First off, I am deeply apologetic for not writing at all this week; my living arrangement dictated my free time this week, which gave me much less opportunity to write. I plan on writing several post this weekend to make up for it.
Now, for the topic at hand. I've probably seen around 100 concerts in my lifetime with at least a couple hundred bands on my list. Some I've seen only once, some I've seen more than a dozen times. I've seen bands old and new, big and small, at local venues and at festivals. I have danced, photographed, headbanged, and moshed at many an event. I know others who have far more concert experiences than I do and others who have far less. Concerts are experiences that I know I will have many more of, so there's no sense of longing for the past by recounting these events whatsoever. One point of clarification is that this list constitutes solely the bands, not the concert experience on the whole from beginning to end. The distinction is I have seen great bands with lousy openers, or there are some experiences that were absolutely incredible with bands that I love where the band is really just a satisfactory live band. So, without further ado, here are my top 5:
5. Project Pitchfork (seen once) - I saw Project Pitchfork in July 2012 at Amphi Festival over in Germany. They were the musical highlight of the festival for me. The music was phenomenal live, and the visual display was impressive. Peter Stilles had a strong presence on stage, but the clincher here was the assault from the two drum kits on stage. There's no substitute for live drums in my opinion, and they really seemed to understand this. There's no getting around needing to sound good when you perform, and Project Pitchfork had it nailed.
4. Flogging Molly (seen twice) - I've seen Flogging Molly twice, and the biggest thing for me about seeing Flogging Molly for me is no matter how many people are there, they make it feel like a very intimate show. Every member in the band is tremendously talented on their respective instruments, which really shows at their live performances. Their super long version of Black Friday Rule complete with solos has to be among my top live songs. But talent aside, Dave King is what takes their shows from great to outstanding. His conversation between songs is invaluable to the show. I honestly get the vibe that I am going back to Ireland and he is telling me, an old friend, stories whenever he talks between songs. It's a truly wonderful experience.
3. Arkona (seen three times) - First of all, let me just say that the fact that I have seen Arkona three years in a row, all in the United States, is incredible and such a strong testament to Arkona and their dedication to their fans across the globe. That is NOT common amongst bands from Europe and Asia (and not a criticism of those bands whatsoever, the US can make it hell for bands to come perform here). Watching Arkona on stage is a thing of beauty; they perform with such a passion and intensity that few bands can match while also exhibiting the polish of a band that could perform in their sleep, if needed. Most of all, Masha's performance is just sublime. She really just exudes such emotion on stage; one moment it is as if she is sharing some of the beauty and mysticism of the old Russian motherland with you, then the next you have a woman, who must not even weight 100 pounds, possessed with a warrior's ferocity flying around the stage in a blur of blonde hair and wolf pelt. It's an incredible sight to see.
2. Kamelot (seen once) - Admittedly, I was not expecting to be blown away by Kamelot. They are a prime example of a band that I feel drastically outperforms their albums when they play live. The big thing for me on their recorded work is that it just didn't stick out to me, and the drums were too generic sounding on many tracks. That all goes out the window live. Instantly when I see the drum kit after the curtain is pulled back, I feel as though I may be off base with what to expect, and boy was I ever. To start, Tommy Karevik, their new vocalist, is lights out. Normally I am a fan of deeper male voices, but this guy's voice is phenomenal. He's incredibly easy on the eyes for the ladies (and interested men), too. Their performance was bold from beginning to end. You are treated to an incredible drum solo, keyboard solo, and bass solo at various points of the set. I can't include the inclusion of EKLIPSE as part of their merit, as this would go more to the performance on one tour and not to the band overall, but I had to mention their incorporation of those lovely ladies (Helena, if you are reading, will you marry me?) By the end of the night, I had a gleam in my eyes and a grin I could not wipe off my face.
1. Saltatio Mortis (seen once) - Saltatio Mortis might hold this spot for me as long as I live. I saw them in Germany in August 2012 at the Mittelalterlich Phantasie Spectaculum. Being in a foreign country and just looking forward to the experience, I didn't quite know what to expect and didn't even know how the bands or stages would be set up. Well, Saltatio Mortis played numerous sets throughout the day beginning in the daytime and ending with a night session with full pyrotechnics on display. I didn't even get the full experience as I don't understand German at all, so that could only vault them further away from the pack. What to be said about their performance, though? Well, for starters, they all are remarkably talented musicians. The mastery of the bagpipes and shawms is very impressive. It isn't just how they play instruments, though, it's the accompanying dance. They dance quite a bit on stage, and them dancing is not enough, they get the audience dancing with them. You have Alea, a tremendously charismatic presence on stage always getting the crowd involved. That in between his kicks and flips while he doesn't have bagpipes in hand. It's clear that they get out of bed each day and love what they do, and they will always give it their all for the fans. At the particular event I went to, it was pouring rain. Two things stick out. One is Alea returning to the stage, walking to the uncovered part, extending his arms out into the rain and looking into the sky, then saluting the crowd, a group that won't be denied their opportunity to see the band and dance no matter the weather. The second, and this is the coolest thing that I have ever seen at a concert, is when the sound equipment failed due to the water getting through the makeshift water sealants around the extension cord outlets (read duct tape), they just unplug the bagpipes, bring the bass drum with the reed, a bongo drum, and an acoustic guitar down and start playing amongst the crowd in the rain. A lesser band might shrug their shoulders. A more conventional band couldn't simply bring their instruments into the rain and continue the show. They're a rare breed, and not one to pass up should you ever get the opportunity.
So those are my top five. Thoughts? Anyone else have a top five?
No comments:
Post a Comment