Ladies Night

I know none of you will be surprised to hear that the concert was awesome. But I have to say it anyway--it was amazing. There's something about being there, when they're on stage and just blowing you away and your face hurts from smiling and singing along and you can't stop moving to the beat; something about being directly part of that energy that's almost surreal. Like you're not really sure what you could have done to deserve having not only found something that makes you that happy, but being able to see it in person.

We had fourth row seats, but the killer part was they were more centered than I've ever really been. We were still slightly Steve-side, but we had a good view of everyone on stage. But, the thing is, they were right there. I'm sure I sound like a rabid fangirl, but I suppose there's no hiding the truth.

Mike Doughty opened. In my experience, it's hard to open for BNL because everyone's just waiting to see the Ladies. It's like the guy who stands in front of the coffee pot in the morning and tries to tell you something important, but all you're really thinking about is how much you'd like some coffee, so you end up smiling and nodding while thinking, "Great, now move." But Mike Doughty was actually quite charming, and won me over fairly quickly with a striking version of "The Gambler," followed by a sound-clip song that was a surprising amount of fun. So props to Mike.

But then the guys came on stage and everything was right with the world. The setlist is as follows, with the disclaimer that I'm not 100% on the order of some of the songs. This is definitely what they played, though.

Wind It Up
Old Apartment
Sound of Your Voice
Hello City
Great Provider
Just a Toy
Alcohol
Go Home
Second Best
Maybe You're Right
Down To Earth
Get In Line
Be My Yoko Ono
It's All Been Done
Bank Job
Angry People
Pinch Me
Take it Outside
One Week
Too Little Too Late
Brian Wilson
Easy
If I Had a Million Dollars
Call and Answer

Having never heard Great Provider or Just a Toy live, they were both exciting for me. Especially Just a Toy, because it's one of my favorite favorites, if that makes sense. Alcohol and Go Home (come to think of it, I don't think I've heard Go Home in concert before, either) were both really fun performances...but we're coming to the show stopper, man...get ready...Lars...take a deep breath.

Be My Yoko Ono...one mic, acoustic, with accordion and a Happy Days interlude. Yes--I'm serious. I know. We'll pause a moment to let you digest the mind-blowing awesome that was that performance.

The emotion in Ed's Bank Job adds a dimension to the song that probably can't be captured on tape. I don't know--as soon as I can download the concert I'll let you know if it translates, but I doubt it. It was pretty amazing.

Angry People was a highlight and not just because of the fun fight scene at the end of it. Steve has a way with that song--you can tell he likes it. Or if he doesn't, then he sells it well anyway. But the fight scene was neat, too. It reminded me of the Shopping dance.

Take it Outside was something I wasn't expecting to hear at all, but really awesome. Especially since for the first chorus Ed sung, "any other guy would want to settle outside," which I liked. Yes, I realize I just commented on one word being changed, but I feel like that's one of the fun things about live shows, and something that will please me even if it's small. And settle works in such a cool way.

If I ever manage to start my own country, Brian Wilson will be the national anthem. But only live. They do it so well--especially the first bit where they're all acoustic and harmonizing. It gives me chills.

Lastly (I promise I'll stop after this), I was very pleased that If I Had a Million Dollars was in our first encore and not our second for reasons I can't totally pinpoint. Call and Answer just fits so well as a closer. Not that Million Dollars doesn't--on the contrary, it works really well as a closer. But the fact that it wasn't a closer is cool.

So overall, a simply amazing venture. There weren't as many people there as I would have thought, but considering I sometimes feel like I'm the only person in Athens who likes BNL, I suppose I should be pleased that there were people there at all. I just hope they weren't discouraged--I love seeing them at the Gwinnett Center and I hope they come back next time. Ed actually mentioned in his adlib that he was a "Gwinnett kind of guy," which was both amusing and hopefully true. Having been to all three of their Gwinnett performances, as well as the 2004 performance at Lakewood, I'm a huge fan of the Gwinnett venue. Not only is it closer to home, it's more laid back. It fits them better, I think.

This also relates to their excellent showmanship. The Barenaked Ladies have always made it seem like they were excited to be in Georgia; it wasn’t just a stop they had to make on their tour. And whether or not they actually were excited to be in Georgia, it’s awesome that they take the time to play with the audience and make them feel important. You leave feeling like they really appreciated you coming to see them. You don’t get that with every band.

Worth mentioning though, is their effort to offset CO2 pollution and, by extension, global warming. The neat thing about it is that they've taken something that seems like an unfathomably huge problem and made it seem more manageable. I think a lot of environmental issues can seem like such a big deal that there's nothing you as an individual can do to make a difference, but the Barenaked Planet movement has taken the idea of Global Warming and put things in perspective as to how even little things like using recycled products and conserving energy can make a big difference. You can find out more by going to www.reverbrock.org/BarenakedPlanet. Anyway, they get major points for that.

I'd considered seeing if they would be meeting fans behind the venue afterward, but I wasn't sure what I'd say if I ever met them. I'd probably just start babbling. Or I'd stare at them while I shook their hands thinking, "Oh my god, I'm touching Jim Creeggan." I think I'm too enamored with them to have anything articulate to say, other than, "Wow, you're Steven Page," which I'm sure Mr. Page is aware of.

I'd really just like to thank them, though. I mean, first for just being as awesome as they are, but second for coming through Atlanta. I know their fanbase here isn't as big as it could be, so it's always exciting when the do come through town--and put on a hell of a show. So, wherever you are (Texas, tonight, I think): Thanks. You are rock and roll personified.