The Liquid Kosmos

I know his aim was true

Saw Elvis Costello last night and I think it would have been a good show if I could have fucking heard it! I am serious when I say I was in row X (which is a mere 24 rows from the stage for you non-linguists) and I could not hear his guitar for most of the show. Normally I wouldn't give a rat's ass about guitar - because I like drums and if the drums drown out the whole band it typically makes me happy - but tonight not even the drums were getting in the way. (I'm not even sure they were mic'd. Surely they were, but it was one of those deals where the toms were loud and clear and the bass and snare were lost... gone... smothered in a oozing lava of keyboard).

Ok, my thoughts are jumbled right now because Elvis is one bad mother fucker and I was just floored at the nearly impossible feat of him playing at the Ryman Auditorium and dealing with bad sound. NOBODY sounds bad at the Ryman, not even Styx who I saw there the night before. And if you can dial in Styx, surely a straight ahead act like Elvis and the Imposters is child's play. Wrong.

The set was minimalist, the lights unfancy, and the band was simply bass, drums, guitar, voice, and keyboards. The Ryman mystique was in our favor and everything was in place for a perfect show. And surely it couldn't have been a physic's abnormality - but yes... a sonic mystery unfolded right before my ears.

It was as though a fuse had blown and the band kept playing. We've all been there, the show cranking along, when boom... the amps are gone, but you can still hear the drums and vocals in the distance. Total buzz-kill. Ok, it wasn't quite THAT bad, but you get the jist.

Even with all of the sound issues, it was still a good night. Elvis has a way about him that brings out the "good people." I was keyed in on a guy about 10 rows in front of me who was jumping and flapping around and all I could think was, I bet I would have a good conversation with that guy. Same with the people next to me and those I couldn't see in the balcony. Elvis is a common thread for thinkers. I think.

About half-way through the show we were offered a bonus. Emmylou Harris came out to a thunderous welcome and sang a song with Elvis. Then she sang another. And another. And another. And all the while, I'm thinking, "Ok, thanks for coming, but that's enough." She finally left after the fourth or fifth tune.

Yeah, I'm being a little harsh, I know she's a legend, everyone loves her, and she looks great for 60, but I did not go out of my way to get free tickets to see an Emmylou Harris show tonight. Seriously, am I wrong here? I think a couple songs is fine... Maybe three, but four or five? Too many. Bring out someone else if you want company, man. And I probably wouldn't even be bitching so hard if he didn't invite her out for a SECOND time at the end of the show. She had to do 7 songs. That would have been like Styx having Kenny Loggins sing Come Sail Away for the encore.

I have no right to let loose on someone like Elvis Costello. He is critically acclaimed and a certified song-writing genious. He puts the chill in cool and has done nothing to harm me. Then again, you never know, he might agree. We all know he's from another planet, but not everyone recognizes that he's not perfect. Even though he is, but that's another entry.

If you want to read something nice (and far more intelligent) about the Elvis Costello show at the Ryman, check in with this front-row ass-kissing reviewer.

posted by The Oscillator @ 8:29 PM