2009.10.31 City Park, New Orleans, LA
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Mike
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Mudget
- Xenon West
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It was great, I'm still drained.
Jane's was the highlight, and that's not just me talking but almost everyone I overheard. In fact, most bands (Flips, Kravitz, KISS, etc.) really had to beg the audience to get into it. Compared to past Voodoo fests, according to those who have gone, this one had a much (much) mellower vibe. Contrasted against, say, the year Rage Against the Machine played.
But the one exception to this moodiness (possibly brought on by the weather, the sky split open and drenched everyone on Friday - making the Black Keys set memorable and the rest of the weekend a mudfest) - was Jane's Addiction. They were one of the only bands seemingly capable of whipping the audience up into a minor percolation and keeping it that way from start to finish. Once again, I would have to say that Jane's Addiction has just added a couple thousand new fans to their collection.
The setlist was great, but not much different from the NINJA tour. For me, the differences were the addition of the opener Up The Beach (to my mind, the only truly perfect Jane's opener), the subtraction of Pigs in Zen, and the extremely fitting and welcome CHIP AWAY (mindblowing as always and a great way to end the show and send people off into the crazy night).
This show was more "on" than my Kansas City NINJA show. The energy level of the band was higher, the guitar and drum solos just had more magic, and Perry ... well it's all about "what's this guy gonna do next?" I love not knowing exactly how he's gonna hit a note or make things echo. It's one of my favorite things about this band. They do try (and succeed, I think) to reinvent a song every time they do it. You can't say that about many bands.
Perry's little chatty moments were great, as always, he totally connects with the audience - and he had some hits and misses (heh). One miss in particular was a groaner - comparing he and Etty getting bug-bitten on the beach to knowing what it's like to go through a thing like Katrina. I heard people around me say "great analogy, man" laughing. But this is just because Perry is from outer-space. As Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips said during their set the next night, "Man, did anyone see Perry Farrell? I think he was levitating through the whole Jane's Addiction show."
For those of us who are religiously transformed by Jane's Addiction, it was just like any other show - head bobs turn into the whole body movin, can't help it, just let go, and pretty soon they're blasting you off into the cosmos. I'm not quite sure why this isn't everyone in the world's favorite band, but I am always reminded why it is my favorite band.
Other shows were mediocre to fantastic (nothing touched Jane's). The Black Keys put on a memorable set because as soon as they strummed their first note, the sky opened up and drenched everyone. But they kept pounding the hard blues and it was good. Ween was fantastic and played some of my favorite songs, and honestly Silversun Pickups melted my brain. I guess I sorta love them now. I didn't really sit there and watch them, instead a friend and I drunkenly stumbled around dancing the periphery of the crowd. I fuckin love a good shoegazer band. The Pickups are it right now.
At one point I was standing smack in the middle of the KISS and George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic shows, which was really bizarre. Dr. Love and We Got The Funk were competing head-to-head. It was just... something to be experienced, but I can't imagine it ever happening again. Times like that you just have to smile, turn to the left, pump the rock sign, turn to the right, do a little bootie dance, and just enjoy it.
Caught a tiny bit of Wolfmother which wasn't nearly enough. I am kicking myself for missing their whole set. I am not kicking myself for missing the Rebirth Brass Band, because I didn't miss it, and thank god. It was fucking religious. Those guys are insanely good. Squirrel Nut Zippers and New Orleans Bingo! Show both put on pretty good shows. Lenny Kravitz was ... uh ... just Lenny Kravitz I guess. Why I stayed there I dunno. I think my legs were like "dude, you're gonna just sit here and you're gonna enjoy it" and then it was kinda .... meh. Instead I could have meandered over to Jello Biafra or Meat Puppets, which would have been infinitely more fun.
Flaming Lips were another highlight for me, but it got kinda emotional and not in a good way. I eulogized my dad with some of "Do You Realize" and that was a bad move. Now anytime I hear that song, I get a little ugh. And to have it in your face with disco balls and confetti and "it's hard to make the good things last" and .... yeah. Almost lost a contact lens, and about as embarrassing as being at a sad movie and you feel a tear coming. No idea why this is embarrassing but it is. Still, that's what you look for in music and the Lips deliver.
I guess I could go on (and on and on and on) but I won't. Suffice to say, it was a blast, and I'll do it again if I can afford to. For now though I gotta watch those Jane's vids and relive it a little bit. Because that was the climax for sure. Always is.
Jane's was the highlight, and that's not just me talking but almost everyone I overheard. In fact, most bands (Flips, Kravitz, KISS, etc.) really had to beg the audience to get into it. Compared to past Voodoo fests, according to those who have gone, this one had a much (much) mellower vibe. Contrasted against, say, the year Rage Against the Machine played.
But the one exception to this moodiness (possibly brought on by the weather, the sky split open and drenched everyone on Friday - making the Black Keys set memorable and the rest of the weekend a mudfest) - was Jane's Addiction. They were one of the only bands seemingly capable of whipping the audience up into a minor percolation and keeping it that way from start to finish. Once again, I would have to say that Jane's Addiction has just added a couple thousand new fans to their collection.
The setlist was great, but not much different from the NINJA tour. For me, the differences were the addition of the opener Up The Beach (to my mind, the only truly perfect Jane's opener), the subtraction of Pigs in Zen, and the extremely fitting and welcome CHIP AWAY (mindblowing as always and a great way to end the show and send people off into the crazy night).
This show was more "on" than my Kansas City NINJA show. The energy level of the band was higher, the guitar and drum solos just had more magic, and Perry ... well it's all about "what's this guy gonna do next?" I love not knowing exactly how he's gonna hit a note or make things echo. It's one of my favorite things about this band. They do try (and succeed, I think) to reinvent a song every time they do it. You can't say that about many bands.
Perry's little chatty moments were great, as always, he totally connects with the audience - and he had some hits and misses (heh). One miss in particular was a groaner - comparing he and Etty getting bug-bitten on the beach to knowing what it's like to go through a thing like Katrina. I heard people around me say "great analogy, man" laughing. But this is just because Perry is from outer-space. As Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips said during their set the next night, "Man, did anyone see Perry Farrell? I think he was levitating through the whole Jane's Addiction show."
For those of us who are religiously transformed by Jane's Addiction, it was just like any other show - head bobs turn into the whole body movin, can't help it, just let go, and pretty soon they're blasting you off into the cosmos. I'm not quite sure why this isn't everyone in the world's favorite band, but I am always reminded why it is my favorite band.
Other shows were mediocre to fantastic (nothing touched Jane's). The Black Keys put on a memorable set because as soon as they strummed their first note, the sky opened up and drenched everyone. But they kept pounding the hard blues and it was good. Ween was fantastic and played some of my favorite songs, and honestly Silversun Pickups melted my brain. I guess I sorta love them now. I didn't really sit there and watch them, instead a friend and I drunkenly stumbled around dancing the periphery of the crowd. I fuckin love a good shoegazer band. The Pickups are it right now.
At one point I was standing smack in the middle of the KISS and George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic shows, which was really bizarre. Dr. Love and We Got The Funk were competing head-to-head. It was just... something to be experienced, but I can't imagine it ever happening again. Times like that you just have to smile, turn to the left, pump the rock sign, turn to the right, do a little bootie dance, and just enjoy it.
Caught a tiny bit of Wolfmother which wasn't nearly enough. I am kicking myself for missing their whole set. I am not kicking myself for missing the Rebirth Brass Band, because I didn't miss it, and thank god. It was fucking religious. Those guys are insanely good. Squirrel Nut Zippers and New Orleans Bingo! Show both put on pretty good shows. Lenny Kravitz was ... uh ... just Lenny Kravitz I guess. Why I stayed there I dunno. I think my legs were like "dude, you're gonna just sit here and you're gonna enjoy it" and then it was kinda .... meh. Instead I could have meandered over to Jello Biafra or Meat Puppets, which would have been infinitely more fun.
Flaming Lips were another highlight for me, but it got kinda emotional and not in a good way. I eulogized my dad with some of "Do You Realize" and that was a bad move. Now anytime I hear that song, I get a little ugh. And to have it in your face with disco balls and confetti and "it's hard to make the good things last" and .... yeah. Almost lost a contact lens, and about as embarrassing as being at a sad movie and you feel a tear coming. No idea why this is embarrassing but it is. Still, that's what you look for in music and the Lips deliver.
I guess I could go on (and on and on and on) but I won't. Suffice to say, it was a blast, and I'll do it again if I can afford to. For now though I gotta watch those Jane's vids and relive it a little bit. Because that was the climax for sure. Always is.
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bman
- Music Machine
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It was fantastic...I love going away for a weekend with the sole anticipation of seeing Janes. Perry is the one performer who truly get non fans to say, "that was one greatest shows I've ever seen"..
Where were you mudget? Where'd you stay in New Orleans? What a town and what a great weekend. Hopefully there will be shows shortly after the Australia stuff.
Where were you mudget? Where'd you stay in New Orleans? What a town and what a great weekend. Hopefully there will be shows shortly after the Australia stuff.
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Mudget
- Xenon West
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My crew stayed at the Best Western St. Christopher, on Magazine. I can highly suggest it. Clean, free continental breakfast (i.e. that awesome Community Coffee), right in the middle of everything, a quick bus ride anywhere.
Yeah that city is -the- party city, and have any of us even mentioned the food yet? The food was spectacular, even at the festival. Also had the best bloody mary of my life at the Old Absinthe bar. Ran into George Clinton at Drago's (best oysters in the world). Very cool cat, like I need to say it. We hit what is now probably my favorite bar in the world - The Dungeon - in (the French Quarter? I think?) Heavy metal bar, multi-levels, total dungeon atmosphere, blasting NIN in one section, Jane's in another, Slipknot in another, Lard in another, totally my kinda bar, not for everyone. One of my biggest regrets was missing some friends playing out that night. We were just too wasted. They (Mike Dillon's GoGo Jungle) closed for Galactic, and played on into the wee hours - like 4, 5 am. Had we known that, we woulda slithered over there somehow. We thought we'd missed them. We probably won't ever live that down. If you get a chance, do go see the GoGo Jungle and Galactic on tour. Both bands are hot.
As for the fest itself, there is room for improvement. Port-a-Potties should never be on a slope. I won't describe what the grounds around the Port-a-Potties looked like after the heavy downpour. They need a soft drink vendor desperately, too. I couldn't even find just normal water, you had to buy weird flavored water, or energy drinks (good god, they were pushing energy drinks like it was crack). And the spacing of the stages is a little too close for comfort. At Coachella, for instance, everything is very spread out. You go where you wanna go, and there you are. At Voodoo, if you weren't deep in the crowd for a show, chances were good you'd actually be hearing two shows going on at the same time, which is sorta mind-scrambling at times.
But aside from that the fest was great. Amazing atmosphere, trees throughout the park were smothered with spanish moss, so the whole thing had a very goth feel to it, coupled with all the art displays, freaky people, and music, it was just a very cool vibe. The staff at the park seemed really friendly too.
I hope this is just the beginning of this modern Jane's. On the one hand, I've heard that they intend to tour next year, but on the other hand, Eric's tweets seem a little more cautious. Here's one of his pre-Voodoo tweets:
"because folks keep asking, i am playing with janes this weekend at voodoo fest. im sticking with them for a bit more."
"Sticking with them for a bit more" ? See, that doesn't sound too hopeful to me.
But we'll see. The fact that Avery has been back for a year now is miraculous enough.
My little fandream would be that they head to a studio, put something new together, and keep touring. As completely obsessed as I am with their old stuff, I'd still be excited about such an insanely awesome band putting out some new stuff with the whole crew. I do love Strays and the addition of Avery back into the mix would only make the whole thing more real and interesting.
Anyway, I digress. New Orleans was magic. Being back in Kansas, grading papers, the quiet. It's such a hard transition. Did that trip really just happen? Was like a dream.
Yeah that city is -the- party city, and have any of us even mentioned the food yet? The food was spectacular, even at the festival. Also had the best bloody mary of my life at the Old Absinthe bar. Ran into George Clinton at Drago's (best oysters in the world). Very cool cat, like I need to say it. We hit what is now probably my favorite bar in the world - The Dungeon - in (the French Quarter? I think?) Heavy metal bar, multi-levels, total dungeon atmosphere, blasting NIN in one section, Jane's in another, Slipknot in another, Lard in another, totally my kinda bar, not for everyone. One of my biggest regrets was missing some friends playing out that night. We were just too wasted. They (Mike Dillon's GoGo Jungle) closed for Galactic, and played on into the wee hours - like 4, 5 am. Had we known that, we woulda slithered over there somehow. We thought we'd missed them. We probably won't ever live that down. If you get a chance, do go see the GoGo Jungle and Galactic on tour. Both bands are hot.
As for the fest itself, there is room for improvement. Port-a-Potties should never be on a slope. I won't describe what the grounds around the Port-a-Potties looked like after the heavy downpour. They need a soft drink vendor desperately, too. I couldn't even find just normal water, you had to buy weird flavored water, or energy drinks (good god, they were pushing energy drinks like it was crack). And the spacing of the stages is a little too close for comfort. At Coachella, for instance, everything is very spread out. You go where you wanna go, and there you are. At Voodoo, if you weren't deep in the crowd for a show, chances were good you'd actually be hearing two shows going on at the same time, which is sorta mind-scrambling at times.
But aside from that the fest was great. Amazing atmosphere, trees throughout the park were smothered with spanish moss, so the whole thing had a very goth feel to it, coupled with all the art displays, freaky people, and music, it was just a very cool vibe. The staff at the park seemed really friendly too.
I hope this is just the beginning of this modern Jane's. On the one hand, I've heard that they intend to tour next year, but on the other hand, Eric's tweets seem a little more cautious. Here's one of his pre-Voodoo tweets:
"because folks keep asking, i am playing with janes this weekend at voodoo fest. im sticking with them for a bit more."
"Sticking with them for a bit more" ? See, that doesn't sound too hopeful to me.
But we'll see. The fact that Avery has been back for a year now is miraculous enough.
My little fandream would be that they head to a studio, put something new together, and keep touring. As completely obsessed as I am with their old stuff, I'd still be excited about such an insanely awesome band putting out some new stuff with the whole crew. I do love Strays and the addition of Avery back into the mix would only make the whole thing more real and interesting.
Anyway, I digress. New Orleans was magic. Being back in Kansas, grading papers, the quiet. It's such a hard transition. Did that trip really just happen? Was like a dream.
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hydro
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Mudget
- Xenon West
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I'll be on the lookout for any vids not posted previously from this fest.
Then She Did
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aanrkbA1Nk
"The highest form of control is having no control at all. That is why, tonight, I am a superhero. That is why, tonight, in New Orleans, we raise the dead. We speak to them and say 'We miss you. Come party with us in New Orleans! The city that will not die. Like Jesus, the city that rises! We're with you."
Then She Did
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aanrkbA1Nk
"The highest form of control is having no control at all. That is why, tonight, I am a superhero. That is why, tonight, in New Orleans, we raise the dead. We speak to them and say 'We miss you. Come party with us in New Orleans! The city that will not die. Like Jesus, the city that rises! We're with you."
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Mike
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Mudget
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Oh, well, thanks NS. 
Thanks, as always, for providing a sane place to post reviews.
I hunger for live music now.
Seriously considering either Austin or Chicago for next year. I've never done the Chicagopalooza, so that might be the one.
Voodoo was great, and I'd do it again, but I'd really like to explore all the fests at some point. I've done Coachella, ENIT, the traveling Lollapalooza, Bonnarroo, and other smaller fests.
Perhaps it will all come down to which one Jane's (or Porno? one can dream) plays at.
Thanks, as always, for providing a sane place to post reviews.
I hunger for live music now.
Seriously considering either Austin or Chicago for next year. I've never done the Chicagopalooza, so that might be the one.
Voodoo was great, and I'd do it again, but I'd really like to explore all the fests at some point. I've done Coachella, ENIT, the traveling Lollapalooza, Bonnarroo, and other smaller fests.
Perhaps it will all come down to which one Jane's (or Porno? one can dream) plays at.
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Mike
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I mean it Mudget, I'm glad your here and I absolutely love reading your reviews.
With your permission I'd like to add them to www.janesaddiction.org
With your permission I'd like to add them to www.janesaddiction.org
"The quality of mercy is not strained, it dropeth as the gentle rain from heaven."