Grateful Dead

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LedDed - Your take on Slayer just absolutely painted a picture. Never seen them play, but your analogy “ But that's, like, music with things like harmony and melody. Probably chick music to that audience.” had me laughing so hard, my dog thought I finally lost it! Great read!
It was never the music of speed metal bands I disliked, for there is room for all sounds, it was the scene around it you described. I’m not that fatalistic.

... one of my favorite shows I saw was ‘ Primus ‘ at the old East Rutherford stadium opening up for ‘U2! I took my girlfriend at the time to see her favorite band at that time and it was U2.
When I learned Primus was opening up the concert I got her 3or 4th row! U2 put on a great show but ‘Primus blew my mind and it seamed the other 15000 attendees did not dig their music at all! Lol, it was a very strange band to open a U2 concert. I still have my T-shirt from the concert.

I remember a review when Marquee Moon came out saying they were like a cross between the Grateful Dead and Velvet Underground. Bought it and fell in love with them. Have followed Tom Verlaine ever since. Saw him play a tiny 'club' in Manchester UK in 2007 called 'The Night and Day Cafe' with about 50 other people. Went to San Francisco on honeymoon in 2014 (took me till i was 59 to find true love!!!) where we saw Peter Rowan at Sweetwater with about 15 people having earlier in the day been at a tie-dye time warp at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in Golden Gate Park seeing Tony Joe White, Felice brothers and headlined by Steve Earle who had John Paul Jones (ex Led Zep) playing mandolin. Multi acts.... Knebworth 74 with Tim Buckley, Alex Harvey, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Van Morrison, Doobies and Allman Bros, Wembley Stadium 74 with Jesse Colin Young, Tom Scott, Joni Mitchell and CSNY, Knebworth 75 with Linda Lewis, Roy Harper, Beefheart, Steve Miller and Pink Floyd. Also saw the Dead at Ally Pally middle night of the 3 sept 74 where i found my Dark Star. Oh for a time warp........

Or the Boozer. Not sure if it will make it through these terrible times.

Did you ever see the Gooney Birds there?

Saw Big Head Todd at the Medina Ball room in maybe 2000, very small venue. Big Head Todd, my god, it has been a long time.

I had a most wonderful time at The Frost ...

The Bosh reference came yesterday.. from perhaps Cousins??? I googled it too. I was familiar with his art, but not his name. Never seen slayer but got that vibe, now times two.

Ledded.. great post. The horrid details and visuals they created. I'm with Brewer. Back to the point, a nice stream of conscience over the last several days with many, many artists and only the slightest trace of a few stray off key vibes.

is why I come here every day!

LedDed, "like some demented methhead let loose in a Guitar Center" made me choke on my beer (Genesee Cream Ale) it was so funny, and THEN you made me go Google Bosch, who is AMAZING, as you knew.

When I listen to DaP35 I think, "I WISH I could bring all of us back in time to hang out together at this show!!" And I also realize that the sound of this release, while asking us all to be forgiving, is also WAY BETTER SOUNDING than most of the shows I saw at large indoor arenas. If the sound of DaP35 had been what I heard at most of my arena shows, I wouldn't have left those shows so disgruntled. Bravo, Healy, Dave, and all those involved.

....interesting take. I get it it ledded. They're not for everyone. Noisy? Yes. Not talented? I beg to differ.
I still enjoy them.

... I believe the ‘atmosphere’ plays a “big” part in the bands performances.
While I attended ‘Cooper Union’ during and before my college years I went to a lot of shows so many bands the biggest gig ever went to was Woodstock 1994 the 25th year anniversary that was amazing truly mind blowing performances from all types of bands music. I had the time of my life attending that festival of “peace love & music” for three days worth of music to entertain the massive amount of people I have ever seen sure it was truly life all the rating experience very positive.
I saw “nirvana” at ‘maxwells’ in Hoboken.
Caught “Pearl Jam” at the ‘Lime light’
Saw ‘Eek-A-Mouse’/ is a Jamaican reggae musician. He is one of the earliest artists to be described as a "singjay" in Boulder Colorado at a beer brewery maybe 50 people tops.
I also sent to see the ‘Misfits’ on Halloween! Some Japanese band opened up the show played a great set of music ; very original music. Thing was the theater could hold hundreds of people but the crowd was just 13th of us fans watch the misfit played & sounded beautiful in this empty theatre. No crowd comes off very soft in recordings!
Went to “Kelly’s” in Tappan NY Also know as the Hog Penny’s, one of my best friends bar/tavern, holds 50 -100 people, we had the JGB with Melven Seals , members of New riders of the purple Sage, ‘Marshall Tucker Band’ then the. Dickiey betts Band! And then for my friends 70th birthday, we got ‘Doctor John’ With Members from the mesters & the radiators! Crazy grateful times!

Catching up and scrolling back, what a vast vat of musical knowledge and open mindedness is continually on display here. Just wonderful.

Of particular mention, "The Cabooze." Growing up in Wisconsin, my best friend going back to 7th grade/best man at my wedding still lives in St. Paul. I go back periodically, and we tear up Minny like bad old lads. The Cabooze, to the uninitiated, is a classic rock and roll dump with a storied history. And a great name.

Then someone said Slayer was like the soundtrack to a Hieronymus Bosch painting. Thought the same and lived through it. I was in a Hieronymus Bosch painting. In fact, you can still see me there, crouching down and plugging my ears while trying to drink! A buddy of mine in California rides mountain bikes with Kerry King (Slayer guitarist). He got me and a plus one on the guest list for Slayer at the Fillmore in Denver with backstage passes.

So, we went. It was, in a word, horrible. An unlistenable, evil cacophony of horrid, unrelenting noise for 90 minutes. The lead guitarist who passed, Jeff Hanneman, was particularly putrid. He had, like, baseball catcher's leg armor spray painted silver and affixed to his black jeans in some kind of post-apocalyptic Road Warrior-type nod. Not cool.

Neither was his soloing, which was basically sweep picking and shredding as fast as possible, mostly in the high register, with no regard for taste, nuance or - KEY! - he just played over everything, atonal, like some demented meth head let loose in Guitar Center. And a legion of greasy, stringy-haired skulls banged along in furious might.

As we stood at the back of the floor, swilling to kill the pain and taking it all in, I had this moment of, just... sadness and disgust and wanting to flee. Look, I dig the Dead and jazz but also hard rock and I've seen some things and been in a mosh pit or two, just for exercise and to burn off the alcohol. But this was horrifying. So many losers, skinny and drugged out, or fat and drugged out, pasty white, sweating, bad vibes, bad clothes, all black, tattoos of skulls and demons, wild eyes filled with angst and hate. This was not the place to be on acid...

Bad vibes, man, bad vibes. The wrong kind of drugs and the wrong kind of people. No love, no warmth anywhere in the room, just like some dark pagan ritual gone bad. The Slayer guys made millions out of cultivating this kind of aura, this audience, this niche that they exploited. It did no one any good, and it will be their karma and their legacy.

Christ, I need a shower just reliving this. It DID look like a Bosch painting... or rather more like actual hell. Maybe it was. Maybe when I die, if I don't make it, I'll be reliving this show in eternity. I dig classic UFO, Dio, Priest, Sabbath, Scorpions. But that's, like, music with things like harmony and melody. Probably chick music to that audience.

After our long-suffering drinks at the back of the venue, we make our way toward backstage. In my trips backstage over the years, it's generally worth the time spent, if only for the hang and the things you see and hear if you're a big music fan. Back in the day I turned on a couple of people who shall remain nameless... you realize how hollow and shallow it can kind of be, like, "who's got any Krell? I'll be your friend until it runs out." Well, this wasn't even that. In fact, we waited almost an hour while a Slayer stagehand came out and led several women, and a few dudes, past the velvet rope and into the dressing rooms/reception area. I thought at least I'd drop my friend's name who got us in, share a story, and bail. Finally, pass be damned I just said to hell with it and we bailed.

Fuck Slayer. Love Eddie Van Halen.

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