Which band blew your mind away live?
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Polysics. Great energy.
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Tool, always. Propagandhi were also great.
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I was the DD for my girlfriend’s birthday party and went to a Florence and the Machine show. It was outdoors and as the show got started black storm clouds started rolling in.
When they started “The Dog Days Are Over” all hell broke loose. Sheets of rain, huge lightning bolts and cracking thunder loud enough to drown out the music and the crowd.
But Florence stood there, exposed to it all, diaphanous robes lashed by the wind, not even noticing it as she belted out her anthem. As if she had called down the storm for backup vocals.
I wasn’t a fan before but I am now.
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"A". New-wave metal punk. They supported The Offspring back in 2000 when they were touring and blew them completely out of the water (and The Offspring are GREAT live too) and they have been my favourite band ever since.
I HIGHLY recommend their album "Monkey Kong" with some decent headphones.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fkfA9Z2vL9M&pp=ygUQYSB2cyBtb25rZXkga29uZw%3D%3D
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Slipknot puts on a pretty damn good show.
They're not a band that's in my usual listening rotation, I don't dislike them, they're just not my usual kind of music. When I saw them it was a situation where someone I knew ended up with extra tickets somehow and I was more interested in the other bands they were touring with
I'd say they stole the show but I think they were actually the headliner, so I don't know who they would've stolen it from.
I'm admittedly a sucker for a spectacle, and let's be real, that's kind of slipknot's whole schtick.
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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. 3+ hours of pure enjoyment
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I had the privilege to see them live about 8 years ago and it was an incredible show. Dickinson has incredible stage presence; really puts a lot of energy into the show to keep the crowd engaged.
The giant animatronic zombie freaked me out a bit. It was enormous and moved realistically enough to be unsettling since I wasn't that far away from it. Most metal shit I've ever seen in person.
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Roger Waters: The Wall. Kinda redefined what i would expect from a concert/musical performance
Giant inflatable puppets, building a giant wall out of blocks on stage throughout the concert and projecting imagery onto the new sections as its built, then knocking it down
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There are lots of great live bands but maybe these were most memorable for various reasons:
Magma (just hypnotic), Lazuli (very entertaining live band every single time), The Pineapple Thief (great prog rock with incredible drummer), The Musical Box (playing and re-acting old Genesis. Too young to see the originals but just in time to see the remakes), Le Silo (super high energy duo or trio, don't even remember, but man that was wild), Aranis (they don't exist anymore unfortunately) -
Phish number one for me.
Unexpected awesome live shows: Blondie, Violent Femmes, The Proclaimers
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Quite a few:
- Underworld
- Chemical Brothers
- Beastie Boys
- Black Grape
- Puressence
- Songhoy Blues
- Pulp
- Alabama 3
- Jim White
- Portishead
- Beth Gibbons (of Portishead, but solo)
- Kog and the Zongo Brigade
Probably a few others
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ADRV
Cajun and Creole art nerds throw the best parties.
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KC Roberts and the Live Revolution tend to release highly produced tracks, but awesome live too.
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Thievery Corporation
Amazing
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That worked out!
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Glass Animals, hands down best concert I’ve been to! My GF wasn’t thrilled about going but by the end she was dancing like crazy. They’re much more impactful and energetic live than their recorded stuff would make you think!
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Slift, they are an amazing experience live! Three guys from France with a live sound that's just massive. You'd never think it's just the three of them. Amazing show, lots of energy and the visuals make it a perfect experience. Mind blowing!
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I've seen a lot of great shows, but:
- The Octopus Project: I've seen them live at least four times and they never disappoint. just great fun, really talented folks. watching them trade instruments mid-song is always a delight.
- Battles, during the Gloss Drop tour: wow, the ability of those musicians. never seen anything like it.
- Open Mike Eagle: I don't know if it was his most "on" day ever or if he's always like that, but I was absolutely transfixed. captivating performance.
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Whipping Boy, an Irish alt rock band, late 90s Birmingham: I’d never even heard of them before a friend dragged me along. Jaw-flappingly stunning vocals, great songs, lyrics, instrumentation. Thought they were going places, especially on finding a couple of singles/EPs and the album Heartworm, but they broke up not long after. I bought everything they put out and still love when their stuff randomly plays on shuffle.
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A little old school here, but Tom Petty and the HB were always fantastic live, I got to catch them several times.
I also once was socially-dragged to a Sheryl Crow concert at the Ryman, and even though she's not usually my thing, that show was fantastic. She had a bunch of folks from the Nashville Symphony Orchestra playing with her band that night, and I've never seen a group of classical musicians have so much fun. They really made it an unbelievable show.
My favorite concert story was that we went to a "Best of the 80s" concert in Indiana in the late 90s when I was a teen (bands that performed included Wang Chung, A Flock of Seagulls, and a few one-hit wonders I'm struggling to remember right now). At the end, the promoters took the mic and apologized to everyone that the show was ending a little early, the closing band, Missing Persons, couldn't make it. My friends and family I was there with laughed our asses off the entire way out of the arena, but it didn't seem like a single other person there got it.
