When You Are Able

Do you remember when I said that all the Flaming Lips shows blur together. I really meant it.

My journal is no help. The internet is no help. This is basically a throw away post. Sorry, guys. 

Cash In Our Collective Memories

Surprise headliner? You had me at Burning Airlines.

The full lineup of this show was Burning Airlines, Hey Mercedes, Shiner and Blue Tip so the surprise headliner was...um, I'm not sure. On the Metro's history site it says that Burning Airlines was the headliner and that was certainly why I was there. Yes, I listened the the rest of the bands but my love of all things J Robbins was far greater.

Proof, this happened two days later and I did that too. I remember more about standing in the weird alley waiting for this to happen than I do about the show at the Metro. I guess I went to a ton of Metro shows but not so many alley shows.

All Your Friends And Family Think That You're Lucky

A boy I dated on and off for years took me to this show in a possible attempt to win me back. Years of experience have proven that I'm unwinable

As per usual, I remember very little about this other than I was excited about the show, cautious about the boy and we sat in the balcony, which is not really my style. I found the entire show, audio only, on youtube. Thank you, internet. Feel free to listen if you'd like.

Setlist:

Dogs of lust
Helpline operatorSoul catcherHeartlandThis is the dayGlobal eyesIcing UpSwine feverLove is stronger than deathArmageddon days are here againInfectedPhantom Walls

I Ain't Sure But I've Been Told

Isaac Brock once called my phone and then came to a party at my house.

A car full of us made the drive down the Champaign from Chicago for this and it was so much fun. I remember wandering around a lot once we got in and ending up close to the stage. The energy in there was amazing. This may or may not have been the set list (found on the internet)

trucker's atlas
paper thin walls
doin' the cockroach
teeth like god's shoeshine 
trailer trash
lives
polar opposites 
broke
3rd planet
tiny cities made of ashes
alone down there
custom concern
i came as a rat

Oh I Have Loved

My first time, possibly my only time, at Park West

I always think of Park West as a fancy venue but I never think of Smog as a fancy band. I do love me some Bill Callahan and at the time my friends and I seemed to be listening to a lot of Smog. Well, I was listening to a lot of Dongs of Sevotion and hoped they played nothing but that album. If I remember correctly, and I never do, they did not.  

I don't remember who I went to this show with, although I could make guesses. I do think there were tables, which is normally weird, but was alright for this one. I remember leaving slightly disappointed. 

I Don't Want To Be A Sensation

Maureen and I were just talking about how we've seen Sonic Youth and probably don't need to see them ever again. 

There was a line around the building to get in. I ran into my 3-D design teacher who I had a crush on. He was with his wife. Stereolab and Quix*o*tic opened (man, Stereolab. I used to love them).  We got there as early as possible to see all the openers but I don't think we did a great job. 

The Setlist: Burning Spear White Kross Free City Rhymes Nevermind Side2Side Kool Thing Mote Small Flowers Crack Concrete The Ineffable Me NYC Ghosts & Flowers -- Lightnin' Tom Violence -- Schizophrenia

Was That It?

I remember this one!

My older brother and I went. It was my first time at the World Music Theatre and we were way in the back, practically the last seat before you're on the lawn. I, of course, wore my "Cure Dress." My brother and I, as always, didn't agree on this show. It seems like he was never happy but I guess he was at the show they recorded for the album Show so you can't really beat that.  I'd watch this setlist again, I think.

This was full on Bloodflowers tour and it's not my favorite album of theirs but it's not the worse thing ever.

Out Of This World
Watching Me Fall
Want
Fascination Street
Open
The Loudest Sound
Maybe Someday
Like Cockatoos
From The Edge Of The Deep Green Sea
Inbetween Days
Sinking
The Kiss
One Hundred Years
End
39
Bloodflowers

Encore 1:

Plainsong
The Same Deep Water As You
Disintegration 

Encore 2:

All Cats Are Grey
Drowning Man
Faith 

Encore 3:

Jupiter Crash
Lovesong
Just Like Heaven
A Forest

I Bet You'd Be Disappointed

I remember nothing. I could make some guesses...blank. 

I have searched my journals, which was painful, for any information. I got plenty of insight into my 22 year old sad puppy brain but nothing about this show. I am so sorry.

Not What You Want

I'm sure I was here with Maureen.

I'm also sure we were up near the front, although I have no memory of this show at all so I have nothing to say about it. In fact, looking at the stubs that follow this I have very little memories of this time. Just an advance warning. 

The Way You Live Your Life

Mark Sandman died. I still hate that. 

I love Morphine. I still love them, I love laying with my eyes closed listening to Mark Sandman's low voice in my ear. I could have seen them once, on New Year's Eve 1998 (maybe) but I didn't. I instead went to some ridiculously expensive dinner with my good friends, so that was alright. My roommate went and said it was amazing.   

In my mind these things happened the weekend of this show but my memory is somewhat fuzzy about basically everything. I got into a car accident in Michigan on my way to a baby shower thrown by a mutual friend who didn't show up because, well, she was unreliable. I had to get back to Chicago for this show so I borrowed my mom's car to get there and got a ticket.

I know a few things for sure, I was uncomfortable during the show because of the accident and that I had some sort of pain killers because I had to beg the bartender for a glass of water. I sat in the balcony because of this discomfort, which was unheard of during this time of my life.

Despite the fact that they were playing without their singer/bass player, Orchestra Morphine was pretty amazing. They replaced Sandman with a couple of singers and had a lot of people on stage. I remember being in such a bad mood when the show started and feeling great (and no, not because of the pain killer) when it ended.

They never played again after this tour, it was the Mark Sandman's memorial tour. 

Ain't Never Found Peace

You know what's difficult? Searching for The The on the internet (no, I didn't accidentally type the twice, Google)

My first of two times seeing The The. I may never see them again and I think that's a shame. They played with with a basically bare stage, no fancy lights, just the members of the band each with a single bulb on them. I wish I could find a set list or a photograph from this tour but, like I said, searching is difficult. I did find this video that I like.

The Whole Thing Leaves

My first time to this party...

I feel like every Flaming Lips show I've gone to has blended together. I mean, other than some set list deviation it's all confetti and dancing and Wayne Coyne in a big clear plastic ball walking on the crowd. Because of this, I couldn't tell you a thing about this show. I'm sure it was super fun, though. 

Here It Is

When I saw this ticket stub, I smiled. I forgot all about them.

Seriously, I just put on Up A Tree and it made me a little bit giggly. They are a band that I completely forgot existed but used to listen to them while working at the poster store so many years ago. They're just so adorable, it's impossible not to smile.

Does that mean that I remember anything about this show? Of course not.  

They Taught A Dog To Smoke

I'm not sure this even counts but the stub is in the box so it's going on the blog.

Growing up outside of Detroit my brothers and I had the pleasure of stumbling upon The Kids In The Hall in the early days, while they were on the CBC. It was a lovely run until they got snatched up by HBO, an evil pay channel that we didn't get/couldn't afford. Thank you for being so close, Canada. They broke up anyway but after a five year hiatus they did this reunion tour, which I couldn't have been more excited about.

We were so annoyingly late to this. I drove, which was a pain in the ass because there was a big snow storm and everything was slow and Maureen's friend was running late for whatever dumb reason and I wasn't even a fan of this friend and am not sure how I was roped into taking her (because I love Maureen). I think we had an extra ticket or something. Regardless, we were late. The show had started by the time we got to our seats.

Can you really beat the Kids In The Hall? The answer is no. They're just funny. They did all of their classic characters. There was this website about the reunion tour. The. Best. Check out some videos in you need some reminders.

There's also this article from the Tribune.  It's also pretty awesome. 

You'll Always Be Mine

These tickets were difficult to get and so worth it.

I don't remember how I found out about this show, a Cure fan site or mailing list or something. They were playing random small club dates, not announcing the shows much in advance. I called the Vic daily to see if tickets were going on sale for weeks (or it felt like weeks at least). Every day when the box office opened I would call, check the reader, check sites. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. So frustrating.

The tickets ended up going on sale maybe two days before the show. It was announced when I had a class so my very awesome roommate waited in line all day (the only way to buy these was to actually go to the venue or a ticketmaster outlet. Oh the humanity). The line stretched around the building and by the time I got to her she had already purchased her limit of two. My brother and Maureen ran over to Tower Records (remember that place) and were able to get two more. This is pretty lucky considering the Cure plays arenas and the like and this was a two ticket limit, 1400 people max capacity venue.

The night of the show (Maureen's birthday) we got there relatively early and were able to get up pretty close, much closer than I could ever hope to be to the Cure again. Maureen snuck a camera in (I couldn't, I was wearing my "Cure Dress") and we took some pretty terrible disposable camera pictures.

The set was shorter than the usual two plus hour Cure set and they played almost all of Bloodflowers, which had been released mere days before this show and was unfamiliar to me. It definitely made me long for some of the older songs but I did like the new material and would come to really like most of that album. My favorites were the Disintegration tracks, they always are.

Out of This World

Watching Me Fall

Want

Fascination Street

The Last Day of Summer

Maybe Someday

From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea

In Between Days

If Only Tonight We Could Sleep

39

Prayers For Rain

A Hundred Years

Bloodflowers

- - -

A Strange Day

A Forest

- - -

Just Like Heaven

Boys Don't Cry

- - -

The Figurehead

Disintegration

As good as it gets with a disposable camera

Of course someone brought flowers

One of someone other than Robert Smith. 

This is a good depiction of how close we were.