Category: concerts

Sentimental

For Valentine’s day N gave me tickets to see Jeff Mangum in concert.  The reclusive singer/songwriter was touring again after more than a decade of inactivity and I was thrilled.

The evening finally came so last night we got a sitter and drove downtown.  We ate at Dojo and had the pork belly ramen (their specialty), a tuna/apple/goat cheese salad, and a sashimi plate. It was all tasty.

Then we headed over to the venue and got inside few minutes before Mangum took the stage.When Mangum walked on stage the crowd went wild. I thought he looked like a thin, shipwrecked version of Fidel Castro.  He had a green military cap on with a long gray beard and hair.

And then he opened his mouth and sang and I felt the years float off my shoulders and I was 19 again falling in love with new music and with a certain dreamy boy. And last night I stood next to him again with his arm around my waist and I felt happy and wistful.

After the concert we walked back to the parking lot and got into our sedan and drove to our house in the suburbs. And I snuck into our kids’ rooms and kissed them goodnight, with fondness in my heart for that girl of 19 and gratitude for where life has taken her.

Our Fourth

It wasn’t all out-of-control fires and mandatory evacuations around here this week: N and I got to see The Beach Boys in concert!

For our anniversary back in May I gave N tickets to Stadium of Fire, this big concert/fireworks show they put on every year in BYU’s football stadium. There were a few musical acts, including one of the American Idol winners (Scotty something) but they reason we went was to see the Beach Boys.  N is a big fan and I think they’re great too.

When I was a teenager I kept the radio in my car set on the oldies station and so it was incredible to actually see and hear them play all these songs that have been ingrained in my brain for so long.  A few of band looked a little frail, especially Brian Wilson, but they sounded amazing.

As part of our pre-concert festivities N’s mom helped E make a flag cake: 

It was awesome.

Another Concert in the Park


Last night N and I went to another concert in Pioneer Park. We saw E’s favorite band, The New Pornographers. (Seriously, we listen to their latest record Together at least four times a week in the car at his request.)

The band’s name can be a bit unsettling but Wikipedia says the A.C. Newman came up with it after watching a Japanese film called The Pornographers. But other people thought the name was a reference to Jimmy Swaggart’s reputed claim that rock and roll was “the new pornography.”

But despite their name their music is pretty kid-friendly pop rock. There were a bunch of kids at the concert bopping around. It made me wish we could have brought E but I think he’s still a few years too young. It was a great show; they’re consummate professionals and excellent at performing live.

Sadly, E woke up today feeling a little under the weather. He has a mild fever so I’m keeping him home from preschool so right now he’s convalescing on the couch while wearing a sparkly green party hat he found in his toy box–cutest sick person ever.

(And yes, I know his haircut is a hot mess.)

Hopefully E will be feeling better later today–N’s company is having their summer party tonight and I kind of want to stop by Old Navy because their layering camis are $2 until Saturday. Not really sure how much I need some but 2! dollars! (I am a total sucker.)

We have kind of a busy weekend planned–we’re going to a bon voyage BBQ tomorrow for a friend who is leaving to do humanitarian work in Indonesia for a month and then we’re getting together with two of my college roommates. If E’s feeling better tomorrow night we might try and catch a movie and dinner. And if there’s any time left over there are a few shows to catch up on off our DVR (new season of Project Runway!)

I hope you have a great weekend!

Beirut in Concert

Last night N and I went to Pioneer Park in Salt Lake to see Beirut play at the free outdoor concert series the city puts on every summer. We grabbed some tasty Tibetian food before the concert started and ate on the grass. It was a little hot but once the sun set it was very pleasant.

Beirut was GREAT.

There were thousands and thousands of people there but the crowd was pretty good in general.

I liked how the lights on this ice cream stand looked in the twilight.

It’s been a rough few weeks around here but the weekend is shaping up nicely. Hopefully I’ll be able to catch up on some work.

Have a great weekend!

The Mountain Goats in Concert

Last week one of my favorite groups, The Mountain Goats, came through Salt Lake on the last leg of their tour. While singer/songwriter John Darnielle is the core of the group this tour included Peter Hughes on bass (who also threw in some of the sexiest slow dancing I’ve ever seen) and Jon Wurster on drums.

The show was great. John’s voice can take a bit of getting used to but his lyrics are fantastic. If you’re interested N posted a review of the show and one of their songs.



Super Psyched

Today should be a fantastic day. We’re staying at my brother-in-law and sister-in-law‘s house which is always fun, I’m going to see N for the first time in over a week, and tonight we’re going to see The Magnetic Fields, one of very favorite bands, perform. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited to see a show.

This song of theirs is a favorite of mine:

I like their new album, Realism, but if you’re interested in listening to their music I would recommend starting with their 1999 release 69 Love Songs. It’s on the pricey side because it’s a 3-disc set but it’s great. (My favorite disc is volume 2.) If your local library’s pretty good I bet they have a copy. Check it out if you get the chance!

Concert Photos

I’m feeling worse today than I was last week. This cold has settled into my chest and I have a lovely hacking cough that makes sleeping difficult. But other than being sick this weekend was quite fun.

On Friday night N and I went and saw BrakesBrakesBrakes and Ezra Furman and the Harpoons play at the Kilby Court in Salt Lake. Both bands were really great which makes it even sadder that there were only 14 people there (unfortunately, not an exaggeration).

On the upside, I was free to move around however I liked to take photos because I wasn’t getting in anyone’s way. So there’s that.

BrakesBrakesBrakes

BrakesBrakesBrakes

Ezra Furman

Ezra Furman and the Harpoons

You can kind of see how the Kilby Court is basically a glorified shack. It’s one of my favorite venues in Salt Lake though. It’s too bad no one was there for this show. I hadn’t listened to either band before we went to the show but I liked both groups. If you’re interested N has a review of the show up on his blog.

Rock and Roll?

Thanks for all the lovely support regarding The Whole Foods Incident. E doesn’t have much of an appetite yet but is otherwise back to normal. This morning he was bopping around to kids’ shows as he normally does. E loves dancing around to music and playing his little guitar. Both are pretty cute.


This picture cracked me up. Our fondness for The Beatles and the Wiggles’ influence may have destined E to be a Beatles fan. But then again he might rebel and become a Stones man just to spite us.

Despite E feeling better I’m really dragging this morning. A few weeks ago we had bought tickets for a concert last night and when E went to bed okay we decided to go as planned. We saw three Scottish bands: We Were Promised Jetpacks, The Twilight Sad, and Frightened Rabbit.

The show was supposed to start at 9pm but the first band didn’t start until 10pm. We had snagged some seats at a table but I was kind of struggling because I hadn’t slept well the night before. I didn’t fall completely asleep but I came close a couple of times to nodding off. I felt bad because it was disrespectful to the bands playing and also because falling asleep at a rock concert is really, REALLY lame. But I perked up once Frightened Rabbit came on. They were great.

By the time we got home and to bed it was 2am. Right now I’m basically counting down the hours until E takes his nap so I can take one myself. Poor N has to work all day. But he has an office so maybe he can close his door and catch some zzzs too.

Camera Obscura Concert


N and I went and saw Camera Obscura in concert on Tuesday night. Camera Obscura is a Scottish group and it was the first time they’ve played in Salt Lake City in ten years. So even though it was tough to find a sitter on a Tuesday night (Thanks, Jan and Mom!) we felt strongly about going.

I really like their music and the concert was a lot of fun. N posted a summary of the concert and one of their songs here–wander over and take a listen.

Mr. Nice Guy

John Vanderslice is seriously one of the nicest guys in music. The show was really fun. If you’re local and want to catch him he’s going to be playing at the Kilby Court tonight.

**Update: N has posted a full review of the show here if you’re interested. **

In other news, I’m taking E to the public pool for the first time today. I have no idea how he’ll react but he loves taking baths and so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that he’ll have fun.