So, I got into trance music while working in Holland in 2000. When I returned and got my current job (about 5 years ago) there were a couple people who were also into trance and got me deeper into it. I have since become very much into the great trance music: Above & Beyond, Tiesto, BT, Solarstone, and just about anything on Anjunbeats and Anjunadeep. I should mention that I've always been into electronic music, but I've always disliked the typical BEAT BEAT BEAT BEAT without any melody (I also generally prefer songs with words!). Don't get me started on drum & bass, ooof.
Anyway, I've seen A&B twice in the past, the first time was amazing (December 6, 2006) the second time I was not so into it (June 6, 2007) I wasn't sure why; it seemed like they weren't playing any of the stuff I recognized from their albums, label or radio show.
So, I recently saw BT and Tiesto at USC 11 in Seattle I was totally excited because I had aways wanted to see both of them. This was going to be a night to remember. Now, BT did what is known as his "Laptop Symphony" I had never really been able to tell what exactly that was. I figured maybe it meant he didn't have a band (duh) but that he still played a lot of his stuff (kinda like Howard Jones in the '80's). Well, anyone wondering what the laptop symphony is: it's him DJing using a laptop instead of turntables. Woo Hoo. No, wait that sucks. So - he he ended up playing none of his own stuff and it was all just loud, beat beat beat. He did play a couple A&B songs (which ended up being the highlight of the night) but overall I was completely unimpressed.
Tiesto was up next, I knew he was promoting his In Search of Sunrise album, which hadn't even been released yet, but I figured that he would play some of the stuff that I recognized from his other albums. Well, I was wrong, I didn't recognize any of the songs he played and actually ended up leaving early.
I was beginning to wonder what was going on. I know several people who really like going to the shows and have a great time, but I just wasn't getting it anymore.
A couple of weeks ago I went to see Above and Beyond for the third time (June 20, 2008). I was very excited because they had Jaytech opening and I really like the stuff of his that I had heard. He started playing and I realized, "Oh crap, here we go again". He didn't play any of the stuff that I knew and it was all pretty much (sing along with me Chris) beat, beat, beat, beat.
At this point I was starting to really get down and I began trying to figure out why these shows weren't turning out the way I was hoping.
There was still one more hope, A&B had a new album coming out (as Oceanlab) so I figured we'd get to hear some of the new stuff. As you may be guessing, I wouldn't be writing this if they had, in fact, saved the day. They played the same unintelligible stuff with the constant 4/4 beat. There was a bit of melody with it, but generally nothing else.
As I sat there, drowning my sorrows in Red Stripe, I seriously considered where my problem was. I think I figured it out, I think it goes back to my older concert experiences, seeing people like Depeche Mode (numerous times), Curve, Joe Jackson and Peter Murphy. These artists generally were touring in support of an album and often played just about everything off the new album (no matter how crappy it was) and threw in a few of their well know tracks for good measure.
As I sat in the Showbox, pondering, I realized that DJs don't come out to play stuff off their albums or even the same stuff they play on the radio shows. They come out to get people dancing and get some killer energy.
The people who come to the shows know this and are there for the same reason. For them the beat beat beat beat works and gets them moving, a change in tempo/volume/melody is all they need to have a great time. I've realize that I need more than that to enjoy a concert.
I need some great songs (preferably discernible from each other), at least a few songs that I recognize, and I need to be able to hear the melody, and/or vocals over the constant beat. Knowing what I now know, I seriously doubt that I will go to another trance show, which makes me really sad. I'll just have to crank up some Trance Around the World in my ipod, hang out with a strobe light in the basement, and bring my own Red Stripe to kick things into gear. This time, in the basement, I won't be wallowing, I'll be enjoying the exact show I was expecting.
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Here's the thing about a live show for me... DJ sets do NOTHING. Literally I am unimpressed by DJ sets, and I don't care who it is who is doing the spinning. I consistently am underwhelmed.
Now, moving onto bands and actually playing... I refuse to pay more than $20 for a concert. I could care less about pyrotechnics and things like that. I'll go see Cirque du Soleil if I want that kind of entertainment and I'll pay the money for it to boot. They always impress.
But then again... since I only listen to electronic music, I also don't like bands that "hit the play button". This automatically rules out a whole lotta bands on live as far as my liking goes. Coldcut, Underworld, Autechre, Squarepusher, and a very small set of other electronic musicians are amazing live. They break the material apart and make the show entertaining. I've walked out on Chemical Brothers and many others because it was just rehash with no real live show to go along.
Rant end. :)
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