Favorite concerts of 2012

[tinnitus photography]

like i said, this was a tough year with a lot of really great shows. i only saw them once, in Newport, and while it was a good show it wasn't their best by far (don't get me wrong, i still liked the show). the only show i saw at Newport that really drew me in was Sharon Van Etten's. i didn't see day 3 so i can't comment.

[Mr. Heartbreak]

Nov 3 - The Who - Quadrophenia. Already reviewed here in After the Show. What else can you say? http://viachicago.org/topic/48529-the-who-110312-orlando-fl-amway-arena/?p=1514542

Dec 11 - Aerosmith - I didn't do a full review of this, but discussed it a little in the Aerosmith thread. They exceeded expectations. Movin' Out was a real highlight, one of my favorite Aerosmith tunes.

Mar 10 - Elton John - Possibly the best Elton show I have seen, hard to say. First time I ever got a Holiday Inn, Harmony or Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word. Life changing. http://viachicago.org/topic/47554-elton-john-31012-orlando-fl-amway-arena/?p=1496669

Sep 14 - Elton John - Not as great as the March show, but still pretty amazing. The guy can play, and his band is great.

May 16 - Wilco - The better of the two Wilco shows I caught this year, reviewed in After the Show. http://viachicago.org/topic/47816-wilco-st-augustine-ampitheatre-51612/

May 5 - Beach Boys - So cool to see (and hear) Brian Wilson, especially Sail On Sailor and I Guess I Just Wasn't Made For These Times, the latter being especially poignant.

Apr 21 - Buddy Guy - I can't believe how much excitement old Buddy can still deliver when he really starts to rock. Still one of the best guitar players alive. 

July 24 - Dukes of September - Also reviewed in After the Show, an interesting, fun show. http://viachicago.org/topic/48156-dukes-of-september-72412-clearwater-fl-ruth-eckerd-hall/?p=1506262

May 14 - Wilco - Hate to rank Wilco lower, but these other shows were all so good, and the 2nd show was a more rocking experience for me. Still a great concert.

May 26 - Al Stewart - See After the Show. http://viachicago.org/topic/47857-al-stewart-with-dave-nachmanoff-526-12-clearwater-fl-capitol-theatre/?p=1502256

Oct 20 - Chris Robinson Brotherhood - Slightly reviewed in the Black Crowes thread: http://viachicago.org/topic/32227-the-black-crowes/?p=1513742

Mar 15 - Experience Hendrix - You hate to put anyone last, but this would have to be it. Still a very good show. Also reviewed in After the Show. http://viachicago.org/topic/47583-experience-hendrix-31512-clearwater-fl-ruth-eckerd-hall/?p=1497048

 

I don't think I have ever been to that many concerts in one year before, particularly because my pockets are just not that deep...especially when it comes to the big name acts. Next year will be much less eventful, but I am pleased to be catching all three Bruce Cockburn shows in Florida in March.

[worldrecordplayer]

Not that many shows this year for me compared to most here I bet. Here's my tops:

 

JazzFest second weekend. All of it, day and night, with a particular highlight being the original Meters show at the Howlin Wolf. Their first club gig in New Orleans in 30 years. They may be old, but they can play.

 

Saw 2 Wilco shows, MassMoCA and Hartford. The Bushnell show gets a little higher rating because the sound was incredible. And because Lee Renaldo Band.

 

Phish in Worcester, first night of summer tour as they set out and blew up all across America (as I'm watching the MSG pay per view right now)

 

Tedeschi Trucks Band at HOB Boston, with George Porter Jr. on bass

 

Neil and Crazy Horse at Boston Garden. I just love Neil with Crazy Horse

 

Saw 2 Soulive and Lettuce shows, always fun.

 

Other mentions, Heartless Bastards, Alabama Shakes, Social D was great!

 

Least favorite show of the year was Springsteen at Fenway.

[anthony]

No Wilco shows made it to your top list, or even "the rest"?

I may be in the minority (especially among VCr's) but the Wilco show I saw was my least favorite. The band was fine, but I was kinda put off by the venue (San Diego Opera House).

 

 

 

Heartless Bastards - Union Transfer

 

 

 My big regret was not seeing HB this year - and I had a couple of changes too! Grrrrr...

[El Picador]

1. Phish - Long Beach Arena, LB, CA - August 2012

Restored my faith in Phish as the best dollar for dollar live musical act in 2012. I hadn't seen much of them since 2000 (I caught the Festival 8 in 2009) and was blown away by the improvements in the quality of play, length of jams, and the outstanding light choreography by Chris Kuroda.

 

2. Wilco - Copley Symphony Hall, San Diego, CA - February 2012

Lived about a mile from Copley and didn't have a ticket. Decided a couple hours before to head on down there and bought a couple tickets for my wife and I for a rather low price. The sound was impeccable inside a concert hall where we regularly go for classical concerts (season ticket holders for SD Symphony).

 

3. The rest of what we saw were mostly concerts by the San Diego Symphony. All of them were quite enjoyable but nothing like what we experienced with the two rock shows we attended.

[worldrecordplayer]

If watching Phish live pay per view stream from MSG on my big screen through a surround sound system with a pitcher of margaritas counts as "seeing" a show, this goes onto my list. And we're still in the first set.

[Moss]

1/5/12 - Jason Isbell - I never get tired of seeing Jason, always good.

5/1/12 - Delta Spirit - Probably my highlight of the year as it is the first time I have seen them.  Great show.

5/20/12 - Mark Lanegan - No between song chatter, not sure he even moved a muscle the entire show, but I love the new album and it sounded good live.

5/29/12 - The Shins - Biggest let down, band was good, sound at Red Rocks was unexpectedly bad.

6/22/12 - Wilco - 1st night at Red Rocks - More of a "hits" show

6/23/12 - Wilco - 2nd night at Red Rocks - I liked this night better.  More "obscure" stuff.

8/17/12 - Book of Mormon - Not really a concert but I have not laughed like that in a long, long time.

9/22/12 - Further - Great vibe at Red Rocks

10/7/12 - Beach House - Sounded amazing live.

[smells like flowers]

I saw a ton of shows...just put up a post at my site that includes my favorite shows and a gallery of my favorite shots of 2012:

 

http://photos.tinnitus-photography.com/blog/2012/12/recap-of-2012

 

Amazing slideshow!  I was struck however, by noting that in that steaming cauldron of hair, tattoos, beards, and guitars, only one rocker was wearing a vest. 

[tinnitus photography]

vest wearers:

 

david lee roth

mike scheidt

wino

charles bradley

pat sansone

erik danielsson

patti smith (under a suit coat)

[jff]

jff, you are a person of few words. care to elaborate?

Van Halen and Kool and the Gang was a pairing that, surprisingly, made a lot of sense.  Fun as shit concert.

 

I was expecting to be lukewarm on the Fiona Apple concert, but it kicked my ass, as I've mentioned numerous times on this forum.  Possibly the quietest and loudest concert I've ever seen.  I'm very impressed when a band can do that in a musical way.    

[Winston Legthigh]

Best show of the year was the most recent one:

 

Waco Brothers annual Schubas show on 12/28. They really rip. Such a fun, energetic show. They rock out the whole time.

 

Levon Helm in the Spring. Excellent show. Rest in peace.

 

Tame Impala was a great show in November.

 

Los Lobos playing Kiko back in June was a nice treat. Great show.

 

First Aid Kit - back in February. Such excellent harmonies. Nary a bad note hit.

[PopTodd]

I think that I only saw one concert in 2013, but it was a pretty good one:
Justin Townes Earle @ the Park West, Chicago.

[luminous]

I'll pass another vote for Justin Townes Earle, saw him for the third time and loved every minute of his performance.

Just saw Regina Spektor for the second time in December and she was amazing. I wasn't completely in love with her lastest album until that show, but I was completely awestruck by the beauty, power and strength of her singing - the start of All the rowboats has these huge 'boof-boof' sound effects which I had thought were made by a drum machine or something like that, but no, it's just Regina's own mouth and voice! Haha. Her opener/husband Only Son was pretty good too.
 

[smells like flowers]

vest wearers:

 

david lee roth

mike scheidt

wino

charles bradley

pat sansone

erik danielsson

patti smith (under a suit coat)

 

Okay, maybe the vest didn't make him a standout, but the picture of Pat after all the hairy sweaty bearded tattooed rock'n'roll beasts looked so clean-cut and school boyish!  It was such a stark contrast.  Even the always-scruffy Jeff looked squeaky clean in the context of the other photos.

[a-me-with-a-you]

The Punch Brothers, First Aid Kit at the crossing borders festival. DIIV and Beach House at De Kreun. Emmy The Great at Queen Elizabeth Hall (prly number 1, especially the with the full-choir encore cover of Mazzy Star's fade into me)

[mountain bed]

Van Halen and Kool and the Gang was a pairing that, surprisingly, made a lot of sense.  Fun as shit concert.

 

 

When I first heard of this pairing my first thought was of a ticket stub an old pal showed me of a concert he went to. It was a '73 show with co-headliners Uriah Heep and Earth, Wind & Fire. No shit. That VH/K&G show does sound like fun.

[RaspberryJam]

I had a very good year.

Highlights were:

Dawes at Infinity Hall in CT-It was recorded for their Connecticut Public Television series so I have it forever on my DVR

Fitz and the Tantrums in January in San Francisco-Just fun.

Justin Townes Earle also at Infinity Hall-for the reasons above

A cool after hours show in Newport featuring Conor Oberst/Dawes/First Aid Kit and special guest-Jackson Browne

Blitzen Trapper at Arch St. Tavern in Hartford, CT

Wilco several times, but the best at Hartford, maybe because it was only 1/2 hour from home, and I was able to rest my beer on the stage so I could clap between songs.

 

There were many others but these stand out.

[remphish1]

Slow concert year for me but some highlights were

 

1) Bjork -Queen Science Center.. what a venue! Place only held 300 too. They gave private museum admission before the show and the sound was specatuclar. I was 3 ft away from Bjork...

2) New Order- Show was good but the venue sucked...Roseland that is...still I have been waiting to see them live for years!

3) Wilco-Prospect Park! Finally heard Wishful Thinking and Say You Miss Me!!! Great all around show

4) Sigur Ros- New material and heard E-bow which is AWESOME live! Saw them at Mann in Phili fun time

5) Beck at Borgata-Small theater and it has been 4 years since I last saw him..nice loose show

6) Guster a middle school-Pringy in Martinsville, NJ show had free cookies and jucie before the show

7) Glenn Phillips at my local bar! Huh yeah he played a place called the crossroads in Garwood NJ. Place held 100 or less got to hang and talk with him and he played my request!

 

Honorable mention

1) Ben Folds Five Central Park...12 years since I last saw them..glad to see them live again

2) David Byrne/St Vincent -Was glad to see Byrne live but would have liked a diff setlist

3) Springsteen Prudential...umm Bishop Danced and Jake Clemons kids got chops!

[Rusty Shackleford]

Didn't get to many shows this year.  The one I really missed out on was the Old 97's Too Far to Care tour, which coincided with a family emergency.  At least the ones I saw were all quite good.

 

1.  Neil Young and Crazy Horse at the Patriot Center.  My first time seeing Neil, and Patti Smith opened.  Great shows both.

 

2.  Bottle Rockets living room show.  Awesome being up close to a great band and hearing them reinvent rock songs acoustically.  It's unfortunate that they don't have a wider following, but the upside for fans is that we get to see them in these intimate settings.

 

3.  Wilco at Wolf Trap, night 2.  Much better than their 2009 show at the same venue, and Lee Ranaldo was very good as an opener.

 

4.  Beach Boys at Merriweather.  Those old songs still get me, and I'm glad I got to see Brian Wilson perform them. The show was good enough that I might try to take my kids next time the band comes around, even without Brian and Al. 

[The Inside of Outside]

A cool after hours show in Newport featuring Conor Oberst/Dawes/First Aid Kit and special guest-Jackson Browne

 

That sounds like a very cool show.

[RaspberryJam]

That sounds like a very cool show.

It was cool.  It was a sort of rehearsal for the cross-pollination they did to close out the Newport Folk Fest, but in a tiny little movie theater.  I will be definitely looking to see if they schedule anything like that this year.

[Yaz Rock]

• January 16, 2012 - Kathleen Edwards - The Music Hall, Tarrytown, NY. - A free show that another forum member hooked me up with. My introduction to Edwards and I liked her music a lot.
• February 7, 2012 - Mark Lanegan - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY. - First time seeing Lanegan solo, and showcasing a great new album too.
• February 16, 2012 - Richard Thompson - City Winery, New York, NY. - All-request show including a couple tunes with his son Teddy and some unusual covers.
• July 26, 2012 - Soul Asylum, Joseph Arthur - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY. - Who knew it would be one of the last times any of us would see Dan Murphy? Great set with new covers thrown into the mix, and Joseph Arthur, whoa, this guy rocks! I guess I saw him open up for Three Fish in 1999, but totally forgot. I'm sorry I spent the last 13 years ignorant of his work.
• July 28, 2012 - Wilco - Ommegang Brewery, Cooperstown, NY. - Best show of the four I went to, best vibe, best sound, the rain didn't hurt a bit, and wow, Either Way!
• September 30, 2012 - Los Lobos - The Music Hall, Tarrytown, NY. - Kiko live. I'm not a huge fan of most of their studio albums, but after this show I totally get Kiko.
• October 23, 2012 - Old 97s, Salim Nourallah and the Travoltas - Webster Hall, New York, NY. - Too Far to Care live. I wish I had been able to see this album live like 3 or 4 times, but work obligations prevented that. House That Used to Be is a killer tune, and they really nailed it this time around. Salim was great too, I hope he continues to tour.
• November 8, 2012 - RNDM - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY. Awesome show, Joseph Arthur again, Jeff Ament, and Richard "the beast' Stuverud on drums.I still haven't stopped playing their album "Acts." First time I got to meet a member of Pearl Jam too.
• December 30, 2012 - The Spring Standards, Glasslands Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. Saw this band open for Rhett Miller in June and this was the first chance I had to see them being familiar with their music. I hope they continue to put out great stuff and play lots of NYC  shows. Nice way to cap the year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[smells like flowers]

Justin Townes Earle also at Infinity Hall-for the reasons above.

 

He's playing a solo acoustic show here on Wednesday night.  From all the love he's gotten recently on this board, it's not to be missed, right?  My only hesitation is that the tracks on his last record that I listened to are all full of horns and strings and such, and have such a rich sound.  With just him and his guitar, it might be on the very mellow side.  Your thoughts, VCers?

[anthony]

He's playing a solo acoustic show here on Wednesday night.  From all the love he's gotten recently on this board, it's not to be missed, right?  My only hesitation is that the tracks on his last record that I listened to are all full of horns and strings and such, and have such a rich sound.  With just him and his guitar, it might be on the very mellow side.  Your thoughts, VCers?

I actually think the songs sound BETTER when striped down to his deft picking and soulful vocals. This is a must-see concert, no doubt. 

[linclink]

I'll have to come back & edit this because I saw a load of live shows in 2012, but...this is a good start.. 

 

First & foremost the Wilco shows I saw were truly a cut above anything else. I saw them in December of 2011 & then 9 times in 2012.

The run that I guess stands out the most is the 3 days in a row in NYC- where they played 63 different songs over the course of those three nights. I bet they'd normally play at least two dates in NYC, but I really hope that since they sold out all three, that they'd consider making this a regular practice of setting up a mini-residency in NYC & really stretching out those amazing set lists.

The Rochester show was very special because so many of my friends were there. The Cooperstown show was equally as great with almost as many friends there & a great road trip to the area (including the Baseball Hall Of Fame) as well.

The best show sound wise was in Hartford, CT, & the best outdoor sound was in Columbus, OH.

I'd be hard pressed to choose, or rank them much in any way since I'm thrilled to report that they were all of such amazingly high quality.

The only lesser show was an abbreviated festival set of 90 minutes at a festival in the Philly area (with Dr. Dog & The Avett Brothers), where the sound was pretty weak as well- though it was much better for Wilco than the two other acts, & Wilco's performance was terrific. I can't say the same for the opening acts, I didn't care for Dr. Dog & while I was very interested in The Avett Brothers (as I dig some of their material), I found them to be pretty disappointing...like with Mchael Frenti, I get why people like them, I guess I'm just not one who shares those feelings. On the other hand I did dig two other opening acts for Wilco- Lee Renaldo & Lee Fields & The Expressions were both great.

 

Of non-Wilco shows, the first thing that springs to mind is three incredible all request solo aocustic shows that Richard Thompson played in NYC in February.

 

The surprise discovery show for me was the great Khaira Arby, an African vocalist with her equally great backing band, at a small club (Abilene) in Rochester, NY.

 

Seeing Yo La Tengo do a "Freewheelin' Yo La Tengo" show where they took requests, told stories & answered questions (they did this show after playing live & providing the soundtrack to a documentary on Buckminster Fuller) was a unique thrill (since I'd seen them over a dozen time before with full electric shows).

 

Catching Leonard Cohen for the first time in Toronto was amazing & I'm making plans to catch him one more time on the 2013 leg of this tour. Even though tickets are a bit expensive- I can say I wouldn't hesitate to go see him again...especially since he's 78- and in amazing form!!

 

Some other shows to round up...

Neil Young & Crazy Horse were terrific (though personally I'd seen other shows by them that I prefered to this one, it was still great) & I wasn't sure this would ever happen again (Neil & Crazy Horse playing together)....

 

The reunited Graham Parker & The Rumour in a small theater in New Jersey was a very good, often great, gig that I truly never thought I'd get to see (a reunion I'd given up on...like Rockpile ever reuniting).

 

The reunited Beach Boys was also a very good, often great, show, but at a totally terrible venue (Darien Lake), which didn't kill the show, but didn't help it at all (yet another reunion that I'd given up on ever seeing...)

 

I was lucky enough to catch Ian Hunter & The Rant Band in both Cleveland & Buffalo. I'd normally only have done one show, but Buffalo was added the day after we saw him in Cleveland. A great road trip & great time for the Cleveland show (which I prefered of the two), & a thrill just to get to catch him one last time (he's 72 & still going strong!).

 

While I wouldn't say that Bruce Springsteen wasn't good in Rochester (on Halloween, right after the Sandy storm), I can say that I didn't dig it anywhere near as much as the tour closing date in Buffalo from '09. It was great in spots, but, for me, only a good show overall, and for the cost, it might have sealed it being my last go round with Bruce.

 

I also went to Toronto to see The Flaming Lips. They were playing a free show the same day the stage colllapsed at the sold out Radiohead gig there. This meant that pretty much everyone from that show came over to The Flaming Lips show & that meant it ended up as a total overcrowded mess with pretty lousy sound. The Flaming Lips were terrifce as usual, from what I could tell, but the logistics just destroyed the show for me.

 

Someone above meantioned Gillian Welch & Dave Rawlings & I'd concur that the show I saw of their's in Ithaca was a great one.

 

I saw Donna The Buffalo a few times & they were always terrific.

 

At the Grassroots Fest in Trumansburg, NY catching Jim Lauderdale backed up by Donna The Buffalo ranked up there with Khaira Arby as the surprise discovery show of the year for me.

 

Also in Rochester there is an amazing band that does all Gypsy Jazz, a la Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli, there are called The Djangoners & catching their stand at The Little Theater Cafe in November/October was fantastic.

Can't believe I forgot to mention seeing Sufjan Stevens in "The Surfjohn Stevens Christmas Sing-A-Long Seasonal Affective Disorder Yuletide Disaster Pageant On Ice" at Babeville in Buffalo, N.Y.. It was up there with the very, very best of the non-Wilco shows that I saw last year...but...honestly if I had to choose a top 5 shows, they'd all be Wilco shows with everyone coming in after that...