T1B

saw of montreal aka kevin barnes in detroit sunday and the show was good. if you're expecting the studio sounds to translate "well" to a live setting, well, they don't, but it still doesn't take away from what barnes is up to. i have a boot of theirs from about six weeks ago, so i knew what to expect. i didn't realize he has such a "glam" side to him, much like bowie, prince, etc. he painted his face, wore these outrageous pants, brought out a ladder to stand at the top of for "groslandic edit," had some nice displays on the projector behind him. some of the schtick reminded me of the lips, although he didn't incorporate nearly as much props as wayne does. barnes busted out strawberry beret, which was hilarious, and they played lots of good shit including some of his older stuff. his older stuff really has that bowie sounding style. it was cool. he came on two hours after we got there (he got on at 10:45) and we left at midnight, which kind of sucked, but hey, whatever.

majestic theater reminds me a lot like club laga (rip) in pittsburgh it's way more wide than it is narrow, so even if you're stuck at the bar, you can see the band well. i think that hampers the sound a bit, my friends didn't think anything of it, but i think in wider venues, that's a fine line you have to teeter on sound wise.

i was really hoping they would play wraith pinned to the mist or everyday feels like sunday, but neither did he play. i'm not really surprised, but i was hoping for it. his best song live is "she's a rejector," which not surprisingly, is one of his more guitar based songs. i wish he had more side vocals, it seemed like he was doing most of the vocal work, while on the albums, he always has accompanying vocals. the last song on hissing fauna is probably my favorite, and it was nice to hear it played. the party's crashing us was probably my favorite moment after groslandic edit and we were born mutants again.

barnes is a different dude for sure, but it makes sense he was part of that athens scene. all in all, an enjoyable show. just don't expect it to be "sonically perfected" like his studio work is.

and yes, the outback jingle is courtesy of barnes.

edit: if anyone can give me their thoughts on the elephant six collaborative barnes was part of in athens, i would appreciate it. i know mangum was involved, but i'm not familiar with any of the other guys. i already read the wikipedia page on it.

Screw_Michigan wrote:and yes, the outback jingle is courtesy of barnes.

Andy Assmunch will be happy to know this.

majestic theater reminds me a lot like club laga (rip) in pittsburgh

Strange that you have fondness for this venue. The one whose loss I most bemoan is Grafitti. Good space for the "bigger" indie bands.

Now, it's a ferrari warehouse for the stinking rich son of Richard Scaife Mellon. Sheesh

I have yet to experience, or hear anyone say (outside of you of course) how the majestic venue produces "hampered" sound. I think it's just you. I'm not saying the acoustics aren't altered in some way, just that the overall listening experience isn't a cheapened one. GBV put on one of the most epic shows I've seen there.

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:I have yet to experience, or hear anyone say (outside of you of course) how the majestic venue produces "hampered" sound. I think it's just you. I'm not saying the acoustics aren't altered in some way, just that the overall listening experience isn't a cheapened one. GBV put on one of the most epic shows I've seen there.

i don't think it was cheapened at all. i'm not a sound engineer, but i think the sound "translates" differently in a wider theater like the majestic, say, compared to one that is the traditional narrow width, but longer from front to back venue like st. andrews. and what the fuck do i know about sound anyway? i'm practically deaf, or at least that's what people tell me.

PSU, the only affinity i have for club laga is that it's the first "small venue" i ever saw a show at. it was the lips on 4/26/03, the only time in the three lips shows i've seen where they played what is the light?->the observer. i never went back. i don't really remember much about the place, other than being busted trying to light up a joint when the band was playing, because i was incredibly wasted. but i do remember the place seeming real wide. that's it.