s-k #11

The highlights were monsters, but overall I'd put this show a bit under last year's, which still makes it one heckuva concert. They came out on fire ... I'm not sure how much I like the metaphors in "The Fox," but live, where you can barely hear the words anyway, all that mattered was the killer riffs. Third song was one of my all-time faves, "Not What You Want," and by the time it was done, all my high expectations were being met. But then things went a bit funky, due, I suspect, to the fact the tour is less than a week old. "Sympathy" was OK, but a Warfield goon came through the crowd to remove someone, which was too distracting for such a song. Janet playing harmonica and drums for "Modern Girl" was v.cute, but then coming into the last verse she blew a transition by a beat ... Carrie laughed, but the song just petered out after that.

But then came "Entertain," the best song on the new album, and even as the lyrics chastise the audience ("So you want to be entertained? Please look away, we're not here 'cause we want to entertain"), the music inspires the audience to rock out. It was another highlight. And then came "Let's Call It Love," the infamous eleven-minute guitar workout. This is my favorite of the new songs, with a riff so enormous it would do Jimmy Page proud. It went on too long, but so did "Dazed and Confused" when I saw Led Zeppelin ... that's kinda the point.

The encores further illustrated what you might call the Lesson of "Entertain." Carrie announced that now they were gonna play the oldies, and the crowd went wild ... at which point, Carrie made a face as if to say "geez, you guys just want to be entertained, please look away." Sadly for Carrie but happily for us, the encores kicked serious ass ... "Turn It On" never fails, "Little Babies" is a great singalong, and "I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone" has a different meaning now that they ARE our Joey Ramones, but is still appropriate. But then they were gone ... we didn't get a cover song tonight, so our set was a bit short of what they'd played in the Northwest.

So, if the last show was an A+, this was only an A, although with A+ moments. They still aren't talking much to the audience ... maybe those days are gone ... but they compensate in other ways. Corin continues her gradual move towards actual stage presence ... and she wore jeans tonight, which was a first for us. She was in good voice as well. Janet was great as usual, despite her missed cue in "Modern Girl," and she looked hot as well. But the night was Carrie's ... she's always been far and away the most charismatic stage performer in the band, and with the increased emphasis on guitar work, she's stepped up even more than before. Her vocals were stronger than ever, her guitar work more confident than ever, her goofy faux-guitargod moves more charming than ever. They were equal to all their influences: Bikini Kill and Led Zeppelin, Blue Cheer and Sonic Youth. Corin is our Grace Slick, Carrie our Jimmy Page, Janet our Keith Moon. But the sum is also more than the parts: simply put, they are a band.

Comments

[DrPepper]

I agree that the S-K show was wonderful, and also that it was a little too much by-the-numbers. I wonder if it wasn't the album itself. Other than "Jumpers" and "Entertain," it takes them away with the snarkiness and speed of everything that they've done in the past. Sure, they assimilate and trump Led Zeppelin, but I'm not sure that that's a good thing. I guess I am just a melancholic in love with "Call the Doctor" and "One Beat" who can't get used to idea that S-K has to evolve, even though they've done it with so much skill.

The guitar playing of Mary Timony, the opening act, blew me away. It was as though she were generating the sound, though not the volume, of three guitars, an amazing spiralling sound.

[Dean & Donna Yulfo]

Carrrie reminds me of Pete Townsend more than Jimmy Page and Janet evokes the hallowed John Bonham. Corin is harder to compare so we won't. We saw SK four times on this leg of the tour and were pleased with their live performances as usual, but we were also disappointed that The Hot Rock and Call The Doctor weren't more represented. We're Los Angelenos and were also surprised by the energy at both LA shows. It was great not be two of the few dancing to their electric performance. In regards to cutting a rug, Let's Call it Love is like wearing tennies on a shag rug. It became an intermission for us. We went to the bathroom and got refreshments during their too long exercise in Jam Band 101. Love the rest of the new album though.

[Steven Rubio]

I hear you about Townshend and Bonham ... no real disagreement. Carrie's onstage persona is much more like Townshend than Page. But her idiosyncratic guitar lines are more like Page, and the whomping riff of "Let's Call It Love" could have been on Physical Graffiti. As for Janet, she'd be happy with the Bonham comparison, but I think her skills have become manic enough at this point that she's made it to the Moonie stage.