Chapel Hill, April 19th

[Lone Wolf1]

anybody been to the Cat's Cradle?

[Kudzu Guillotine]

anybody been to the Cat's Cradle?

Yes.

[Lone Wolf1]

nice? shitty? good sound, bad sound?

[Tyler]

Decentish, from the one show I saw there years ago. Kinda narrow and deep is what I remember. Flat floor.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

nice? shitty? good sound, bad sound?

I'm no expert in those areas (meaning the sound) but it's always sounded good to me in there. One fairly major change that's taken place in recent months is that the Cradle has undergone some renovations in order to make it a larger space. These include removing some seating areas along the right hand side of the venue, as well as the raised area where the soundboard is located. There is a bench that runs along the left hand side of the venue as well as a smaller one on the right hand side. They also tore out part of the ceiling to put in sprinklers. That obviously doesn't have anything to do with increasing the capacity but it gives it the feel of being a larger space. They've also moved the stage and removed the VIP seating area that used to be adjacent to the right hand side of it. Because of this, you now have to enter from the right hand side of the venue rather than the front. They also removed the wall from behind the soundboard area. Now, there's just a curtain there. Some have said these changes have robbed the Cradle of it's character. I agree but it wouldn't cause me to avoid it. It's just that now it has more of an open warehouse feel and there are less places to sit. I've always enjoyed seeing shows there and if weren't for the Cradle, I'm sure that some of the more well known bands probably wouldn't stop in this area at all.

If you're interested in reading it, Durham's Independent Weekly published this article about the changes back in August.

[Lone Wolf1]

thanks for the info. much appreciated

[Kudzu Guillotine]

Has anyone heard who is opening this show? I know that Megafaun is opening most of the shows during this leg of the tour but it looks as though no opener has been announced for the Cradle, at least according to the DBTs tour page.

[bovine knievel]

2 days after my bday

[Tyler]

As a heads up, if anyone needs a hotel for this show...if you go to hotwire.com and search for Chapel HIll you'll (probably) be offered a 4 star for $80. It's the Chapel Hill Sheraton.

[Lone Wolf1]

As a heads up, if anyone needs a hotel for this show...if you go to hotwire.com and search for Chapel HIll you'll (probably) be offered a 4 star for $80. It's the Chapel Hill Sheraton.

thank you. i'm 90% sure i'm goin' to this show

[brett27295]

We're definitively going to hit this show, a little over an hour from where we live. Hopefully we can make it to the following night in Wilmington as well.

We've never been to the Cat's Cradle, but we do plan on checking it out when Alabama Shakes plays there April 6.

[joshN]

never been to the cradle, but i've heard about it for years...wifey and i will be there, taking the 15 year old daughter to her first truckers show as well, gonna be good times

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I got to wondering who the opening band for this show is or if there is even going to be an opening band so I wrote to the Cradle this week to find out. Apparently there is going to be an opener but they just haven't been announced it yet. I have no idea why it's not Megafaun since they're opening all of the other shows during this stretch of the tour. My only guess is, they're not opening because they're doing a headlining gig at the Haw River Ballroom in nearby Saxapahaw on April 14th.

[rawkshow]

i've been on the fence for this one since it's on a thurs but now that patterson is saying it's their last tour for a good bit, i just had to bite the bullet & take the day off. officially IN for this show....now just trying to decide on wilmington...

[Tyler]

Looks like Megafaun is now playing the Chapel Hill show also.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

Looks like Megafaun is now playing the Chapel Hill show also.

Thanks, I was wondering how much longer they were going to wait before announcing an opener.

[ramonz]

Anyone organizing a pre-show get together? I'll probably get in town around 5pm.

[armPitt]

Anyone organizing a pre-show get together? I'll probably get in town around 5pm.

I'll probably be in town around 5pm as well...anyone doing anything? I can't offer up any suggestions as it will be my first time in Chapel Hill, but I'm interested to hear what everyone might be up to.

[rawkshow]

it's been awhile since i've been to cat's cradle....i know it's in a little strip mall area & it's past all the bars in chapel hill (at least for walking wise). I did ask a friend who went to school there & still goes up there & he suggested the Speakeasy at Tyler's, http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-speakeasy-a ... s-carrboro, as a cool place to get a drink & close to the venue. i'm not sure if i'm gonna be able to pre-game it anywhere beforehand, just depends on when i get out of work & how traffic is but hopefully catch some of y'all at the show.

[DJ Golf]

it's past all the bars in chapel hill (at least for walking wise).

It's close to everything in Carrboro though, which is where all the cool stuff is anyway. Tyler's, MIlltown and Southern Rail/The Station are all close by and have good beer/drink selections. Lots of food close by too. If you like Tex-Mex, ask somebody where Carrburritos is. You'll be glad you did.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

Not sure how much time (if any) I'll have to kill before the show as driving in from Raleigh in the late afternoon can be a motherfucker traffic-wise but I can offer up some suggestions for those that will be in town an ample amount of time before the show starts.

Right there in the strip mall where the Cradle is located there is Ba-Da Wings and Amante Pizza. Over in the next block towards Tyler's is the the Armadillo Grill. If Mexican fare is your thing there is also Carrburritos which is a short walk away over on Rosemary Street. As far as watering holes there's The Station/Southern Rail which is kinda of caddy corner across the street from the Cradle (this is where R.E.M. played their first show outside of Athens). Directly across the street is Milltown. Back down towards Tyler's on Main Street is The Orange County Social Club.

If you have enough time to check out the local record stores I recommend All Day Records, Nice Price Books and CD Alley. All Day Records is all vinyl, Nice Price is all used records, tapes and books. CD Alley has a very nice selection of new and used vinyl and compact discs.

[eric]

A few of us will be at Southern Rail preshow. You shall know us by the tshirts and empty microbrews. Haven't been to cats cradle since the changes. I always liked the previous dark scruffy sticky ambiance. Coming in from Asheville hoping to get in town by 5 and beat traffic after loading up on a six pack of STP fuel injector cleaner

[Kudzu Guillotine]

It's not all that much different, there are just less places to sit.

[DJ Golf]

I really like the changes to the Cradle. The stage is bigger & higher so you can see the band better from the back, and the lights are positioned better. The new side door is great as I always found it distracting when people were coming & going next to the stage. And it's easier to get out afterwards. Also easier to get back & forth from stage area to bar/restrooms. The higher ceiling makes it look a lot bigger in there (and it is bigger - capacity went from 650 to about 850 IIRC.) Overall less claustrophobia-inducing when the place is packed. There are fewer seats but I rarely sit at rock shows anyway.

[Flea]

Looks like Megafaun is now playing the Chapel Hill show also.

I really really enjoyed Megafaun the past 2 nights. The cover of I Shall Be Released last night was fucking sublime.

[brett27295]

We're going to be running late tonight am I safe in assuming that DBT will be hitting the stage at their normal time? I know I read that in Wilmington they will go on pretty early.

[BigTom]

Heading down from Richmond for show 100.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

Looks like Megafaun is now playing the Chapel Hill show also.

I really really enjoyed Megafaun the past 2 nights. The cover of I Shall Be Released last night was fucking sublime.

Thanks for the heads up. Like I've said elsewhere, I hate like hell that it's under these circumstances but Megafaun is one group that knows their way around a Band song. A few years ago they took part in a tribute to Alan Lomax (as well as others) at a series of concerts called Sounds of the South at the Hayti Cultural Center in Durham (along with Fight the Big Bull, Sharon Van Etten and Justin Vernon) and closed out each night with a grand finale sing-a-long of "The Weight". The shows were taped for eventual release but have never come out.

By the way, thanks to your tip, I just found this on the YouTubes. Yeah, the camera angle is off but the sentiment is fully intact.

[CooleyGirl]

Heading down from Richmond for show 100.

Congratulations! That is excellent! Hope you get One of These Days!

[BigTom]

Heading down from Richmond for show 100.

Congratulations! That is excellent! Hope you get One of These Days!

Thank you