--- Wait, there’s an around-the-block line at a 9:30 Club show?! 30+ 9:30 shows, and I’ve never seen that. It was so tense waiting in line with a girl who came in from Southern Virginia and forgot her ID. Glad she got in with a school ID!
--- As we were waiting in line, a tour bus stopped and who walked off it? Noah himself! Right past us!
--- There’s NO vocal dropoff on “Troubled Mind.”
--- Heh: “let’s go, DC.”
--- The keyboard adds to “Passenger.” The song feels like folky Beatles. So many know every word. “I’m no passenger” is a strong chorus. How do I not know it?!
--- Heh, I definitely know “Animal.” Solid midtempo swing. The riffs, pauses for the audience, and the keyboard (MVP!) add to it. I’m pumped; the show has begun!!!
--- “You guys f’ing sold out the 9:30 Club.”
--- Hahahahahah: “I’ve been called a Jewish Ed Sheeran, a drippy Keanu Reeves, a sinful Jesus Christ, and…another white guy with a guitar.”
--- “False Confidence”: the best tonight. Riffs galore, and the crowd’s all in, so it’s through the roof!!!
--- The lead single “Part of Me” has a cool washed-out sound and rhythm shift. I like the way he emphasizes the last line.
--- Hahahah: “my grandparents are here tonight, y’all.”
--- Outstanding elongation of syllables at the start of “Hollow.” And the FALSETTO. Still number one!!!! I feel like he looked at me when I point during the ‘sir’ line, lol.
--- “Someone Like You.” I just heard that this is now on the radio. “I’m getting closer to my dreams of becoming a complete sellout.” LOL. Wow again at the falsetto. Heh: “I tried to Aretha right there. It’s the attempt.”
--- I take it back. The crowd are not mindless squealers. They come in and out at just the right times.
--- “This is about an important lesson I learned during the pandemic. If someone around you is starting to find success, and you’re not there yet……drag them back down into the abyss.” LOL! It’s called “New Perspective.” Lovely mandolin. “Awesome, Dylan, but this is my show.”
--- *Damn* at the falsetto on “Glued Myself Shut," off an EP called Cape Elizabeth. It never gets Lusky either. There’s such ease and lilt in it, along with everything going on tonight!!!!
--- “I’m going to play you another unreleased one. If it’s depressing, you can be sure I’m going to write a song about it. Nothing depressing escapes me.” “Stick Season”!!!!! Unreal vocal clarity, imagery, and drive. Apparently he’s played it on his Instagram Live. I wonder if Gym Dan heard it. The show would have been that much better if G.D. were there to share it, but I’m grateful for the introduction.
--- “Maine”: Jesus, I need to listen to Cape Elizabeth STAT.
--- “This song is off my first record.” The ‘Hollywood sign’ part of “Cynic” is still cool, although ironically, the song suffers a bit since I know it.
--- I can’t keep up with his wit!!! Ben Platt, much?
--- Hahahahahah at “Chug it; we’re on a curfew. The value of peer pressure: acid reflux.”
--- “Bad Luck”: Again, audience participation comes in at the PERFECT time. The way Noah barely chopped “bad luck” off at the end was expert.
--- Hahaha: “If this were American Idol, you all would be going to Hollywood, man. Those other crowds, Sacramento or something. Hollywood for all of you.”
--- “This song is Carlo Keet, my boy who I lost six years ago. Think about someone you lost. Did you find what you were looking for?” Again, this one has a completely different tone and rhythm. Expert. It connects so deeply with the WandaVision line!!!! I.E. “What is grief if not love persevering?” My arm involuntarily lifts; my voice involuntarily wails. “Carlo’s Song” catapults to top three.
--- Now I know why G.D. said, “Just wait, man. You’ll see.”
--- “Godlight”: “It worries me deeply that I would look back at my younger self and think I’m an asshole. It’s really hard to play, but I love it, so I do.” Indeed. I don’t want to keep using the exclamation points, but Jesus. Ooooh, electric guitar for the first time.
--- ***Hope for my son Brody and my daughter Riley. Could he be their Dave? Could he be their Bruce?
--- This song is about going back home. “Mess”: Brody literally says “mess” all the time!
--- “It hurts when you hurt somebody.” Now he’s throwing in calypso and a growl?!?! Wild.
--- “During the Jonas Brothers era, I felt lost and wayward. You made this happen for me. I play a lot of songs that get old, and this one never does.”
--- If he were ever to come to Poetry Club, that would be next level.
--- I don’t want it to end.
--- There will more shows. Many more shows.
Grade: A+
Endnote: On the drive home, I flashed back to drives on The Loop Parkway on the eve of college when I first discovered music -- when I wanted to keep driving and listening -- for it to never end. I hadn’t thought of those drives for years, and there I was again. Thanks, Noah.
No comments:
Post a Comment