November 10 2007: The Mountain Goats, the Bowerbirds - Billiken Club, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis MO
Hey! It was a slow week at school, the Mountain Goats were playing in the Midwest, and I had frequent flier miles burning holes in my pockets. Seemed like a no-brainer. So after probably the roughest week of the semester, I got up early and John took me to the airport. We took off and landed in Pittsburgh. We took off again, this time landing in St. Louis. I took the light rail to the Grand stop. I walked a mile north to SLU. Life should always be so simple.
The venue was the basement of the student center, aka a food court. You could get burritos or smoothies or hamburgers or beer. Those who know me personally can probably make a pretty good educated guess regarding which I found most appealing.
The Bowerbirds came on first. I like the Bowerbirds, though they don't blow me away. But it was nice to hear them play again.
The Mountain Goats, on the other hand, blow me away on a relatively consistent basis. Especially with Jon Wurster on drums. I'd never seen the Mountain Goats play a full set of tunes with drums. It was pretty great.
They opened with "Wild Sage," which remains one of my favorite tunes to hear their shows get opened with. And then into "Hast Thou Considered the Tetrapod" and "In the Craters on the Moon" and "New Monster Avenue," all of which sounded great with the drums. And shit do I love "Craters on the Moon."
"Love, Love, Love" was quiet and Peter's bum bums after the verses were as subtle as ever and there weren't any assholes singing along with it. "Maybe Sprout Wings" was loud as fuck (John was playing electric), and the best I've ever heard it. "Mole" was great, "Lion's Teeth" was great (such a difference the drums and electric guitar make).
And then, second-to-last tune of the set: "We Were Patriots." Shit. Never thought I'd see that one live. Never thought it could sound so good with a full band. I would have gone home happy right there.
But then, second-to-none tune: "Lovecraft in Brooklyn." Which I recognized after a minute from having heard John play it solo in Brooklyn earlier in the year. And fuck. The drums, the riff, the phrasing and near-screaming vocals......it was pretty much the boiled-down essence of rock and roll. What a way to close a set.
Encore was "The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton" and "Houseguest." "Death Metal Band" was great, as usual. And I'm getting tired of "Houseguest," but I suppose I'm the exception to that rule as most people seem to really dig it.
So yeah. "We Were Patriots." "Lovecraft." "Maybe Sprout Wings." "Craters on the Moon." No assholes singing along. No assholes yelling in my ear. Free show. $2 beers (I asked the bartender what she had that's local, she handed me a Budweiser). Nice campus on which to camp out for the night. Just can't beat that shit.
The venue was the basement of the student center, aka a food court. You could get burritos or smoothies or hamburgers or beer. Those who know me personally can probably make a pretty good educated guess regarding which I found most appealing.
The Bowerbirds came on first. I like the Bowerbirds, though they don't blow me away. But it was nice to hear them play again.
The Mountain Goats, on the other hand, blow me away on a relatively consistent basis. Especially with Jon Wurster on drums. I'd never seen the Mountain Goats play a full set of tunes with drums. It was pretty great.
They opened with "Wild Sage," which remains one of my favorite tunes to hear their shows get opened with. And then into "Hast Thou Considered the Tetrapod" and "In the Craters on the Moon" and "New Monster Avenue," all of which sounded great with the drums. And shit do I love "Craters on the Moon."
"Love, Love, Love" was quiet and Peter's bum bums after the verses were as subtle as ever and there weren't any assholes singing along with it. "Maybe Sprout Wings" was loud as fuck (John was playing electric), and the best I've ever heard it. "Mole" was great, "Lion's Teeth" was great (such a difference the drums and electric guitar make).
And then, second-to-last tune of the set: "We Were Patriots." Shit. Never thought I'd see that one live. Never thought it could sound so good with a full band. I would have gone home happy right there.
But then, second-to-none tune: "Lovecraft in Brooklyn." Which I recognized after a minute from having heard John play it solo in Brooklyn earlier in the year. And fuck. The drums, the riff, the phrasing and near-screaming vocals......it was pretty much the boiled-down essence of rock and roll. What a way to close a set.
Encore was "The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton" and "Houseguest." "Death Metal Band" was great, as usual. And I'm getting tired of "Houseguest," but I suppose I'm the exception to that rule as most people seem to really dig it.
So yeah. "We Were Patriots." "Lovecraft." "Maybe Sprout Wings." "Craters on the Moon." No assholes singing along. No assholes yelling in my ear. Free show. $2 beers (I asked the bartender what she had that's local, she handed me a Budweiser). Nice campus on which to camp out for the night. Just can't beat that shit.
posted by Peter Sohriakoff | 11:35 AM
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