Chicago gig review

kavu478 · 09-24-2003, 09:00 PM

September 23rd, 2003
Park West - All ages
Chicago, IL

Damien Rice (w/Pedestrian and some guy who wasn’t bad…Sorry)

Set:

Delicate
Volcano
Me, My Yoke and I
(damo speak)
Older Chests
(damo speak)
Childish
Purple Haze (Vyvienne solo, cello & vocals…joined later by band)
(damo speak)
I Remember
Cannonball
The Professor
Eskimo
Woman Like A Man
Cold Water <
Hallelujah ****

*********
encore:
Blower’s Daughter
Cheers Darlin’ #
When Doves Cry#*%<
Babe I’m Gonna Leave You #**%<
Glory Box#***%

# w/Pedestrian
% partial song
< fade into
* Prince cover
** Led Zeppelin cover
*** Portishead cover
**** Leonard Cohen cover

Show was over by 10:00pm (all ages show suck like that)… 1 ½ hrs.

The show was sponsored by 93. XRT (http://www.wxrt.com) in Chicago. They WILL be airing the show later so check the web site for details. They also said that the show could possibly be made into a CD…whether the it’s the full show or not is hard to tell at this point.

As far as the actual show? Ahhhh, priceless. The venue filled up quite nicely and we quickly made our way down to the front of the stage. I thought Pedestrian, much like "French wine and cheese," got better as the night went on. I think the highlight there was the drummer…it was his world and we just happened to be living in it for the moment. Damien was popping in and out of the crowd (sat down right next to us!), "Just checking the sound!"

Damien and the band took to the stage and instantly won the crowd over. The whole show was alive and full of energy! A couple of highlights would include:
* Vyvienne’s solo…and her cute little voice
* Watching the band rock out on "I Remember" and see’n Damo absolutely nail the guitar looping
* Damo playing to the crowd on "Childish" and "The Professor"
* The fade into "Hallelujah" was phenomenal…

One of the many things that impressed me was the fact that Damien loves the crowd! He was joke’n and share’n with the crowd like friends who haven’t seen each other since university. I must say that it was my first time see’n him live and he has quite the stage presence. I think the band in general has and incredible chemistry. And, Tomo is a show in his own right!

Hands down great show.

I also want to give a couple of die-hard American fans kudos for helping make the show a great time and helping with the set list! Emily, Maggie and Carrie @ St. Mary’s…I’d go to a show with them any day!

Cheers,

steve

Kathleen · 09-25-2003, 10:49 AM

Ooh, ooh... me too! I've copied & pasted this from another site I post on.

First, $12.50 for this show was a great price. However, Ticketmaster charged me about 66% of that for freaking fees. Bite me, Ticketmaster.

Obligatory beeyotching about prices over.

I arrived at the venue at 5:45, having been told that doors were at 6; however, they didn't open until about 6:15 or so. Pedestrian were sound-checking when I arrived, and it was cool to be able to hear the bits and pieces of other checking after that. (No, I don't get to see a lot of shows... why do you ask?

A local guy named Cameron McGill, I believe, opened; wasn't really up my alley. He had a violin player who, physically, reminded me of Dilbert and did a great job playing. The guy on the keyboard reminded me a bit of '70s-era David Bowie; he ended up standing right next to me for Damien's set. Cameron's last song was a subdued solo (he and his guitar) that ended with a loud blurt from the amp -- it didn't seem intentional, and he seemed pissed off as he left the stage. It was kind of funny, really.

Pedestrian's set started in a similarly amusing way -- the lead guy was concentrating on some equally subdued, intricate guitar work, then got a few words into the song and -- bluuurt -- that sound biffed him up. "F*ck it, let's start again," he said. We laughed.

Damien... wow. The crowd cheered at the opening notes of Delicate and proved to be equally receptive and appreciative all night long. Damien flubbed up a bit of the words on this song, but otherwise, he done good.

Volcano was the first of several songs that incorporated looping; these looping sessions got pretty intense at times. As for My Yoke, I'm not sure if that's it or not; given the subject matter (masturbation, according to those who've seen him on this tour), I was sort of expecting something charming and lilting (much like Childish). Damien, however, rocked out on this one. At this point, I believe he expressed surprised appreciation to Chicago for selling out the venue and talked about last year's US tour, during which he played to seven people at one point. "Thank you, Norfolk, Virginia, and we haven't been back," I think he said, with not a little bit of sarcasm. What a lucky seven, though! Can you imagine? It'd be like having Damien in your living room! Between Older Chests (during which I thought of my Grandpa with love and a little regret) and Childish, he remarked, "thanks for making me feel stoned."

Vyvienne's Purple Haze was very cool; here and at the final jam with Pedestrian, I could see her grinning and playing merrily. The penis vibe (as he said while introducing that unidentified song, "Here's another song about penises,"; I didn't hear it, as I'd dashed to the ladies' room) continued with an offhand, "You don't get her, so you turn to masturbation" between parts A and B of I Remember. The song wasn't as breathtaking without Lisa, but Damien certainly pulled it off well.

Eskimo Friend saw the disco ball lit up and the stage lights down, per Damien's request; it took me a while to realize, as I saw the smiles of wonder on people's faces, that the ball didn't throw off bits of light so much as it did the image of snowflakes. With the hush of the crowd, recalling the hush of falling snow in the country wasn't difficult. Definitely a chill moment (pun intended).

Woman Like a Man rocked out... the house and stage lights went out for Cold Water, which definitely evoked the frigid Atlantic closing over one's head... and Damien's looping at the end of the song was like the long, slow lapping of winter waves on the shore. Wow. He segued Hallelujah from this, which the crowd loved... I was almost in tears, it was so tender. At this point, the band left... then loped back on stage, to massive cheers, with Pedestrian -- bottle o' vino and cups in hand for the last jam. Damien downed two or three half-filled cups of wine, killing a couple precious minutes and joking how doppy he'd gotten while doing this in New York. They then stumbled into Daughter, and the bitterness was almost palpable! This segued into Doves, then Portishead's Glory Box, which I thought was pretty rad. I've spent a bit of time with Portishead's Dummy and the live album -- and I like them, but that doesn't mean they don't still trip me out. So, yes, this final jam was fun -- the two bassists got silly back and forth, Vyvienne merrily sawed away, the drummers, grinning like kids, banged away... fun fun fun!! I would've loved to've stayed to thank Damien and the rest, but I had to work today... plus, I wanted to experience taking a cab all by myself for the first time.

As I looked for a cab outside the venue, I stood next to three people who spoke with Irish accents... though I had no way of knowing if they were US citizens or children of Eire, I felt like thanking them personally for loaning Damien and friends to us. Such was the inner & outer smile the evening brought.

To top it off, I got to spend a bit of time with two very dear friends (who happen to live fairly close to the venue), had a great drive there and back (less than two hours each way -- I love living this close to the big city) on a gorgeously sunny early autumn day, and just generally enjoyed the change in scenery. Like I said, I don't go to a lot of shows for various reasons... would like to, and, in fact, I'll be seeing Lucinda Williams in three weeks... so this really was a treat. Yay for good live music!

AbaZaba16 · 09-25-2003, 11:41 AM

Hello everyone! I went to this show the other night and was quite literally nothing short of amazed. I would insert a cuss word back there, but not sure if that's the vibe of this board yet. haha..

I had heard of Damien through my boyfriend who's been a fan for over a year now. I went to the show because of his interest and left a huge fan!! I had only heard two songs going into the night. I even asked my bf "does this guy have any uplifting stuff" haha. But at the end of the night, it didn't really matter. His stage presence and the band's chemistry blew me away and contributed to all the energy I needed. I thought the sound at this place was pretty damn good compared to other smaller venues, too.

My favorite part of the evening by far was his lead into Hallelujah. I love Jeff Buckley's rendition of this amazing song and loved Damien's just as much. It just gave me chills when he started into it. Awesome.

So to sumit up, I'm now in love. Got his autograph and a little chat with him after the show. I think I might have scared him by how impressed I was. Haha... my bf thinks he's not quite used to all the praise/attention. Oh well, he will be with all his/their talent. I'm obsessed with getting as many mp3's of his live stuff as I can now, too. My only regret is not hearing of him sooner! I can't wait till he comes back to Chicago, so next time I can know all the songs and lyrics!

Funky Avocado · 09-25-2003, 01:16 PM

Great reviews guys. Thanks! I wish all gigs had reviews like this fo sho!

09-24-2003, 09:00 PM	#1
kavu478 Eskimo Regular Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: United States Posts: 236	September 23rd, 2003 Park West - All ages Chicago, IL Damien Rice (w/Pedestrian and some guy who wasn’t bad…Sorry) Set: Delicate Volcano Me, My Yoke and I (damo speak) Older Chests (damo speak) Childish Purple Haze (Vyvienne solo, cello & vocals…joined later by band) (damo speak) I Remember Cannonball The Professor Eskimo Woman Like A Man Cold Water < Hallelujah ** ******* encore: Blower’s Daughter Cheers Darlin’ # When Doves Cry#%< Babe I’m Gonna Leave You #%< Glory Box#*% # w/Pedestrian % partial song < fade into Prince cover Led Zeppelin cover * Portishead cover **** Leonard Cohen cover Show was over by 10:00pm (all ages show suck like that)… 1 ½ hrs. The show was sponsored by 93. XRT (http://www.wxrt.com) in Chicago. They WILL be airing the show later so check the web site for details. They also said that the show could possibly be made into a CD…whether the it’s the full show or not is hard to tell at this point. As far as the actual show? Ahhhh, priceless. The venue filled up quite nicely and we quickly made our way down to the front of the stage. I thought Pedestrian, much like "French wine and cheese," got better as the night went on. I think the highlight there was the drummer…it was his world and we just happened to be living in it for the moment. Damien was popping in and out of the crowd (sat down right next to us!), "Just checking the sound!" Damien and the band took to the stage and instantly won the crowd over. The whole show was alive and full of energy! A couple of highlights would include: * Vyvienne’s solo…and her cute little voice * Watching the band rock out on "I Remember" and see’n Damo absolutely nail the guitar looping * Damo playing to the crowd on "Childish" and "The Professor" * The fade into "Hallelujah" was phenomenal… One of the many things that impressed me was the fact that Damien loves the crowd! He was joke’n and share’n with the crowd like friends who haven’t seen each other since university. I must say that it was my first time see’n him live and he has quite the stage presence. I think the band in general has and incredible chemistry. And, Tomo is a show in his own right! Hands down great show. I also want to give a couple of die-hard American fans kudos for helping make the show a great time and helping with the set list! Emily, Maggie and Carrie @ St. Mary’s…I’d go to a show with them any day! Cheers, steve __________________ "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." -Albert Einstein

09-25-2003, 11:41 AM	#3
AbaZaba16 Eskimo Baby Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: United States Posts: 8	Hello everyone! I went to this show the other night and was quite literally nothing short of amazed. I would insert a cuss word back there, but not sure if that's the vibe of this board yet. haha.. I had heard of Damien through my boyfriend who's been a fan for over a year now. I went to the show because of his interest and left a huge fan!! I had only heard two songs going into the night. I even asked my bf "does this guy have any uplifting stuff" haha. But at the end of the night, it didn't really matter. His stage presence and the band's chemistry blew me away and contributed to all the energy I needed. I thought the sound at this place was pretty damn good compared to other smaller venues, too. My favorite part of the evening by far was his lead into Hallelujah. I love Jeff Buckley's rendition of this amazing song and loved Damien's just as much. It just gave me chills when he started into it. Awesome. So to sumit up, I'm now in love. Got his autograph and a little chat with him after the show. I think I might have scared him by how impressed I was. Haha... my bf thinks he's not quite used to all the praise/attention. Oh well, he will be with all his/their talent. I'm obsessed with getting as many mp3's of his live stuff as I can now, too. My only regret is not hearing of him sooner! I can't wait till he comes back to Chicago, so next time I can know all the songs and lyrics! __________________ - Lauren

09-25-2003, 10:49 AM	#2
Kathleen Eskimo Friend Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: United States Posts: 60	Ooh, ooh... me too! I've copied & pasted this from another site I post on. First, $12.50 for this show was a great price. However, Ticketmaster charged me about 66% of that for freaking fees. Bite me, Ticketmaster. Obligatory beeyotching about prices over. I arrived at the venue at 5:45, having been told that doors were at 6; however, they didn't open until about 6:15 or so. Pedestrian were sound-checking when I arrived, and it was cool to be able to hear the bits and pieces of other checking after that. (No, I don't get to see a lot of shows... why do you ask? A local guy named Cameron McGill, I believe, opened; wasn't really up my alley. He had a violin player who, physically, reminded me of Dilbert and did a great job playing. The guy on the keyboard reminded me a bit of '70s-era David Bowie; he ended up standing right next to me for Damien's set. Cameron's last song was a subdued solo (he and his guitar) that ended with a loud blurt from the amp -- it didn't seem intentional, and he seemed pissed off as he left the stage. It was kind of funny, really. Pedestrian's set started in a similarly amusing way -- the lead guy was concentrating on some equally subdued, intricate guitar work, then got a few words into the song and -- bluuurt -- that sound biffed him up. "F*ck it, let's start again," he said. We laughed. Damien... wow. The crowd cheered at the opening notes of Delicate and proved to be equally receptive and appreciative all night long. Damien flubbed up a bit of the words on this song, but otherwise, he done good. Volcano was the first of several songs that incorporated looping; these looping sessions got pretty intense at times. As for My Yoke, I'm not sure if that's it or not; given the subject matter (masturbation, according to those who've seen him on this tour), I was sort of expecting something charming and lilting (much like Childish). Damien, however, rocked out on this one. At this point, I believe he expressed surprised appreciation to Chicago for selling out the venue and talked about last year's US tour, during which he played to seven people at one point. "Thank you, Norfolk, Virginia, and we haven't been back," I think he said, with not a little bit of sarcasm. What a lucky seven, though! Can you imagine? It'd be like having Damien in your living room! Between Older Chests (during which I thought of my Grandpa with love and a little regret) and Childish, he remarked, "thanks for making me feel stoned." Vyvienne's Purple Haze was very cool; here and at the final jam with Pedestrian, I could see her grinning and playing merrily. The penis vibe (as he said while introducing that unidentified song, "Here's another song about penises,"; I didn't hear it, as I'd dashed to the ladies' room) continued with an offhand, "You don't get her, so you turn to masturbation" between parts A and B of I Remember. The song wasn't as breathtaking without Lisa, but Damien certainly pulled it off well. Eskimo Friend saw the disco ball lit up and the stage lights down, per Damien's request; it took me a while to realize, as I saw the smiles of wonder on people's faces, that the ball didn't throw off bits of light so much as it did the image of snowflakes. With the hush of the crowd, recalling the hush of falling snow in the country wasn't difficult. Definitely a chill moment (pun intended). Woman Like a Man rocked out... the house and stage lights went out for Cold Water, which definitely evoked the frigid Atlantic closing over one's head... and Damien's looping at the end of the song was like the long, slow lapping of winter waves on the shore. Wow. He segued Hallelujah from this, which the crowd loved... I was almost in tears, it was so tender. At this point, the band left... then loped back on stage, to massive cheers, with Pedestrian -- bottle o' vino and cups in hand for the last jam. Damien downed two or three half-filled cups of wine, killing a couple precious minutes and joking how doppy he'd gotten while doing this in New York. They then stumbled into Daughter, and the bitterness was almost palpable! This segued into Doves, then Portishead's Glory Box, which I thought was pretty rad. I've spent a bit of time with Portishead's Dummy and the live album -- and I like them, but that doesn't mean they don't still trip me out. So, yes, this final jam was fun -- the two bassists got silly back and forth, Vyvienne merrily sawed away, the drummers, grinning like kids, banged away... fun fun fun!! I would've loved to've stayed to thank Damien and the rest, but I had to work today... plus, I wanted to experience taking a cab all by myself for the first time. As I looked for a cab outside the venue, I stood next to three people who spoke with Irish accents... though I had no way of knowing if they were US citizens or children of Eire, I felt like thanking them personally for loaning Damien and friends to us. Such was the inner & outer smile the evening brought. To top it off, I got to spend a bit of time with two very dear friends (who happen to live fairly close to the venue), had a great drive there and back (less than two hours each way -- I love living this close to the big city) on a gorgeously sunny early autumn day, and just generally enjoyed the change in scenery. Like I said, I don't go to a lot of shows for various reasons... would like to, and, in fact, I'll be seeing Lucinda Williams in three weeks... so this really was a treat. Yay for good live music!

09-25-2003, 01:16 PM	#4
Funky Avocado Eskimo Regular Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 204	Great reviews guys. Thanks! I wish all gigs had reviews like this fo sho!