Benedum Center, Pittsburgh, PA..... With a Morrissey concert, one always wonders whether it will take place at all--given Morrissey's well-documented history of shows cancelled at the last minute. So it was concerning when several recent of his concerts had to be scrapped due to credible death threats on the former Smiths frontman. But, it turned out not to be a concern and the show went on as scheduled. Morrissey was in fine voice but I had some issues with the setlist. Towards the end of the main set, I thought it's got to be bangers all the way down, but I was disappointed. Some deeper cuts, but more problematically, midtempo songs that didn't get the energy up except for the hardest-core of Moz-heads. There were a lot of people heading to the exits early, and my daughter (first time seeing him live) said to me at one point, "The music for each song sounds good but once he starts singing, they all sound the same." The last time I saw Morrissey , while a showcas...
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...
PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA.... Green Day's The Saviors Tour, in which they played all of Dookie and the American Idiot albums in sequence. (Probably not the best choice, as it severely constrained the setlist order and was not ideal for a stadium concert.) Rancid was probably my pick for the best all-around performance of the day, although the Linda Lindas were a lot of fun. Green Day had some great song performances but their set was a little bloated and lacking the loopy spontaneity I remember from seeing them in 1998 . Smashing Pumpkins was OK, but just like when I saw them in 2000 , I was left with a "good, but" vibe. I liked some of it. But when Corgan inexplicably brought out professional wrestlers from his wrestling promotion company-- well, big sigh. One of the most remarkable moments of the concert didn't involve a live performance. Immediately prior to Green Day taking the stage, they play Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" over the sound system and...
Comments