700 bucks) and it outperforms my old system in so many ways it’s ridiculous. I encoded the m2v stream from the DV AVI in less than an hour; a task which would have taken my old PC all night to finish.

This Will Destroy You – 2006-08-04 Camp Nowhere – Seattle, WA
This Will Destroy You @ Camp Nowhere

SD MP4 (419 MB): twdy2006-08-04.mp4

This Will Destroy You – 2006-08-05 The Paradox Theater – Seattle, WA
This Will Destroy You @ The Paradox Theater

SD MP4 (419 MB): twdy2006-08-05.mp4

So anyway… here are the torrent links (hosted on TheTradersDen, free registration):

2006-08-04 Camp Nowhere – Seattle, WA
Torrent: twdy2006-08-04.vx1000.akgc1000s.dvdf.torrent

2006-08-05 The Paradox Theatre – Seattle, WA
Torrent: twdy2006-08-05.vx1000.zr60.akgc1000s.dvdf.torrent

Third night in a row seeing these guys and I still haven’t tired of their live performance. I finally got to see them play at an actual venue with a PA and soundsystem, which was nice. Because the venue had the proper amenities, they were able to play some of their other songs that use keyboards and drum machine beats. For tonight, they brought out “Quiet” and “Grandfather Clock” but couldn’t close with “There Are Some Remedies…” because someone stole Chris’ pedal steel the night before (or it was just misplaced, either way, he can’t find it right now).

I tried to get a soundboard feed but it didn’t quite pan out because of complications with the venue’s mixing board. I did, however, run two video cameras. I set up one on the far left side of the stage on a tripod and the other on the right side of the stage on a pocket tripod. I’ve never authored a multi-cam DVD before but I’m willing to try. Here are two sample screenshots: Screenshot One, Screenshot Two.

I also recorded audio/video for Sparrows Swarm And Sing (who played an amazing set as well). I think I’ll take some time with these to make the end-product really nice. I’m talkin’ full-motion menus and all that jazz. I know I can do it.

I’m sad to see all of these guys leave town. All of them, both the bands, were super nice guys and they all make such beautiful music. Chris tells me that TWDY might tour Alaska next Spring or Summer (which is where my parents live). If that happens, I will make damn sure I can be up there for some of those shows. I don’t know how but I will.

Sparrows Swarm And Sing – 2006-08-05 The Theatre – Seattle, WA
Download: sss2006-08-05.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: sss2006-08-05sample.mp3

This Will Destroy You – 2006-08-05 The Paradox – Seattle, WA
Download: twdy2006-08-05.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: twdy2006-08-05sample.mp3

I have an addictive personality, so of course I’ll go see a band I love two nights in a row. It doesn’t even matter that they played the same setlist both nights (due to technological constraints of the “venues”… I use hilarious quote marks to denote the fact that these are not venues, they are tiny, tiny rooms). Tomorrow night at The Paradox they’ll play some different songs that use the drum machine beats. They just need a proper PA and a DI box to kick out the jams (and the drummer needs monitors so he can hear what the hell is going on).

This Will Destroy You played at a community house in the University District called Camp Nowhere. It’s actually very close to where The Punkin House once was and very similar in nature. The way the performance space works is that there are two large barn doors that you enter through to see the show. Once the space is full of people, they close the doors and spray you with delousing powder to prepare you for cremation. Ok I made that last part up. But seriously, they close the doors behind you and you can’t really leave until the set is over. The room is no bigger than the room TWDY played at in Vancouver but it sounds different because instead of being made of wood, the walls are painted cinder blocks.

Basically, this set sounds pretty much identical to the previous night’s set with some subtle nuance between the two. If you’re a huge fan of the band then go for it and download this one, but you’re not missing much if you already listened to the Vancouver recording.

This Will Destroy You – 2006-08-04 Camp Nowhere – Seattle, WA
Download: twdy2006-08-04.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: twdy2006-08-04sample.mp3

There is a lot of writing to be done in order to fully explain this concert. If you like reading then feel free to do so, otherwise you can scroll to the bottom and just download.

I drove over three hours from Seattle to see this show in Vancouver. I got to the supposed venue which turned out to be a triplex. This didn’t make sense to me so I loaded up irc (lol nerd) on my phone and got some third party help:

mojo> need help
mojo> im in vancouver
mojo> for this twdy show
merk> you drove four hours for that shit? i thought you were kidding
mojo> im at the house where its at but im not sure if im at the right place
merk> you need an addy?
mojo> 3316 grand bld vancouver, wa
mojo> place is called ex-communicate house
mojo> just double check
mojo> and try to find a picture of the outside
merk> you got the address right
merk> this place has no website
mojo> ok
mojo> yeah i know
mojo> there are no band vans or trailers outside the place either.
mojo> maybe i'll knock on the door
merk> that would seem to be a logical next step
mojo> no answer
mojo> this is a triplex
mojo> any mention of a unit #?
merk> nope
mojo> hm
merk> show time is 8
merk> hm, twdy's bill had no info, but the other band has more
mojo> yeah
merk> it says 3316 grand blvd ..1
merk> 1? is that the number?
mojo> 1 has a lockbox on it
mojo> hm
merk> now just find the key
merk> wait, lockbox? al gore must be near
merk> he's the key master
mojo> dude at #1 has nfi what im talking about
merk> lol
merk> this is like a joke
mojo> yes
merk> well i found a photobucket of a show there
merk> but all shitty indoor photos

I knocked on each of the doors and finally got an answer when I inquired at the unit that was being renovated.

The guy at the unit had no clue what I was talking about, but he decided to help me out and give me some directions and I returned to irc for more help:

mojo> i talked to dude
mojo> took i5 down to camus hwy
merk> that other band, the band that's playing with twdy, they had the fucking zip code wrong
merk> they had a zip code form fucking portland
merk> i'm looking at google maps now
merk> grand blvd is a north/south street
merk> and the arrow that should theoretically be pointing at the house is on the west side
merk> of grand blvd
merk> just a bit past e 33rd
merk> north of e 33
mojo> im back to where i was

The guy gave me directions that didn’t really help. I had just come back full circle to where I was in the first place. The funny thing is that the bands rolled up in their vans shortly after I returned and they had no idea what was going on either. The long and short of it is was that the guy moved (and, since his house is the venue, so did the venue) and hadn’t mentioned anything to anyone. One of the guys from Sparrows Swarm And Sing called someone and got the new address and I commissioned a fellow irc nerd to get me directions:

mojo> mike
mojo> call me please
mojo> 206 412 6711
mojo> need help
mojo> or anyone with a computer
mojo> and internets
tnl> i've got a quarter of an internet. i fail
mojo> someone seriously
mojo> i need google maps
merk> what
merk> why
merk> you not staying for the show?
mojo> i need google maps directions
mojo> to the new venue.
merk> whats the address
mojo> 1005 ne 88 circle vancouver wa
mojo> itll be easier if you call
merk> no you call me
merk> *** *** 5122
mojo> the bands are already late
mojo> ok

I called Mike (merk) and he gave me directions. I rounded up the guys in the two bands and we ran a convoy to the new venue, only arriving 45 minutes later than scheduled.

Now, the venue is something else. It’s a house with a detached garage and the bands play in said garage. The garage is about the size of a normal two-car unit, but the actual playing space is only half of the structure. The other half of the garage has a dirt floor where bands can stage their gear. I’d wager a guess that the actual playing space is about 8′ wide and 14′ long so that when a four or five piece band is playing, about a dozen people can fit in the room to watch:

The host of the show performed his noise set as Blowupnihilist and a Seattle punk band called Playing Enemies followed. I set up to record TWDY’s set and witnessed what is probably the most moving and impressive performance I’ve ever seen. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I hung out with the guys before the show and saw what nice people they were. I also think it has a lot to do with the intimacy of the tiny-as-hell venue (only 10 people witnessed this show). Even still, a lot of it has to do with the fact that these guys make beautiful, awesome music.

Following TWDY, their tourmates Sparrows Swarm And Sing played. A different brand of post-rock, Sparrows follow the tradition of GYBE! by employing a cello, a violin, alternative percussion and a xylophone. They had somewhat of an off-night due to the fact that a lot of their gear was stolen the day before so they were playing with new and borrowed instruments. Even still, I enjoyed their set a great deal. They had some very interesting takes on the genre that are worth listening to again… AND NOW YOU CAN DO JUST THAT!

Sparrows Swarm And Sing
2006-08-03 Excommunicate House – Vancouver, WA
Download: sss2006-08-03.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: sss2006-08-03sample.mp3

This Will Destroy You
2006-08-03 Excommunicate House – Vancouver, WA
Download: twdy2006-08-03.akgc1000s.flac16.zip
MP3 Sample: twdy2006-08-03sample.mp3