Friday, November 11, 2011

Playing Pianos Filled With Flames

If you like indie rock and you're under the age of 45 you're probably familiar with Neutral Milk Hotel. If not, here's some backstory which makes clear that NMH is really Jeff Mangum. You'll note that this backstory is 15 years old. That's because Mangum stopped performing in 1998 after releasing two magnificent albums. He then went into Salingeresque hiding.

Unlike Salinger, who remained in seclusion until his death, Mangum is back on tour. If you know what's good for you you'll click on that link. I'll make it easy for some of you: BAM on 1/20/12 and Lincoln Theater on 1/27/12.

I don't always know what's good for me, but I managed to score tickets to two of Mangum's most recent shows in October and November. Here's a recap.

I like hipsters. They often look goofy so I look cool standing next to them. They like interesting music and drinking beer, so they know about bars with good music and diverse beer menus. I work with a hipster from Minnesota, which means that in addition to all the foregoing he also likes to play and talk hockey. We agreed that we would both try to get tickets to see Mangum at Town Hall and Loews Landmark Theater, and if either of us got tickets we would go together. In a karmically fantastic turn of events I scored two tickets to both shows.

My run of good Mangum karma ended on the afternoon of October 29 when my new suburban abode was pelted with slushy snow, obliterating trees everywhere and knocking out power throughout my county. Here's a representative photo of my neighborhood:



Amazingly, that giant branch did not knock out power to the yellow house in the photo. A few minutes after I took that shot a sparrow-sized stick fell on the wire, breaking the proverbial camel's back, where the camel in question is my block.

The road from my dead end street was rendered practically impassible by fallen wires and branches, and the train into NYC lost power so it was shut down. Accordingly I missed Mangum's show that night at Town Hall. Making matters worse: I had the tickets and Ticketmaster would not let my friend pick up tickets at will call. Ticketmaster sucks. Luckily he got a ticket on craigslist.

I did, however, make it to the November 6 show at Loew's Landmark Theater in Jersey City. Here's proof:



Parenthetically, FOG:TB Marls is a huge fan of Paul Sorvino's work and has every album he ever put out, so I'm sure he went to the show on November 4. I too am a fan of Paul Sorvino's work of a different ilk but I doubt that this was part of the concert.

While waiting outside for my friend I saw all manner of hipsters, smoothsters, theater chicks (huzzah!), wannabe bike messengers, oldsters, and (a surprising number of) youngsters. Highlights included the dreaded fat hipster in skinny jeans, a guy of the preposterous angry-tough-hipster phenotype working the door, and the rare former hipster turned financial type and his financial type fiancee who just left a tasting for their wedding to meet up with his greasy hipster childhood friends. While waiting to get our tickets and regaling my friend with a story about zin-laws' trip to a Willie Nelson concert that concluded with "Roll Me Up And Smoke Me When I Die" the financial type fiancee was in line ahead of us and she turned around and starting throwing back midrange (natch) by asking if I was talking about Tupac, and explained how Tupac's ashes "were smoked by his homies." I explained that "Yeah that was me, I snorted the ashes." She liked this but the financial type didn't and dragged her away.

Also outside was a rare chubby black hipster trying to sell an extra ticket for $10, then trying to give it away for free, then offering to let people stab him in exchange for taking the ticket from him. I thought it was funny but some people get scared when an excited young black man uses the word "stab" in any context and the ticket went unclaimed. His friend noted that his ticket to a previous Mangum show had a typo, spelling the name "Magnum" and noted that "That's a fucking awesome name!" so he clearly reads G:TB.

Then I got inside. The show was much better than I expected. Stunningly, Mangum sounds exactly like he does on wax (or whatever fixed medium you prefer). He also displayed amazing breath control. There were no signs that his hiatus hurt him.

Here's the setlist. He played from a chair surrounded by four accoustic guitars and was alone except for when a garden gnome of a man appeared from the shadows to play the flugelhorn along with an oboist who might have been the little girl from the No Rain video, now fully grown, for "April 8th". He interacted with the crowd much more than I expected for such a notorious recluse. Because the show was entirely accoustic, many of the songs sounded different from the recorded versions but it was easier to appreciate the lyrics, many of which are absolute abstract poetry.

The whole show only lasted about an hour including the encore but it was well worth my $35. It was a bit like seeing Barry Sanders take the field in 2011 and playing exactly as he did in 1991, or seeing an Ivory Billed Woodpecker pecking the shit out of some wood.

Before "Little Birds" Mangum noted, without a stitch of sarcasm, that "I don't perform this song live very often." My friend and I laughed but the couple next to us were rolling too hard to see the humor.

Mangum encouraged people to sing along if they knew the words, and Squeaky told me this would happen based on the show he went to earlier, and if you've ever been to a show with Squeaky you're familiar with the following pattern of events: (1) a popular song begins, (2) a fan (typically a young woman) gets excited and starts singing along, (3) Squeaky knots his face into a dour scowl and loudly proclaims "I didn't come here for a fucking singalong!" So when the doofus behind me started singing along to "In the Aeroplaine Over the Sea" I pulled a Squeaky. He didn't stop singing.

The performance I enjoyed the least, surprisingly, was "Holland 1945" which normally gives me goosebumps. For whatever reason it wasn't as effective when performed accoustically. And every doofus in the room sang along, which may have muted the goosebump factor.

The performance I enjoyed the most was "Gardenhead" which has a bit of a Soundgardenish feel as recorded on "On Avery Island". For whatever reason it was even better when performed accoustically. Not a single person sang along (it's a bit of a deep cut, to the extent that a guy with two albums can have a deep cut) which may have enhanced the goosebump factor.

I encourage you to see Jeff Mangum when he comes to a theater near you. You can expect a short show based almost entirely on a shallow bench of songs from his two NMH albums (I say "almost" because he apparently covered Roky Erickson in his Town Hall show). But what the show lacks in length and depth is made up for in virtuosity; it's less a concert than a poetry reading put to music. You'll have a good time.

28 comments:

Dave said...

great post-- but i must disagree with you and squeaky-- if you attend the concert then you DID sign up for a "sing-along." otherwise, sit at home like me and listen to the album!

more on me being a recluse soon, i'm working hard on my counter to rob's disney post.

Squeaky said...

The show in Boston was maddening with the amount of people singing along. It felt like it was some kind of cult meeting with everyone chanting the lyrics.

To the point where an older guy next to us, who had to be 50, turned around and told the college kid singing behind him so out of tune to shut up the fuck up.

This began a cringing but comical exchange. College kid: "Fuck off". Old guy "You want some". CK: "F you, old man". OG: "Shut up you piss ant little prick, I'll fight you right now" raising his fists. CK friend "Everyone chill out and enjoy the show". CK shut up for one song. And the OG fumed the rest of the show. I think the old guy might of jumped that college kid after the show.

All of this happening at an acoustic 'rock' show. In all of the shows I've been to and it's quite a few, especially the punk shows back in the day, I thought this one was the least likely to see a fight break out.

Worth at least a $50 ticket for a causal music fan but some tickets in Boston went for $500+. And for an hour show not worth the $500.

zman said...

I forgot to mention the 50-some-odd-year-old panhandler in a Bo Jackson Raiders jersey hanging out near the theater. I hadn't seen a BoJax jersey in over a decade. Jersey City is a weird place.

zman said...

And the "old guy" in Squeaky's story is really Squeaky.

Mark said...

I'm sure the concert was great. But an hour long show is bullshit.

TR said...

Quick recap of the morning for Zman and me: Earlier this week, I roped him into driving the two of us to the Meadowlands EARLY this morning to sit in their coaches club with the Flight Crew and a couple hundred other season ticket holders to watch Mike & Mike live. We had to be there at 530 AM. As a good friend, he said yes, as it would've provided opportunity for ridiculous photo ops and a solid G:TB post.

Fast forward to this morning: I awoke at 530 AM to see several voice mails and texts from Zman. I whiffed on setting the alarm last night and he was too polite to bang on my front door at 5 AM. My kids had played with my alarm clock last night and I somehow botched setting it.

So a heartfelt apology to Zman, and a small apology to this portion of the blog. He missed out on sleep, and you all missed out on ridiculous photos of the two of us w/ our arms around Mike Golic and/or some slutty cheerleaders. First round of knishes will be on me at the Jets-Pats game this Sunday night.

zman said...

Add that story to the constantly burgeoning list titled "Stories About TR and zman That We Shall Never Discuss Again." And TR just put the kybosh on my fake photoshopped post about this failed effort.

An hour long concert is indeed bullshit, but you can listen to both NMH albums back-to-back in under 88 minutes. So he doesn't have a deep bench of material to draw from.

Mark said...

Fair enough, Z. I went to see People Under the Stairs a couple years back and they played for about an hour and a half. I was not pleased. And their catalog is certainly long enough to play much longer than that.

And frankly, I'm glad you two missed Mike & Mike. I would've thought less of you for attending a live broadcast of the terrible show. And I know you two are very concerned about my opinion of you.

Marls said...

Nothing quite like coming home fromm the mill, having the M-lady fetch my pipe and smoking jacket, settling into a wingback chair by the fireplace, and listening to some Paulie S on the ol' hi-fi.

Mark said...

I have no idea what Marls is talking about.

TR said...

Neither does Marls.

And on the Mike & Mike topic, the original plan was to roll into the taping with any/all of the following: fake personas as dumb Jets fans, Zubaz pants, mustaches.

I think a picture of me in Jets Zubas paints with Mike and Mike would've bene tremendous, especially if I had shit-eating grin and a thumbs-up pose.

TR said...

Mustt improove: speling

Mark said...

Fair enough. That would've been pretty good.

Marls said...

TR - Do you actually own Jets Zubaz?

TR said...

No. I looked to buy them on-line, but wasn't sure I could have them sent in time for Friday.

zman said...

When you buy a house in NJ, part of the closing involves a free pair of Jets or Giants Zubaz pants. It's the law.

Marls was referencing my Paul Sorvino aside in the post. It's part of his Marlsington Massengil persona.

Marls said...

Miguel had a pair of Houston Oilers zubaz that he rocked around Unit M in. They were completely ridiculous, especially on Miguel.


BTW, it's Marlsington Massengil, III. He is from a long line of douches.

zman said...

If anyone is looking for a barber to accentuate your hair loss, let me know. I found the best guy out there for just such a mission.

Marls said...

Shave the head z-man

Mark said...

As someone who started going bald at 21, I heartily endorse Marls' statement.

zman said...

My head is lumpy. And I'm not quite at the Messier/Agassi point yet.

Shlara said...

Foo Fighters played for 3 hrs last night--good old-fashioned rock & roll. SOcial D player for an hour as the opener. Major ROI for my $60

Dave said...

mark, good call on the orlando nike outlet-- my new lightweight running shoes have chartreuse soles, but i saved sixty bucks.

rob said...

tribe defense is playing turrrrrrible

Mark said...

The Orlando Nike Outlet is one of my favorite places on earth. I'm not kidding.

rob said...

this auburn implosion is breaking my heart

rob said...

wrens are getting smoked at hampton. that's not so good.

rob said...

god damn is oregon fast