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Post by phishtez on Jul 13, 2004 9:34:14 GMT -5
Pics
I have photos from Wolverhampton(must admit they didnt come out as well as expected
anyone wants them
phishtez@btopenworld.com
dont worry uyou wont get junk mail for viagra proplus or specsaves
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Post by tenntwister on Jul 13, 2004 11:23:44 GMT -5
I'd like to hear from someone who was at more than one of these Euro shows. I think they did have sound problems a few times. Maybe the recordings of these shows will turn up in good condition. My experience has been that the sound is affected by a combination of factors: venue acoustics, whether suited for electric or not; house sound systems which vary all over the map; location in venue of listeners; indoor vs. outdoor.
I have also heard widely divergent reports of the sound quality at the same show from different people.
Mac
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Post by trifle on Jul 13, 2004 14:18:40 GMT -5
Dear all, sadly the sound at the wolverhampton gig was on the wrong side of unacceptably poor, but that was not the only problem. I knew something was rotten in the state of denmark when I booked tickets and was advised that there was seating at TABLES. So its Little Feat at vegas now - cabaret style. Then the security guards stopped people from dancing to MOE. I had a chat with the security guys - a decent crew, who were just as mystified by their orders as I was. They were told that anyone dancing in front of the stage was to be given one warning, then ejected from the gig.
The sound for Little Feat was worse than that for the support act. I advised Howard on the desk, but as I was the fourth wise-ass to do that, he was understandably a little upset.
The setlist seemed to be dominated by newer material, which was not of the highest quality and made worse by overblown and dare I say self indulgent soloing. When they played Skin it back, I was overjoyed, but I couldn't hear the instruments properly so it was spoiled.
In short, all things considered, it was the worst gig I have ever been to in my life. Which was all the sadder, because I have been a Feat fan since I was a child and now I'm 43.
Paul McCartney recently played Glastonbury, and wowed the crowd by playing all of the songs which confirm his musical genius - ie the old stuff. When Bowie plays, he does the same. The muse does not stay with you forever - Feat made five consecutive near-perfect albums which rank among the greatest achievements in the history of popular music. Feat tour once in a blue moon, and the fans who pay to see them would like to hear that stuff. Sure, play one or two new tunes, but keep em short, and pack the set with the old ones. History will eventually confirm that Feats best album was the first album - gritty, driving, wicked slide powered funk backing lyrics oozing with alienation from the underside of the american dream. But Feat don't play those tunes any more.
Feat need to play the right venues - the intimate Robin RnB club just down the road from the Civic hall regularly hosts classic acts from the 70s, and they go down a storm. Feat need to forget the muso twiddling and get back to basics. Forget the sophisticated computer controlled sound systems - I'd rather see them play in the corner of a pub with half a dozen vox amps, and I'd pay five times the price to see that.
I am sorry for ranting on, and I am sorry for behaving like a complete scumbag at the gig and shouting bad things before walking out. But I was drunk and I was very sad and upset. But someone Featside needs to take some action, otherwise it's going to be a bad tour for everyone.
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Post by phishtez on Jul 14, 2004 5:38:21 GMT -5
What do you want?  The feat are a living breathing band Where do you draw the line get rid of Shaun cos she didnt sing on Sailin shoes? ? Go back to the last record album (1975) there were jazz influences on that the Feat are not a nostalgia band they may have a set list but they change it Tennssee Jed is a dead song they also played i know you rider the feat are a complete band they are not there to play a 40 min greatest hit set with preset stage banter I was right at the front dancing I looked to the audience I thought some joker had put super glue on all the seats!!!!!!!! the line from old folks boogie comes to mind when you mind makes a promise that your body cant fill the feat can still do it as a fully functioning ongoing band What did you want a picture of Lowell to be behind them this band had been together for over 30 years let then please themselves what they play if not they are just plasic musicians going through the motions I hope the band read this keep on truckin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
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EricD
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Post by EricD on Jul 14, 2004 6:02:18 GMT -5
I travelled to the gig from the North East with my 17 year old son.
Yes, the sound was muddy but his only comment was ' I'd have like them to have played Willin' ' My own view is that the set was a good mix of old and new and as ever the musicianship was superb. Roll on the next European Tour!
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Post by trifle on Jul 14, 2004 6:17:48 GMT -5
phistez - I agree with everything you say, and of course I don't want to see the band freeze-dried in 1975. All I'm saying is that the gig was a lame duck, partly through the terrible sound and venue arrangement (for which the tour management has to take responsibility), but also because there was a lack of enthusiasm from the audience, despite your best efforts. These were mainly old folks, who need a bit of encouragement to get up and boogie. They are not new fans who have come to the Feat's music through later albums - they were folks like me for whom the early albums were a soundtrack to our lives. There has to be a compromise to accept this fact if the band want to make a connection with the audience, who let's be fair, wait a long time for these gigs and pay a decent price. If I had any say in the matter, I'd kick off with fatman or Oh Atlanta and pack in three or four crowd pleasers to get the vibe going before filtering in the new stuff, mix it up a bit with some hot covers if they want, before the finale TNB or tripe face. Keep the songs at three to four minutes and keep em comng. I don't want to be negative, honest, but I really do care a lot about this band and I was angry about the $%&* ups that ruined what should have been a special night. BTW - I think Shaun is an excellent addition to the band and her energy and personality shine out.
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Post by phishtez on Jul 14, 2004 6:45:42 GMT -5
Im bald and 2 months off 50!!!!!!!!!!
so thanks for the compliment
Dont tell anyone up i was up in the gods where i must admit the sound was bad for Moe
and i snuck downstairs
(you dont get anything if your not cheeky)
Im into the dead phish and wsp
and the idea of their music is to enjoy themselves and take the audience with them
the bouncers at the front hadnt seen anything like it and i think the way they left the front had something to do with a quiet word from the band!!!!!!!
I may be wrong here but i wonder if us dancing at the front caused the setlist to be amended
at least 4 of the ppl up dacning had dead t shirts on
perhaps it was to us they played tennesse jed
At dead shows people actually dance in the hallways not even seeing the band!!!!!!
Its about smiling
its about comradship
I would trust a dead fan with my life my wife my kids or my money
Its as mindset
an attitude
Its like life
nobody ever did anything wrong by sitting there doing nothing
sorry if im preaching from my chair but enjoy life
my son used to play rugby
the attitude is forget the last tackle its the next one that matters
keep on smiling
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Post by tenntwister on Jul 14, 2004 8:36:47 GMT -5
Could you folks post what Feat songs they did play? The actual setlist hasn't made it onto the Hoy Hoy Digest yet.
I don't blame you for being mad about the poor sound on such a rare chance to hear them, and I understand your frustration if they didn't play Feat songs that grabbed you. I am a bit surprised they didn't play Willin', but hey, every once in a while they don't. I think your point about them playing a more 'cozy' venue is well taken.
Mac
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Post by caprani on Jul 14, 2004 9:06:23 GMT -5
Hi there!
Pallet writes:
"Plenty of other bands play there, the acoustics can't be that bad."
I'm sorry if I may sound rude, but instead of classifying that argument I'll (politely) choose to say that it's no argument at all!
Our largest venue here in Copenhagen is the Forum. Originally built as a bicycle-racetrack, this is exactly what it's best suited for. Unfortunately nobody built a sufficiently large concert-hall for the big bands here.
Eric Clapton, Bob Marley, Metallica, Norah Jones, you name it, has played this venue, and the sound is terrible. One could argue that the fans abilities to be in interaction with their idols is more important than audio-quality, and I think there's something about that.
At least I wouldn't throw away my good mood becuse of some below-par audioquality when I just seen my favourite band live.
If the sound is good - Well. Terrific. If it's even fantastic - Well. Even better than terrific.
If it's not. - Well. Then I've been to a concert where I could feel and interact with my favourite band, and then I'll go home and put on a record with the same pieces and be fond of the memory.
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TonyC
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Post by TonyC on Jul 14, 2004 11:46:28 GMT -5
Well, it's taken me a couple of days after the Wolverhampton gig to get round to writing about it - only to find that trifle's first post pretty much sums up my feelings. He's absolutely bang on the money about the ridiculously over-extended and self-indulgent jamming - there was some stuff going on up there that wouldn't have been out of place on a Grand Funk Railroad triple album. That is, of course, when they weren't navigating jazzier areas, and ending up sounding like the third-rate Weather Report tribute band that Lowell always felt Bill was looking for.
Let me put my cards on the table right now. I have loved Little Feat for way over thirty years now and their first five albums I will cherish forever as being pretty much as good as rock 'n roll gets, so to drive down from Manchester to see the greatest band I have ever seen put in a show like this knocked me sick.
Maybe the sound was not the greatest, but the best mixing desk in the world couldn't have salvaged this gig, such was the paucity of imagination, commitment and downright lack of respect for the audience that was in evidence. This was soulless, do-it-in-our-sleep music. The newer songs ranged in quality from mediocre to poor, and the classics were simply a platform for the band to go off on ridiculous flights of fancy usually culminating in five minute yawnfest soloing. When you can't play more than a minute of 'Dixie Chicken' before embarking on a musical tangent not entirely dissimilar to Spinal Tap's 'Jazz Odyssey' (only without the irony) you know the band are struggling.
Perhaps my expectations were too high, but why shouldn't they be? Should the band now be given more latitude to under-perform because they not as young as they were? To cite a suitable contrast with Monday night, I went to see the Average White Band at Manchester Academy in October. Like Feat, this was a band I have loved for over thirty years and wanted desperately to be good. They were that and so much more - superb playing, great arrangements, imaginative workings of old songs, and an obvious love and respect of their back catalogue and the fans who had come along expecting to hear some of it. Even more in marked contrast with Feat on Monday night, they connected with their fans, laughing and joking between songs, telling the fans what they were doing in the studio etc. Little Feat acted like a members only club, the only time Paul Barrere managed more than a grunt was when he suggested that the great thing about having your own record label was that you could record the instrumentals that the major recording companies frowned on. The band then went into the Godawful 'Stomp' which served only to enforce the idea that the major companies may know what they are talking about.
I had looked forward to seeing Feat again and was expecting to be really up about it for days. As it happens I went home angry and disillusioned that this greatest of band's could be so poor.
Right now I'm going to have a drink, put on 'Sailin' Shoes' and cry myself to sleep.
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Post by caprani on Jul 14, 2004 12:16:59 GMT -5
Well!
I must admit that it's not always that I favor the "jam" attitude in the band opposed to playing tight as the record.
I still remember Little Feat in Copenhagen 1995 (AHEF tour) where it appeared that the band tried to reproduce very much what was on the record, and then with a little twist.
It was great, but I like just as well to see the band cut loose in jamming, though I realize that this is not for ev'ryone.
Having said that I must say, that the assumption that LF should lack respect for their audience is an accusation of the rather harsch sort. We didn't notice anything like that here in Copenhagen (or in Malmö, for that matter). There was a lot of interaction, especially from Shaun and Paul.
"Members only"? From what I have read in some of the earlier posts combined with my own experiences this is another topic where minds could differ, but when assumed maybe some more of the indifferents in the chairs should have joined the club themselves!
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Post by phishtez on Jul 14, 2004 13:34:52 GMT -5
So what is the general position? ?? Do the feat become a Lowell George tribute band if so you dont need musicians you can have backing tapes Its an insult to the present members to expect that of them suppose the beatles had said that in 64 or zeppelin after led zep 2 I think this is opening inot a can of worms What do you want the band to do I have seen the Bootleg Beatles do you want Sam in an afro? Bill to have that little beardy thing on his chin? Weird thing is Kenny looks the same!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Before he died Lowell had serious problems He was on a solo tour when he passed away he died 29 June1979 thats over 25 years ago perhaps Jethro Tull would be a better option least they had a song Living in the past |
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TonyC
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Post by TonyC on Jul 14, 2004 14:22:17 GMT -5
Well it's a a nice thought, caprani, but it's tough to try and pretend you're having a good time when you're really not.
Our 'indifference' was fully justified.
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Post by caprani on Jul 14, 2004 14:22:57 GMT -5
phishtez! I couldn't have said it better!
Thanks!
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Post by alan2112 on Jul 14, 2004 14:25:32 GMT -5
Going back to the criticism of the suggestion that the band didnt have any respect for the audience, that I obviously cannot answer, but there certainly was very little interaction with the audience. Put the grassroots sampler download on your CD player and there is all kinds of banter going on. The music is ultimately what we come to hear, but such rare appearances here ought to be an occasion also. I know I am making assumptions of the other posters that have raised negative comments, but like me they appear to be feat fans of long time standing, and if they do think like me, then the overriding feeling two days on is just one of sheer bl***dy dissapointment and frustration. We have waited for this for so long, wanted it to be so special, and ended up feeling totally deflated. Whether that is down to the poor sound, overblown solos, lack of banter or all three, we all went home feeling considerably less happier than when we arrived... and that aint the way it is supposed to be.
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