Anodyne
Thursday, February 03, 2005
 
Just back from the Rodney Graham Band rave-up up the road. The Cambrian Hall on East 17th transformed into the high school gym from Back to the Future, VAG techs in tuxedo shirts and spinning silver foil stars dangling from the ceiling. Guest Pete Culley reads his great poem "Paris 1919" to the crowd, then nervously launches into an exegesis of Rodney-as-songwriter via Tim Hardin and Kurt Cobain. Shuffling young hipsters not getting the joke, a few of us actually trying to listen above the clatter from the cash bar. RG & Co. proceed to tear things up, the whole band tighter than I've ever seen them, RG uncomfortable as always, his vocals all Dean Wareham via Tom Verlaine. The songs just containers for great ripping Dave Carswell guitar solos. RG actually smiling by the end of it all, glancing out at the clapping hands beyond the lights as if thinking, you came! You all really came!

- posted by cjb @ 11:15 PM


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