Hugs and handshakes

It's a rare time when I can say I saw two of the best concerts I've seen in the past 18 years in less than a week, but it happened.

We took a road trip to Dayton to see David Byrne last Saturday. It had been over thirty years since I saw him with Talking Heads during the infamous Stop Making Sense tour in Buffalo. I was excited to see this tour as friends of mine had seen him earlier this year and had glowing reviews.

This was my first visit to the Rose Music Center and I was very impressed with the venue. Good sight lines, very good sound, friendly enough staff and the facilities were clean. Very classy.

The Sway Brothers in front of me, who stood the whole show despite having no one in front of them, were not classy at all. They were That Guy.



Despite the Dude Bros being Dude Bros, I managed to enjoy the performance. The staging was the boldest I'd ever seen - a bare stage surrounded by a grey beaded curtain on three sides. No amps, no drum risers, no cords. Just a troop of 14 musicians in synch with each other. It was magnificent. The lighting was awesome.



Byrne is still fit and in fine voice. The set was about a third of well chosen Talking Heads material and the theme was rhythm and joy. There is an underlying message though, during one song the entire band took a knee and the last song was Janelle Monae's Hell You Talmbout in which the band chanted the names of African Americans who have been murdered by police. It was a very powerful show that is just below that old Talking Heads show if I was ever to rank concerts I've been to.

It was with reservations five nights later that we went to the Basement, a venue I really do not like. When Nicole Atkins is coming through town though, you have to make the sacrifice. There was not that big of a crowd, so we managed to find a spot near the stage to see the opening band Ruby Boots. I was not familiar with her at all, but she made a more than a few fans with her strong voice and poignant songwriting. Best Australian opener I've seen since Kasey Chambers so long ago. We talked to her after the show and my wife and her bonded about Glasgow, where she's going for the first time later this year.

The Basement has this pit in front of the stage, where I have not been for a show due to my claustrophobia and not wanting to be where it's loud, but a friend of ours was down there so we gave it a shot.

We had very good stage proximity, so close that Nicole urged us all little closer after the first song.



The sound was not overpowering, there were no dude bros invading people's space or sight lines. It was a great show. It was wonderful to see Atkins after wanting to for so long. When I saw her perform the first time, on Letterman years ago, I was a fan then and there. Her voice is a gift and in a decent and kind world she should be better known.

So go out and get Goodnight Rhonda Lee.

After the show we hung out and talked to Scott, her guitarist. Very good dude who played with Ruby Boots her whole set so he pulled double duty. I have not mentioned the place was a freaking sauna and much respect for the bands to get through it.

The guitarist went for a drink and I left my wife for a moment, when I got back Nicole came out and went right toward her. She said she saw us dancing and they bonded over Scotland, I did not know her husband was Scottish. She's really cool, and genuine. Emma got the hug, I got the handshake. It helps to have a mad hot wife with a killer accent.

It was a fine, albeit an exhausting week.

Trip to Gem City

Yesterday took us to Dayton, where I was the featured reader for the Gem City Poetry Stage. Their venue is in a combination beauty parlor and Buddhist Worship Center and I enjoyed the duality of the place.

It was a pleasure to be there, and to meet people I had only known through the internet. There was even an energetic five year old running around, felt like home! Here are the set lists, for record keeping.

Pantoum for a Child with Insomnia
From the Streets of the Underserved
Emaciated Compassion
Son, Sport, Sestina
Fracture
My Great Uncle and His Inventory of Effects
After Birth
All Time, None of the Time

Do Not Talk to Me About Lunch
Run Away From Time
Redhead at Gallery Hop
West Side Passion Play
Is Gun
318 Feet From Home Plate
The Wine List of the Overlook Hotel
Unlatching
Notation

Always great to hang out after for a drink at a very cool neighborhood bar just steps from the venue. Nice job Dayton, and thanks. They also have a good soul station (98.7) that took us some of the way back to Columbus.

Following up a little and some self promotion

Earlier in the week I wrote a post criticizing the Columbus Arts Festival's Word is Art committee for decreasing the amount of poetry on the stage this year.

There was some open, honest discussion on my Facebook page about what was said that I appreciated and respected. I'm still not sure if my message got to the right people though, to the anyone on the committee itself.

Two days later, the festival did blast out three posts on social media linking to the same post by the chair of the committee, one that expectedly said how great the stage is going to be this year. An interesting coincidence, eh?

I stand by my original post.

On Sunday May 24th I'm going to be reading in Dayton at the Dharma Center. Starts at 7PM. I'm honored that the Gem City Poetry Stage asked me to take part. You can read more about it here.