Write all the things!

Whew, it's been awhile. There are actually things I could have written about months ago, and I just didn't! But, hey, there's no statute of limitations on these things, right? RIGHT. Accordingly, here's a post about the Second City That Never Sleeps event in Chicago back in mid-December ... plus a couple of other things.

The Second City That Never Sleeps. Letters to Santa. The 24-hour improv marathon for charity has been held for ten years now. I've attended eight of those ten. In 2004 I didn't quite make it for the entire 24 hours ... but even if you take that plus meal and bathroom breaks into account, by my calculations, I've spent upwards of 180 hours inside the Second City Etc. theater. That's over a week!

Of those eight years, I think 2012 was the best yet. For $20 at the door, we got an astounding 24 hours of entertainment. Look at this lineup, you guys. LOOK AT IT:

SCHEDULE
6:00PM guest improvisers OLIVIA WILDE & AIDY BRYANT
6:30PM Skyping from Dublin GLEN HANSARD
9:00PM JEFF TWEEDY
10:00PM JEFF TWEEDY LIVING ROOM CONCERT AUCTION
11:00PM guest improviser FRED SCHNEIDER
12:00AM KIM DEAL
12:00AM Cecily Strong joins the cast until 3:00AM
1:30AM guest comedian FRED ARMISEN
2:30AM JC BROOKS & THE UPTOWN SOUND with FRED ARMISEN
4:30AM MIKE KOSINSKI
7:00AM BONNIE PRINCE BILLY
10:00AM STEVE ALBINI interviews NATE SILVER
12:00PM JENNY GILLESPIE
2:00PM ROBBIE FULKS
4:30PM THE BLISTERS

FEATURED IMPROVISERS
RYAN ARCHIBALD
EMILY CANDINI
DINA FACKLIS
SUE GILLAN
SCOTT GOLDSTEIN
BEAU GOLWITZER
SHELLY GOSSMAN (SULLIVAN & SON/ EX-SNL WRITER)
PAUL GRONDY
MIKE KOSINISKI
TJ JAGODOWSKI
BRENDAN JENNINGS
MICHAEL PATRICK O'BRIEN (7 MINUTES OF HEAVEN/ SNL WRITER)
SAM RICHARDSON
TIM ROBINSON (SNL)
REBECCA SOHN
RICH SOHN
FRED ARMISEN (SNL)
SUDEIKIS & WILDE featuring JASON SUDEIKIS & OLIVIA WILDE

More of the public seems to be catching on to the amazingness of this event, because for the first time in my memory, there was a line of people waiting to get into the theater until the wee hours of the morning. Thanks to attrition, around 2:00 a.m., everyone was finally able to get inside.

Favorite parts:

• Glen Hansard singalong to "The Auld Triangle," via Skype from backstage in Dublin
• Fred Armisen performing "Fist Fight" with J.C. Brooks & the Uptown Sound, recreating a sketch from SNL
• Fred Schneider of the B-52s doing Fred Schneider improv exercises
• Winning one of the four (!!) Jeff Tweedy living room shows
• Kim Deal playing "Cannonball"
• 2:00 a.m. flash mob led by Dina Facklis and Olivia Wilde; the whole audience went outside and performed a "choreographed" dance in the middle of the street to "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO 
• Steve Albini interviewing Nate Silver; Nate Silver weighing in on the best burrito in Chicago
• Robbie Fulks's "Rap of the Dead" 2012

The night after Letters to Santa (ended), I saw Andrew Bird play a Gezelligheid show at the Fifth Presbyterian Church. I'm glad the timing worked out so well. It was a lovely show in a lovely setting. I could watch songs from the "Hands of Glory" EP performed around the old-timey single microphone all day long.

I also saw the Avett Brothers last month in Madison! And Jeff Tweedy's Youth Scholarship benefit shows at the Vic in Chicago last week! The Avetts played the Orpheum, and I was once again grateful for the refurbished lower stage. At one point Seth and Scott took to one of the opera boxes to play a few songs, an Orpheum first for me. The Vic scholarship shows are all-request evenings, and it was great to see Jeff perform my picks of "Nothing Up My Sleeve" and "Radio Cure" acoustic. Plus all the other songs, of course.

 Olivia Wilde's photo of our flash mob dance practice in the Piper's Alley lobby. I love this picture because it is - just guessing here - probably the only time Paul and I will ever be in a photo taken by Olivia Wilde, along with Jason Sudeikis and TJ Jagodowski. (We're a few rows back, on the right.)

Andrew Bird's stage for the Gezelligheid show

The Avett Brothers at the Orpheum

However close we get sometimes

The fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth shows of Christmas all belonged to Wilco. In 2008, the band played their legendary five-night Winter Residency in Chicago. In 2011, they did something similar: five shows at increasingly smaller venues. Monday night's show was at the Civic Opera House, home of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, capacity 3,458. By the following Sunday's finale, they were playing the 507-person Lincoln Hall.

Through the generosity and cooperation of others, much refreshing of ticket websites, and pinch of sheer luck, I managed tickets to all five shows. I set up camp at Paul's, and spend a great week in the company of friends. In addition to the shows, I managed to hit all of my top Chicago eateries, the MOCA for Andrew Bird's Sonic Arboretum exhibit, and two movies that show no sign of coming to Madison anytime soon.

The concerts, of course, were the week's main events. They all had their own special features: the faux snowfall and special guests Mavis Staples and Nick Lowe at the Civic Opera House, adding an unplanned (or at least not-on-the-written-setlist) "I'm a Wheel" to the end of the Riv show, a shirtless Josh on cowbell at the Vic, the sweaty rock show vibe of the Metro, the almost-unnerving intimacy of Lincoln Hall. I don't think I'd ever seen Wilco at a 500-person venue. There was plenty of conversation between the band and audience, and the room was quiet enough (at least for most of the first set) to hear the final notes of every song.

Throughout the five shows (spanning seven nights), the band went above and beyond expectations. The shrinking hometown venues were gimmick enough, if they needed one, but they also played ninety-nine different songs over those five evenings. They also bought coffee for the line of fans waiting outside in the cold before the Riviera, Vic, and Metro shows ... although Jeff joked that we'd be billed later.

To sum it all up: this was an excellent way to spend a week in mid-December. Any time Wilco wants to play five shows in Chicago, I'll do my best to be there. Even if/especially if it comes on the heels of a few other shows of interest.

The Eight Shows of Christmas concluded my concertgoing for 2011. Next week, it's time to recap - music, books, and travel - and look ahead to 2012.

In the city only for awhile

This weekend was a three-shows-in-three-nights deal for me, and it began on Friday night in Chicago with Fleet Foxes. (Fun fact: it was my fourth time at the Chicago Theatre, but two of the four have been for Conan O'Brien.) Fleet Foxes have come a long way since I saw them open for Wilco, and even since I saw them at Metro a couple of years ago. Selling out two shows at the Chicago Theatre is pretty impressive, and the band was up to the task. Although the pauses between songs felt a little long (or maybe just too quiet), the music was all it should be. I only saw Night 1, but the sound was superb and the setlist was thorough. It's hard to be really "varied" when a band has two full-length albums and an EP to its name, but we heard songs from all of them (including the newest record almost in its entirety) plus a new song from Robin Pecknold. It was cool to hear a solo song in the midst of the concert, but I could listen to the harmonies all night.

The good part

It's benefit season again! 2011 was the fifth year in a row that Jeff Tweedy played concerts at the Vic Theatre to benefit youth scholarships. This year, there was a also a table in the lobby on both Friday and Saturday night, manned by the Chicago Lighthouse. The charities that the Tweedys publicly support keep adding up, and the quality of the benefit shows is always top-notch. I've come to look forward to these late winter/early spring weekends as one of my favorite show weekends of the year. Friday and Saturday kept up the tradition.

As in years past, the setlists for both shows were requests from the first thirty people in line outside. As much as Jeff likes to joke that this leads to bad shows with songs nobody else will enjoy, it's really one of the things that make the concerts special. (Obviously, given the five-year tradition, this is not lost on the decision makers.) There were no repeat songs over the two evenings, which was impressive. My picks this year were "Shake it Off" and "Monday," two songs that are unlikely to be heard at your typical solo show. Both sounded great, and I was particularly delighted with the resonator guitar version of "Shake it Off." My favorite part was Jeff playing the syncopated chorus beats Glenn usually handles by strumming below the ... bridge? Pickup? My guitar terminology may be rusty, but it really worked.

Other standout songs included one more great version of "So Much Wine" (preceded by the tale of the "mayor's daughter" from Iowa), "Sonny Feeling" solo for the first time, "Dear Employer," and "Screen Door." Banter highlights were plentiful, and included an impromptu tribute to a certain friend of mine, a digression about banter grammar police (ahem), and a shout-out to teachers. There was fun before and after the shows, too: late dinners, bars, Record Store Day errands, studying Bruce Lee's fighting methods, the electric slide, and a Kuma's meal for Sunday lunch. I'll be in Chicago again next weekend among more visiting friends, and it feels a bit like this week is just a placeholder. Not entirely, though ... Decemberists tomorrow!

Party in the USA

Almost exactly a year ago last week, I saw Ed Burch and Viper and his Famous Orchestra play a house show at Hotel S'n'S.  Last Friday, I saw another house show featuring Burch and Viper.  This one was a release party of sorts (minus some delayed CDs) hosted by a familiar friend and musical collaborator of Edward's in Chicago.  Ed was up first, with some songs in honor of Jay Bennett.  He played selections from Jay and Ed's old band the Kennett Brothers, a couple off Jay's upcoming release Kicking at the Perfumed Air, a Courtesy Move song, and a lovely version of "Venus Stopped the Train" with full instrumentation and harmonies.  Last year's show was very soon after Jay's passing, so it was nice to hear a set this year when things didn't feel so heavy and sad.  It felt more like a celebration of Jay's music.

After a break (everyone was encouraged to try scones and watermelon), Viper and His Famous Orchestra came up.  In addition to the numerous Wisconsin references in Viper originals, which I always enjoy, plenty of cover songs were sprinkled into the mix.  From Miley Cyrus to Michael Jackson, Alex Chilton and Arthur Lee, much singing and dancing took place.  There was even a song called "Uncle Bud," verses collected by Zora Neale Hurston.  Woven throughout the set was a new song called "Sharkin'," only about forty seconds long at present.  The band opened with it, and it was repeatedly requested for the rest of the evening.  For good reason!

Sharkin' (#3):


Also last weekend, back home in Madison: Art Fair on the Square and a hilarious Patton Oswalt show at the Majestic.  Viva summer!

Summerstuff

In the past week I have...

Attended a Madison Mallards baseball game:

A bunch of coworkers got tickets and tailgated before the game.  I hadn't seen a minor league baseball game since the Kenosha Twins existed, and the players used to board with our neighbors over the back fence during the summer, and my older sisters used to scheme ways to get their attention ... anyway.  I hadn't seen a minor league game in a long time, and this was fun.  And a lot goofier than I remembered.  See guy with cape and keytar above.  He played a song between innings: winner had to identify song and artist.  Also, at Mallards games, anyone who catches a foul ball can turn it in for a free wiener at the concession stand.  The Twins definitely didn't do that.


Gone to my first Capitol Farmer's Market of the summer:

Believe it or not, it was my first Saturday morning at home since the outdoor markets began on April 17th.  The weather couldn't have been better for my first outing of the season.  My haul included fresh raspberries and spicy cheese bread, and I got there early enough to walk around without being slowed to a crawl by the crowds.


Taken part in a surprise birthday party:

I suppose that isn't a summer-specific activity, but it's always fun to get together for a celebration with friends.  Bonus points if the night includes karaoke at a bar, where friend Mark sings a Smiths song while the birthday girl does an interpretive dance behind him.


Driven down to Chicago for a free night of music in Millennium Park:

The Cultural Center hosts a series called Downtown Sound, featuring different bands each Monday.  Last night's show in the Pritzker Pavilion featured Huntsville and On Fillmore with Nels Cline.  Though some of Huntsville's material isn't exactly my thing, I found most of the performances fascinating.  It's interesting to watch Nels and Glenn and Darin work with the sheer variety of implements they bring to the stage in this incarnation.  Garden weasel wheels playing crotales, battery-powered tripod massagers on a drum head, chirping stuffed birds played through guitar pickups, and something that was possibly bamboo on a rope, twirled in the air like a foxtail.  Nels and Glenn joined Huntsville for the last 45 minutes of their set, and you know when there are two drum kits being employed, I'm happy.

I'm with Coco

Back in Chicago so soon?  Why, yes!  On Thursday night, Sam and I had a date with Conan O'Brien.  We caught the second night of Conan's "Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television" tour stop at the Chicago Theatre, and it was well worth the drive on a school night.

I've seen Conan live twice before.  The first time during the week of Late Night shows he did at the Chicago Theatre in 2006, a run he mentioned more than once Thursday night.  In 2006, Conan brought pizza out to us in line, and his guests included Barack Obama.  The second time was a taping in L.A. during Conan's brief Tonight Show tenure.  I didn't blog about that at the time, but it was awesome.  Amazing seats, an encounter with Max (which sounds dirty but wasn't), a donkey, a python, an elephant, Wilco in Nudie suits (again, not dirty).  And of course, Andy and Conan being hilarious.

This third time showcased another incarnation of Conan the performer.  It felt like Conan's TV show, except with more music, a more personal focus, and a lot more swearing.  The sense of fun was still palpable, and Conan did his best to make a connection with the audience: by running through the aisles, by inviting a Conan lookalike up on stage in one of my favorite unscripted moments of the night, by urging us to collaborate with him on song lyrics via a lobby suggestion box held by a life-sized cutout of Conrad Bain.  The night contained a bit of everything, and it was clear that Conan was doing what Conan wanted to do.  The image of him relaxed and grinning on stage, guitar in hand, jamming to "Seven Nation Army" while wearing Eddie Murphy's purple suit from "Raw" is one that will stay with me for awhile.  (It's possible he wasn't wearing that suit during that particular song, but nevertheless ... the image is there.)


Tomorrow, I'll be in Chicago again.  Leaving for Africa.

Week in review

Last week, that is.  I returned from Pennsylvania on Monday.

Tuesday: 
Picked up bridesmaid dress from the seamstress.  Then, David Sedaris at the Overture Center.  I enjoyed myself right from the opening selection, a preview from his upcoming book of fables.  Or, as David said, not fables - since fables have morals.  He also read a story I'd seen last year in The New Yorker, "Laugh, Kookaburra."  I liked it at the time, but hearing him read stories brings them to a whole new place.  There were more anecdotes and stories, a brief mention of genocide in Rwanda (so that some college kids who attended could get credit for the talk) and a book recommendation: Irish Girl by Tim Johnston.  David mentioned that the title story had been included in a compilation he edited some years ago.  Proceeds from the book went toward ... toward ... "It was for fucked up kids.  I don't remember what was wrong with them.  I did it so I would seem generous."  I love you, David Sedaris.

Wednesday:
Wisconsin Film Festival!  I saw The Exploding Girl at the Chazen Museum.  I liked the movie, though it moved very, very slowly and not much happened.  The lead actress reminded me of a young Kristen Schaal, though her character was nothing like Kristen Schaal.  I thought the film did a surprisingly good job of building a tense, suspenseful mood throughout what was actually a not-too-suspenseful plot.

Thursday:

Wisconsin Film Festival official opening night.  Some friends and I saw The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls at the Orpheum.  Lynda and Jools Topp are lesbian twins who have a successful comedy and music act in New Zealand.  The documentary was top-notch.  I was completely unfamiliar with the Topp Twins beforehand, but I came away with a great sense of their personalities, their history, and social and political issues in New Zealand.  It was both entertaining (I think my favorite Topp Twins characters are Camp Mother and Camp Director) and unexpectedly touching.  Director Leanne Pooley answered questions after the film, and said that Jools and Lynda will be performing in San Francisco when the film screens there this year.  I'll continue to dream of them playing our local county fair.

Friday:
Harmony and Me at the Union Theater.  A comedy set in Austin about a young, quirky, recently-broken-up, sometime-musician guy with oddball friends and family.  Much of the movie was improvised, and as a veteran of seven 24-hour improv benefits since 2003, I could tell.  In a good way, mostly.  The film was very funny in many places, although as you might imagine from the description, it was also a little ... overly self-aware ... at times.  Regardless, I enjoyed it.  The director, Robert Byington, came out for a Q&A session afterward.  Byington also played Harmony's older brother in the film - one of my favorite characters.  It was a nice ending to my 2010 film festival experience.

Saturday:
Gina's bachelorette party in Chicago!  I checked into our kick-ass suite at the Dana Hotel and Spa before my facial.  It was a actually more than just a facial (that sounds dirty) - there was also a massage involved, and lots of heavenly scents and creams and aromatherapy.  The only part I didn't enjoy was when the esthetician did the "extraction of impurities," at which point I swear to god she started beating me up.  Maybe not quite, but holy crap!  My nose!  Was not expecting that!  Anyway.  Overall, it was great.  I want to live at a spa.  Or at least get treatments for an entire weekend sometime.  Which would cost seventy-eight bajillion dollars, but might be worth it.  While the others got their spa treatments,  I had enough time to Brown Line it over to Laurie's Planet of Sound to celebrate Record Store Day with Sam and co.  I picked up a CD, and - find of finds - spotted the book David Sedaris edited for fucked up kids in a used book box!   Score.  As a bonus, I heard ten minutes of DJ Pat Sansone spinning some sweet tunes before heading back to the Dana.  Drinks with the ladies at the hotel bar, dinner at Nacional 27, liquor store, back to the suite.  Mindful of lessons learned last summer at the hands of Europeans and patxaran, I suffered no ill effects from drinking.  It was just a really fun night.  Hooray for Gina's waning days as a bachelorette!

Sunday:
A short, brisk morning walk made me realize that I could live in a high-rise on State and Erie in downtown Chicago and be perfectly happy for a long time.  Sunny, early spring days obviously strengthen that impression, but really.  The area is bustling with activity, grocery stores and restaurants and shops everywhere, close to the CTA, view of the lake.  Quiet on the twenty-third floor.  And I could take public transport to parks or the 'burbs if I wanted, right?  So when I come into a ton of money, it's settled: I'm moving into the spa at the Dana.  Brunch was at Cuatro in the South Loop (shared coconut milk pancakes! chilaquiles!) and afterward it was time to head back home.   I can't wait to see everyone again at the wedding in less than two weeks OH MY GOD.    

Name me a song that everybody knows

Another post, another concert or two.  Over the weekend I visited the always wonderful (and this time cold and rainy) Chicago for a pair of Jeff Tweedy solo performances to benefit a youth scholarship fund.  I'm no stranger to these shows; this was my fourth year in attendance.  Still, I realize I can never predict the twists and turns each evening may take.

It's a well-established tradition now that the first thirty or so people in line each night get to pick the setlists for these concerts.  This leads to an eclectic group of songs: a mixture of the obscure b-sides Jeff always teases the crowd about, side project and former-band tunes, plenty of covers, and a few favorite staples.  We heard "Monkey Mess," a song written years ago by Jeff with his son's preschool class.  "Fake Plastic Trees," sounding ever more polished.  A new acoustic arrangement of "Poor Places."  A verse or two of a song popularized by Elvis Presley, "A Fool Such as I." The always-beautiful "More Like the Moon," with a slight lyrical variation that would only be noticed by a nerd such as I.   A brand new song Jeff wrote for Mavis Staples with a chorus of "You're not alone."  (That one wasn't a request, exactly, but came when an audience member asked Jeff what he would like to play.)  The song that surprised me most of all was "Shakin' Sugar," a Yankee Hotel Foxtrot-era outtake.  I would have never requested it, assuming it had no chance ... but I'm glad someone did.  And I'm certainly glad I was wrong.    

Impressing me most this year was the attention Jeff paid to playing all of the requests.  In the past, as far as I can recall, there have always been songs nixed or omitted, or alternate requests solicited.  Although one repeat song from Night 1 was not played on Night 2, I don't think anybody's choice was skipped this year.  Given how deep people dug for their requests, that's pretty remarkable.  My own request on Night 2 was a choice between two songs: either "Ashes of American Flags" from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, or "Single Ladies" by Beyoncé.  I'm pretty sure I expected Jeff to pick the former, but instead we were treated to a mostly spoken-word, entirely hilarious dramatic reading of "Single Ladies" in full.  Oh goodness.  You'd be surprised by how many different inflections can be put on the line "Don't be mad once you see that he want it."      

Concerts weren't the only thing going on in the city over the weekend, of course.  There's also this holiday called St. Patrick's Day, and Chicago is kind of into it.  My companions and I visited the green Chicago River, and I bought a shamrock lei from one of the many vendors in the Loop.  (Two for $1.00 if they can't get them untangled!)  We also enjoyed a delicious dim sum brunch on Sunday, with bubble tea for dessert.  I should get down to Chicago for a weekend more often than I do, really.  Good thing I have two more on the calendar within the next month and a half.  Next time, it should truly be spring.

Also see:
2009 (sort of)
2007

All that you can't leave behind

Before Saturday night in Chicago, it had been four years since I saw U2. But it had been eight years since I saw U2 from anywhere besides the floor, as close to the stage as possible. This time around, Alison and I opted for seats instead of GA. I looked forward to the show, but wasn't sure if I'd truly be able to get into it. I never see bands in stadiums. I'm never 90 yards away from the performers. My first U2 show in 1997 was at Soldier Field, in seats very similar to those we had Saturday. I had a wonderful time that night, but it was one of my first concerts ever. I'm familiar with U2's ability to charm a huge crowd, but was skeptical of my own susceptibility in this environment. Wasn't I a seasoned concert veteran? Used to the front of intimate venues? Smaller, more down-to-earth bands? My era of rabid U2 fandom years behind me?

Those things are all true. They also don't matter. I had forgotten that a U2 show is a wholly different entity. The last shows I saw were Neil Finn and Jon Brion from the front of a 280-seat theater. Thinking I wouldn't appreciate Saturday night at Soldier Field in comparison, as it turns out, made as much sense as assuming I wouldn't enjoy chocolate ice cream because garlic naan is so great. One has nothing to do with the other.

I hadn't read much about the setlists for the European leg of the U2 360 tour, or about the stage setup. In person, the sheer size, scale, and spectacle were amazing. The screens were unlike anything I'd ever seen, and the tour makes stunning use of lights and visual effects. It all enhanced the show rather than distracting the audience, which can be a difficult line to tread. Of course, simply being present in a stadium with tens of thousands of fans is amazing in itself. Bono doesn't really play to the front of the crowd - I know this from being there myself. Bono plays to the camera; to the back corners of the 400 section. Bono plays to the stadium.

Saturday's setlist was heavy on the new album, as it should be. There were definitely songs I'd have rather heard, but this isn't a Greatest Hits tour. I could have done without the most unfortunate lyrics of my least favorite song scrolling along the screen for a singalong, but you can't win them all. "Breathe" as an opener was great, and Larry coming out by himself to start was a nice touch. The acoustic "Stuck in a Moment" was excellent with just Bono and Edge on stage, somehow working perfectly in a huge space that no longer seemed quite so big. I was in turn confused, surprised, amused and delighted when Bono wove some lines from Wilco's "Far Far Away" into the intro to "Beautiful Day." Also surprising was "The Unforgettable Fire." I'd never seen it played, and judging from the people around me, neither had many younger members of the crowd. Nor had they ever heard the song before, at all. Of course, Bono did choose to skip over a decent portion of the lyrics. I'll chalk that up to "new arrangement," but the song was still a welcome inclusion.

My highlight of the show came in the encore. Bono took the stage in a suit dotted with red lights, shining out into the stadium. A swinging microphone, also covered in lights, lowered to meet him. "Sometimes I feel like I don't know, sometimes I feel like checking out..." After all this time, "Ultra Violet." One of my favorite songs on Achtung Baby, which means one of my favorite songs in the world. I can't say it was a song I'd been hoping to hear, because the idea never occurred to me. But if I'd thought of it, I would have been hoping. It was perfect.

The show made me realize that my experience of a U2 concert isn't really about U2. It's mostly about me. Maybe that's true of anybody's experience of anything, if you want to get philosophical. I have so many memories wrapped up in these songs, this scene, this band. They're all the more powerful for the long gaps between tours, and the fact that I rarely listen to the albums these days. For two hours, the stadium is a time machine. Bono sings "Stand By Me" at Soldier Field in 2009 and I'm at Soldier Field in 1997, Lindsey and Michelle by my side, as he sings the same lines. "The Unforgettable Fire" begins and I'm on a road trip with my parents, headphones on in the back seat, listening to that album over and over/watching the video with Gina, in college, laughing as the wheels fly and colors spin. The verses of "One" take me to Germany, visiting Michelle, gazing at the remains of the Berlin Wall. The band plays "Ultra Violet" and I'm in high school again, brimming with teenage resentment and perfect-student stress, screaming "I wanna get it wrong" at the top of my lungs in my car/in my bedroom/in a stadium with 60,000 people.

Looking back on U2's Vertigo tour, I was too recently removed from my U2 super-fandom to have much perspective. I think it was too soon after the preceding Elevation tour - which completely changed the way I thought about live music - to fully separate the two. I enjoyed the shows, but things were different than they had been. I felt the high school freshman's smugness about how I'd moved on. This time, it's been long enough. Seeing U2 again felt like going home. Like visiting the place where I grew up after having been away for a long time. Maybe I don't want to live there anymore, but everything is right where I left it. I can go back. I can stay awhile.

Rainy weekend

A year ago today, I was watching people play line charades in Des Moines. Getting ready to fly to Los Angeles - and then to Melbourne - the next day.

This year today, nothing too exciting happened. It was sunny this morning, which is more than I can say for the entire preceding weekend. Nevertheless, I had a good time in Chicago. Saturday morning and early afternoon were devoted to wedding dress shopping with Gina, her mom, and sister. We visited boutiques in order of increasing snootiness, finishing up at Vera Wang. (We resisted the temptation to buy bags of Cheetos and pints of ice cream at Walgreens and walk in eating them.) Gina tried on some lovely dresses - no matter which one she ends up buying, she's going to look awesome. Only a little over a year to wait!

Any ambitious late afternoon plans were dampened (heh) by the pouring rain. Instead, Gina and Ryan and I caught up on Letterman from last week - and some scary reality TV -before meeting Sam for dinner at Urban Belly. After a quick but delicious dessert at Hot Chocolate, it was Largo movie time.

The film screening was part of CIMM Fest, and the venue was St. Paul's Cultural Center: a former church. With Stacy, Jim, and Kristina, we took up an entire wooden pew. Not the most comfortable place I've watched a movie, but the ambiance was worth it. Plus, they were giving away free Red Stripe. Beer in church!

I was happy to see the Largo movie after hearing about it for so long. Maybe the pace could have picked up a bit early on, but overall they did a good job of interspersing the comedy acts with the music performances. I do think the Coronet is a great space for Largo, but watching the movie also reminded me that I still miss the old place on Fairfax. The end of the film felt like saying goodbye to it again. (It also reminded me how much I'm looking forward to seeing Flight of the Conchords next month.)

I originally had visions of returning to Chicago tonight for the Ashes of American Flags premiere and a late night at the Hideout, but it's just not happening. Too much work stuff. And since I've been staying up far too late watching The Wire, it would be nice to get a night with more than 5 hours of sleep. I'll just have to wait until Record Store Day. For the movie. Not for the sleep. Please.

More Illinois

Work: swamped. Big deadline. Can't think. Oh crap. Must blog. Busy weekend! Still tired. Word pairs: good enough.

Tweedy shows. Song requests. Played mine! Jake's bar. Golden Nugget. "Nipple tits." Lost wallet. Snow fight. Clown car. Wallet found. Laptop party. Cold line. Valentines. Many dogs. Many friends. Glove twins. Sooz's balls. (Peanut butter.) Blasting Fonda. Long Cut. Handsome Family. (Times two.) Philly's Best. Much talk. Little sleep. Pancakes. Dog show. Kuma's burgers. Drive home.

Some pics:

Ann Sather

Lowered booze

Goofy pose

That's it. (For now.)

Sunday

Ah, Sunday. The day of rest. Well ... not this weekend. Instead, Sunday was the day of family lunch, driving down to Chicago in the rain while the Brewers earned their season's final loss, watching a bunch of DeGrassi High with Sam and Sooz, eating roast chicken at Feed, and winding up at the Hungry Brain for a late night of improvisation from Jim Baker, Nels Cline, Glenn Kotche, and Fred Lonberg-Holm.

The Hungry Brain hosts the Emerging Improvisers' Sunday Transmission series every weekend. For a donation of $10 or so, you can pull up an easy chair, settle into an absurdly deep red plush couch, or belly up to the bar and watch musicians create something that wasn't there before.

This Sunday's performance was broken into three sets. Set 1 was Fred and Glenn, Set 2 was Jim and Nels, and Set 3 was the quartet. It was fascinating to watch these guys react to each other, responding to the music and coaxing loud, soft, dissonant and lovely sounds from a great variety of instruments and implements. The final set, with all four musicians on stage, was intense. One of my favorite parts was Fred Lonberg-Holm somehow making his cello sound just like a heavy metal guitar solo. I know there's an art to improvisation - a method behind the madness - and I'd like to learn more about it. I would imagine it's as much about listening as it is about playing.

Most of all, I felt fortunate to see four musicians of this caliber in such a cozy venue. The atmosphere was relaxed and low key. I watched the last set from a couch, for goodness sakes.

Hey, baby, are you having fun?

Of all the bands I currently like, R.E.M. holds the record for staying power. I've probably been aware of U2 for longer, but I became a bona fide R.E.M. fan when "Out of Time" came out - so, I've been a fan since I was eleven years old. I took a mini-R.E.M. vacation coinciding with the release of "Around the Sun," but their albums have never really left my rotation.

After working nights and then flying back right after a shift on Friday, I hadn't originally been planning to attend the R.E.M. show at the United Center. But Paul came through with an offer I couldn't refuse (free ticket)! And the company promised to be good. So Friday night found Sooz and me perched in the first row of the 300-level, more or less above the stage. We didn't make it in time for The National's set, but did catch Modest Mouse. They seemed pretty good, but I don't think watching a band scurry around below you like large ants is the best live introduction one can have.

R.E.M. was a good time, though, distance be damned. I last saw them from the front of Red Rocks amphitheatre in Colorado back in 2003, so this was a slightly different perspective, but watching Michael Stipe cavort below us had its own charms. "Man on the Moon" and "Find the River" were both played, and as two of my favorite songs, I was really happy about that. However, the highlight for me came when Michael started introducing a song, and I figured out it was "Ignoreland." I'd never seen that one live, and always wanted to. So Friday night I got my wish.