We were right next to the stage for Headlights so the pictures came out pretty cool I think for that. We went upstairs towards the end and didn't come back down until the second or third song of David's so I couldn't get as close for that but I'm still happy with the pictures. Could I have done better? Yes, absolutely. But I'm happy with how it turned out.
I didn't use flash and used a different setting because of the light (TV on my camera, no idea what that means but it takes better pictures with concert light) so that's why there isn't any color (they are all red and dark).
Headlights was pretty cool, some of their stuff got a little repetitive towards the end but I liked their sound. Cool beans. Download some of their stuff on Daytrotter.
we were right next to the guitarist so I probably got the best pictures of him.
the bassist was crazy in an awesome way. And we didn't realize it till the show started but all the bands were hanging out in the bar before the show started. If I had been more familiar with the band I could have met them and taken pictures and such. Pretty cool stuff.
I couldn't get any of the drummer or keyboardist because of the light and for whatever reason, I refuse to use flash. *shrug* Maybe I'll try next time.
Dave came out and was amazing, exactly as I expected (and more). So cool. He was actually out in the bar before the show and I wanted to kick myself for not talking to him but he was talking to someone else and me being me didn't want to interrupt. Get some Dave from Daytrottter, Pedro the Lion, and David Bazan.
Once again, only pictures of the two I could see. The other guitarist and drummer were invisible to the camera in this light. Couldn't get as close to the stage but I didn't think the pictures turned out to bad. We video taped a few songs but videos aren't up yet. If/when we put them up I'll link. (Harmless Sparks)
"When I woke up the next morning, you looked right through me, through your eyes crying, I could finally see, they said, "Please baby, please baby, please. . ." - Please, Baby, Please, David Bazan, Curse Your Branches
One of my favorite songs off his new album. It's about his drinking and he said the song is something like an apology to his wife. (more about that here but warning: there is some profanity in the interview. Don't read if it offends you)
"When I woke up the next morning, you looked right through me, through your eyes crying, I could finally see, they said, "Please baby, please baby, please. . ." - Please, Baby, Please, David Bazan, Curse Your Branches
One of my favorite songs off his new album. It's about his drinking and he said the song is something like an apology to his wife. (more about that here but warning: there is some profanity in the interview. Don't read if it offends you)
"When you set the table, when you chose the scale, did you write a riddle that you knew they would fail?
Did you make them tremble, so they would tell the tale? And did you push us when we fell?" - When We Fell, David Bazan, Curse Your Branches
He's so cool. Every few songs he would stop and ask if anyone had any questions. Every time I would blank and couldn't think of anything though I have a million questions for him. He did a bunch of house shows last year. Just him and a guitar in a house with forty-ish people. I want him to come play at my house (hey, maybe one day I can convince the parents ;) )
"Satellites mediate for us the day's events through fiber optics, I hope we can change the saying, I wouldn't mind, but you are my only hope. Clear as a bell are the short breaths that you take when you're distracted, same as the way that you roll your eyes when I ask too many stupid questions. . ." - I Am Always the One Who Calls, Pedro the Lion, The Only Reason I Feel Secure
A lot of people have criticized him and judged him because he came out as a Christian who was real and talked about the struggles of real Christian life, not about the good, praise-y, happy stuff and now he describes himself as "flitting between atheist, skeptic, and agnostic, and that lately hovering around agnostic— can't flat-out deny the presence of God in the world, but doesn't exactly believe in him either." (Chicago Reader). One dude described his work "as unique and noteworthy as that of any of his contemporaries— springs from a deeply held Christian conviction that often finds itself at war with the Christian culture. Writing, as he does, about misplaced pride, adultery, domestic violence, religious hatred, and countless other effects of sinfulness, he unsettles the comfortable and downright unnerves the legalistic." - explorefaith
But personally, I'm proud of him for being honest. That's probably the biggest thing I admire about him and his music. It's completely honest and courageous. In "I Do" he sings about having a child and wishing he could take it all back. Guts man, guts. Most of he PTL stuff was more story like but his new solo work is truly autobiographical. I love it.
"In the end, I'm in a really happy place right now. I feel like I can hold my own and have permission from myself to be in limbo for years and years, to just collect data. In the meantime, if evangelical people that I know will have me, then great. There are plenty of things we can agree on." - David Bazan
View from the balcony through the bars.
"It's that feeling of comfort that I got from Christianity, coupled with the notion that we're not to "bear false witness." It dawned on me that I wasn't bearing witness at all. In order to do Christianity the "right" way, you have to actively not bear witness. You have to deny things that you're actually seeing in order to keep your system working. And to me, it’s like — don't do that." - David Bazan in an interview with J. Edward Keyes
Bazan has also been criticized for his language in some of his songs but with lines like this "You were too busy steering conversation toward the Lord to hear the voice of the Spirit begging you to shut the **** up. You thought it must be the devil trying to make you go astray, besides it could not have been the Lord, because you don't believe He talks that way."
Give him a chance and listen to the whole song here.
"And after all, you and I are nothing more than foregone conclusions."
"I might as well admit it, like i even have a choice, the crew have killed the captain, but they still can hear his voice. A shadow on the water, a whisper in the wind, on long walks with my daughter who is lately full of questions about you, about you. . ."
"She goes to Sunday School with my wife, and that makes me cringe, but we talk about it a lot. We were driving once and I said, "Look at the wind blowing — isn't that amazing?" And she said, "That's God, Daddy." And I said, "Well, here's the deal with that — if you believe that God created the earth, then he created the trees and the weather, then you believe that he is doing this." And it had come up many times before that I wasn't really sure, so I said to her, "Now, do you have to believe what I believe? Do you have to believe what Grandma and Grandpa believe?" And she said, "No." And so I asked her, "OK, so what do you think?" And she said to me, "Yeah, I think it's Him." And I said, "Ok, that's awesome." " - Bazan about his daughter (in same Keyes interview)
"When Job asked you question, you responded "who are you to challenge your creator?" Well if that one part is true, it makes you sound defensive, like you had not thought it through enough to have an answer, like you might have bit off more than you could chew." - In Stitches, David Bazan, Curse Your Branches
"You've heard the story, you know how it goes, once upon a garden, we were lovers with no clothes. Fresh from the soil, we were beautiful and true, in control of our emotions 'til we ate the poison fruit. And now it's hard to be, hard to be, hard to be a decent human being." - Hard to Be, David Bazan, Curse Your Branches
I did get to meet him at the end of the show. That was awesome. He's so real and sincere, not only in his music but in person. I shook his hand and told him it was a great show, that I loved his music and I asked him if he ever played Secret of The Easy Yoke and he said it had been about three years. It's probably my favorite song of his and I had hoped to hear it but I didn't think I would. I don't know why I didn't think to ask why or would he ever play it again but it's passed and I missed it but it's okay. I didn't get an autograph or a picture but I really wasn't worried about it. I kind of wish I had but I don't really regret any of it. It was enough for me to just meet him and talk to him. He's not just my favorite musician, he's someone I want to have over for dinner, sit down and talk about life. He's a dude I'd like to have as a friend.
It was a really great show and I'm really grateful I got to go. I have to thank my dad for driving me to Virginia and back at midnight and such. I know he was tired and though he enjoyed the show he wasn't really familiar with either artist. And he went out to get my camera out of the car when we found out I could take pictures. He's pretty cool.
Sorry for the insanely long post so I'll leave you now with Bazan's last performance of my favorite song.
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