The Frames - Vic Theatre - 11.23.2010

Saw The Frames at the Vic last night.

Generally a fun show. I can't say it was overwhelmingly great, or anything, that would be pushing it. There were definite high points, but there were also long sections where I really felt things dragging. The band hasn't played together in a long time, and frontman Glen Hansard kind of intimated the show was a work in progress right from the top.

The band is great, let's get that out of the way right from the top. There's a ton of talent in the group, and Hansard is an engaging, funny presence. He's also got a hell of a voice. There were a few screw-ups, which Glen seemed to revel in, but the music was played solidly, and with conviction. The main thought I have today, thinking back on the experience, was that I saw the tour too early.

The problem, at least in my opinion, and I'm sure to get hate mail for this, is that the setlist was not really organized well. The show was a bit herky-jerky and stop-start, we'd get through a stunning uptempo number, I'd be ready for the show to kick into full throttle, and the next song would undercut the momentum. It's a turn of events that's not only a bit annoying, but also exhausting. I just got tired, and despite the high energy of Hansard and everyone on stage, the song order started to work against them.

One factor in that, honestly, is that...God, I'm gonna hear it for this...a lot of The Frames songs sound, and develop, in very much the same way. There's a streak in Hansard's writing that plays out like this;

• Opening verses are low and intimate, almost conversational.
• The chorus kicks it up a notch.
• Second verse back to low and intimate.
• Second chorus Hansard goes into his SUPER-INTENSE EMOTIONAL WAIL.
• This carries through to the end of the song.

Now there's nothing good or bad about that. It's just the formula, hell, AC/DC has been writing the exact same song, over and over, for 30 years, and nobody complains. It's simply the way Hansard writes, and I admit, it shows off the strength and range of his voice exceedingly well.

The problem is, the strongest songs in the catalog reach outside of that formula, and when you hit one of those like the chills-inducing, utterly amazing song  Revelate, I am ready for more rocking...and it's back to the formula. Honestly, I cannot, for the life of me, understand why Revelate wasn't in the encore, or even ending the first set. Instead two more songs, that I can't help but sit there and think, "man, not as good as Revelate."

I know I'm harping on this one particular song, but it's Just. That. Good. It's one of those kind of songs that anyone would want to write. Some people go their whole lives trying to write a song like that.

Thing is, when you don't lay out your songs well, you end up climbing the same hill over and over again. There's no ebb and flow, no natural slide from higher energy to low. You'll get the audience absolutely with you, energy-wise, and if you pick the wrong song to follow, it's gone. Then, you have to work the audience back up to that point, all over again. This is why it becomes exhausting for an audience, you're wanting to float along with the band, but you keep crashing down, then back up, then down, then up.

also, if you're going to play new material, that we have no way of ever having heard before, aim for the middle of the main set. When you're wrapping up, we want to hear stuff we know, stuff we can sing along to, and, y'know, commune with the band.

A side rant here, and it's not just The Frames problem, it's amazingly widespread with bands, although last night was a really good example.

For God's sake, can we make an encore mean something again? I'm tired of "encores" that are almost as long as the main set. It's just a joke. I suppose the idea is to make you think you're getting to hear all these extra songs, but, damn it, we know you're going to come back. We know it's all a game, it's right there on the setlist.. Instead of playing for an hour, walking off for 3 minutes in darkness, and then playing another hour, just play 2 hours and give us a REAL 3-4 song encore.

Looking back over this, I know it seems really negative. I'll be honest, I've seen better shows, but I thought The Frames were quite good. I think Glen being upfront about the "work in progress" nature of the show both explains, and forgives a lot. I actually envy the people who'll catch the tail end of this tour, because I bet they'll work out the setlist kinks, and it'll be a barn-burner.

Highlights - God Bless Mom, Lay Me Down, Star Star, Revelate, Fitzcarraldo

Setlist:

• Headlong
• Seven Day Mile
• God Bless Mom
• The Stars Are Underground
• What Happens When the Heart Just Stops
• Finally
• Happy
• Lay Me Down
• Rent Day Blues (snippet of Rhinestone Cowboy sung) 
• Pavement Tune
• Star Star (with teases of Pure Imagination & Hotellounge)
• Revelate
• Friends and Foe
• People Get Ready

 Encore:

• Perfect Opening Line
• Santa Maria
• Disappointed
• Dance the Devil Back Into His Hole
• New Song (listed as "New Song" on setlist) 
• New Song (Joe on vocals, listed as "Joe" on setlist) 
• Fitzcarraldo
• The Auld Triangl

Short Week, and the Mind Wanders....

I'm actually dreading tomorrow, for no other reason but that I'm going to pick up my comics. This is a pretty big week. Last week, which I didn't get to pick up, was a big week. It means a rather large bill when I stroll in there tomorrow.

Oh well...It's a hobby that, on occasion, is expensive. I am beyond overjoyed that both Marvel and DC have announced that they're going to roll back the $3.99 price point they started about a year, or so, ago. Yeah, it means the end of some great back-up features, but it also means titles like Ultimate Comics Spider-Man and Justice League of America, which jumped to the higher price with no additional content, will be back in a reasonable price range.

Tonight, CByrd and I will be heading to The Vic to see The Frames. I'm excited, frontman Glen Hansard, who's possibly more familiar from his side project The Swell Season, which sprung from the film Once, is a pretty dynamic stage presence. So much so that he pretty much runs over Swell Season partner Markéta Irglová, and the Swell Season backing band is...The Frames. So, if you see The Swell Season, you're essentially seeing The Frames, with Irglová adding a couple of numbers. 

I've commented on this unequal partnership before. It's not that I think Glen's doing anything on purpose, just that the lady seems ill-suited to commanding a large audience. Now that it seems, by some reports, that The Swell Season has run it's course, it'll be interesting to see what Markéta can/will do on her own.

Which really doesn't impact on The Frames, at all, other than that the two times I've seen The Swell Season, I felt that I might as well be watching a Frames show. It ought to be a good time. 

I'm also really looking forward to The Sword at Metro on December 12th. Their latest album, Warp Riders, has been seated pretty firmly as my favorite album this year. I've written about the album in the past, but the short form is that it's old-school hard rock/heavy metal, with Warp Riders being a step into a more concise and hooky form of songcraft. There's an almost Thin Lizzy kinda feel to the record, with groove and less sprawling guitar work.

The show was originally set for October 23rd, but the entire tour got canceled/postponed when drummer Trivett Wingo left the band, apparently because of panic attacks leading to a desire to get off the road. He's very upfront and frank about the decision in this interview. I have to say, I respect the guy pulling the eject button when he knew he wasn't going to be able to pull his share. The timing sucked, and he seems fully aware of that, too. I can't say I'm happy that I had to wait another month, or so, to see the band, but the whole thing's been handled as well as anybody could expect. Wingo going on record about his problems is brave, and appreciated by this fan.

That said, I am disappointed. I saw The Sword open for Metallica a couple of years back, and the band had a really nice, laid back, "hey, we're just dudes who put a band together" vibe. I also found Trivett magnetic on stage. His look is certainly not that of a typical metal drummer, but the dude can pound.

There wasn't a ton of super complex or what you might call "elegant" drumming going on, but he just wailed. I also found Warp Riders, and the, as I said, more groove-oriented sound really served up his work well. I'm still very excited for the show, but I'll miss seeing his work. 

This story might also give a glimpse of why a guy might want to get off the road. Jesus, Phil. I thought you were over that shit. I also must point out that the author of that blog seems like a bit of a douche, himself. 

In other "concert news," on an absolute whim, I bought tickets to see Slash at the Chicago House of Blues on February 13th. I've gotten some crap from people on this, which kind of amuses me. The real kicker, for me, was that Myles Kennedy would still be singing on that date. Kennedy is the vocalist for Alter Bridge, and I've written about my enjoyment of that band before, too. I saw too late that Alter Bridge is playing HOB on December 11th, and it looks to be sold out.

I just really dig Kennedy's voice, and the setlists for the Slash shows have included songs from every facet of his career, Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver, and solo stuff, as well as playing some stuff from Kennedy's catalog. That seems like an entertaining evening, to me. Plus, it's Slash, and one can't deny that he's been a vastly influential guitarist in the years since Appetite for Destruction broke.

I'm still working on the acoustic set for the Stage Left Fundraiser, as well as continuing to work on tracks for a new CD. It's funny, I'm sure everybody who plays an instrument has these thoughts, wherein, depending on the day, you either can't play at all, or it just flows, almost too easy. Sunday was the latter, for me. I had a drum track that just did not work, and it didn't take me long to see that I'd simply programmed it incorrectly. I fixed it, and things really started to run smoothly. The guitar scratch track is down, I'll need to move on to bass, and build it up again.

The I just started messing around, riffing. I was really enjoying everything I was coming up with. As I've said, time and again (boy I bet this blog bores people sometimes), the "concept" is sort of a 70's hard rock thing. So much of that was blues-based, Zeppelin, Aerosmith, etc. so I just started messing around with a 12-bar blues. I really enjoyed the riffs that were coming out, and the room for variation that I was giving myself. It was fun, and I think that you'll see/hear some version of it on the finished product...whenever that might emerge.

Oh, and I got an idea for an incredibly weird spoken-word piece on the train this morning. We'll see about that.

What I really need to do is keep on that acoustic...the days are ticking away.