Providence, RI 3/9/2016

[uncle rickey]

Figured we'd need a dedicated thread for this. CG and I are both working that day, so we should be rolling into town fairly close to doors.

[Bill in CT]

In

[beantownbubba]

In.

Pre game is doubtful but I will post if that changes.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

in




















in spirit

[beantownbubba]

Fucker. Almost had me but as soon as the smile hit my face, so did the thought that I better scroll down. I'll buy you a drink. In spirit. (Get it? Drink? Spirit? - Never mind the rock show; do you see how much you're missing?)

BTW, forgot to say thanks, Uncle Rickey for the info about the venue in the other thread. Appreciate it.

[StevieRay]

Looks like a beautiful venue.

[beantownbubba]

Whoa! Surprising enough that they'd let DBT play there, but there's no way they let us heathens in is there?

[vanark]

In.

A friend that is a FOH engineer was with a band that played there a few months ago. Says the venue is terrible. Guess we'll see.

[Bill in CT]

I asked my friend Kathy who is coming to the show about places to eat near the Columbus. Here is her response:

There are a lot of restaurants on Atwells Ave. It runs parallel to Broadway. Caserta Pizza on Spruce St is good too.

[Clams]

Looks like a beautiful venue.

Except for all the seats. And the fancy curtains and ceiling and walls.

That looks like an Isbell venue.

[Flea]

I asked my friend Kathy who is coming to the show about places to eat near the Columbus. Here is her response:

There are a lot of restaurants on Atwells Ave. It runs parallel to Broadway. Caserta Pizza on Spruce St is good too.

When in Rhode Island, always order the spinach pie.

[beantownbubba]

I asked my friend Kathy who is coming to the show about places to eat near the Columbus. Here is her response:

There are a lot of restaurants on Atwells Ave. It runs parallel to Broadway. Caserta Pizza on Spruce St is good too.

I've been to 2 or 3 on that street which is indeed crammed w/ restaurants. Siena, for sure - very good but probably too expensive for a pre-show chow down. Also Enoteca Umberto, I think, which if I'm remembering correctly was also good and less expensive. In my experience, italian food in Providence is always a safe bet.

[StevieRay]

A couple of spots come up on google that are close by:

Julian's - 318 Broadway -- "Hip brewpub with exposed brick walls popular for house-smoked meats & numerous vegetarian options"

Broadway Bistro - 205 Broadway -- "Inviting hangout whipping up seasonal, locally sourced American comfort food & original cocktails."

north - 3 Luongo Square -- "Hip outpost provides cutting-edge regional & global small plates & cocktails in a snug, cool space."

The Broadway Bistro didn't include the descriptor "Hip" - so, therefore it might have potential for pre-game ceremonies?

[CooleyGirl]

Looking forward to seeing everyone tonight. We'll have Luke's brother, Myer, with us tonight. He just moved back to the U.S. from Argentina, and he was in London before that. Please make him feel welcome. Tonight will make his 3rd DBT show.

Also, our very own Bleusie, aka Kristen, has a birthday today, so we should celebrate!

I've never been to this venue, but in looking at it online, it appears the bar is cash only. I thought I'd pass that along as an FYI, I know I tend to take more cash out of the ATM before I get to the show in cases like this.

See you later! We're hoping to hit the road by 4:30 and without traffic we will get there at 6:00, but since it's rush hour, we may be delayed. Not sure we'll make the pre-game but see you at the show for sure.

[tinnitus photography]

have fun, everyone! i'm stuck in Philly for work stuff.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

please have a bunch of these in my honor, I will be there in spirit!

[beantownbubba]

have fun, everyone! i'm stuck in Philly for work stuff.

Stuck inside of philly w/ the providence blues again.

Any chance for portland?

[tinnitus photography]

no, i am fllying home tmrw night

[StevieRay]

please have a bunch of these in my honor, I will be there in spirit!

Dell's Lemonade must be enjoyed with a Rhode Island "Gagger" style dog:

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

please have a bunch of these in my honor, I will be there in spirit!

Dell's Lemonade must be enjoyed with a Rhode Island "Gagger" style dog:

Is that New York System?

[uncle rickey]

Made Up English Oceans
The Righteous Path
A Ghost to Most
Pauline Hawkins
Sounds Better in the Song
Marry Me
Sinkhole
Woman Without Whiskey
The Night GG Allin Came to Town
Gravity's Gone
Goode's Field Road
Where the Devil Don't Stay
What it Means
Ramon Casiano
Heathens
Shit Shots Count
Hell No, I Ain't Happy
Encore:
[new Cooley song that they played once in Athens that setlist.fm thinks is called "Imagine" but I'm not so sure]
Zip City
Grand Canyon

[StevieRay]

Fenway Park organist Josh Kantor sat in with the band on a few numbers.

[vanark]

Glad to see a semi-decent crowd turn out. But still plenty of space in that old theater.

Cooley sang a lot of songs (more than usual?) as Patterson was feeling under the weather.

[beantownbubba]

(more than usual?)

Yes.

[beantownbubba]

Say, how would you go about it if you wanted to come up w/ a relatively objective test of how good a band really is? You might have them play a mid week show in an area not known as a hotbed of enthusiasm for the group. You might have them play in a venue w/ truly lousy acoustics and minimal tech support (like lack of stage lighting). For sure you'd have 2 of the band members be sick as dogs w/ one of the lead singers barely able to croak out lyrics. And you'd probably have them play in front of a decent sized but nowhere near full crowd, very, very few of whom are "true believers" (as best as I could tell anyway, as I had to listen to myself sing all night 'cause nobody around me knew more than a few words to a few songs). You might call that DBT at the Columbus Theater in Providence, RI on 3/9/16. And then you'd have to conclude that this band is really, really good. Like over the top great. This is not the first time I will say that I have no idea how they do it, but hell, I have no idea how they do it. Night after night, year after year. This is why the mantra is "always go to the show."

First, Mattador and Cole proved themselves to be true magicians. Even a philistine like me could tell that this hall is very poorly suited to rock n roll, particularly a very bad echo and really high ceilings that presumably sucked the sound right out of the place. The sound was never going to achieve perfection but the clarity of all of the instruments, and surprisingly enough, the vocals, was remarkable. And I was reliably informed that Cole had all of 5 stage lights to work with. I never would have guessed - the emotional cues were in all the right places and the vocalists/soloists were well highlighted despite difficult on stage positioning.

Of course since several people have commented lately about how much guitar Jay is playing, he came out and didn't pick up a guitar for the first 5 songs, lol. I don't know any of the technicalities but Jay's got a new electric piano and he seems to really dig it because he was doing things w/ it that I've not heard before. Perhaps it was the subtle sounds of the organ, but for whatever reason, the band immediately settled into a slow burn groove that lasted for those 5 songs. Then Cooley took a second song in a row ("Marry Me"), Jay picked up a guitar and the evening accelerated to another rockin' level. It was very cool having Fenway Park organist Josh Kantor on hand. Three guitars plus organ makes for a very full, lush sound. And in addition to being the swiss army knife of musicians, it seems that Jay can also teach: It appeared that Josh had only planned on playing on a couple of songs but he was on stage for much of the night and before each additional song Jay was presumably telling him what was next and how to play it. Kudos to both 'cause it sounded good.

I was struck by the relationship between "The Righteous Path" and "Goode's Field Road" last nite - it was a great live music moment when one hears something in a new way. I had just been thinking that when I previously said that the band had finally found the heart and soul of "Righteous Path" what that really meant (other than Patterson's vocals) is that the song had been turned inside out - instead of being melody or guitar driven, it's now all about the rhythm. And, of course, GFR has become an intense, funkified, rhythm driven highlight over the past few months. And that in turn brought out the lyrical or thematic links between the songs. Great, great stuff. I used to think that 3 wailing guitars was pretty much the height of rocking out but I'm beginning to think that 3 chunky funky rhythm guitars do the job at least as well. All hail Bo Diddley, or something like that.

So if your voice is really hurting and limiting your ability to sing you'd of course choose to break out..."heathens" one of the more vocally demanding songs in your repetoire, right? A questionable choice, Mr. Hood, but an admirable effort. Which was immediately followed by Cooley mangling the words to "Shit Shots Count" in truly impressive style. Usually it's a word or 2 or maybe a line or 2. Last nite it was pretty much a whole verse, lol. But proving once again that if it's about anything, rock n roll is about attitude, Cooley remained the coolest guy in the schoolyard (i guess that's parking lot for most of you) and pulled it off w/ his usual aplomb. And just to prove it, he opened the encore with a new song unfamiliar even to those few of us who are somewhat familiar w/ the new songs (UR I don't think it was the "imagine song"). It is just so DBT to do what they want to do, fuck all the "rules" of showmanship.

It seems that "Surrender Under Protest" is my current fave of the new ones 'cause I missed it last nite. But "What It Means" and "Ramon" continue to shift and evolve in fascinating and exciting ways, particular WIM which is also becoming a favorite. I also thought that Patterson's intro to WIM was probably the best I've heard him do, really getting to the heart of what he was thinking and what he was trying to do by writing/performing the song.

And then there was Grand Canyon. A stunning, stupendous version. The instrumental freak out was insanely good w/ all kinds of wild soloing from all 3 guitarists and Matt & Brad keeping it all together while still going off in their own exciting ways. It left everyone breathless and happy.

Side notes: I don't think I've been to a DBT venue with better, easier, more convenient parking. I am presently mourning my leftover baked pasta from Al Forno, which I forgot to take w/ me Like DBT, that place brings it every time. Yum. For a less than full crowd in an acoustically poor hall, the crowd was impressively loud and enthusiastic (even if there wasn't much singing beyond the front few rows). As has been typical lately, women continue to make up a substantial portion of the audience, which is a good thing on multiple levels. Except for the mystery of the "VIP box" stage left which was filled w/ 6 or 8 women (no men) who sat like statues for the entire show. Don't know who they were or why they were there but I am most curious.

On to Portland, which kind of feels like homecoming Saturday: Happily exhausted from the previous shows, totally looking forward to the next show and yet feeling that creeping dread of knowing that this will be my last show for too long. Sigh. The duality of the DBT thing.

[dime in the gutter]

thanks, btb.

always enjoy your ruminations. keep them coming.

[vanark]

I'd say beyond the first few rows, the male/female ratio was about 10:1. And the 1's were dragged there by their significant other.

The group in the box was a family - a Dad with his son/daughter and a bunch of the daughter's friends. I stood behind them in line before the show. He was into it, but they stuck it out, so I give them credit.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

I am presently mourning my leftover baked pasta from Al Forno, which I forgot to take w/ me Like DBT, that place brings it every time. Yum.

I feel you on that one, brother, just reading that made me so hungry.

Al Forno, summer 2010, it was like a sitdown of the Five Families

[vanark]

"I'm a white guy with a Southern accent and I'll be the first to tell you Black Lives Matter and fuck you if you think otherwise."

-PH, 3/9/16

[vanark]

The new song at the beginning of the encore is the hipster cowgirl song - Hipster Surfer Girl?