Missing Summerfest

I’m mourning tonight.

My beloved Summerfest kicks off tomorrow. And for the first time in nine years, I’m not attending.

This is more depressing than the night my mother prohibited me from going to see R.E.M. because there was a tornado watch for our county (It turned out to be a beautiful evening and we never saw a rain drop). And the night I missed The Shins because I was so sick I couldn’t stand up. Combined.

I’m utterly heartbroken.

This year, the Big Gig is celebrating its 45th anniversary. Worse yet, this year’s lineup is arguably the best I’ve seen in all of my years of attending Summerfest. I really, really like this year’s lineup.

Throughout this year’s version of the 11-day festival, there is only one night that doesn’t feature at least one band I’d like to see. This year, I would have set a new personal attendance record.

Let’s go down the list, shall we … And I’m not even considering the Marcus Amphitheater shows, which this year include appearances by the Beach Boys, Kelly Clarkson, Lady Antebellum and Aerosmith.

Tomorrow night: Steve Miller Band

I passed on a chance to see him at Summerfest a few years ago in order to see Stevie Wonder. If I could do it over again, I likely would make the same decision. But dang, it would be good to hear Steve Miller’s book of hits live. If I was going to Summerfest this year and I was limited to seeing just three performances, this would be one of them.

Thursday night: Ben Folds Five

I’ll come back to this one.

Friday night: Mutemath & Fun.

I was hooked on Mutemath the first time I heard their debut album, and I was mesmerized by their live show later that year. I would totally see them again.

As far for Fun, they’re only one of the hottest bands on the charts this summer, and I can only imagine how sweet it would be to be in that crowd when they knock out “We Are Young.” To hear that audience singing the chorus at the top of their lungs is sure to be a memorable time. And hey, let’s not forget the rest of that album of theirs is pretty decent, too.

Saturday night: The Briggs Bluesbusters & Three Dog Night

The Bluesbusters are a super classic rock cover band and one I’ve enjoyed as a staple of each year’s festival lineup since I first saw them in 2006.

I saw Three Dog Night nearly 20 years ago with my dad – my very first concert experience – as part of a rock ‘n’ roll show that also featured The Buckinghams, Gary Puckett & the Union Gap and The Turtles. Much like Steve Miller, I’m more schooled in Three Dog Night’s catalogue now then I was then, and I’d love to see them again. Song I’d most want to hear them play: “Mama Told Me Not to Come.”

Sunday night: Chicago

These guys aren’t the band they once were – I much prefer their classic rock-jazz sound over the ballads that have defined them over the last couple decades – and some of the original members are gone. But I would relish a chance to see one of my all-time favorites just once. Not to mention hearing “Make Me Smile” live.

Tuesday, July 3: Joe Walsh

Member of the Eagles. Legendary guitarist. Three more words: “Life’s Been Good.”

Wednesday, July 4: Katie Herzig & Fountains of Wayne

One of the darlings of the indie music arena, I’ve been intrigued by Katie Herzig for awhile. This would have been a great opportunity to get to know her music a little better.

I’ve been a fan of Fountains of Wayne since long before “Stacy’s Mom” made them something of a Top 40 radio favorite, and listening to their groovy debut album always conjures memories of the fall of my freshman year of college. Fountains of Wayne is another example of a band I was thisclose to seeing before other circumstances presented themselves. Kates and I had gone to seen them at Summerfest in 2004 as they were still riding the wave of “Stacy’s Mom,” but a storm rolled in about an hour before they were due to hit the stage. Soaked, cold and miserable, we gave up our second row seats and headed home. I’ve been looking for another opportunity ever since.

Thursday, July 5: Death Cab for Cutie

I’m just going to put it out there: The night I saw Death Cab is, arguably, the worst concert experience I’ve had. But I still thoroughly enjoy their music and I’d gladly take a do-over.

Friday, July 6: OAR

Yes, I said after I saw OAR at Summerfest last year that I’d be ok if I never saw them again. But it is Summerfest, and if the opportunity knocks. …

Saturday, July 7

The only night that doesn’t feature an artist or band I’d like to see.

Sunday, July 8: Hanson

Not only is “Mmmbop” one of funnest songs of the ‘90s – yes, I said that – the Hanson boys have sustained themselves as a good-sounding little rock band. (See: “Give a Little.”) I’ve been chasing chances to see them ever since those “Mmmbop” days and I missed a number of them in Milwaukee. It was my good friend Tom who saw them play on a whim in a mall parking lot in Kansas City years ago and reported that they really could play.

So there it is. Sigh.

In a previous life, I would have done whatever I needed to do to be at Summerfest this year. But with a new baby and the work on my master’s degree intensifying, it's not happening. Now, Summerfest is an eight hour drive for us and no longer just one hour up the road.

Especially as I’ve grown older the last few years and we’ve started our family, I always left the hallowed Summerfest grounds thinking, Take it all in and enjoy it. This may be the last time you get to do this. The thought was especially present during our memorable night with Sheryl Crow, the night before our big move. But we made it again last year and made a glorious vacation out of it.

I’ve accepted the circumstances. And I’ll get over it.

* * *

The killer is what I’ll be missing Thursday night.

Ben Folds Five. One of my favorite bands. Period.

After a 12-year hiatus and a run of solo albums, Ben Folds, Darren Jessee and Robert Sledge have reunited to record a new album. They’re playing a short run of reunion shows at festivals this summer, one of which is Summerfest.

Kates and I briefly discussed a road trip for a one-night stand in Milwaukee to see them before submitting to all the reasons we shouldn’t do it.

I nearly exploded in a dance around my office a few months ago when I saw a Facebook post announcing the reunion. I’ve hung on every Ben Folds Five-related posting since then, and I nearly cried earlier this month when I caught this video …



The images and memories of those golden shows come rushing back. Summer shows in Kansas City. A school night road trip to Lawrence.

Another to Omaha that proved to be the best of all. They were at the height of their game then with the Reinhold Messner album, and the memory of wild fans hanging over the balcony railing, whaling and pumping their fists as we all sang “Battle of Who Could Care Less” is etched in my memory bank. (A new band called Train put on a pretty great show that night, too. They played an acoustic set because their instruments were lost on their way to the show.)

Ben Folds Five was a diversion from those chaotic times of my youth. Their three albums spanned my high school years to a major family move after my freshman year of college. Everything was right when they were playing on my stereo or discman. I'm crazy but I get the job done was my philosophy. The band’s breakup was the beginning of the end of my adolescence.

Once Kates and I were together, I turned her into a fan and she saw a few more shows with me. But Ben Folds was a solo pianist then, and it wasn’t quite the same. We saw him during my first-ever trip to Summerfest in 2003, although “saw” is the operative word because our view of the stage was completely blocked. Rather, my fondest memories of the solo Folds stem from our second trek to Summerfest in ’04. The crowd’s singing nearly drowned out Ben all the way through that night as he played a healthy dose of Ben Folds Five favorites as well as his newer solo stuff, like the goodie, “There's Always Someone Cooler Than You.”

We saw him twice in ’05. At Summerfest and then at the Chicago Theater. We last saw him in 2007, at Summerfest. And it was good.

A couple weeks ago, this video appeared of Ben Folds Five performing at Bonnaroo. They’re aged now and hardly look like the kids they were the first time I saw them during the summer of 1997. But “Battle of Who Could Care Less” has never sounded so good. The reviews say it all.



In the words of Ben Folds: It sucks to grow up.

My trade-off -- for what it's worth -- is getting to experience the Major League Baseball All-Star Weekend next month in Kansas City. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for sure, and the excitement will build, I’m sure, as those days draw closer.

But I’m not feeling it tonight.

Musical highs and lows

This was my music discovery of the week …

Sara Bareilles is brilliant.



Speaking of brilliant …

Hello.


Hello from ant1mat3rie on Vimeo.

Those are the highs.

The lows?

It was announced this week that Death Cab for Cutie is touring this spring. With an orchestra.

They'll be hitting Chicago. Milwaukee. ... Kansas City? No.

I know I've said I wasn't impressed when I saw Death Cab in Milwaukee a few years ago. ... But I'd like a do-over. And they're playing with an orchestra!

Guster recently announced they're heading back to Milwaukee, too. They've played there three, maybe four times since our move. But no Kansas City.

I'm beginning to think Kansas City is a black hole for good rock bands. What gives?

Cool like that

My good friend Laura is seeing Death Cab for Cutie in Chicago tonight.

You can be sure about what I'm thinking. ... So in an amusing way this exchange that she shared with me this morning was somewhat comforting ... 

So, I said, Death Cab in the meeting this morning and Sharkey was the only one who had ever heard the name.

So I asked about Grammy Award Winners Arcade Fire.

Still nothing.

You and I, my friend, are cool.

Yes, we are cool.

Music: All This Beauty

I've been on a big Belle & Sebastian kick this week ...

And this one is leading the charge. Man, this song rocks.

* * *

I'm stoked for a new Death Cab For Cutie album.

I'm even more stoked for new episodes of VH1 Storytellers.

* * *

The Yellowbirds new video for "The Rest of My Life." Gorgeous.

Also worth watching ...

Manic Monday

There are significant, compelling, Tweet-till-your-thumbs-cramp days in the sports world where screaming headlines converge and sports-talk radio producers vehemently debate the right thing to debate on the air because so many polarizing choices exist. Then there is Monday. ~David Haugh, Chicago Tribune

What a day.

It was a Monday. It was two-Mountain-Dew kind of a day ... And I'm not going to even scratch the surface here.

I’m stuck on a Death Cab for Cutie kick. How great is the “Narrow Stairs” album!? (You want it? Buy it. Amazon.com. Look left. I'm listening to it right now.) Better yet, how sweet is the extended opening on “I Will Possess Your Heart” !?

Kates and I are still mulling our next move in real estate. My lunch break was dominated by phone conversations, texting and e-mails. To Realtor. To Kates. To the parents. To Builder. Back to Realtor. And back to Kates.

I spoke to a public relations class today. I love being in educational settings, always have. I hope the insight I offered was worth something to them.

The baseball season is officially underway. The Royals lost. The Brewers lost. The Cubs got killed … And I didn’t have time to watch or listen to an ounce of any of it. After the mentally exhausting day I’ve had -- unlike my rambling vow last night -- I’m not sure I care. After all, the excitement of that Sox-Yankees game will last me a couple days, and, hey, how sweet was it to see Neil Diamond serenading Red Sox Nation last night!? One of these days, I’ll get to Fenway.

I’d be feeling as ambivalent about tonight’s national championship basketball game if the Butler Bulldogs weren’t the most-intriguing and adorable Cinderella in the history of the NCAA tournament. After starting so well, my stake in the office pool has long been shot (I’m ranked No. 38 going into tonight). But if Duke’s up by 20 at halftime, I’ll be pressing the mute button and turning on more Death Cab.

Concert Plans

Maybe it was that I was still soaking in the lingering images and sounds of the Jason Mraz show a couple weeks ago … Maybe it was that my mind is overcrowded with work stuff and holiday stuff and future stuff … Maybe it was that Kates had doled out a whole lotta pressure on me to not go … Maybe it was that winter’s coming on strong … Maybe it was that I was getting that feeling that I’m getting too old for this …

But I had free tickets. Free! Tickets! To see Death Cab For Cutie! The much buzzed-about indie rockers! Ben Gibbard, one of the most talented songwriters of this generation! The authors of one of my favorite albums this year!… I would have regretted it if I didn’t go.

And when it was all over, I was sure. I’d rather just listen to them on my iPod.

I got to the venue a few minutes late, waited a couple more minutes in a line to swap my voucher for an actual ticket and then hiked up the staircase to the ballroom for the show … Interesting that I was back in the ballroom, I thought. Three years of going to shows at The Rave, and I had never set foot in the ballroom. Now, I was there for the second time in three weeks.

The Ting Tings were well into their set … I’d never heard of them. And when I spotted them on stage I immediately likened them to a punked-up version of Mates of State -- except the female half jumps around on stage a whole lot more and swings a mean electric guitar, while the man was wearing a pair of cosmic-looking white shades that would have suited a member of the B-52s. I thought I heard a little bit of a Shiny Toy Guns vibe in them too …

They were loud, too. Really loud. A theme that would last through the night.

The Ting Tings played for about a half hour; I caught about four songs, ending with “Shut Up And Let Me Go.” Katie White pounded a bass drum and then a cowbell like crazy, and I really dug the song … (Watching the video for the studio version on YouTube now, it sounds nothing like the way it did last night. Here’s a live performance of it during a Los Angeles show.)

For the next 30 minutes, my entertainment was the group of douche bags who cut into the last remaining space in front of me. The best part was watching one of them obsessively and methodically run his hands through his shaggy blond do, which was part faux hawk, part mullet. At one point, I thought, Maybe I should lean over and tell him he owes me a dollar every time he runs those fingers through his geeky haircut. I probably would have put an extra $12 in my pocket.

Jack’s Mannequin came on at about 8 and delivered more loud, hard rock … I’d heard of the band and knew they played Summerfest a lot. But I wasn’t familiar with their music, and apparently I was in the minority there …

Most of the crowd seemed to know a lot of their songs well, erupting with loud cheers when the band dove into “The Mixed Tape,” “Dark Blue” and “Bruised” (there's a clip from the show here). And as the band played on, I decided -- like the Ting Tings -- I might be able to get into these guys a little bit.

After their seventh or eighth song, it was feeling like every next song was going to be their last, but they kept going and going and going … I chalked up the quieter “Hammer And Strings (A Lullaby)” and “The Lights And Buzz” as my favorites in their set.

Their set list …
1. “Crashing”
2. “The Mixed Tape”
3. “Spinning”
4. “Annie Use Your Telescope”
5. “Dark Blue”
6. “Bloodshot Eyes”
7. “Hammer and Strings (A Lullaby)”
8. “Bruised”
9. “The Lights And Buzz”
10. “Swim”
11. “La La Lie”
12. “The Resolution”
13. “Mfeo Pt. 2: You Can Breathe”

By the time, Jack’s Mannequin finished, the crowd had swelled considerably. Bordering on claustrophobia and still annoyed by the douche bags, I decided to get out while I still had my sanity and moved to the outskirts of the ballroom … Where, lo and behold, I found a heckuva lot more breathing room and a crowd that was not only more mature but closer to my age (Insert sigh of relief here).

The Death Cab boys came on at about 9:45. And I figured they had to open with something upbeat from “Narrow Stairs,” perhaps “I Will Possess Your Heart” or “Pity and Fear.” Instead, they began their set with a slow, meandering “The Employment Pages” that failed to capture the crowd.

The band ran off six songs before they pulled out one I recognized -- with the cool, upbeat “Soul Meets Body.” … I guess you can’t blame them for bringing out a lot of old stuff. Being more than 10 years old, they have the catalog. And Gibbard did remark at one point in the show that he was “feeling nostalgic and thinking about the olden days.” Still, the crowd’s energy level seemed to spike ten-fold when “Soul Meets Body” came out.

They followed that with “I Will Follow You Into the Dark.” Gibbard lost the band, went acoustic and played it beautifully as the crowd sang along loudly. It took about half the song for me to remember, too, that we heard Ingrid Michaelson cover the song -- just as beautifully -- at Summerfest. Very cool!

They stayed on a roll with “I Will Possess Your Heart,” which they began with a great, long intro jam -- making it and “Soul Meets Body” my easy favorites for their set.

But after “Cath...,” and later a good “Long Division,” they were back to the older stuff. No “No Sunlight,” no “Your New Twin-Sized Bed,” no “Pity and Fear.”

At around 10:55, they finished things off with “Transatlanticism,” ending the number with blazing lights, screaming guitars and an ear-piercing, heart-pumping, floor-vibrating roar that seemed to sum up the mood of the whole night.

Death Cab’s set list …
1. “The Employment Pages”
2. “Your Heart Is An Empty Room”
3. “The New Year”
4. “Crooked Teeth”
5. “President Of What?
6. “Title Track”
7. “Soul Meets Body”
8. “I Will Follow You Into the Dark”
9. “I Will Possess Your Heart”
10. “Cath …”
11. “Pictures in an Exhibition”
12. “Long Division”
13. “Sound of Setting”
14. (Encore) “Your Bruise”
15. (Encore) “Title And Registration”
16. (Encore) “Transatlanticism”

"Snack time" is a good time

So our friend Raechel presented us a few weeks ago with the Barenaked Ladies’ new album -- “Snack time” …

I’ve been listening to it repeatedly, and the most important thing I can say is this: Whether you’re a BNL fan, or a parent of young children -- get it!

Leave it to BNL to pull off an album that not only feels great on the adult ears, but an album that’s loaded with whimsical, kid-friendly sounds and lyrics.

The songs are filled with the signature BNL rock sound and sunny Beach Boy-like harmonies -- and the quirky dialogue a la “If I Had A Million Dollars.” And yet, a ton of the songs also are ready-made for a “Sesame Street” sing-along.

Only a rock band like BNL could sing about everyday things like erasers and allergies and lament the struggles of hand-me-downs (“My Big Sister”) and not being able to talk to your dog …

The album starts with the grouchy "7-8-9" (as in seven ate nine) and keeps on, drawing on flavors of rock, ’80s synth pop, a little bluegrass (“I Can Sing”) and a samba sound in one of my favorites on the album, “Polywog in a Bog.” … “Raisins” is a great, singable tune with a whistling chorus … The relaxing “Louis Lou” and the somber/so relatable “Bad Day” are other strong faves … “Humungous Tree” sounds like a new-agey Burt Bacharach tune.

The real gem on the album, though, is the Canadian Snacktime Trilogy -- a trio of sweet songs that starts with the title track. The first half of the song keys on a celebration of snack time and a cheeky spoken lyric -- “Talkin' ‘bout snack time.” Then, as the song winds down, a series of people are heard calling in their favorite snacks -- including a darling little boy who says his favorite snack is craaaaaaackers! We hear from callers who like lobster, salt and a vinegar chips, Japanese rice cakes and microwaved chocolate donuts. We hear from a robot and even Gordon Lightfoot -- to which my initial reaction was: Was that really Gordon Lightfoot!?

Part II of the trilogy is “Popcorn” -- a song on which just one word makes up almost all of the song. And still the guys succeed at conjuring a excitement of cooking popcorn, and it totally rocks … Then the trilogy concludes with the soothing/cooling “Vegetable Town.”

The album wouldn’t be complete, of course, without some good BNL humor. That can be found on second-to-last track, “Crazy ABC’s,” which features Ed Robertson teaching the alphabet with a collection of non-traditional words would challenge a decent Scrabble player (B is for bdellium, C is for czar, E for Euphrates, G for Gnarly, M for mnemonic … and you get the idea) … The humor really kicks in with fellow BNL member Steven Page’s retorts …

Ed: L is for llama
Steven: What's so strange about llama?
Ed: Llama, it starts with two L's
Steven: What's the second one for?
Ed: No idea.
Steven: I know, loser.

I need to say no more. “Snack time” is worth eating up.

* * *

A couple other albums of note I’ve recently acquired …

Scarlett Johansson’s “Anywhere I Lay My Head” … I have to say I knew almost nothing about this album other than the fact Scarlett was putting it out. I honestly didn’t know what to expect … But a couple minutes into the first track and the heavy brass, I had to double-check the CD cover to make sure I was listening to Scarlett Johansson – the actress. It’s not the poppy, summer-lovin’ style of music we’ve become accustomed to from the likes of Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton… Not even close.

Instead it has a cool indie vibe. I like the sultry, jazz zinger sound on the second track … though you have to be in a matching mood to listen and fully enjoy it, I think. So goes much of the album …

Some of the songs are ready made for Grey’s Anatomy (“Fannin Street,” “Song for Jo”), while “I Wish I was in New Orleans” is sort of a relaxing, twinkling tune … But a much-needed upbeat song doesn’t come until the ninth track, “I Don’t Want to Grow Up.”

It’s a worthy effort, but it’s not something I’m going to pop in again and again. I give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Death Cab For Cutie’s “Narrow Stairs” … I know there are some fanatical Death Cab fans out there. I am not one of them, but they do intrigue me. So let it be known that “Narrow Stairs” was a much-welcomed addition to my library (thanks again, Raechel).

It too has been getting a lot of play from me lately, and it has me making a lot of comparisons to The Shins “Wincing the Night Away” album and -- believe it or not -- “Smile”-era Brian Wilson. My favorite song on the album, “You Can Do Better Than Me,” totally gets me thinking it could easily fit somewhere on “Pet Sounds.”

From top to bottom, “Bixby Canyon Bridge,” “No Sunlight,” and “Cath …” to “Your New Twin-Sized Bed” -- the album is chock full of great, great songs. Then, to cap it, they read aloud every single word of the album credits -- genius.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.