Things

OK, I missed a few things. This I admit.

On 09/18/05 I finished Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk. The story of this book is essentially a frame for a number of short stories (20 or so) written by various characters in the story. There are also bits of what I suppose I'll call poetry introducing many of the stories. The stories are generally good - and at the very least, very odd - but the frame is played to death... Chuck's value is not subtlety, is it. There are interesting things going on there but I'm not sure anyone wishing to absorb the value in this volume we miss much by merely reading the short stories.

That evening I saw the Decemberists at the Marquee Theater. Sons and Daughters opened... the vocals weren't terribly clear where I was (middle, and a bit closer to the sound booth than the stage) which is a shame as much of the joy that is S&D is the vocal interplay. They were still wonderful and played Choked, my favorite from the new album. Hmm, the whole setlist: Medicine, Broken Bones, Dance Me In, Red Receiver, Rama Lama, Start to End, Gone, Johnny Cash, Choked, Hunt, Fight (they only have the two main releases so it's easy to recognize everything.)

The Decemberists were next; they had, I believe, six people on stage, up from four last time I saw them. Chris Funk is back and Petra Haden has been playing with them (I am listening to The Who Sell Out as I type.)

They opened with, well, have a look: The Tain, We Both Go Down Together, The Bagman's Gambit, The Sporting Life, Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect, My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist, Eli The Barrow Boy, Angel, Won't You Call Me [cover], On the Bus Mall, 16 Military Wives, The Legionnaire's Lament, A Cautionary Song, [very short break], Mr Blue Sky [cover], The Chimbley Sweep.

So, yeah, The Tain. That was a trip live. Also interesting was the band "falling asleep" during The Chimbley Sweep, individually, each as they were introduced (it was a special kind of asleep where they were able to keep playing, some.) Then Colin got all but two to sit down... all to be awoken as the band started back up at "O lonely urchin" from Petra.

Then some stuff happened.

Then the past weekend I went to San Diego and saw the Kills. Also I saw my friends, one of whom recently moved there... and one who has lived there for some time. Also their cat Zeke.

I have recounted these events elsewhere so I'll just post the setlist: No Wow, Good Ones, I Hate the Way You Love, I Hate the Way You Love (part 2), Murdermile, Passion is Accurate, Kissy Kissy, Dead Road 7, Fried My Little Brains, Love Is a Deserter, [short break], Cat's Claw, Dropout Boogie.

Suffice it to say that this live performance was quite remarkable. And that if there were no vocals this time I would've thoroughly enjoyed the show... the vocals being audible just served to push this one over the top.

Also I went to a bookstore and bought items for reading (see elsewhere) for the first time since those disturbingly good places of books near the University of Chicago.