reflections on november at bimbo's

last month, i went to 3 shows. all at bimbo's. while i see bands at popscene almost everytime i go, popscene is mostly for dancing. there's only ever a handful of bands that play there (per year) that i actually want to see. but seeing 3 bands all at bimbo's, that's rare. and might i add, unplanned. it was supposed to be 2 but voxtrot postponed their september show to tour with the arctic monkeys. ew, whatever.

the jens lekman show was pretty impressive. it's hard to believe he's only in his mid 20's. he's an amazing singer/songwriter/performer. he's one of those rare natural artists. but, i still can't get over the level of passion in which torque (et al.) exert during their shows. they are super cool, funny & awesome. i've seen them about 5x with the first one about 6 years ago. and there is a huge difference between the first shows and this last one. i've seen the hard work. the sweat & blood. and tears shed to produce such art. it's almost magical. as for voxtrot, i'm still trying to get over the disappointment. ugh.

while i rated both the jens lekman & stars shows 5 ♥s (that's a whole lotta love), the stars show was definitely the best of the 3 last month if not out of the entire year. i would most certainly see mr. lekman again. no doubt, the next stars show is a must but i'm almost sure that i will not be attending the next voxtrot show. boo.

your biggest fan? not quite.

venue: bimbo's
artist: voxtrot & new division
who: alex & betty
when: 30 nov 2007 (friday)
doors open at 8p

the night started off at burger meister in north beach on the way to bimbo's. unfortunately, we found ourselves sitting by the most obnoxious douche bags from the marina. i don't even think they were drunk. not that its an excuse for being obnoxious but it happens. not them. they were totally annoying. we hated them. so did the rest of the patrons there. we ended up staying longer than we should have.

we head over to bimbo's close to 8p. i love bimbo's. it's really a great venue. small enough where the musicians themselves are walking about. that's where i met david gedge from cinerama/wedding present. the sound is awesome. the ambiance is much better than the other venues. you can't beat the girl in the fish bowl either. it's so quaint. and the ladies restrooms are monitored by the coolest lady ever. the only problem is that it's cash only. but there are plenty of atms around so no biggie.

we got there early and scored a nice table off on the side right next to the bar. perfect location if you ask me. it was also a good spot for people watching, more like, stalker spotting. we saw a girl in a hideous dress stalking ramesh and then the rest of the band members. i'm happy to report that, thanks to my awestrickeness when it comes to rock stars that i can only blurt out one thing (along the lines of... i love your music). and then i'm gone.

the opening band was called new division. i overheard someone say that they were supposed to be like joy division. um, wrong division. they were nothing like joy division or any of their one songs. they were all over the place. one song was like toad the wet sprocket, another song was very 80's. the first song was ok but they went downhill after that. they kinda sucked. it's a harsh world out there and i'm not one for pacifying.

voxtrot started off great, as usual. their energy on stage was comparable to the energy in their songs. very jumpy and upbeat. especially their bass player, 70's guy who looks like a cross between topher grace and alex's german bf. more like topher grace though. then, towards the end (thankfully) their ratings fell rapidly. these slutty hags went up on stage and started dancing on stage. not only were they drunk & ugly, they were horrid dancers. ugh, in cheap grotesque sequins dresses. to keep this post brief, voxtrot allowed the sluts to stay on stage and did not seem to realize that we paid to see them, not stupid ugly old dancing sluts on stage. so we left.

rating: ♥ very very disappointing...

love at first sight with voxtrot ♥

venue: gamh
artist: voxtrot, au revoir simone & sound team
who: alex, betty & gillie
when: 30 may 2007 (wednesday)
show starts at 8p

when i first saw voxtrot over a year ago, i don't think i realized the impression they left on me. i've yet to experience love at first sight (that i can remember) with a man but i know, i did in fact experience it with voxtrot. it's sort of this helpless feeling that's come over you. when your jaw drops and you can't pay attention to your good friend who is talking at you because you froze just to keep the moment going a bit longer. right? well, that was me at the elefant show last year.

since last may, i've seen voxtrot twice. so, it would have been 4 times in one year short of 3 days. and more if they played more shows. i can't seem to get enough. their debut album came out last week and they are touring to promote their cd. i love their eps so i'm hoping i'll love the cd. it's still warming up to me.
after work, i got a ride with alex and got ready at her place in mt. view. then, betty and gillie came to pick us up. the show started earlier than usual. we left at 7p so we wouldn't miss au revoir simone and get a balcony seat upstairs. we had dinner there. it was a lot of bad food like nachos piled up a mountain high (a mini mountain anyway), cheesy fries and quesadillas.

au revoir simone were these three very homely-looking girls. alex made them honorary sociologists as they were sporting the hairdos of female sociologists (well stanford sociologists). all three of them sing and play synthesizers. so it was very electronic. there was one with glasses who was really rocking out. she was the only one! alex chatted with her later when we were purchasing our merchandise. she was quite lively and nice.

the second opening band sucked. they were called sound team. there were some tall band members and that's all i remember about them. i hope that wasn't too harsh.

before voxtrot, i went downstairs to pick up a copy of their new cd. and buttons for one and all. they were 50 cents each but he didn't charge me for them! i think it was because i had on a voxtrot shirt from the last show. the band started with songs from the new album. i will post my blurry pics from my camera phone later. their set was as expected. tons of energy. rocking out. arms wailing. jumping/dancing. they are so animated that you couldn't help but move along with them. so we were all up from our seats dancing on the balcony floor and shaking it up!

i can't wait for their next show!

rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ indeed.

that's right, voxtrot again

venue: great american music hall (gamh)
band: voxtrot
who: betty
when: 4 november 2006 (saturday)
doors open at 9p

betty and i had dinner tickets this time which guaranteed us a balcony seat. so, we sat right up front just to the left, and above the band. which was great for spying on people. somehow, in the dark, i found will in the crowd below us. with two girls. one seemed particularly close to him. turns out, that's his girlfriend. or some girl he's really close with. there was a lot of pda going on which tells me that the relationship is fairly new. no wonder he hasn't been to popscene. she wasn't particularly pretty either. and i'm not saying that because i'm jealous. well, i am but not of her. she was a little pudgy too. i've decided that i'm out of his league. judging from the women he has dated, i'm not assertive enough. and i actually care what i look like. which seems to go against the grain in the women he likes. oh well, his loss.

back to voxtrot... i forget the opening bands. magic bullets and someone else. i think will was distracting me during their set. voxtrot was exactly what i expected. three words to describe them: fun, amazing, energy. they were awesome. the set was longer. they played songs i hadn't heard. songs i wanted to hear. thinking about them makes me want to break out in a dance! their bass player looks a little like topher grace from that 70's show. he was totally rockin' out! and very fun to see that they like their music as much as i do!

i'm soooo glad i saw them again (3rd time this year).

rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ (loooved them)

soft and warm

venue: 330 ritch (popscene)
band: voxtrot & love is all
who: betty & will
when: 2 november 2006 (thursday)
doors open at 9p

i first heard voxtrot back in may. they opened for elefant and blew me away. i couldn't even think straight or chat with betty during their set. i had to stop and listen. it was the strangest feeling. i never get that way about live music. it made me feel soft and warm all over.

last night, they played at popscene with love is all. we got there during the love is all set and didn't pay much attention as i was stalking ramesh (singer of voxtrot) without trying to be so obvious about it. he's actually a very little man. short and skinny but cute. not sure if i was successful. for some reason, he kept moving away. then we found will. ♥

voxtrot have 3 new songs. i got the cd single. and a cute shirt (will post pic of it later). very very exciting! it was a short set and we were close to the stage for once. i never care about bands at popscene. ramesh is cute, spunky, and full of energy. voxtrot is a great live band. not only do they sound awesome, they are awesome. they are fun and happy on stage. it's refreshing to see a band not just stand there and play.

can't wait to see them at the gamh tomorrow!

rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ (obviously)

voxtrot... my new addiction

i know i've already ooh'd and aah'd over them but i can't stop. i put one of their songs on my phone/mp3 player to listen to and i keep playing it over and over. this song, the start of something is like a really long smiths's song. you expect it to end half way through but it keeps going and going. it's really energetic and lovely at the same time. it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. and i want to break out dancing. anyway, i was thinking about them and how they have a couple of songs for downloads on their website. they have a couple of more songs to listen to on their myspace page. i listened to all of them, over and over. and can't get enough. so i went and ordered both their eps. i hope they come soon. i really need more to feed my addiction on.

they are so good. it's a bit refreshing. i can't get over how much i like them. it's so rare these days. i know there is good music out there but i'm always disappointed. nothing has made me stop in my tracks like this in such a long time. they seem so genuinely talented.

i wish we had gone to their gig at the bottom of the hill. that would have been awesome. oh well.

the start of something... voxtrot

venue: slim's
artist: elefant, voxtrot and some forgettable opening
who: betty
when: 27 may 2006 (saturday)
doors open at 8p

betty and i saw elefant on saturday at slim's. we were there for the first opening band but i can't even remember them because they were so unoriginal. they sounded grungey. it was very 90's. slim's was actually really packed.

the reason i like elefant is for this song called make up. it's a really sweet and romantic song. and unlike most of their other songs which are on the cheesy side. or, it's the way their singer sings them. he's such a drama queen. he sounds like he belongs in theatre. there are a few other songs i like on the first album but the second one hasn't grown on me yet. they were okay. betty remembered them from popscene ages ago. i don't. that's how it is with most bands i see at popscene, they are all forgettable. it's sad really.

speaking of forgettable, well unforgettable more like, surprise surprise. i found myself truly enjoying the second opening band. they were called voxtrot and are from texas. they introduced themselves as 80's revival which initially turned me off. but with every song they played, i was in jaw-dropping shock the whole time. i liked their entire set. i think i liked them better than elefant. they were just so cool and fun. i'm getting their cds! so, does that mean i like 80's revival? um...

after we heard make up, we decided to leave so we could hit the dance floor at leisure for a couple hours. it was after midnight when we left. we had less than two hours. despite the expected crowd disappointment, the music was still pretty good. and we danced our hearts out. it was so much fun. we always have so much fun.