Linkstew

Below is what I'm pretty sure is an accurate set list and a few quotes from tonight's TMBG concert at the Fillmore. I ran into numerous people I know in some capacity. I had some dinner with Zack (who I met first on the way tot the TMBG concert in September, and then in a few other places in the interim, and who I told about this concert when I ran into him at the Gaiman reading.) and his company before the concert at some japanese place that I ended up irritated with.

I find it interesting that I go to such lengths to document set lists of concerts I attend, even though someone who wasn't at the concert will never be able appreciate it. But here's why I think I do it: When I took CogSci 1, the instructor said that studies have suggested that people enjoy vacations more before (the anticipation) and after (the memories) than they enjoy actually being on vacation. I want to be able to remember my concert experiences, so that I can enjoy them later. The set list and quotes serve as a framework which will jog my memory later.

• Clap Your Hands - this was a great song to start a concert with.
• James K. Polk - Double confetti canon action!
• Cyclops Rock
• Bed Bed Bed
  "I'm thinking that song should be longer." -- flans
  "Oh, how about some bonus beats then?" -- linnell, as he starts playing the song again.
  "No, I was thinking ahead to tomorrow night." -- flans
• "This is another song off of No! with a repeating title, In The Middle In The Middle In The Middle."
• "This is Dead Dead Dead Dead Dead from our album Flood Flood Flood." -- linnell
• (Which means that I can now cross the top song I wanted to hear them play live off my list.)
• John Lee Supertaster
• Fingertips
• She's Actual Size - This had the same drum solo customer service that they've been doing since last fall, and the "Dan wants to hear you scream but there's two problems: he's wearing earplugs, and he's playing the drums really loud. It was a strange mixture of the last two times I've heard this song live. Oh, another new thing to the Drum Solo Customer Satisfaction was Flans saying "The expected hold time for your Drum Solo is 15 to 20 minutes."
• About the drum solo customer satisfaction, after the song:
  "I'm still waiting for you to throw Lars Ulrich in there." -- linnell
  "We'd have to work on the tom during sound test for that... Which song is next, I still can't read the setlist." -- flans
  "This is a song we wrote with Lars..." -- linnell
  "When we were still working with Lars, before he fucked up that whole mp3 thing. But I still don't know what song that is." -- flans
  "Lars is German, so he'd call it [something in german]. That was a clue for the guys. We're speaking Deutsch up here." -- linnell
• Birdhouse In Your Soul
• Boss of Me
• Man It's So Loud In Here - and good god was it loud. This was the point where I wished I'd brought a second dose of aspirin.
• Robot Parade
• The only reason I can tolerate robot parade is because it almost always makes for some amusing improvish stuff:
  Flans: "I miss Dan, our guitar playing friend... Oh, hi Dan. Do you want to play the acoustic guitar for a really long time? I'm self conscious of being up here by myself."
• Istanbul with yet another lovely acoustic guitar intro by Dan (Miller)
• Yeh Yeh - I still love this song love, but it didn't feel nearly as polished as it did last fall. Also, Linnell was playing a Tenor sax instead of the Bari.
• No
• TMBG Public Service announcements
• "Ready guys? [pause] Oh, I start this song by myself." -- flans
• On The Drag - Ooh, this was good live. I like this song a lot.
• Everything Right is Wrong Again
• "This song is for you social drinkers." -- flans
  "Woohoo!"
  "And that doesn't mean those of you shouting "woo!" I mean those of you who are standing there quietly and asking "What's he mean social?" -- flans
• Drink
• "This next song is about my friend..." -- linnell
  "Friend!" -- flans, screaming
  "He's segmented." -- linnell
  "Segmented Segmented!" -- flans
  "I don't know what else to say about this song, other than my friend went to medical school in the caribbean islands, where they'll give anyone a degree." -- linnell
  "Carribbean!" -- flans
  "Don't throw your life away like my friend did." -- linnell
• Dr. Worm
• I Palindrome I

First Encore:
• Violin
• 4 of 2 - I like this song a lot. "This song is about a clock that told the fucking wrong time." -- linnell
• How can I sing like a girl? - I didn't like this very much live, quite honestly. It felt like it went on far too long.

Second Encore:
• Spin the Dial - The two things that I can remember from this were:
  * They came across Love Line, and flans lowered the volume and said ominously: "We were on this show. The doctor is the scary one."
  * And they came across Breakdown by Tom Petty, which they did a rather good job of picking up.
• Older, with another verse of Breakdown with some improvised lyrics (about not paying the rent on a sublet) in between "Time" and "is marching on."
• And finally, The Guitar. I'm tired of hearing this song at concerts, but I suppose it's a nice way to end a show.

It's funny that the song that's stuck in my head this time is John Lee Supertaster, even though I'm not particularly fond of that song.

Expect another one of these after tomorrow night's concert.