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Favorite Concerts of 2012
Well, this year was once again good to the Pacific Northwest on the concert front… 366 days, 85 shows, 144 artists, many long nights driving home, and a lot of photos… my best albums lists will likely push off into mid-January (due to being busy & heading out on vacation), but here are my favorite concerts of 2012…
My favorite concerts of 2012:
- Secret Chiefs 3 :: WOW Hall :: Eugene, OR {6 Feb} [review with photos] – I saw them twice on this tour, and both shows were great. The Eugene show gets the nod mainly because it was first in the order. :)
- Roger Waters presents Pink Floyd’s The Wall:: Rose Garden :: Portland, OR {22 May} [review with photos] – Wow. I don’t even think The Wall is in my Top 5 of Pink Floyd albums, but holy cow, this was an amazing show. Truly stunning.
- Radiohead :: Key Arena :: Seattle, WA {9 Apr} [review with photos] – A phenomenal band that keeps making me drive multiple hours anytime I want to see them! I’ll gladly continue, though.
- Sufjan Stevens presents the Surfjohn Stevens Christmas Sing-A-Long: Seasonal Affective Disorder Yuletide Disaster Pageant On Ice :: Aladdin Theater :: Portland, OR {6 Dec} [review with photos] – I hate Christmas music, but this spectacle of wonderment warmed me over.
- Puscifer :: Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall :: Portland, OR {14 Mar} [review with photos] – A wine tasting and a concert from rock’s favorite frontman? Yes, please.
- Seun Kuti & the Egypt 80 :: WOW Hall :: Eugene, OR {18 Mar} [review with photos] – I love Nigerian music, and anyone with the last name of “Kuti” should come with a mandate that you go to the show.
- “Weird Al” Yankovic :: Lane County Fairgrounds :: Eugene, OR {18 Aug} [review with photos] – A long, many be-suited set of songs. Saying it was a “fun time” would be an understatement.
- Over the Rhine :: The Triple Door :: Seattle, WA {17 Nov} [review with photos] – It had been too long since seeing Over the Rhine (a year). I got spoiled when I lived in Cincinnati; so now Ive got to get my OTR fix when I can. This was a gorgeous night.
- Levi Weaver :: my house :: Eugene, OR {16 Jul} [review with photos] – Going to an intimate house concert is great. I recommend it. Hosting an intimate house concert – doubly so!
- Peter Mulvey & Kris Delmhorst :: 3 venues :: 3 Oregon cities {17-19 Oct} [recap with photos] – Story time from two stupendous singer-songwriters.
- Dan Deacon :: Hawthorne Theatre :: Portland, OR {25 Oct} [recap with photos] – Dancing some asses off.
- Sigur Rós :: Edgefield :: Portland, OR {9 Aug} [review] – This was my first time at Edgefield and also my first time seeing Sigur Rós in an outdoor venue. Plus side on a great venue, but a slight knock for loving how Sigur Rós works within a theater setting. A great show regardless of venue, though.
- Fiona Apple :: Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall :: Portland, OR {26 Jul} [review] – A bit spastic, but a phenomenal performer. A mix of her new and old tunes, truly great show!
- Nellie McKay :: The John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts :: Eugene, OR {2 Mar} [review with photos] – I saw her four times this year, and they all rank well. I’ll see Nellie any time she comes through. She’s always a delight!
- Portland Cello Project plays Radiohead’s OK Computer :: The Majestic Theatre :: Corvallis, OR {21 Sep} [setlist] – While I would have gone a different route than a men chorus for the vocal aspect (i.e. the one song with a regular vocalist was the best one), this was a very special night.
Runners-Up: My Brightest Diamond in Tacoma (Sep) – only because it was a short set, Penn & Teller in Vegas (Jan), Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity in Vegas (Jan), Trevor Dunn & Travis LaPlante at the Wandering Goat (Jan), and Skerik’s Bandalabra at Cozmic (Mar).
Disappointment: the absurd volume of Jack White at the Hult Center (May).
My favorite concert photos of 2012: (in chronological order)
(all images are free to use under a creative commons designation,
simply identify Daniel Temmesfeld with a
photo credit and link to pacificlectic.com.
Past Favorite Concerts Lists:
- Favorite Concerts 2011
- Favorite Concerts 2010
- Favorite Concerts 2009
- Favorite Concerts 2008
- Favorite Concerts 2007
Favorite music of 2012 will be coming in a few weeks (unless I can squeak them out sooner)… EPs/DVDs/etc, vocal albums, instrumental albums…
~Dan – np: George Hrab – Coelacanth
Sigur Rós concert film Heima (free today only)
Today (monday, september 5th) icelandiccinema.com is free streaming the Sigur Rós concert film Heima from their website.
After midnight Icelandic time (5pm monday san francisco, 8pm monday nyc, 1am tuesday london, 9am tuesday tokyo) the film will be available to stream for a fee.
~Dan – np: Austrian Death Machine – Double Brutal
Jónsi – Live at the Wiltern (live audio & video), plus more music news…
Sigur Rós front man Jónsi just announced his new concert film jónsi live at the wiltern is available to buy now via iTunes (usa and canada only). Here’s the trailer…
Get the AUDIO // Get the VIDEO
jónsi live at the wiltern was directed by dean deblois, (the director of the oscar nominated film how to train your dragon and the sigur rós film heima). the footage – recorded at los angeles’ wiltern theater – was first aired on npr on sunday october 17, 2010 and it marked the first ever live video webcast of a concert for the public radio organisation. filmed towards the end of jónsi’s extensive world tour in support of his solo album ‘go’, the film captures the live show at the late stage when the set and visuals were at their finest. this digital release is available exclusively on itunes.
Other news…
- Tres Mountains (side project from Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam & dUg Pinnick of King’s X) is now up for pre-order. It comes out March 14th. Go HERE for more info on pre-order.
- Carla Kihlstedt & Mattias Bossi‘s new album, Still You Lay Dreaming: Tales for the Stage II, also came out today. It is digital only… and knowing Carla’s chamber indie-rock magic, it’ll be great (it’s in my e-shopping cart now). http://kihlstedtbossi.bandcamp.com
My Nels Cline Singers‘ Portland show (1/30) review & photo editing being worked on now… I’ll post it by morning (sorry for the delay).
~Dan – np: Ken Andrews – Secrets of the Lost Satellite 
The Big 4 (trailer)
This. Looks. Massive.
The Big 4 Festival
Empire Polo Club, Indio, CA
Saturday, April 23rd, 2011
Metallica
Megadeth
Slayer
Anthrax
Unlikely I’ll be able to swing it and go… but it looks like it’d be an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime event…
~Dan – np: Celldweller – Cellout EP 01
Credo & Riceboy Sleeps (live stream)
New York’s WQXR streamed the Lincoln Center’s White Light Festival live, and it is still available as streaming (or download if you’re crafty). The White Light Festival was the world premiere of Credo from Kjartan Sveinsson and Jónsi Birgisson, from the Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós.
Kjartan’s Credo and Cage a Swallow Can’t You but you Can’t Swallow a Cage features the Hilliard Ensemble, the Latvian National Choir and the Wordless Music Orchestra led by Jeffrey Milarsky. Later in the stream features an interview with Jónsi & Alex and their world premiere of their Riceboy Sleeps songs in a live setting, orchestrated by David Handler.
Check out the stream here:
http://wqxr.org/articles/q2-live-concerts/2010/nov/22/credo-credo/
~Dan – np: Iron & Wine – Walking Far From Home
Nellie McKay in PDX
Friday, August 15th… Nellie McKay at Portland’s Doug Fir Lounge. Tickets procured… woot!
We saw her last fall at The Shedd in Eugene… fantastic show (here’s the review). We’re totally looking forward to this show… she’s a veritable fireball of energy and wit – – equal parts virtuoso and silly.
http://nelliemckay.com/
http://www.myspace.com/prettylittlehead (official)
http://www.myspace.com/nelliemckay (fan)
~Dan – np: John Coltrane – Newport ’63
Mike Patton & the Metropole Orchestra 2008
Mike Patton has been known for off-the-wall stuff… Faith No More did crazy stuff, Mr. Bungle even more so… Fantômas is for some entirely crazy stuff. Hemophiliac, PainKiller, Naked City guest vocals, Moonchild, and many other collaborations with John Zorn are also in the crazy, avant-garde camp for Mike Patton.
However, Mike Patton also has a fondness for the more accessible. FNM cover Lionel Richie‘s “Easy,” Mr. Bungle had “Retrovertigo,” Patton’s Ipecac Recordings put out records by classically or instrumentally adventurous but still accessible Ennio Morricone (exotica / spaghetti western / classical / movie scores), The Tango Saloon (jazz / spag. western / tango), Flat Earth Society (big band), Kaada (multi-instrumentalist / movie scores), and Eyvind Kang (some of his classical compositions).
Mondo Cane is a 1962 Italian shock-documentary film (read more here). It’s also the name of Mike Patton’s “60s/70s Italian pop” project. And “60s/70s Italian pop” involves orchestration and some good ol’ crooning…
(photo: Monique Hofland)
A recent concert with Mike Patton and the Metropole Orchestra ( Paradiso Hall, Holland Festival June 2008 ) was filmed and is available in its entirety here:
http://www.fabchannel.com/mike_patton_concert/2008-12-06/
I’m only through the first 5 songs, but it sounds great. If tentative or skeptical, check out “Ore D’More” (#3) for a sample of the crooning.
I love this guy’s music. It’s true.
~Dan – np: guess?
they’re taking over
I don’t mean to make this a Sigur Rós-centric blog, but here’s Stereogum‘s great report from Bonnaroo 2008:
They (i.e. Barbara Streisand) say people who need people are the luckiest people. But you know who really are the luckiest people? People who have a ticket to see Sigur Rós this summer. It’s not that I haven’t seen ’em before, but it’s been 24 hours and I’m still paralyzed from the 1AM bliss fest of their set Saturday night in That Tent. Here’s why you should sell all your possessions to secure a ticket to see them right now:
- The current setlist is a catalog-spanning beast, showcasing hallmark moments from each of the band’s style shifts, from the dark and dank Ágætis byrjun, to the slowest-of-core unpronounceabilites of the ( ) stuff, to the triumphant Takkisms. (Saturday brought “Svefn-g-englar” [the “it’s you-oooo” song], “Njósnavélin” [the “yu-silo” song], “Olsen Olsen,” “Hoppípolla,” “Glósóli,” and non-album crowd fave “Hafsól” [the drumstick-on-the-bass song]).
- The Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust stuff crushes it live, comes with lots of horns, ups the band’s overall joy quotient, and really seems to have loosened them up, as people, even more. Last night these included “Inni Mer Syngur Vitleysingur,” “Godan Daginn,” “Vid Spilum Endalaust,” “Festival,” “All Alright” (the one in English!) and of course “Gobbledigook.”
- Umm, “Gobbledigook.” Which winds up having 12 people on stage (fully clothed, sorry), a drumline powered by amiina, confetti guns, and, most notably, a wildly grinning Jonsi.
- The mariachi band that parades the stage during “Sé Lest” has a pretty great outfit.
- They are the best band in the world.
Read the entire Stereogum Bonnaroo entry **HERE**, plus check out some YouTube videos from the show there as well…
~Dan – np: Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog – Party Intellectuals
((O)) planets have aligned ((O))
I’ll be in Portland* on Monday, October 6th for work.
*-Portland, Oregon. Maine, quit asking!! It’s not gonna happen.
Icelandic ambient/post-rock/rock band (pick one) Sigur Rós will also be in Portland on Monday, October 6th… for work at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (downtown).
I just got a ticket to their workplace to see what their daily grind is like. This’ll be my 5th time seeing them… and I’m stoked. Each time is surreal / magnanimous / phosphorescent / pah-nah-men-ah.
Sigur Rós can come see me at my work for free that day, because that’s how *I* roll. Jonsi, call me. ::gestures::
-Eyvind Kang
-Frank Zappa
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