Toronto The Great

Okay I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you all missed an absolute slaughterhouse 
of a show last night. Here is a lengthy review slash diatribe of the whole affair. 

It was just so unbelievably mental in there I can't even begin.


So I'll try and go through it chronologically for clarity's sake. 
There are a few bits and pieces I'm missing and definite teases and mashes 
of other things but those will come out in the wash. Basically, in terms of 
back story, the thing to get is that I thought based on their mood it would 
be a strong show but more sombre and mainly new songs. Brad explicitly said 
don't expect "that kind of show", meaning the descent into bustout valley 
they have been on about lately. 

Then they started playing. Came right out of the gate with either a composition 
and I may be a total idiot and it was actually some gem from back in the day, 
but I think it was what has been called the "Funk Startro". They basically came 
out of the gate raging like coursing thoroughbreds. No amount of hyperbole would 
adequately describe how _on_ they were. It was giddy all smiles "can't believe 
this is happening" all the way. After the Startro, they did Paper Birds (also done 
at soundcheck although this was better than the soundcheck of course). Andrew it 
was hitting it real hard, big drum sticks too like Tommy Chong almost. I mean he 
was really hitting it hard. It was the Marc and Andrew show also featuring Brad Barr. 
Actually, it was Don Marco Friedman Dimenti's cosmic cavalcade. You think I'm 
exaggerating but I am so not. The Paper Birds was brilliant (the music at the start 
of it is written by Marc which I took to mean he wrote the words i.e. "My Landlord's 
been shooting Paper Birds") and a great deal could be said about it. 

I want to say the next song was Even Rats (it might have been Suffocation Keep not sure).
Brad was splitting the signal on his mic and it created this tinny megaphone in a mic 
sound that obscured the lyrics somewhat. Really great effect. So I think there was another 
tune here not sure. Let's appreciate I was on some blindingly good acid and was basically 
a Smith chasing my Neo ass through the building's wiring all night. Then I slept for 3 
hours and got into my work duds and am looking out my rainy corner office window. 
I presume I am still tripping. 

Funny aside I got home say 3:45 and was still peaking balls and started to worry about 
work etc. which was now a few short hours away, then the thought came to mind "this isn't 
the bad part, this is the part where you're on acid". Indeed. Anyways Nellie reared her 
beautiful head and it was clear this was The Show. Nellie I would say is a once in every 
10 or 12 shows kind of thing and about one in every three versions they will really go off 
the hook with it (as opposed to a nice tight consistent version)-this was most definitely the former. 

This is where things start to get weird. Really. The Nellie was sublime like off the charts 
Stella Blue is shitting in my brain good. Then they really started to get into it. Brad gets 
this package of aluminum foil out and tells the crowd to take it and starts stretching it out 
over the audiences heads. It was a very cool effect with the lights, stimulus and crinkling 
sound of the foil. So there is this metallic lazy river road stretching over people's heads 
and the band is going kucoo. I call this the "Making Science" portion of the evening. 

Marc and I had been joking around all night and it goes without saying that The Slip are highly 
fertile and fecund minds to encounter. Basically they are receptive to everything that happens 
to them and translate it into the performance. I mention this because Marc and I were exchanging 
a lot of looks back and forth like "This is pretty sick huh?" and "yeah we know". Marc called the 
rest of the Nellie Jam if you like later the "go nowhere" jam which I was mocking in terms of a 
sickly goodness by making revolver to the mouth gestures and night night sleepy time gestures. 
Marc thought this was all hilarious and must have realized he had the audience in the palm 
of his hand. He just got better and better I sh!t you not. He was on mutherfuggin' fire. 

So, maybe I am wrong and again this may be where I have another chink in the armour, because 
I think they may have squeezed something in. Here I presume this was easily a 30 minute chunk 
of total malarchy. Then, and of this I am certain because I saw it all occurring to Marc, he 
whispers into Brad's ear and they come out with 19th mutherfuggin' Nervous Breakdown. "Here it comes, 
Here it comes, Here it comes". I almost think it was Marc's cruel joke against me but I think he 
just thought it would be a good direction to go in. Then again I think maybe there was more insanity 
then maybe another tune maybe not. Then a really good Let The Morning In (B.J.'s Furniture Warehouse theme),
which was to be an add for B.J.'s but they passed on it and it became this whole other song 
which is actually pretty rare and well-regarded. The combo of the crazy opener, Nellie, 19th and 
now Let The Morning In pretty much sealed the deal that this was the Daddy Mac of shows of late. 

Maybe I am wrong again because I guess they closed the set with Sometimes True To Nothing 
(the most righteous incendiary version I have ever heard hands down) which I really didn't 
expect to hear but it came like an old friend. This song for people who don't know is about 
a couple coping with depression and what can they offer each other, what can their friends offer: 
"you're not the only one who feels this numb / in spite of all the distance you've come". 

They took a break. Incidentally, Brad was looking for his fuŠking tape recorder all night 
and I kept saying "where's your jacket Brad...it's in your jacket..it's in the squirrel 
nut hiding place". Not sure what he wanted to do with it but I think it was full of people 
talking about different things at shows and what not. Anyways it turned out it was sitting 
on his amp right in front of him all night. Also another classic visual is Brad after the 
show ramming gear into the van and literally almost in tears trying to jimmy this one crate 
into place kicking at it with all his might. Totally appropriate and just plain hilarious. 

So yeah the encore was If One Of Us Should Fall which was also just a soul-wrecking washed-up 
on-the-shores-of-life sort of affair. Too much for words. Then Marc was still game. Oh hold up--
also noteworthy is they just did some straight up porno funk (Pete joked later it was the Type 2 
jamming) type stuff that was, wait hold up they actually did a song song, at one point it sounded 
like Mr. Big Stuff and I am sure they were doing something else for a stretch. At this point, Marc
was just totally in his element and strutting his garuda peacock feathers. Too funny. That was 
probably one of the best parts of the show though was this breezy ambling porno stroll music. 
I want to say that was after the Sometimes and before the If One but god only knows (what I'd be 
without you). Then anyways Marc was still in for more hooliganism and convinced Brad, at this point 
Marc was totally running the show literally whispering sh!t in Brad's ear and coaching him about 
chord progressions that they were doubling each other on, to do one more. fuŠking Monsters. 

I want to say it was Proud they closed with can't see how it was anything else. 

Seriously, if you get the sense you are getting the right sense. Tonight is going to be a slaughterhouse. 

Montreal?  Fuhgedaboutit!

-luke


Setlist
-------
Funk Startro
Paper Birds (My Landlord)
Even Rats
Nellie Jean> Making Science>.Go Nowhere. jam
Suffocation Keep (?)
Even Rats
Reddish Moon
Poor Boy
19th Major Nervous Breakdown
Let The Morning In (B.J..s Furniture Warehouse Theme)
Sometimes True To Nothing

E:
If One of Us Should Fall
Proud 


[ Graffiti post - Fri Oct 15 2004 @ 10:10 AM PST]