That indeed would have been nice to have gotten Bay Area folk together! I was there last night and really enjoyed it...I forgot to post to the list to see if anyone wanted to get together before/ after, but oh well, maybe next time! The band seemed spunky but a bit tired, given that it's the last few days or so of their US tour, and sleeping on a busses, planes and trains must get old after a few weeks. I'm looking forward to seeing them at the Hollywood Bowl in July (where hopefully, refreshed, they'll do many of their amazing chamber/real piano/harpsichord/orchestral pieces). Sarah and the unknown instrumentalist were very much in fine form last night, but with a 40-60 piece orchestra, it can only get better (in my humble opinion). I saw Air with the LA Philharmonic a few years ago at the Hollywood Bowl, which was one of the most memorable concerts i've ever been to. Anyone else going from the list? I'm hoping it'll be one to remember... --Ben On Mar 22, 2006, at 8:37 PM, peter arnold wrote:
Dear Listerines,
You don't know me but I know you - haha yes! I've been reading your mail these several years. And I went up to the city to see the Belles last night! Here is my homework:
Report from B&S gig in Saint Frank, 3/21/06
In the SOMA district of San Francisco there is a kind of ghetto for furniture sellers, in the midst of which is a vast barn with no seats where normally they have wild furniture-roping contests or some such. Except on Tuesday, when they had Belle y Sebastian plus Nude Photographers or whatever (actually they were quite good. I had bought their album and not really gotten into it, but the live show was great esp. the drummer who is a star. Extra credit for thoughtful use of cheesy plastic keyboards.)
The main event began at 9:30. The band came on in the usual 2-4-1-1 formation with Stuart leading the attack up front and Stevie tucked in just behind him. A four-man midfield featured an un-named lady cellista plus Sarah, Mick and the marvellous Bobby who made little attacking runs down the right wing (stage right that is). Beans at left back, Richard on the right with the above-mentioned nameless but versatile auxilliary dropping back to cover the near post during set-plays. Stuart had thin striped shirt and burgundian pants. Sarah in red hoodie. Beans with walrus 'tache. A charcoal suit was wearing Stevie.
Here's what I remember of the set. They must surely have played Blues are Still Blue (right?) but I can't actually remember that happening! Also the order is really confused in my memory.
Stars of Track and Field Sunny Day Sinister Funny Little Frog White Collar She's Losing It Sunshine Jonathan David Sleepyheads Your Cover's Blown Dog on Wheels Sukie in the Graveyard Piazza NY Catcher I'm a Cuckoo Fox in t'snow 'Leccy Renaissance Judy and the Dream (sing along at first!)
Simple Things Arab Strap
Missing: none of the B&S-classic style songs from That 70's Album (i.e. Mornington Cres., Dress Up in You, Acts Ch.1&2 vs.9-21, etc.) were played. Nothing off TBWTAS until the encore. No amusing cover was performed. None of the songs I personally yelled out (Dream #2, Strng. Bn. Jn., Marx'n'Engels, many others). A loud-voiced fellow called for Rollercoaster Ride, which Stuart heard and called an "intersting choice" before not playing it. But I think what was played hung together really well as a set. It was quite youthful and bouncy and moved along nicely. The only thing I felt the crowd was not quite in the mood for when it came up was Piazza NYC.
The up-tempo material from the new album was just great and a big hit with the very young crowd (well everyone looks young to me, but these peoples really were young and many had thick-plastic-rimmed oval spectacles, in the manner of intellectual youth). I really enjoyed Your Cover's Blown. I also liked Jonathan David which I am normally bored by. Stevie and Stuart really hammed it up onstage with that evening's freshly selected Bride of Murdoch from the audience. She was called Jamie which Stuart found to be highly American of her.
It was a contrast from last time they were here at the Warfield. Bigger crowd, less intimate, more rock show. Musically they were pretty tight with only the occasional vocal weaknesses in evidence. Y'know who I think has catalysed this new direction? The new post-"Hands Child" B&S? None other than young "Relfast" Robert Kildea. The boy is an awesome bass-player (e.g. on Sukie) and plays a mean lead as well. There's just something about him that gives the band a bit more width to explore which is a good thing. Plus he is easily the most attractive figure on stage, even when he's not there.
I felt Stuart's banter was a little stretched in some places but of course everything went down very well with us, the crowd. I have a funny little idea he was waiting for ad-libs to come to him in the closing cadences of Arab Strap but nothing arrived so he just kind of wound it up. But I could be quite mistaken here.
I can't wait for them to come back and see how they are progressing but I do wonder - if TLP gets the sales it deserves (and it really is a strong, accessible album) the next tour could be in stadia. Or godforbid the bloody Shoreline Amphitheater. Or the Sleeptrain Mattress Auditorium in Marysville. And this would not necessarily fill me with joy like last noght's wonderful concert.
I wish you all could have been there, I feel sure you would have enjoyed it. Perhaps next time my fellow lurkers and I can have a picnic where we meet in a bar and not talk to each other, but just listen to what one of the other tables is saying. We could buy a drink and not have to pay $6 for a small cup of wine inside the furniture barn, which would be nice.
Next time, ok?
Love from The Quantity, Cupertino, Calif.
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+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail sinister@missprint.org. To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to majordomo@missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister +-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+ +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+ +-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+ +-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+ +-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+ +-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+ +-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+ +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+