Belle & Sebastian, Nokia, 3.2.06

When I've spent several months building up a show, the danger of a let-down becomes very real. So I was a bit nervous seeing two of my favorite bands at my favorite venue; it all seemed too good to be true. Fear not, friends. This was a great concert.

Before the show, I saw James McNew of Yo La Tengo in the lobby while I sipped my heavily ginned-down Tanqueray and tonic. (I asked for a tall Tanqueray and tonic and the bartender, sweetie that she was, said she could give me a double in a small cup, so I said yes and watched as she poured about 2.5 shots into the cup, float tonic, "Is that okay?" "Ha! yeah." She only charged me for one [$9!] so I was pretty psyched, but $40 later I realized all the other bartenders weren't giving me such a special deal.) That becomes relevant later--I'm not just dropping names.





The New Pornographers played their first song ("Twin Cinema" I think?) and we grabbed a spot at the top of the steps from the lower general admission area. Drink prices aside, Nokia is my new favorite venue. It's pretty huge, but you can see and hear everything great from everywhere. Carl Newman had an extra ticket which he offered to anyone with a friend outside who wanted to come in. He promised a free t-shirt to the chick if her friend made it before the end of their set. How would they know if she was telling the truth? someone asked. She'd be on the honor system, said Carl. It'll be a matter of trust. Hey, that's a Billy Joel song. Sorry, we won't be playing "A Matter of Trust." (Again, not just wowing you with minor Billy Joel trivia...this is important.)

So, the New Pornos went through, played "Bleeding Hearts Show," "The Laws Have Changed," "Sing Me Spanish Techno," all the biggies, and it was all great. Filling in ably for Neko Case was Kathryn Calder, whom we saw browsing MoMA the next day (now I am just dropping celeb sightings). I only wish I could see them headlining. And that they'd played "Graceland."








Now here's where all that foreshadowing of mine comes together. As The New Pornographers walked offstage, some sort of ad-hoc group featuring James McNew (I'm an idiot, so my picture cut him out) and one of the guys from YLT's pre-election 2004 show in Charlotte* walked on and introduced themselves as A Matter of Trust. They then played "A Matter of Trust." It's definitely a you-had-to-be-there kinda thing, but the back-up singer (far left in the photo) cracked me up with his little snapping/walking in place dance. (UPDATE: this person was paying closer attention and provides the back-story to Matter of Trust.)




Unfortunately, I wasn't entirely sober when Belle and Sebastian came on, so my memory is a bit fuzzy. I do remember they started with "The Stars of Track and Field." I also recall "Seeing Other People," "Me and the Major," "Judy and the Dream of Horses," "I'm a Cuckoo," "Fox in the Snow," "The State I Am In"(!), "Dog on Wheels," and the obvious tracks from The Life Pursuit. I would've liked to hear "The Boy with the Arab Strap" and "Women's Realm," but alas. Again, great show. I love you guys.


Stuart Murdoch opening with "The Stars of Track and Field."












This was fun. Stuart invited a bunch of girls in skirts onstage to dance.



This sign struck me as terribly funny. A better person might have thought, My God, it's a sad comment on our society that we need signs deterring pederasts from school buses. I thought, Yeah, but you should spray for them anyway.

Fluxblog has more.

MP3s:
Belle and Sebastian - "White Collar Boy"
The New Pornographers - "Graceland"
Billy Joel - "A Matter of Trust"

* - Yo La Tengo played a rare show in North Carolina for the Swing State tour to oust W. It was down at the Visulite Theatre in Charlotte, which is a great, tiny venue. Before the concert, they played the debate live on a big screen, and then YLT came out and played a great show ("Nuclear War" was a fave of mine). It being part-political rally, the songs were interspersed with anti-Bush banter and a couple of little skits. In one, these two dudes were introduced as great Danish (?) producers. They went through this hilarious Andy Kaufman-esque musical number (I think YLT may have actually been pissed at the guys). Later they came on wearing a C-3PO mask and a Superman mask and staged a debate. Good stuff, and I guess you really had to be there.