Saturday, I volunteered for the 'early' shift at work in order to make it out in time to see Art Brut at the Tribeca Grand. I got there around 11:30, and after 5 minutes or so in line made it downstairs. The guy at the door waved me in without bothering to check the list, and I headed immediately to the stage. There were already lots of people in front of me but I had a good line of vision and wasn't too far from the stage. By the time the band came out it was after 12:30 and the people in front of me had grown 6-8 inches, so I decided to leave my new camera in my pocket and concertrate on rocking out - I hate having to hold my camera high up in the air to get a shot of the band.
The band came out without Eddie and starting playing an AC/DC riff... Eddie came out and it turned into "Formed a Band"... they did this sort of thing all night long, interspersing bits of rock history into their songs (though generally it was Eddie's singing that did the referencing). Wait, do I remember this right? all these details are possibly wrong, though none are made up... it's my chronology that's at issue.
So, some out-of-order highlights as I remember them:
In "Formed a Band", Eddie changed the lyrics to say "We ARE the band, that WROTE the song, that made Israel and Palestine get along. Up next is India and Packistan. Easy - Peasy."
Eddie started off every song with "Are you ready Art Brut?" He had a killer thin mustache and wore a great hat and wasn't afraid of his untoned/untanned torso.
the pre-"Emily Kane" banter was about how he actually saw Emily Kane after writing the song for her and she thought it was a joke, and she laughed. And he sounded heartbroken as well as resigned.
oh, this is the best:
the intro to "Rusted Guns of Milan" was "This is a song about Valentine's Day, 2001." Then, mid-song, he went on an extended, detail-filled riff about his experiences of Valentine's Day 2001... which was as heartfelt and serious as it was ridiculous. It made me a little nervous with how filled with candor it was, yet it was riotously funny while also kind of uncomfortable. This one song proved that Art Brut is not ironic as much as it is serious. Perhaps better said, Art Brut should be the official soundtrack of the New Sincerity.
also, at one point Eddie said something like: "I have a very good memory for faces. And I'm coming back to New York. And when I do, I'm going to find you, I'm going to track down each and every one of you. And when I find you I'm going to grab you by the arm and ask you if you've formed a band. And if you say no, IF YOU SAY NO... I'LL BE VERY DISAPPOINTED. I'LL BE VERY DISAPPOINTED."
awesome pictures at Brooklyn Vegan.
I hate to disappoint... I'll have a band together by the time Eddie gets back.
Let me say that new guitarist Jasper Future is the new indie-rock matinee idol I'll never be. guy is gorgeous (he's the blonde, obviously).
I almost bought a "Popular culture no longer applies to me" T-Shirt, since I've been feeling that way for a year or two now. Some might think I make a play for hipness, while in fact I try to seal off my influences to create a singular culture that has
After the show I called Casey to see where he and Fin were; they were at a bar in Williamsburg whose name I've forgotten (Roebling and Grand, right on the corner). I went out to meet them and got there around 1:30-ish. When the bar closed at 4 Casey and Fin and new friend Ashley were the only ones still rocking so we went first to buy beer, but since it was 4 AM on a Sunday we had no luck. Instead we went to a diner and ate a breakfast of sorts before going back to Ashley's place (a few hours before she was moving out). Casey went to crash in her bed while Fin, Ash and I sat on the couch and started watching the Family Guy movie... which lasted about 10 minutes until we all passed out. When we woke up it was light (was it light when we got 'home'?) and the menu sequence was on repeat and it was nearly time to leave the house and get breakfast (again). I wasn't hungry but drank a much-needed vitamin water and sat outside with Fin and Ashley while Casey went back to Queens to change clothes or shower or something. Fin and Casey had already planned a group badminton excursion in McCarren Park, but I had plans to meet Exeter friends at the RUSSIA! exhibit at the Guggenheim... to be continued...
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