Something exciting and new...

I haven't blogged for about a week, mainly cos I just felt I had nothing exciting to want to say to the world and then well then that all changed about two days ago when I made no no that's not true, I researched something which appeared to be of potential interest.

So right across America this Summer there's a tour going down. Labelled at "The Saturday Night Rebel Rockers" playing the "Traveling (should be a second L in that word but that's Ameriglish for you) Circus and Medicine Show". Sounds like some sort of a freak show but features my absolute favourite band Counting Crows (have I mentioned that I like them before - haha) and an up until the other day unknown-t0-me band called Augustana.

So now I know who Augustana are in a very BIG way. My Ipod is for the first time in what seems an eternity playing something fresh and brilliant. I'm smitten at the moment with their album "All the Stars and Boulevards" and there are some beautiful, deep, angst ridden, heart wrenching tracks on there as well as a some great ballads and some fresh and challenging music and well that's all I want to say about the matter really. Apart from you absolutely must go and check them out at all costs, without fail and if you don't well you're just a complete mentalist or a bit of a retard really. I can't yet comment on their most recent album because my Ipod won't allow me to play anything else just yet apart from at peripheral scan level but it too sounds great.

The power of support acts

So how many of us are guilty of doing this? We book tickets to see a band or a musician we really like, we find out what time they're on and then what do we do, either turn up late or sit outside drinking beer...all the time not knowing or hearing what's going down on stage.

Today I was in the car listening to 2 acts who supported Counting Crows on tour in the UK last month, one being Blind Pilot, the other being a solo artist, Saul Ashby. Whilst Blind Pilot played a set at Wembley I naively sat outside with a beer in my hand pondering the Crows choices for a setlist along with the majority of an 8,000 - 10,000 strong crowd...big mistake.

So then the Brixton gig got re-scheduled because Adam Duritz was ill and this time I made an effort to see the support act...Saul Ashby. The guy was amazing. For a solo artist, virtually, if not completely unknown to come on stage and play a solo acoustic set in front of I'd guess a crowd at that point in excess of 2,500, was simply awesome. Had I opted for the beer and chat outside I would have missed something quite special.

Why do we do it? I guess we have this in built notion that the act we have come to see, in this case Counting Crows is all we really want to see so whatever else is playing no matter how good it is, is just not worth seeing.

This got me thinking...the best way to get people in their seats early is for the "headline act" to open the show, play for a while, go off for an undisclosed amount of time, then come back and play a set. Then an arena/venue would be filled start to finish.

I thought I was being a pioneer and then, well turns out someone else had the same idea. Counting Crows are currently on a tour (with some odd name I am far too drunk right now to remember) with Augustana (who I know nothing of, yet!), and they're doing exactly that according to this update from Adam Duritz.

So it's a request/preach tonight. Next time you go to a gig, get in and see the support act(s). I learnt the hard way of what I was missing whilst having a beer outside...go support the lesser artists...more times than not they're awesome.

I am a bit drunk right now so I hope that all makes sense. Basically drink less. listen and drink more :-)