It was long a tradition during my Derby-attending years spanning two decades to hit a big rock show in Louisville on one of the nights my friends and I were in town. If there wasn’t a great event already booked, my pals working in the rock and roll business at the time would try to set one up. The list of bands we saw on Derby weekend during the 80’s and 90’s includes Pavement, Eleventh Dream Day, Silkworm, Son Volt and Freakwater.
I stayed in New York for this year’s Kentucky Derby and didn’t have any luck betting the race. But good fortune and timing brought a Woods show to Brooklyn on Derby night as the band came home after a two and a half week Spring tour.
Playing its 16th gig in 17 nights, Woods took the stage at 285 Kent at about 10:30 PM Saturday night. The place was packed. It was hot in the venue. The three dollar cans of Buds were selling so fast they were coming straight out of the box without refrigeration.
Before Woods went on, a collection of video clips projected on a screen behind the band showed Adam Yauch at various points during his great career. Yauch had died at the age of 47 a day earlier in Manhattan.
When the show started, the screen showed artistic images that blended nicely with the 9-song, 45 minute Woods set. There were several highlights.
After a 13-minute plus killer version of Bend Beyond, Woods played a wonderful new number that contemplated honesty and the difficulty of seeing it sometimes. It was a beautiful, catchy song with a powerful drum involvement. I can’t wait to hear the recorded version of it someday and I’d guess fans of the band will yearn for it in the live setting for a long time to come.
Kevin Morby played harmonica on the set’s only other new song. The set list published by NYCTaper identified the title of the song “Cali in a Cup.” It’s the first time I’ve seen Woods incorporate the harmonica into its live act and it was well executed by Morby.
Effects man Lucas Crane returned front and center behind his customized console after sitting out the previous Woods tour. On a string of dates earlier this year, Matt Valentine filled the Crane gap. It came as a relief to me that Crane was back on the knobs for this show despite MV’s unique talent. While Woods demonstrates great flexibility in the deployment of moving parts as it goes along, I find myself getting attached to the mainstays like Crane.
To free up primary drummer Jarvis Taveniere, Woods called on a tour-mate to sit behind the kit for most of the set. This is becoming a great Woods tradition. We saw it first when Ben from The Doozer was enlisted. This time it was Aaron from Mmoss who played drums. Taking occasional visual cues from Jeremy Earl, Aaron did a great job – almost as if he’d been there from the beginning.
Crystal Stilts was the headliner on this night. Those who left the venue after Woods finished were replaced by as many or more people. This was my first time seeing Stilts. They were great. I was blown away. I haven’t been able to get the Stilts tune “Shake the Shackles” out of my head for the last three days. Singer Brad Hargett has a captivating stage presence. At first, it seemed as if he was disinterested or preoccupied. But as the Stilts set built in energy, so did Hargett’s spunk. There was moshing and great spirit from the band’s supporters up front. I was totally won over and look forward to the next time I get to see these guys.
Admission to the gig was just five bucks. It was a Todd P show. Among those in attendance was Morby’s Babies bandmate Cassie Ramone.
I took the Bedford bus up to Queens Plaza after it was over. It took forever for both the bus and connecting train to arrive. Work the next day was kinda rough. But what a fun Derby night it was.
The next time I see Woods will likely be in the woods. Deadheat Dave and I are making a plan to hit Woodsist Festival 2012 in Big Sur, California in early August.