Kate's Point of View

For the final leg of the concert trifecta Wonder Boy and I left Columbus for Cincinnati, Ohio, so we could see our third concert on three consecutive nights in three different cities. For both of us this was our fourth time seeing Josh Ritter play and we knew we would not be disappointed. In fact, we had already seen him play on this tour down in Louisville, Kentucky, so we thought this show would just be an extension of that great evening.

We ate dinner across from the venue and then headed over to the 20th Century Theater right when doors were supposed to open thinking we would get a better place to stand or sit. The doors had opened early and the place was already packed for the sold out show. We got to see several friends who all teased me about my crush on Josh Ritter but I defended my stance. He’s the happiest, most gracious performer I have ever seen and when he plays he makes you just want to get up and dance. Lyrically his songs are amazing and musically the entire band is so talented.

The show might have been the best one we’ve seen for Josh Ritter yet. At one point he slipped into a Talking Heads song. At another he had everyone in the audience grab a partner and slow dance grade-school-dance-style. For one of my friends this was his first Josh Ritter show and he summed things up perfectly with two comments.

1. “I keep thinking this is the lat song and then he keeps going!”
2. “Is he always like this? Is this legit?”

For day two of the concert trifecta, a venture where Wonder Boy and I would see concerts on three consecutive nights in three different cuties, we left Nashville, Tennessee, for Columbus, Ohio. We were stoked to see Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes because we had seen them so recently and they had been fabulous.

After we checked in at our hotel, we headed down to the Short North District to meet our front DPG for dinner. Before I go into details about concert, which is the main point of my post, I need to diverge for a moment.

What happened to the Short North? People, how could you let this happen??? When I left college, one of my best friends, Delicious, moved to Columbus. He was immediately drawn to the Short North because it was full of cool, young people and had a great hipster vibe. Now it seems to draw all sorts of pretentious douche bags. Barf. Later in the evening we drive down High Street for our show and I know that the street has been “improved” but barf again! Why do people prefer some genetic, gentrified nonsense over genuine charm?!??

But I digress.

So, we ate with DPG and heard about his job and the baby that is on the way. We ate entirely too much grease and realized how much more time we all need to get together, shortly after which we realized we needed to scoot to get to the show. The irony.

The concert was Newport Music Hall, which is nice but no Ryman Auditorium. The show was sold out, as it should have been. Wonder Boy and I were able to snag great seats up at the top of the venue and get an ariel view of the stage. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes were really on a good run that night. They came out posing as another band and were their own opening act and sounded awesome playing songs that no one knew. Next they came out as themselves. Maybe they were tired. Certainly drugs were involved. The show spiraled quickly into a mess. Most of the band kept their stuff together but the lead singer was cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. At one point he HID while the rest of the band kept playing. Then he came back out on stage and said, “I’m back! They’ve all been here the whole time but now I’m back!”

The crowd was crazy for Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes but Wonder Boy and I were disappointed. I won’y go so far as to say it was an awful show or a bad show, but it wasn’t their best work by any stretch.

Earlier this week Wonder Boy and I embarked on the concert trifecta. We wanted to see three concerts on three consecutive nights, all in different cities. Concert number one was Crowded House in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Ryman Auditorium. This was my first experience seeing a show at the Ryman but I’ve heard about it many, many times. “It’s a religious experience to see a show there.” That’s the same line I’ve heard from everyone.  And you know what? It’s true.

When you enter the building and are greeted with a statue of Minnie Pearl and Roy Acuff you know that history has occurred here. Little historical gems are preserved around each corner. Autographed concert posters, stage outfits, architectural details. The place can give you chills!

For the show we had balcony seats. For some places that might be a downer, but not at the Ryman. It only seats about 2,500 people and we felt like we were right in front of the band. We were! I know Wonder Boy was in heaven seeing Crowded House, one of his favorite bands. It was his fourth time seeing them and the second time to see them perform at the Ryman. This only my second Crowded House show but it was excellent. They’ve been together so long and the members know each other so well that the act goes off like the art  it is.