Dumbek's Random Stuff

5/18/09 - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band @ The Verizon Center - Washington, DC

It seems I'm the only person in the MD/DC/VA area that had no problem at all getting Springsteen tickets. It quite literally sold-out in a matter of seconds. Even people that bought scalped tickets via TicketsNow were turned away. sheesh.

But our good luck didn't end there. Like last year - there was a lottery for the pit - an area at the very front of the floor that's restricted to 400 people. We managed to get lucky again and were among the first 150 or so people in the building. We spent the evening about 10 feet from the stage. Sweeeet.


The show was excellent - as expected. I liked last year's setlist a little better, but it didn't really matter. Bruce turns everything into a party and this show was no exception. Right off the bat we got "Badlands". Unexpected highlights included "Johnny 99" and "The Ghost of Tom Joad" - two quiet acoustic numbers that were transformed into rockin' rave-ups. We got a rare "Blinded By The Light", "Kitty's Back", "Rosalita" and, of course, "Born To Run." "BTR" is one of those moments everyone should experience at least once. Killer show from Bruce - as always.

Setlist - stolen from Backstreets:

Badlands
No Surrender
Outlaw Pete
She's the One
Working on a Dream
Seeds
Johnny 99
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Raise Your Hand
Out in the Street
Little Latin Lupe Lu
Hava Nagila/Blinded By the Light
Waitin' on a Sunny Day
The Promised Land
The Wrestler
Kingdom of Days
Radio Nowhere
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born to Run
* * *
Hard Times
Kitty's Back
Land of Hope and Dreams
American Land
Rosalita


Yes - He played a bit of "Hava Nagila".





5/19/09 Edie Sedgwick/Olivia and the Mates @ The Black Cat Backstage - Washington, DC

Yeah - ummm...note that the ticket isn't ripped. I bailed on this one. This would have been something like my 7th show in 10 days. I'm too old for that. I ate the ticket, stayed home and slept. Feel free to mock.





5/27/09 - Holy Fuck/Crocodiles @ The Rock And Roll Hotel - Washington, DC

I really hate the Rock and Roll Hotel sometimes. Just once I'd like them to start a show at the time they advertise on their website. What's the point of putting up showtimes if they're never correct? Doors at 8. Showtime: 8:30. You'd think that by 9:20 the first band would have at least started - but no.

Anyway - that was a mixed blessing, because I really like the new Crocodiles record. I managed to catch their entire set after all. I didn't realize it was just 2 guys - a singer who looks exactly like Bob Dylan circa 1966 and a guitar player who looks just like Tim Butler from The Psychedelic Furs circa 1981. They turned out a brief, but very powerful set. I highly recommend their new record. Their influences are all over the place, but the do them all justice. My only complaint was that they were insanely loud at times. You're not My Bloody Valentine - tone it down a bit. When people are leaving the room with their fingers in their ears - you're too loud.

Holy Fuck didn't disappoint. On paper, they're a band I should hate. Lots of electro-wizardry, knob twiddling, just short of laptop-stuff that I usually can't stand. But they have a real live rhythm section that keeps things going and use lots of wacky things to make noise. It gives them this great, funky vibe that ties the rest together in a completely different way. I totally dig their sound. They should be much bigger than they are. If there's any justice, they'll break through soon - although their name is going to eventually cause problems for them. If you ever see them, I suggest getting up close so you can watch everything they're doing. It's actually pretty fascinating to watch. Highly recommended.