Van Halen, Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, TN - 04/27/2012

Wow, was that bad. A train wreck. The worst is that I had such high hopes for finally seeing a band that I truly, deeply love. As one can see from the photo, we were sitting in the cheap seats, which didn't help. It was about 90-something degrees in the venue, which was strike two. But the sound ... oh, it was a low end morass of nothingness wherein I often couldn't tell what song was being played.

Our friends and I did start the evening with a lovely dinner at the Wild Hare, which continues to impress on most every level. We then headed over and enjoyed a nice stroll down Broadway into the venue.

But then it all fell apart ... the seats, the heat, the sound ... I should definitely accept by now that if I'm going to some big show like this, I've got to spring for great tickets or just not go at all. I'm spoiled like that. I thought with an opening one-two punch like "Unchained" and "Runnin' With the Devil" that I could get past the terrible-ness of some of the aforementioned issues, but it never coalesced. And the new songs ... so, soooo bad. I felt some hope during the riff for "Dance the Night Away" and some awe when Eddie flawlessly pulled off the "Hot for Teacher" intro, but then everything would sag in on itself again, with bad David Lee Roth-isms galore, a terrible video stage show that looked pretty paltry compared to most shows of this size these days, and (did I mention this already?) insufferable sound.

Why oh why? I should have just appreciated them for the greatness that they once were rather than try to relive it today. Note to self - when the Stones or the Sex Pistols or the Stone Roses come rumbin' through, think twice before going all in.

It probably didn't help, either, that I was running the half-marathon a few hours later and had that in the back of my mind the whole time. But wow ... colossal reunion tour fail ...

For the sake of posterity, the setlist (we left during the guitar solo):
Unchained
Runnin' With the Devil
She's the Woman
Romeo Delight
Tattoo
Everybody Wants Some!!
Somebody Get Me a Doctor
China Town
Hear About It Later
Oh, Pretty Woman
Drum Solo
You Really Got Me
The Trouble with Never
Dance the Night Away
I'll Wait
Hot for Teacher
Women In Love
Girl Gone Bad
Beautiful Girls
Ice Cream Man (preceded by a loooong video montage of DLR's dogs ... seriously)
Panama
Guitar Solo
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
Jump

Andrew Bird w/ Eugene Mirman, The Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN - 3/19/2012

We met up with friends and pre-partied for this one at Fleet St Pub in Printers Alley, which continue to impress me time and time again. I highly recommend the Hatton Cross Hot Hen and the fish and chips, of course.

We got into the Ryman in time to see Eugene Mirman, whom I met back in 2004 when he opened for Modest Mouse:

He's gotten a good deal more famous since then to be sure, and his act was good. Not the greatest, funniest thing ever, but it was fun and smart.

Andrew Bird, on the other hand, just didn't really turn my crank this time around. He's certainly beyond talented and has some fine material, but this felt very dialed in to me. He played some classics during the set ("Measuring Cups," "Plasticities" [which he totally flubbed]) and closed out with "Tables and Chairs" and "Fake Palindromes," but it was just a very meh show for me. We left after the main set, and I hear that he played quite the slew of encores, so maybe I missed the best part. Having seen him many times over the years, though, this was probably the least memorable performance I've witnessed.

Radiohead at the Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO - 3/9/2012

We made the drive up to St. Louis from Nashville in around 5 hours on a sunny Friday afternoon and got checked in at the Westin, where we pre-partied in the room a bit and pretty much walked right over the show (about a 1/2 mile). Lots of other Radiohead fans there, obviously, but this hotel really made me want to make it back for a Cardinals game. Fantastic location right by Busch Stadium.

We were general admission on the floor, which I thought could be terrible but turned out great, maybe 30 yards back, great sightlines, etc. Other Lives, the openers, were pretty good but nothing that I'd run out and buy.

Radiohead came out and played a fairly glorious set. I'd say that apart from missing "Paranoid Android," I really can't find anything wrong with this show. Parts were absolutely fantastic ("There There," "Lucky," "Karma Police"), the new songs sounded great, the band sounded tight ...

Bloom
15 Step
Airbag
Little by Little
Morning Mr. Magpie
Myxomatosis
Kid A
Videotape
The Daily Mail
The Amazing Sounds of Orgy
Karma Police
Identikit
Lotus Flower
There There
Feral
Reckoner

Encore 01:
Separator
Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
Lucky
Everything In Its Right Place (w/ Electrolite intro)

Encore 02:
Give Up the Ghost
You and Whose Army?
Idioteque

We had big plans to go out after the show and enjoy a night away from "the kids" (the 2 beagles) but wound up ordering room service and crashing out (of course).

We grabbed brunch at Rooster the next day (as did half the concert, it would seem), and it was ridiculously good ... including ...

an excellent Bloody Mary:

Finnish pancake (in front) and crepe:

The piece de resistance, the Rooster slinger (andouille sausage, eggs, toast, breakfast potatoes, and sausage gravy):

Top notch!