Arena Rock

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds / Sharon Van Etten
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco
April 9, 2013

Nick Cave playing an ARENA in the Bay Area?!  WTF?!  Granted, Nick has historically played 2 nights in San Francisco on every Bad Seeds tour dating back to, I think, 1998 so the audience is here.  However, entering the 7,000 capacity Civic to see Nick where bands like Tool and Soundgarden usually headline was bizarre.   I was also not looking forward to hearing Cave play in the notorious concrete box that is the Civic; it's usually a place where live sound goes to die.  The thought also entered my mind that this was probably the biggest venue that Nick & the Bad Seeds have ever headlined in America.  

Before the show I had an unexpectedly awesome dinner with some old friends at a nearby eatery where no meat is served.   These are people who I have seen Nick Cave with dating back 20 years.  It was the perfect way to ease into the evening and, to paraphrase a lyric by tonight's headliner, "those sinister dinner deals" are always the most fun.

Sharon Van Etten was a nice surprise as she was really good, with a strong, booming voice that held the attention of the vast space admirably.  I will need to seek out her music and she also gets big bonus points for having a shirt at the merch stand that was a take on the vintage Van Halen logo. 

Awesome, right?

Perhaps in an attempt to make the show "bigger" for the arena, the Bad Seeds were joined tonight by a string section and a local children's choir from Berkeley.  They had not performed with the strings and choir on this current leg of the tour, so it was deja vu back to the special Los Angeles show that I saw in February.  The ensemble comfortably filled the big stage and right away the vibe was different than the intimate L.A. show where the Nick and his cast had looked crowded together.   Tonight the cast had room to roam and breath on the big stage and they certainly did... especially Nick.

The set opened with 4 songs off the latest album and the performances were even better than when I had seen them performed a couple of months ago... which is saying a lot because the show in L.A. had been amazing.  The swagger of the Bad Seeds onstage tonight was even more confident after touring for the past couple of months.  I also think that maybe the Berkeley kids choir tonight was better than the one used in Los Angeles.  Sorry, kids.  Also, the sound mix and clarity was, dare I say it, astonishingly good!  Clear and crisp.  Evidently the local promoter operating the Civic made some sonic upgrades to the old concrete box.  Trivia:  Metallica played the song 'Master Of Puppets' for the first time ever at the Civic on New Year's Eve 1985.

Arena Rock Cave

Despite my fears about the show being in an arena, I should never have doubted Nick.  He really stepped things up to project himself in the huge space, which probably shouldn't have been a surprise since he's played big outdoor festivals in Europe for decades.  I don't think I've seen Nick work a stage so hard and be so animated since maybe 1992.  This included going to far stage left during 'Red Right Hand' and leaning into the crowd like he was Iggy Pop... and then balancing on top of the crowd barrier during 'Stagger Lee' and, with audience members helping him keep balance, walking practically the entire length of it like a tight rope walker.  He did the latter while not missing a beat with the lyrics and all of its required uses of "motherfucker".   Very impressive.

However, my favorite moment of the set was one of the best versions of 'From Her To Eternity' that I've ever seen Nick perform (Umlaut has seen every Nick show in San Francisco since 1990 as well as a couple of shows in London in 1999).  Even Nick agreed as he said "That was good!" after the song blazed to a close. The show lasted two hours and 18 songs; I was so enthralled by the performance that I forgot we were in an arena. I should not have doubted Nick & the Bad Seeds.

Number of Voivod and Iron Maiden tees = 1 each... and neither one of them was mine.  If you bought one of every Nick Cave merch item you would have paid around $350.  Nick's merch has always sucked but I was surprised by how much he had this time.  On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags.  To give some perspective on how important Nick Cave has been to me, according to the Umlaut Archives these are the bands who I have seen in concert the most in my life so far:

• Metallica - 48 times
• Melvins - 36 times (probably more times as some shows were not documented)
• Acid King - 29 times (probably more times as some shows were not documented)
• Slayer - 24 times (probably more times as some shows were not documented)
• Exodus - 23 times (probably more times as some shows were not documented)
• Neurosis - 20 times (probably more times as some shows were not documented)
• Nick Cave - 17 times

As I said earlier, I don't think I've seen Nick as animated as he was tonight since probably 1992.  For the newbies, this is what Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds were like back in nineteen hundred & ninety two:


Good times a long time ago... When Nick Cave was my main role model and I drank a lot.

Outshined

Soundgarden / The Mars Volta
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco
July 21, 2011

The exciting sequel to Grunge Lives In Our Hearts!

Umlaut has been on somewhat of a hiatus recently... Not hitting as many shows... and hitting a patch of writer's block because I've had to write a couple of "serious" pieces that are being published between now and the end of the year. A couple of weekends back I found myself on The List (THANKS to Tour Manager Doug for getting me sorted...) for this year's Mayhem Festival (co-headlined by the truly awful duo of Disturbed and Godsmack). It was a fun afternoon in the sun seeing local heroes Machine Head and Testament (who only played the 2 Cali Mayhem shows) as well as Megadeth. However, I wasn't inspired to rant about it... Sorry. Machine Head were great on the main stage... Megadeth had just flown in from Europe and their sound sucked but Mustaine's hair looked fabulous as always... and Testament ruled the day headlining on a GA side stage. They opened with 'Over The Wall' and it was solid mayhem for their set. However, Mayhem Fest 2011 wasn't nearly as epic as Mayhem Fest 2009 had been. Anyway, that was almost 3 weeks ago...

I hadn't set foot inside the Bill Graham Civic since that Tenacious D. show in 2006. While the building has more than its share of San Francisco concert history (The Who, The Clash, U2, and Metallica among others have headlined there over the decades) it's always been a venue that's sucked because it's basically a concrete box where decent sound goes to die. I'll also be blunt and say I was not caught up in the hype of a Soundgarden reunion. I liked the band back in The Day.. saw them a bunch of times.. but I burned out on them. I also saw Cornell with Audioslave and it was just okay and not the Second Coming of Rock. I also had gone through a phase where I was WAY into Mars Volta when their Frances the Mute album was out... but I burned out on them too. So, basically, I went into this show with the mindset of a jaded old motherfucker.

The Mars Volta hit the stage right around 7:30pm and for the next 45 minutes played a game of hacky sack with the ears of the half full Civic. Since I haven't followed the band in recent years I didn't recognize any of the songs but Omar was his usual nerd Guitar God self and Cedric worked the stage in his usual manner: like a cocky James Brown impersonator on meth.

Quote Of The night: "When I think of S.F. I think of Full House. Full. Fucking. House." - Cedric of The Mars Volta

A good opening set that sort of made me want to check out Mars Volta's recent stuff.. but we'll see. During Mars Volta's set the floor was only 1/3 full and the balcony even more empty... but as the stage was being changed over between bands the floor was suddenly packed and the balcony very full as well. I then remembered that there were ALOT of people in the audience who were teenagers or younger when Grunge was King who had never seen Soundgarden; a sobering reality check for this Jaded Old Fart. Yes, Umlaut was into the Grunge... and I will argue forever that it was the bullshit Hair Metal bands that destroyed 80's Metal and not Grunge.

Anyway, after the Stooges songs '1969' and 'I Wanna Be Your Dog' played over the PA, the houselights switched off, the stage lights went up, the crowd screamed, and it was time to see if Grunge still lives in our hearts here in the 21st Century. The answer came as Soundgarden walked onstage in the Bay Area for the first time since 1996 and lurched into 'Searching With My Good Eye Closed' and then straight into 'Spoonman'.

It was a good start, but the following one-two punch of 'Room A Thousand Years Wide' (my favorite Soundgarden song..) into 'Jesus Christ Pose' made me wonder where my old flannel was these days. Both versions of these songs were pretty magnificent... I was upstairs and, unlike at Soundgarden's last Bay Area show (Henry J. Kaiser Center, Oakland - 12/5/96), the sound was near perfect... probably because the PA was in direct line with the balcony. Since local promoter Another Planet took over the Civic they've evidently spent millions on remodeling and improvements; it seemed to me that the ceiling was a bit lower than before with what looked like sound baffling and it also looked like the stage might have been moved in a ways so the room wouldn't be such a concrete echo chamber like in the past. Whatever the case, it was the best sounding show I've seen at the Civic.

[Update: After posting this, I was informed by a member of the Umlaut Nation that there have been NO improvements done at the Civic because no one wanted to spend the money.. So the show's sound - at least from up in the balcony - probably had everything to do with an excellent house and front of house sound crew. Kudos to them... although I have also since heard the sound on the floor was like "dogshit trampled in mud".. So, note to self, sit upstairs at future Civic shows if you want decent sound...]

To be honest, although his vocals were in fine form, I'm not really a Chris Cornell fan; the best career move he's made in the past 15 years was to grow his hair out again. The highlight of the night for me was seeing Kim Thayil playing guitar onstage again! He's one of my favorite guitarists with TONE for days AND he was wearing a Neurosis tee onstage! A very nice nod to The Bay Area, right?. It was also good to see that Ben Shepard is still one of the weirdest bassists onstage, with his zombie-like movements that make his playing secondary at times. I'll also forgive Matt Cameron for being in Pearl Jam (Sorry Umlaut Nation friends who are PJ fans... but I can't stand Pearl Jam...) because his chops on the drums are still solid, solid, solid.

The setlist was a good mix from the band's entire catalog... but I'm completely done with the band's radio hits ('Black Hole Sun'.. 'Fell On Black Days'...'The Day I Tried To Live'...). If I never hear those songs again I'd be happy. Thankfully, Soundgarden has enough less popular songs that make up for the overplayed hits. Including 'Nothing To Say' from their debut EP was a nice touch... as was 'Ugly Truth' and 'Loud Love' from their 2nd album. 'Rusty Cage' was excellent and the main set closing '4th Of July' did the job.

The oddest moment of the night came during the final encore ('Slaves & Bulldozers') when it was pointed out to me via a text (Hey John!) that future Hall Of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson was onstage behind Thayil's backline with his camera.

The Big Unit Onstage
(Photo courtesy of Cable Car)

Actually, not really a surprise since Johnson is a longtime Metal fan... AND he is from The Bay Area.. but still an odd moment seeing The Big Unit onstage. I wonder how good his fast ball is these days.

Tonight was the 12th show of Soundgarden's month long, 16-city reunion tour... 24 songs... Over 2 hours onstage. I didn't have a Grunge Revival epiphany, but it was a great set that I wasn't really expecting to like as much as I did going in. Where is that old flannel of mine?

Number of Slayer hockey jerseys = 1. If you bought one of every Soundgarden merch item you would have paid around $400. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. I was always more into Alice In Chains over Soundgarden... but ALL of the Cool Kidz know the greatest band to come out of the Seattle Scene is the fucking Melvins!!

Explosivo

Tenacious D.
Bill Graham Civic, San Francisco
November 20, 2006

Please don't use this image and attempt to counterfeit a backstage pass. It won't work.. Besides, backstage is BORING. The strippers, the cocaine, the champagne, the midget jello wrestling... YAWN.

Anywho, this show was sold out and tickets were going for up to $100 each on the Information Superhighway, but you could have scored one out front for $50... 9,000 people seeing Tenacious D. in an arena? The power of celebrity motion picture movie stardom at work IMO.. I liked High Fidelity and The School of Rock too, man.

I think it's safe to say this was the most "Metal" non-Metal show I've ever been to... When was the last time you saw "Dio" emblazoned on a stage backdrop? Exactly. You can't argue with Jack and Kyle's Metal aesthetic. No, you can't.. and Tour Manager Doug says they legitimately bow at the altar of Old Metal and that's good enough for me.

Tenacious D.'s stage was total Dio circa 1983-86 but, to be honest, at times it was like watching a live action trailer for The Pick Of Destiny (which opened in 2 days). The show was a bit long on the skits and gags, but that's why they call it ACTING! Then again, Jack and Kyle were a band before either of them were on the silver screen.

You know, Kyle is a local boy (Walnut Creek OG); I wonder if he was at the Metallica - New Years Eve '85 show in this very same building? Hmm... How would I find that out.

A highlight for me was when Jack asked the crowd if they'd heard about Dio rejoining Sabbath. I laughed, but almost everyone around me seemed to be toking on pipes and joints and ignored the query. It's been awhile since I've been at a show with as much Mary Jane, which is probably why the majority of the crowd laughed at any prop or costume onstage while subtler things went unappreciated. A guy in a mushroom costume = HAHAHAHAHAHA. A guitar made out of a toilet seat = HAHAHAHAHAHA. Dio rejoining Sabbath = [cue crickets]

Unfortunately, there were no mechanical dragons and no swords were wielded onstage. Mark my words, edged weapons are gonna make a comeback as concert stage props. In the words of Dio: "Look out!"

However, THE most Metal thing happened after the show. On the way back to the car we discovered that the parking lot (the outdoor one at the corner of Larkin / Golden Gate) had CLOSED and was locked up for the night! WTF?!!

We obviously weren't the only ones who hadn't seen the posted closing time because there were maybe 2 dozen other cars locked behind the chain link fence. A sign said any cars left in the lot after hours would remain there until the next day; in other words "You are shit outta luck".

(Note: I would like to state (so I don't come across like a complete idiot in this) that I have parked in this same lot for concerts at the Civic in the past and there was no such "hours of operation" previously.)

What follows is an example of why the youth of today kicks the ass of an old fart like me: A group of kids standing next to us were in the same predicament. While I started to panic, one of the kids barely hesitated and scaled the 20 foot chain link fence, climbed down the other side, and unhinged and pulled open a pedestrian gate into the lot. He then propped it open with a piece of wood he found and was cool enough to let us know he'd gotten the gate open. The Kidz!

However, while we now had a way into the lot, I was still dubious about getting our cars out since the driveway gate at the other end was still closed and locked. What follows is an example of why The Mob rules.

At the other end of the parking lot, a mob of people pried and pushed open the main gate. Someone knew how the gate's rolling mechanism worked and a metal sign was taken off the chain link fence and thrown over a sensor so the gate would stay open. The breakout was accomplished. THE MOB RULES!

Raven / Metallica '83 tour shirts = 1. If you bought one of every Tenacious D. merch item you would have paid around $350. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. THANKS to Tour Manager Doug for the +1 into his All Access world again... Cue 'Holy Diver'.

"Holy Diver, you're the star of the masquerade.."

+1

The Rock Godz work in mysterious ways. Funny how things go around then come around... Green Day and Metallica are arguably the biggest bands in their respective genres. Both are rooted in the Bay Area and Umlaut was fortunate enough to have witnessed their infancies in divey clubs back in The Day(s). As the curtain began to fall on 2004, both mega-acts ended their respective tours at home.. And The Rock Godz sent forth Angels to assist Umlaut and his trusty confidante Skychick with each event.

Ready? Here we go:

Green Day - Bill Graham Civic, S.F. - Nov. 24, 2004



Twas the final show of the American Idiot 2004 U.S. Tour. Did you know that Green Day has sold 20 MILLION albums worldwide? That's basically equal to the population of Australia. Throw another studded belt on the barbie.

In 1991, Big Wayne told me to check Green Day out so I did. I think the first time I saw them was at a warehouse / art space in The Mission... I still root for the lads, even if they did spawn all of the gutless 3rd rate punk bands inhabiting MTV and Hot Topic these days... but you can't blame them for that. Good bands spawn crap bands.. Tis the Music Biz.

The 8,100 capacity Civic was sold out weeks in advance and tickets were going for up to $113 each ($30 face value) on Ebay. Punks Not Dead. It had been 12 years since I last saw GD and I actually dig their "critically acclaimed" new album quite a bit. However, despite that, I was still expecting the show to be a Hot Topic Mallrat faux punk show. 'Cause I've seen it all before, kids these days, a mile in the snow uphill barefoot, blah blah blah.

But you know what?? I realized what a jaded old fart I was for having that expectation. For one brief shining moment I had become my parents. Gee Mr. Umlaut, not ALL of the music The Kidz listen to today is crap.

Green Day were fucking GREAT GREAT GREAT on all levels. Showmanship. Musicianship. Songs. Pyro. Humor. And The Kidz LOVED them. They still had a bit of that East Bay attitude that people who remember Gilman St. before there was a yuppie brew pub across the street would appreciate.

(Note: I was once knocked off my feet by The Pit at Gilman... but I've also been to that brew pub. The fish 'n chips are excellent.. I sold out a long time ago, kids.)

Best Moments - The show opening blast of 'American Idiot'... The band's onstage musical versatility via some additional musicians (guitar / keyboards / horns) left me gobsmacked. A version of the Operation Ivy song 'Knowledge' with kidz pulled from the audience playing bass, drums, guitar. The song concluded with Billie Joe urging the young girl / bassist to stage dive, which she did after a nice running start. Basically watching the show from the lighting board and not breaking a sweat the entire night (Cheers to The Wag Man). A bitchin' (for lack of a better term) cover of 'We Are The Champions' complete with gonzo confetti cannons filling the Civic with red and white paper. Thousands of kidz singing along loudly to every song, even the new ones. The little 8-year old boy standing next to us with the green mohawk.

Best Quote - Me: "A punk band with pyro onstage?" Tour Manager Doug: "We like to blow things up."

Parking Lot Fee = $5. Some homeless guy tried to scam us in the parking lot before the show, but I would have none of it. On the way back to the car some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. Thanks to old Umlaut friend Doug for the +1 into his All Access Pass World. Keep it real out there, for The Kidz.

The Kidz ARE Alright... At least the ones into Green Day. Hope I die before I get old.

Metallica - HP Pavilion, San Jose, CA - Nov. 28, 2004



Twas the final show of the Madly In Anger With The World 2003-2004 World Tour. Did you know that Metallica has sold 90 MILLION albums worldwide. That's basically equal to the population of Germany. Achtung Bundesliga.

In 1982, old Umlaut friend K.J. told me to check out Metallica's demo tape so I did. The first time I saw them was at a club in North Beach. That club is now a "high end" strip joint. For better or worse, I've seen Metallica more than any other band... This gig was approximately the 40th time I'd seen them dating back to the year of the Falklands War. When it comes to this band I'm like Smeagol / Gollum. As much as I fight it, sometimes I still clutch The Metallica Ring. "I am no man..." Filthy little Rock Star Hobbits.

Best Moments: Hunting for the VIP Room so we could use our drink tickets ("Hello Cleveland.."). The Biker wearing the “Nazi SS - Support Your Local White Boy” t-shirt in the VIP Room and the looks he got from the other racially mixed “VIPs” (Hmmm, which band member would have put him on the guest list.. Hmmm..). Basically watching the show from the soundboard and chatting with Old Metal friend John Marshall (An original Metallica roadie (now retired) and fill-in tour guitarist in 1986 and 1992 when James' arm was broken and burned). Noticing all of the crew people around the soundboard calmly reaching for ear protection simultaneously just prior to the SHITLOADS of pyro that introduced 'One' (THE best arena pyro display IMO) and then calmly removing the ear protection simultaneously after the final explosion.. Seeing Lars slither past with his actress girlfriend in tow (Seen Gladiator?). I'm happy to report no civilians or other unauthorized personnel interfered with their passage. Introducing Skychick to Kirk and chatting with him for, like, 10 seconds but having him tell me that he tried to get the band to play ‘Mercyful Fate’ as part of the night’s set but the rest of the band weren't into it. Posers.

There were a good number of empty seats way up in the nosebleed sections, so the 18,000 seat arena wasn't sold out. However, the sold out general admission floor tickets went for up to $124 each ($75 face value) on Ebay. Corporate Rock Rules. After all these years, seeing Metallica for me is like attending a performance of Cirque du Soleil. It's not about the content, but the spectacle. I must admit that I spent a good portion of their set trying to figure out the function of the PDA / Pocket PC plugged into the soundboard. I also found myself watching the guy working the high tech gear monitoring the mini-cameras positioned around the stage. (GEEK!)

Parking Lot Fee = $15 (Mofos!). On the way back to the car some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. For the Old School Bay Area concert goers: THE CAVEMAN was at the show (Note: The Caveman was seemingly at EVERY major Bay Area concert in the 70’s and 80’s.. The Caveman has bushy hair, beard, and always wore FUR shorty shorts and FUR boots and “danced” wildly during shows.. and in 2004 he hadn’t changed..)! The more things change, the more they stay the same. Thanks to old Umlaut acquaintance The Lead Guitarist for the +1 into his All Access Pass World. Keep having those champagne wishes and caviar dreams, for The Kidz.


If you had been on The Drummer's guest list you would have seen this sign outside of his personal VIP room (The sign was "acquired" by Umlaut on the way back to the car...).

Footnote for The Old School: Today is the 22nd Anniversary of Metallica's legendary Old Waldorf, S.F. "Metal Up Your Ass" show. Oh, The Rock Godz do like their irony, don't they? Time sure does fly when you're growing up.

Epilogue: Umlaut was struck by the contrast between the two gigs... The differences in energy, band performances, crowd vibe, etc. etc. were quite profound to me. To keep it short I will use the age-old music snob cliché of analogy: If each band were a drummer, Green Day would be Keith Moon (circa 1965-71) and Metallica would be John Bonham (circa 1979-Drinking Binge).

Enter night, Exit light.

The End.