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recommended boston area events

thursday, july 2nd

the church

adam franklin (swervedriver)

@ showcase live, foxborough


sunday, july 5th

city breathing

deep sea diver

adam rich

steve pardo & lindley cameron

@ the middle east upstairs


saturday, july 11th

the luxury

the click five

midatlantic

aloud

@ the paradise


sunday, july 12th

the dead weather

screaming females

@ the house of blues


saturday, july 18th

butterflies

travels

@ pa's lounge


sunday, july 19th

grand duchy (w/frank black)

the bunnies

van elk (w/valerie mistle thrush)

@ the middle east downstairs


sunday, july 19th

lymbyc systym

coralcola

the cush

the pandas

@ the middle east upstairs


monday, july 20th

you can be a wesley (cd release!)

casper & the cookies

everything, now!

magic magic

@ the middle east upstairs


monday, july 20th

green day

the bravery

@ the garden


tuesday, july 21st

mark eitzel & marc capelle

performing american music club songs

@ the lizard lounge


friday, july 24th

varsity drag (cd release!)

the grownup noise

winterpills

brendan boogie & the best intentions

@ the middle east upstairs


sunday, july 26th

pete yorn

@ the house of blues


tuesday, july 28th

cass mccombs

jennifer o'connor & band

mike bones

@ tt the bears


wednesday, july 29th

foreign born

the veils

faces on film

@ tt the bears


thursday, july 30th

justin ripley & his band

@ pa's lounge


friday, july 31st

destroyer (dan bejar)

iran

wooden wand

@ the paradise


friday, july 31st

depeche mode

peter bjorn & john

@ great woods


saturday, august 1st

alasdair roberts

@ lorem ipsum books, inman square


saturday, august 1st

wheat (cd release show!)

the xyz affair

@ great scott


sunday, august 2nd

soft power (featuring mary timony)

gramercy arms (featuring dave derby)

@ tt the bears


monday, august 3rd

billy bragg

@ the berklee performance center


monday, august 3rd

tinted windows

(james iha, adam schlesinger,

taylor hanson, & bun e. carlos)

@ the paradise


monday, august 3rd

coldplay

elbow

kitty daisy & lewis

@ the comcast center


wednesday, august 5th

the rural alberta advantage

joshua english (ex-six going on seven)

with lisa molinaro

baby teeth

@ the middle east upstairs


wednesday, august 5th

arctic monkeys

modey lemon

@ the paradise


wednesday, august 5th

joe pernice (solo show & book tour)

@ the brattle theatre (2 shows)


wednesday and thursday

august 5th and 6th

paul mccartney

@ fenway park


friday, august 7th

the electric prunes

love

sky saxon (of the seeds)

@ the middle east downstairs


saturday, august 8th

blondie

pat benatar

@ the b.o.a. pavilion


wednesday, august 12th

the warlocks

@ great scott


wednesday, august 12th

the pretenders

cat power

juliette lewis

@ the bank of american pavilion


thursday, august 13th

bat for lashes

@ the paradise


friday, august 14th

six finger satellite

@ tt the bears


sunday, august 16th

the decemberists

heartless bastards

@ mountain park, holyoke


sunday, august 16th

trashcan sinatras

@ tt the bears


monday, august 17th

the breeders

@ the paradise


friday, august 21st

choo choo la rouge (cd release!)

the big disappointments

impossible hair

the operators

@ pa's lounge


saturday & sunday

august 22nd & 23rd

bruce springsteen & the e street band

@ the comcast center / great woods


saturday, august 29th

caspain

actors & actresses

irepress

arms & sleepers

@ tt the bears


sunday, august 30th

the flaming lips

explosions in the sky

stardeath and white dwarfs

@ the boa pavilion


thursday, september 3rd

kay hanley (letters to cleo)

antisocialites

ingenue

@ tt the bears


saturday, september 5th

the pains of being pure at heart

cymbals eat guitars

depreciation guild

@ the middle east downstairs


saturday, september 5th

pet shop boys

@ the house of blues


thursday, september 10th

autolux

sleepy sun

@ the paradise


thursday, september 10th

dirty three

@ the i.c.a. boston


friday, september 11th

kings of leon

glasvegas

@ the comcast center / great woods


saturday, september 12th

the cult

performing 'love' in its entirety

@ the house of blues


sunday, september 13th

down

melvins

@ the house of blues


tuesday, september 15th

the horrors

@ the paradise


saturday & sunday

september 19th & 20th

boston lebowski fest

with movie screening & bowling

@ the house of blues & kings


sunday, september 20th

u2

snow patrol

@ gillette stadium


tuesday, september 22nd

son volt

@ the paradise


friday, september 25th

township

the lights out (cd release!)

reverse

gravehaven

@ tt the bears


friday, september 25th

charlatans uk

hatcham social

@ the paradise


saturday, september 26th

kmfdm

@ the house of blues


sunday, september 20th

maximo park

@ the paradise


monday, september 28th

sunny day real estate

@ the house of blues


wednesday, september 30th

mono

maserati

@ the middle east downstairs


sunday, october 4th

the "loud & rich" tour

richard thompson &

loudon wainwright iii

performing solo & together

@ the sanders theatre, harvard


wednesday, october 7th

bob mould

@ the paradise


saturday, october 10th

the psychedelic furs

happy monday

@ the house of blues


wednesday, october 14th

loney dear

asobi seksu

@ great scott


wednesday, october 21st

mum

@ the somerville theatre


saturday, october 31st

pinback

@ the paradise


friday, november 13th

janeane garofalo

rob riggle

two shows @ the wilbur theatre


visit tourfilter for more shows



Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Mp3s: Death Cab for Cutie in Boston

I've been a Death Cab For Cutie fan for far too long to do something as silly as hold their increased popularity and major label success against 'em. Sure, in my college radio days I'd left certain bands behind under similar circumstances, but the difference was usually that their studio output lost something in the transition. It was more rewarding to find new, exciting artists that deserved airplay than to try and find something worthwhile on lesser albums by bigger bands. But with DCFC, it's different, and I'm along for the ride as long as they keep writing and releasing good songs on solid discs like 2005's "Plans". Sure, there are a couple tracks on there that don't do it for me, but that's been the case with each album since their debut, and they're offset by a song like "What Sarah Said", which is one of the most moving ones they've ever recorded.

But my appreciation for the band was put to the test in November when they played the gorgeous Boston Opera House on guitarist Chris Walla's birthday. It had been a few years since I'd seen DCFC, shunning the larger venues and higher tickets prices as I'm prone to do, but the lure of an opening set by Ted Leo & his Pharmacists was enough to get me buying good seats the day they went on sale. I'd been pretty much blown away when I saw Sigur Ros at the Opera House a year before, but they (and their fans) are entirely different beasts.

When Death Cab's set started with "405", and the more enthusiastic fans stood up despite the mellowness of that opener, Ben Gibbard didn't wait long before encouraging the rest of the crowd to get up out of their seats for the "rock show at the opera house". And while most of the audience was clearly excited throughout the show (predictably cheering louder for the newer songs), and the band was obviously into their playing and grateful for the crowd, there was just something missing for me. Even though I liked the set, the song selection, and the band's energy, I felt this odd disconnection from the proceedings, like I was watching a television broadcast of a show instead of an actual show. Maybe it couldn't be helped, considering the small spaces I'd seen them play in previously. Maybe it's just age, what with the overall lowering of their fans' average age, and given that some of the uber-appreciative kids near me (loudly singing, clapping along to entire songs) could possibly have been my illegitimate high school spawn. Could be that my days of seeing DCFC live are better left behind me. But their albums? If they keep making 'em, I'll keep buying 'em.

Here's my recording of that set, from November 2nd, 2006 at the Boston Opera House. And for the curious, DCFC is fortunately one of those bands who are completely cool with live recordings. They understand.


Some DCFC links...
  • Their official site, MySpace, and Wikipedia entry.

  • Mp3s: "Soul Meets Body" (from "Plans"), "Title and Registration" (from Transatlanticism), "Wait" (from "You Can Play These Songs With Chords"), "A Movie Script Ending" (from "The Photo Album"), "Song For Kelly Huckaby" (from the "Forbidden Love" EP), "For What Reason" (from "We Have The Facts And We're Voting Yes"), and "Champagne From A Paper Cup" (from "Something About Airplanes").

  • More Cowbell reviewed the D.C. stop of the same tour.

  • Pitchfork shares news of Ben Gibbard's budding acting career, and updates us on what the other band members are up to now that DCFC is taking a break for most of the newly-hatched 2007.

  • the fine print... If anyone has an issue with this live set being made available, just say the word (contact info in the 'nac faq). Recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps mp3s. Mp3s are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.

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