Allegheny Landing Park, Pittsburgh, PA.... The WYEP Summer Music Festival In Brief: The only old song Shocked played was "Anchorage"--everything else was new. But unlike many performers who are heavy on their latest material, she was so dynamic that no one seemed to mind. Erin McKeown sat in on guitar for about 4 songs. There were some technical troubles during Penn's set, but he still played well. "Long Way Down" was interrupted halfway through ("I'd like to soldier on," Penn explained when he stopped the number, "But it's hard to sing if I can't hear the guitar"), but I'm so glad he played it. He closed with "Walter Reed," one of my favorites of the new record.
World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA ... Blondie was great, with the youthful 72-year-old Debbie Harry wearing a dress inscribed with "Stop F***ing the Planet" in glittery letters. I was amazed to get a chance to see Bash & Pop live, one of Tommy Stinson's bands after the breakup of The Replacements and before he joined Guns 'N Roses. I didn't expect he would reactivate Bash & Pop and play live. A really enjoyable set, and I had a chance to chat afterwards with a very tired Stinson. Greg Graffin (better known as the leader of Bad Religion) did a good set, and it was cool to see Judy Hyman of The Horseflies playing violin for Graffin. I had a brief conversation with Judy to catch up. I know I saw Ani's set but I don't have much recollection of it several years later. Blondie's Debbie Harry Tommy Stinson with Bash & Pop Greg Graffin Blondie setlist: One Way or Another Fun Call Me Rapture Fragments Long Time Heart of Glass Too Much Dream...
Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ..... More so than any show I've been to in recent memory, this concert was not focused so much on the songs as it was on the performances. Most of the time when you go to a show, you're primarily motivated by an interest in one or many of the artist's songs. Concerts by jam-bands like the Grateful Dead or most blues musicians, on the other hand, are more performance oriented. You go to see the performance of the entire show more than simply to hear that song in a live setting. That's why Deadheads could stomach going to umpty-ump shows by the same band. This evening headlined by the Butthole Surfers at Convention Hall turned out--surprisingly--to be more of a performance show. Although certainly many concertgoers were motivated to go by some individual songs (notably the several popular singles by The Toadies or the Butthole's current hit "Pepper"), the real story was the sheer intensity of the Rev. Horton Heat's rockab...
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