hello cleveland!

for some reason, i\’ve always been drawn towards live music. even before my days in the band (c\’mon, it\’s been a while since i mentioned that), i\’ve loved the raw sound of a live performance, vs. the perfection that can be generated by studio recordings. it actually might have been this double-disc set that turned me on to live performances– from jim morrison\’s extended scream in \”backdoor man\” to the extended organ solo in \”moonlight drive,\” i was suddenly aware of how cool a live take on a known song could be.

i didn\’t become a huge concert-goer, by any means. i caught such acts as r.e.m., metallica, bush, and the counting crows at huge venues before said venues became a bit of a turn-off. in the late 90\’s i turned my attention to smaller venues and, in particular, one band. the peacemakers put on an amazing live show, and, in following them, i got turned on to the excitement of seeing a show from the front row of a place like the 400 Bar or the Fine Line. incredible.

anyway. while riding to work (and listening to the ipod) this morning, i started to think about all of the bands i\’d love to see live that i haven\’t yet seen– here\’s that list.

1) Better Than Ezra. i\’ve been an avid follower of BTE since 1996; only with the release of their live album in 2004 did i realize i needed to witness them in person. the bad news? they\’ve only been in town once in the past five years, and apparently have no plans to be here soon.

2) Fountains of Wayne. i\’ve also liked FoW for almost a decade, but until 2003\’s \”welcome interstate managers\”, i considered them more quirky than, you know, rocking. WIM is filled with great stuff that would be great to see live; drawbacks are– like BTE– no tour dates upcoming. and, the new album seems to be back to quirky songs. oh well.

3) Guns n\’ Roses, circa 1991. ok, impossible, but can you imagine? oh, and i\’d appreciate not getting trampled and killed.

4) Oasis. i realize i\’m coming a little late to the game with oasis, but have recently discovered a lot of their stuff that never made it to the radio and have been impressed. i\’d also be hoping that the gallagher brothers get into a fistfight on stage.

5) The Shins. certainly not raucous by any means, but their songs are made up by so many layers of sound that i think it\’d be cool to see live.

ok. who do you want to see?