Click here to see the photos.

Built To Spill played the Chameleon Club on 09/16/2008 in Lancaster, PA. Like the My Morning Jacket photos, this will be another dual set as I got to see Built To Spill twice in this week so stay tuned for photos from the 09/20/2008 Philadelphia show as well!

Built To Spill are the true role model for indie DIY artists out there.  I always laugh when Doug Martsch and company come out on the stage for the first time each night.  The crowd cheers and stares excitedly only to later find out that they are there to set up their equipment.  Each one walks out to daisy chain their plentiful guitar pedals together, tune up the guitars,do mic checks, etc all the while the crowd gets restless to the point that they inevitably yell stuff like “Play something!” and “Lets go!” at the band.  Never fails.

Built To Spill decided to play their album “Perfect From Now On” in its entirety at each show this tour.  So the majority of the show and setlist was made up of that which suits me fine.  The album PFNO is the album that really broke Built To Spill loose and what made them become the indie gods that they are.  The encore included the fan favorites favorites Stab and Car.

Doug is one of the most uder-rated guitarists out there, his abilities to write melodies and hooks in his music are amazing (again, listen to Carry The Zero).  Doug is a very humble musician and so are the rest of the band, a lot of bands can learn a lot from them.  Doug was also out for the entire Meat Puppets set at the side of the stage just listening to the music with all the fans.  Very down to earth people if you ever get the chance to meet them.

Built To Spill’s setlist for the night was:
Randy Described Eternity
I Would Hurt a Fly
Stop the Show
Made-Up Dreams
Velvet Waltz
Out of Site
Kicked It in the Sun
Untrustable/Part 2 (About Someone Else)
Goin’ Against Your Mind

encore:
stab
car

Click here to see the photos.
The Meat Puppets opened for Built To Spill at the Chameleon Club on 09/16/2008 in Lancaster, PA.  The Meat Puppets have been around for decades playing a mixture of country and punk music (nicknamed cowpunk) and they got their rise to fame when Nirvana invited them to play on their unplugged session on MTV.  Nirvana covered 3 songs with the brothers Cris and Curt Kirkwood including “Oh Me”, “Lake of Fire”, and “Plateau”.  Soon after they released an album called “Too High To Die” which had huge sales because of the single “Backwater” and their exposure through Nirvana.

They played a great set of new and old tunes and included all of the fan favorites, I especially liked “Station” but they skipped their only commercial hit “Backwater”

I do not have a setlist for this show so if anyone can supply one, I’d appreciate it.

Click here to see the photos.

My Morning Jacket played a 2.5 hour+ show at the Penn’s Landing Festival Pier in Philadelphia, PA on 09/05/2008.  The entire show was broadcasted by Philadelphia’s WXPN.  Since WXPN was broadcasting the show live at the show, they also invited Jim James to be the DJ for their Funky Friday segment and concert goers were invited down to the show early to listen to Jim James spin some funk records.

Unfortunately for me the only thing funky about this Friday was me trying to get to a show in Pennsylvania and ending up in New Jersey! After making a wrong turn, driving across the Ben Franklin Bridge, and taking a tour of Camden, NJ I sadly missing the live broadcast of Funky Friday.  I still managed to find my way to the front of the stage for this evening’s show.

Forecasts called for rain in the evening but did not stop the nearly sold out crowd from making their way to the show.  As the sunset turned dark, the rain came down a little harder…. The fans never wavered, if anything it re-energized them by cooling them off. 

This performance was an outsanding one.  During the peak of “Touch Me Part 2″ the fans were delighted with fireworks that were going off at a baseball post game show almost as it was planned. 

The setlist was pretty similar to that of the 09/03/2008 show that is reviewed here with a couple of exceptions and the order being changed a little.

The setlist for the night was:

Anytime
Aluminum Park
Off The Record
Evil Urges
Touch Me Pt 1
What A Wonderful Man
Two Halves
Golden 
Thank You
Im Amazed
Evelyn Is Not Real
Sec Walkin
War Begun
Phone Went West
Librarian
Dondonate
Gideon
Laylow
Mahgeetah
————
Worldess Chorus
Highly Suspicious
Cobra
Smokin From Shootin’ 
Touch Me Pt2
Run Thru
One Big Holiday

Click here to see the photos.

I got the great opportunity to photograph My Morning Jacket twice in thee days.  This is the first of the two shows.  Stay tuned for the next show posting!

If you do not know My Morning Jacket, stop right now and go listen to “One Big Holiday”.  It one of the most rocking straight up rock songs for the 2000′s so far.  They toured heavily as an opening band for Pearl Jam for several years and learned a lot from them about performing. 

My Morning Jacket played the wonderful DAR Constitution Hall in downtown Washington D.C. just blocks away from the infamous W’s White House.  Seems fitting considering that My Morning Jacket are touring for their 2008 adventurous album, Evil Urges.

Evil Urges is My Morning Jacket’s second consecutive departuring album from their begining sounds.  Their early recordings were drenched in reverb, soaring vocals, and very Neil Young roots rock feel.  The last two albums have been more adventurous in exploring different sounds and styles.  Jim James has been perfecting his falsetto voice and the jams are less and less traditional.  Critics are comparing their exploration into the unknown to be like Radiohead’s.

Their new material, though innovative and a departure from their comfort zones, translates very well in a live setting and it seems to be getting even better during the tour.  I passed up seeing the second night of Pearl Jam in Camden this year to see My Morning Jacket at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City less than a month after the album came out.  And since then, they have expanded the new song’s jams and are playing them with more confidence now.  Jim James at one point excitedly announced that the band signed the original copy of the constitution stating that when you come to play the Constitution Hall that all members get to sign it.

This band is owning 2008, their fan base is ground leaps and bounds in the last few years.  The fan base is now so large in fact that they are playing Madison Square Garden on New Years Eve in New York City which has a concert capacity of 20,000!!!!   It is hard to believe after seing them for years as an opening band for Pearl Jam or even Dave Matthews Band on the Vote for Change tour that these guys are finally getting the break that they deserve.   

Unbelievable night, and the final 6 song encore was an intense rokcing set at the end of an already 18 song set.  These guys put on a great show every night and it is nothing to see them play for 3 hours on any given night! 

The setlist for the night was:

Evil Urges
Anytime
Off the Record
Touch Me Pt 1
Two Halves
Golden
Thank You Too
I’m Amazed
The Way That He Sings
Sec Walkin
War Begun
Phone Went West
Cobra
Librarian
Dondante
Gideon
Lay Low
Steam Engine

Encore
Wordless Chorus
Highly Suspicious
Smokin’ from Shootin’
Touch Me Pt 2
Run Thru
One Big Holiday

Click here to see the photos.

Allman Brothers band played Hershey Pavilion on perfect summer night on 08-25-2008.  Not even sure where to start… Photographing the Allman Brothers was one of the coolest things I have ever done.  Even though I was not alive during the legendary Duane Allman years, I caught up with time as many others did wearing out Live At The Filmore East and Eat A Peach records throughout the years.

Fast forward to today’s current line up featuring the youth of Derek Trucks (Butch Truck’s nephew) and Warren Haynes on the guitar duties as well as Oteil Burbridge on bass and you will find a re-energized band that is spitting fire every night.

It is no secret that Derek Trucks (also of the Derek Trucks Band) is my favorite living guitarist.  He effortlessly plays blues, jazz, and indian influenced slide guitar with tone that just tears you apart.  He is into the performance 100% every night just pure musicianship with no showy gimmicks in fact, he rarely moves around the stage or even cracks a smile at times.  The first time I saw him play was in 2001, since then I have not missed a single opportunity I had to see him.  It is mind-blowing to know that he is only 29 years old.

Warren Haynes is the hardest working and versitile guitarists in the business without a doubt having full time roles in Allman Brothers Band and Gov’t Mule all the while frequently playing with The Dead, Phil Lesh, and countless guest appearances.  Warren is a musical chameleon of sorts, throw him into any situation and he will quickly convince you that he belongs. 

This is the Allman Brothers Band first tour back after having to cancel many shows including the annual Beacon run this year due to Gregg Allman getting treatment for Hepatitis.  After a few months rest, Gregg was already to go in fact I think his voice even got better after having time to rest it.

The set started off with a great bluesy 1-2-3 punch with Statesboro Blues, Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’, and Stormy Monday and I am not sure I could have scripted that any better.  They led right from Stormy Monday right into an awesome version of Rocking Horse that really lifted up the crowd and left them spinning for the rest of the night.  Derek was playing only his second or third show with a loaned authentic 1959 Gibson Les Paul (see photos) worth over a half a million bucks.  He played this guitar until I believe Come and Go Blues because there looked to be some issues with sound so he switched to the 1961 SG for the rest of the evening.  

After Come and Go Blues they invited Bob Weir of RatDog (and Grateful Dead) on stage to cover Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 only Bob forgot the words when it came his time to sing… oops. :)  A scorching solo by Derek followed Bob’s verse and we all forgot all about it. 

The rest of the night flew by too fast.  The crowd danced and sang the rest of the night.  Then we were all left humming the hamony parts to the instrumental Jessica all the way on their ride home…. I know I did. Dum-duh-duh-dut-DUH  dut-dut-dut DUH-DUT-duh-DAH!

The setlist for the night was as follows:

8/25/2008 Hershey Star Pavilion, Hershey, PA
Statesboro Blues
Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’
Stormy Monday
Rocking Horse
Come and Go Blues
Highway 61 Revisited¹
No One To Run With
The Same Thing²
Melissa
Jessica >
bass > drums >
Jessica

Encore: One Way Out

¹w/Bob Weir – Guitar & Vocals
²w/Kenny Brooks – Sax; Jeff Chimenti – Keys

Click here to see the photos.

RatDog opened for the Allman Brothers Band in Hershey, PA on 08-25-2008 at the Hershey Pavilion.  RatDog is fronted by the ex-Grateful Dead member, Bob Weir.  Bob Weir has had an assortment of line up changes over the years but the lineup since 2003 has been: Bob Weir, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Kenny Brooks, Robin Sylvester.

Bob Weir provides the vocals and also lays down the rhythm guitar in the group while the lead guitarist, Mark Karan, lays down the solos over top.  Karan has played in offspring bands of the Dead like Phil Lesh and Friends, The Other Ones, etc. for years so he knows how to dial in the Jerry sounds and scales very well.

The set (see setlist below) had some great points.   Black Bird and Friend of the Devil were personal favorites of mine in addtion to Warren Haynes (Allman Brothers Band and Gov’t Mule) taking the guest spot on St. Stephen > William Tell Bridge > The Eleven.  These stitched together songs took the show to new heights.   Warren Haynes has toured with The Dead and is advertised as filling in Jerry Garcia’s place in the reunited Grateful Dead for the Rock for Barack concert that is yet to be finalized, but we know it will be in Pennsylvania.

This was more of a double bill than having a headliner and an opener.  Both bands are very well known, have band members that have both played roles in creating musical history.

This late August night was a perfect summer concert evening.  The sunset took place during RatDog’s opening slot but even after the sunset, the weather was a very comfortable evening filled with great music and Hersheypark fun!

The setlist for the evening was (setlist taken from ratdog.org):

Jam >
Here Comes Sunshine >
Big River
She Belongs to Me
Lucky Enough >
Deal
Blackbird
Friend of the Devil
Estimated Prophet >
The Other One >
Stuff >
Stella Blue
St. Stephen* >
William Tell Bridge* >
The Eleven*
*-with Warren Haynes (Guitar/Vocals); “Other One” was second verse only and featured “Spanish Jam”
Bob sat in with ABB on “Highway 61 Revisited”
Kenny and Jeff sat in with ABB on “The Same Thing”

Click here to see the photos.

Hoots and Hellmouth played Gullifty’s on 08-15-2008 and was the second time in a week seeing them.  After seeing them open for Grace Potter, I knew that I would not miss there performances in the area again. These guys are incredible musicians and singers if you get the chance to see them, do it.  They do not have a full-time bass player so you will notice this is a different one than in the other set of photos.

This time the show was in a small smokey basement under the Gullifty’s restaurant named the Gullity’s Underground.  Unfortunately for turn out sake, this was the night of one of Michael Phelps gold winning races at the Olympics so that might have kept some people at home.  But the people that were there enjoyed a full nights worth of ruckus great music and they ate it up.

I am typically not the person at shows to call out songs but when a guitar string broke they were looking for suggestions to play.  Most songs yelled were 80′s metal ballads, they obliged playing their rendition of “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” and after seeing them a week prior and them not playing one of my favorites of theirs, “The Good I know You Know”, I asked them and they were grateful to play it for me.

I met the band afterwards thanked them for playing great music as well as my song request.  They replied thanks for knowing our songs, a play off “The Good I Know You Know”. 

It’s The Good I Know You know about this band, now go out and see them!

Click here to see the photos.

Filter took their updated industrial rock to the Chameleon Club on August 14th, 2008 but it took me back to August of 1995 when their debut album, Short Bus, came out.  The lead singer, Richard Patrick, was was the guitar player in Nine Inch Nails from its beginnings right up to Downward Spiral.  There were reports that Richard did not mesh well with the reportedly overly controlling Trent Reznor so he split off and made his own band, Filter.  They made two huge commercial splashes with “Hey Man, Nice Shot” and “Take A Picture”.

The setlist was fully of angry hard rock and industrial songs that pleased the at times rowdy crowd.  The songs hit all the albums pretty evenly and included their major hits.  Richard Patrick is still hitting the stage like it was 1995 and watching the drummer pound his large set of drums was exciting.  Their new material has translated well in the live setting a lot has to to with the energy of the band and Richard standing, jumping and running on his bolted down monitors while hovering over the crowd screaming the chorus lines.

The setlist for the evening was:

Welcome To The  Fold
American Cliche
What’s Next?
Dose
The Take
Trip Like I Do
It’s Gonna Kill Me
Soldiers Of Misfortune
So I Quit (Fast)
Jurassitol
Hey Man, Nice Shot

Encore:
Kill The Day
Take A Picture
Skinny