Cat's Cradle
12/8/2011
It's getting harder and harder to get myself to go to shows in Chapel Hill...my laziness has grown to epic levels (this laziness also seemed to rear up right around the same time Kings re-opened and good shows started happening again in Raleigh). Unless I've purchased a ticket I just can't get motivated to drive out there, and there are even times when that isn't enough. I really REALLY wasn't feeling like driving out there this evening, but the ticket wasn't cheap and the newest Beirut album "The Rip Tide" is one of my very favorite releases of the year. So like Willie Nelson, I was on the road again.
The apprehension is always with the getting up and going, and never with the actually show. The show was, predictably, fantastic. I saw Beirut once many years ago, early in their career, and it was fine - but night and day with how polished they sound now. There were times when the horn section sounded so good I was transported back to 1975 when I saw Chicago for the first time. Then I remember I wasn't born yet in 1975, and this was all some crazy hallucination, probably stemming from eating that out-of-date ham. And then I wished I really was watching Chicago, but I wasn't. Beirut makes a pretty good consolation prize though. The band had strung up some large red & white carnival lights all around the stage, giving the club a festive atmosphere, helped by a pretty active crowd that was maybe only 75% douchebags. It was a great set, with a number of older songs interspersed with nearly all of the new record, and it was clear I wasn't the only one gaga for the latest release. The highlight was the live rendition of "Santa Fe", probably one of my top three favorite songs of the year. Bottom line - I'm really glad I left the house.
0 comments:
Post a Comment