Connor Oberst on His Own

I saw Connor Oberst without his Bright Eyes moniker. He played a little over an hour with what might have been his tightest band to date. Great show at the Blue Note.

Free White Rabbits

Answering a call for entries on Twitter, I registered for free tickets to the Columbia White Rabbits show.

I won.

Kevin and I attended the show. He introduced me to Matt Magin of Cursive. Nice guy.

The show was packed like I've never seen Mojo's packed before. The patio was filled, but the interior was wall-to-wall hipster.

The band played an inspired, blistering set with a quick encore.

I saw the last Pavement show...

...in North America.

Pavement played Bogart's in Cincinnati at the end of the Terror Twilight tour. Archer Prewitt opened (and probably someone else I'm forgetting).

My sister, stone-cold sober, bugged a few of the band members about not choosing her rather excellent poem in a contest. They claimed it was the label's fault.

I saw them play "Conduit 4 Sale" for the first time despite seeing the band play four times prior.

It was sort of disheartening that they played a few UK gigs afterward, but who really wants to end their career in Cincinnati?

Ron House

Ron House was a local legend in Columbus, OH. You could always find him behind the counter at Used Kids. However, his connection the music scene went way further back than that.

He played for the 80's underground band The Great Plains.

At some point, he crossed paths with Bob Pollard. Pollard told the story at a show once that Ron House introduced him to bands like Wire while hanging out at Magnolia Thunderpussy, another seminal Columbus record shop.

Eventually, House formed Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments. They played a handful of shows and had a ton of buzz.

Thurston Moore hand-picked them to play the second stage at Lollapalooza. I missed it because I chose to eat. My siblings saw the set, along with members of Brainiac, Pavement, and Sonic Youth. I ate something fried while Cypress Hill took the main stage.

I did see TJSA a few times around town, including once opening for Guided By Voices and New Bomb Turks.

Ron House once came to my college for a CD swap night. He liked all the pretty girls.

I'd see House for years after that in Used Kids. He always was pleasant. There were even a few times he rounded up a used version of something new I was about to buy, saving me a few bucks. I once saw him come in on a Saturday morning with his baby. That's sort of where the Ron House mystique ended for me.

Either way, Ron House is the Columbus music scene.

The Coctails

Not many people remember the Coctails. They were a band from Chicago who recorded on Carrot Top Records. They largely self-taught musicians who played a ridiculous number of instruments. The songs ranged from typical early-nineties indie rock to a sort of jazzy lounge-type of music.

I saw them on the second stage at Lollapalooza in 1993 and again in 1995. Then I saw them on their farewell tour later in 1995. They sold dolls of the band members along with their Cd's and t-shirts.

Members later went on to form several other bands, including Sea and Cake.

Sonic Youth Opens

I saw Sonic Youth open for another band.

Of course, it was long after they had established themselves as a top, mid-range draw. They had already headlined Lollapalooza. And they opened for Wilco who shared Jim O'Rourke.

Sonic Youth blew Wilco off the stage that summer night in Cleveland.

The Best Wilco Show I Saw

Wilco has generally disappointed me with their live show. They're a much better album band for me. They always seemed sort of stiff and unnatural.

However, they were great one night. I saw them play an outdoor show in Columbia, MO during my first fall in town. It was a place some of the band members used to come in their youth to see shows.

Actually, Uncle Tupelo used to play the Blue Note a lot.

Speaking of Uncle Tupelo, I saw Son Volt reunite at the Blue Note later that same fall.

Back to Wilco...Many family members were there for the show. Either the familiarity with the town or the fact so much family was there allowed the band to be at ease and loose. It was a great show.