Good bands bad shows
January 8, 2018 11:44 PM Subscribe
There are many touring musical artists who put on a great live show, to the point where even non-fans are urged to go see them live if they have the chance - I've heard this said about Springsteen and Daft Punk, for instance. Are there examples of the inverse, i.e. artists who have a fair amount of commercial success and/or well-regarded studio output where the consensus (or at least an obvious minority opinion) is "eh, don't bother" or even "don't do it, it'll ruin their music for you"?
Note that what I'm looking for does not include people who deliberately do not tour, ever, or people who are early-career and didn't start with live performance and are still getting the hang of it. Nor does it really include "your favourite band sucks" or "I saw XYZ live once in 2002 and the singer had a cold and it was a terrible time for everyone" either, but I realize that pretty much all "evidence" will be at least somewhat anecdotal due to the nature of the topic.
Thanks!
Note that what I'm looking for does not include people who deliberately do not tour, ever, or people who are early-career and didn't start with live performance and are still getting the hang of it. Nor does it really include "your favourite band sucks" or "I saw XYZ live once in 2002 and the singer had a cold and it was a terrible time for everyone" either, but I realize that pretty much all "evidence" will be at least somewhat anecdotal due to the nature of the topic.
Thanks!
Cat Power is legendary for her unsatisfying concerts.
posted by aws17576 at 12:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [8 favorites]
posted by aws17576 at 12:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [8 favorites]
Cake can be good but are usually crap. Same for ozomatli, they clearly stopped having fun years ago. I saw Weezer twice and they have zero stage presence.
posted by fshgrl at 1:31 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by fshgrl at 1:31 AM on January 9, 2018
Bob Dylan is the most common one I've heard for this - not that he's always bad, but you're definitely gambling your money.
posted by threetwentytwo at 1:46 AM on January 9, 2018 [16 favorites]
posted by threetwentytwo at 1:46 AM on January 9, 2018 [16 favorites]
The Fall might be the best or the worst live band you've ever seen, possibly both during the same gig.
posted by rd45 at 1:55 AM on January 9, 2018 [15 favorites]
posted by rd45 at 1:55 AM on January 9, 2018 [15 favorites]
Seeing Van Morrison in concert completely destroyed my love of his music. He was completely uninterested in performing and contemptuous of his audience. I can't even listen to his stuff anymore.
posted by mewsic at 2:09 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by mewsic at 2:09 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
Lauryn Hill is notorious for never showing up on time and singing completely different versions of her songs.
posted by corvine at 2:13 AM on January 9, 2018 [9 favorites]
posted by corvine at 2:13 AM on January 9, 2018 [9 favorites]
Bob Dylan is definitely a "yer pays yer money and takes yer chances" experience. The only guarantee is that his band will cook regardless of what he's doing, but I've seen him three times and twice he was terrible.
posted by soren_lorensen at 4:28 AM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by soren_lorensen at 4:28 AM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
Pink Floyd. I love their music, but in a live concert, they're awful. Or maybe I should say the one live concert I attended was awful. It was in a stadium.
posted by james33 at 4:51 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by james33 at 4:51 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Back in the day, Sly Stone had a reputation for being late—hours late—for shows
posted by she's not there at 5:40 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by she's not there at 5:40 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I have heard from multiple sources that Moby puts on a thoroughly boring show.
posted by chillmost at 5:58 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by chillmost at 5:58 AM on January 9, 2018
Big Head Todd and The Monsters recently sounded like their own bad cover band.
posted by ITravelMontana at 6:02 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by ITravelMontana at 6:02 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Seconding Cat Power, although she's supposed to have improved.
I've seen the Brian Jonestown Massacre put on a couple horrible shows, and maybe one of the best shows I've ever seen.
posted by LionIndex at 6:06 AM on January 9, 2018
I've seen the Brian Jonestown Massacre put on a couple horrible shows, and maybe one of the best shows I've ever seen.
posted by LionIndex at 6:06 AM on January 9, 2018
Axl Rose is another one legendary for being hours late or not showing up at all.
posted by soundguy99 at 6:08 AM on January 9, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by soundguy99 at 6:08 AM on January 9, 2018 [4 favorites]
nthing Bob Dylan. I literally walked out. My father said, "You walked out on Bob Dylan?!" A few years later he saw him live...and understood.
posted by fiercecupcake at 6:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by fiercecupcake at 6:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [4 favorites]
I wasn't going to chime in since it's a single anecdote, but I see Weezer was mentioned above, and, yeah. They just stand there. Even amid huge pyrotechnics they were dull.
posted by dbx at 6:15 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by dbx at 6:15 AM on January 9, 2018
I've seen Styx live twice (in this century), and was thoroughly bored each time. They have a very strong "We are only doing this for the money" vibe. One of those shows I had free VIP passes that came with an open bar and buffet, and still didn't have a good time. Maybe their arena shows in the 70s were amazing, but not so much today.
posted by COD at 6:23 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by COD at 6:23 AM on January 9, 2018
Basically anybody well past their prime may end up being a sad disappointment; definitely research the tour before you buy tickets, though I get you're not looking for specific advise here.
I saw Dylan once, in the late 80s, and he was awful. I can't imagine seeing him again, but because he was Dylan I went for bucket-list reasons.
posted by uberchet at 6:29 AM on January 9, 2018
I saw Dylan once, in the late 80s, and he was awful. I can't imagine seeing him again, but because he was Dylan I went for bucket-list reasons.
posted by uberchet at 6:29 AM on January 9, 2018
Speaking of Cat Power, I worked a couple of Cat Power shows very early in her career, just her and a keyboard and an acoustic guitar in a little 200-capacity club, and it was very obvious that she was terrified and hating every second. She barely spoke, when she did it was in a sort of whispery mumble, she stopped and started songs, her hair totally obscured her face. But that only seemed to endear her to the audience even more; they were glued to the stage and utterly silent except for murmurs of encouragement and rapturous applause after every song or piece of a song. It was like the audience - almost entirely young women right around Power's age (mid-20's) - appreciated that someone very like themselves didn't just write and sing a bunch of emotionally vulnerable songs, but then actually got up on stage and allowed herself to be publicly emotionally vulnerable while performing those songs. Like this uncertain shaky performance was exactly what they were anticipating and even what they wanted.
The relevance of all of the above being that while those shows were "bad" by the sort of normal standards of live shows, I don't think anyone left those nights thinking, "well, I'm never going to do that again." That at least in the early days fans of her recorded music were also fans of her idiosyncratic performance style.
posted by soundguy99 at 6:29 AM on January 9, 2018 [13 favorites]
The relevance of all of the above being that while those shows were "bad" by the sort of normal standards of live shows, I don't think anyone left those nights thinking, "well, I'm never going to do that again." That at least in the early days fans of her recorded music were also fans of her idiosyncratic performance style.
posted by soundguy99 at 6:29 AM on January 9, 2018 [13 favorites]
Modest Mouse. Famous for being too wasted to even play and with showing great disdain for their audience.
posted by Lutoslawski at 6:32 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by Lutoslawski at 6:32 AM on January 9, 2018
I've heard this about MGMT, namely that they are entirely a studio band and can't sing or play instruments in real life. Still live them though.
posted by permiechickie at 6:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by permiechickie at 6:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
James Taylor was boring for me. He sounded exaxtly like the album tracks to the point that it could have been karaoke, and he had zero audience engagement. Very much going through the motions to get the paycheck.
posted by CheeseLouise at 6:41 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by CheeseLouise at 6:41 AM on January 9, 2018
The Replacements are notorious for being sloppy and rude.
posted by torridly at 7:13 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by torridly at 7:13 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Buddy Guy pretty much puts on the worst blues show/best blues show anybody has ever seen.
Sometimes it has been the same show.
posted by Chitownfats at 7:36 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
Sometimes it has been the same show.
posted by Chitownfats at 7:36 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
I saw Weezer live a few months ago. I really enjoyed the show, and felt they did a great job. But I also noted that it was the least amount of stage banter and interaction I've ever seen.
posted by ericales at 7:37 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by ericales at 7:37 AM on January 9, 2018
Guided by Voices shows were always either transcendent or appalling, and there was never any way of knowing which you were going to get - it just depended on how well Pollard titrated his booze consumption that night.
posted by amelioration at 7:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by amelioration at 7:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
The Cult. I love them and they suck live.
posted by vrakatar at 7:59 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by vrakatar at 7:59 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Cat Power (again, saw her like 15 years ago and I did not find this endearing at all, and definitely was like I'll never do that again)
Erykah Badu (saw her about 5 years ago, she was so high that she could barely make it through a song).
posted by greta simone at 8:00 AM on January 9, 2018
Erykah Badu (saw her about 5 years ago, she was so high that she could barely make it through a song).
posted by greta simone at 8:00 AM on January 9, 2018
Despite having made some of the best albums of his era, Nick Drake's shows were supposed to be pretty rough. He was Cat Power levels of nervous, plus his songs all required exotic tunings and he only had one guitar, leading to interminable stretches of silence between songs as he retuned.
posted by saladin at 8:20 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by saladin at 8:20 AM on January 9, 2018
Guided by Voices shows were always either transcendent or appalling
This also perfectly describes Modest Mouse shows, at least between about 1997 and 2004.
posted by saladin at 8:24 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
This also perfectly describes Modest Mouse shows, at least between about 1997 and 2004.
posted by saladin at 8:24 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
13-year-old me was very disappointed Paula Abdul had trouble singing her own songs while dancing at the same time, because the studio stuff made it look like she had no problem doing that at all. Like a week later, I saw Celine Dion "perform" live on TV and oh, that was a holy cats yowling couldn't keep a key to save her life trainwreck.
In the over three decades since, I have gone full live music snob with no regrets. I *only* go see musicians who can actually sing, and the smaller the venue the better. I made *one* exception for U2 and that worked out well enough, but the tickets were so expensive for 2nd-to-last-row nosebleeds that I haven't bothered again.
Teal dear: in my opinion, the vast majority of mainstream-popular musical artists can't be trusted live; if they're on mainstream radio, chances are they can't actually sing IRL. It's *all* studio.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 8:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
In the over three decades since, I have gone full live music snob with no regrets. I *only* go see musicians who can actually sing, and the smaller the venue the better. I made *one* exception for U2 and that worked out well enough, but the tickets were so expensive for 2nd-to-last-row nosebleeds that I haven't bothered again.
Teal dear: in my opinion, the vast majority of mainstream-popular musical artists can't be trusted live; if they're on mainstream radio, chances are they can't actually sing IRL. It's *all* studio.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 8:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I've seen Styx live twice (in this century), and was thoroughly bored each time. They have a very strong "We are only doing this for the money" vibe.
They fired the showman (Dennis DeYoung) who wrote all of their good songs back in 90s. I've seen Dennis perform, and it was a really good show.
Van Hagar was bad the two times I saw them - the opening acts were far better.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 8:39 AM on January 9, 2018
They fired the showman (Dennis DeYoung) who wrote all of their good songs back in 90s. I've seen Dennis perform, and it was a really good show.
Van Hagar was bad the two times I saw them - the opening acts were far better.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 8:39 AM on January 9, 2018
Modest Mouse, especially in the early days, was an unbelievable mess. My wife would argue Sonic Youth, but their live antics soured her on their recorded material as well, so that's maybe a ymmv one.
posted by togdon at 8:40 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by togdon at 8:40 AM on January 9, 2018
Cake is downright mean in their banter, really took me out of it. I have heard from multiple people that Fountains of Wayne does the absolute minimum required of a concert, and gets the hell out as soon as possible. Morrissey does a bit with very upsetting video in the middle of the show that makes me never want to see him again.
posted by evilmonk at 8:45 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by evilmonk at 8:45 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Rihanna has had some famously bad reviews of her live shows. And I've heard the Cat Power stories from friends who went to see her live many times. I went to see Sage Francis live in Boston years ago, and he was so angry and mean and weird that I no longer liked him. NOFX is a nightmare live, but they make a joke of it, I believe their live album is called "I heard they suck live". Josh Homme recently kicked a camera out of a photographer's hands at a show, destroying her equipment, I'll definitely pass on seeing QotSA live now.
posted by pazazygeek at 9:02 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by pazazygeek at 9:02 AM on January 9, 2018
soundguy99's comment above about Cat Power reminds me that I saw her once in NY when I was visiting a friend, and the whole vibe was such that someone SHUSHED me. I don't like shows where I am being policed by my fellow audience members, and I was so unused to a show where not only was there no pit, no dancing, no talking, but no-one was moving at all.
Now that I don't really go out anymore, I stick to the occasional sure thing. X is always worth seeing and so is Jonathan Richman.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 9:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Now that I don't really go out anymore, I stick to the occasional sure thing. X is always worth seeing and so is Jonathan Richman.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 9:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Van Morrison was totally unengaged, I blamed it at the time on the fact that everyone was there to see Pearl Jam and weren’t giving him much love but maybe that’s his thing. I think I saw José Gonzales (Heartbeats) live, but considering he didn’t even say hello it could have been someone miming to the CD. Small venue, terrible pity.
posted by Iteki at 9:18 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by Iteki at 9:18 AM on January 9, 2018
I saw Rihanna last year and it was the best live show I'd seen in ages, and I go to a lot of concerts.
posted by ellieBOA at 9:31 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by ellieBOA at 9:31 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Seconding Ariel Pink. Worst performance I've ever seen, ever, to the point where my friends and I still get genuinely angry talking about it years later (not even haha-angry but fuck-that-guy angry). The only reason we didn't walk out was because he and his band were -- inexplicably -- opening for Pulp on one of their very few U.S. reunion shows.
Cat Power is definitely uneven, for all the reasons stated above. I've seen her as an opening act several times, and about half the time she's awful and half the time she's amazing.
posted by the return of the thin white sock at 9:41 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Cat Power is definitely uneven, for all the reasons stated above. I've seen her as an opening act several times, and about half the time she's awful and half the time she's amazing.
posted by the return of the thin white sock at 9:41 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I really enjoyed seeing MGMT live, they put on a good show.
posted by fshgrl at 9:43 AM on January 9, 2018
posted by fshgrl at 9:43 AM on January 9, 2018
Thirding Weezer; I saw them in 1995 and they had so little stage presence and enthusiasm it almost seemed like some sort of meta-joke about being a "rock" "band."
> Guided by Voices shows were always either transcendent or appalling, and there was never any way of knowing which you were going to get - it just depended on how well Pollard titrated his booze consumption that night.
The one time I saw GBV it was definitely on the "appalling" side. It was less of a musical concert than a freak show filled with frat boys yelling "CHUG CHUG CHUG" at Robert Pollard, who was more than happy to oblige. I got bored and depressed and left before it ended. I know people who list GBV shows as among the best they've ever seen, which made it all the more disappointing.
Bob Dylan was also pretty meh the one time I saw him, but to be fair the fact that I had to wait outside for over an hour in shitty March weather and was freezing and exhausted by the time we got in didn't help.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:44 AM on January 9, 2018
> Guided by Voices shows were always either transcendent or appalling, and there was never any way of knowing which you were going to get - it just depended on how well Pollard titrated his booze consumption that night.
The one time I saw GBV it was definitely on the "appalling" side. It was less of a musical concert than a freak show filled with frat boys yelling "CHUG CHUG CHUG" at Robert Pollard, who was more than happy to oblige. I got bored and depressed and left before it ended. I know people who list GBV shows as among the best they've ever seen, which made it all the more disappointing.
Bob Dylan was also pretty meh the one time I saw him, but to be fair the fact that I had to wait outside for over an hour in shitty March weather and was freezing and exhausted by the time we got in didn't help.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:44 AM on January 9, 2018
I've heard this about MGMT, namely that they are entirely a studio band and can't sing or play instruments in real life. Still live them though.
I admit that I only saw MGMT on their third-album tour, when they were drenched in hyperactive psychedelic visuals and playing thoroughly experimental/purposefully obtuse material, but I loved it. I also took that whole period as a "fuck you" to the festival-bro Electric Feel/Kids demographic of their audience, so perhaps I appreciated that they were finally taking their own route, however confrontationally.
I myself completely failed in my early career to translate my studio works to a live environment, so I can't (or won't) contribute more names to the hate list ... but I felt compelled to defend MGMT.
posted by mykescipark at 9:53 AM on January 9, 2018
I admit that I only saw MGMT on their third-album tour, when they were drenched in hyperactive psychedelic visuals and playing thoroughly experimental/purposefully obtuse material, but I loved it. I also took that whole period as a "fuck you" to the festival-bro Electric Feel/Kids demographic of their audience, so perhaps I appreciated that they were finally taking their own route, however confrontationally.
I myself completely failed in my early career to translate my studio works to a live environment, so I can't (or won't) contribute more names to the hate list ... but I felt compelled to defend MGMT.
posted by mykescipark at 9:53 AM on January 9, 2018
I saw Mike Doughty live post-Soul Coughing and I hated him soooo much. He was very smug and acted like everyone in the audience should have been lucky to see him. I was just there with a guy I was dating and didn't care for the music much so for Mike to act that way (he was picking on people in the audience for like, looking at their phones? it was super weird) really stuck with me. Normally when I see bands I'm not excited about I end up becoming a fan and that show had the opposite effect.
I saw The Cure maybe 12 years ago, which for me was like the pinnacle of my life's accomplishments up until that point. My expectations were extremely high so I was thrilled when they played Charlotte Sometimes--I said to my friend, "We can die on the way home and it won't matter because I got to see this", but Robert Smith clearly forgot at least some of the words, and my heart broke or at least a few parts chipped off. Other people have told me he does this occasionally and maybe he didn't even forget but was just mumbling or something, but for me it was a real downer. If *I* know all your songs forwards and backwards, surely you can too, especially for what it costs!
posted by masquesoporfavor at 10:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I saw The Cure maybe 12 years ago, which for me was like the pinnacle of my life's accomplishments up until that point. My expectations were extremely high so I was thrilled when they played Charlotte Sometimes--I said to my friend, "We can die on the way home and it won't matter because I got to see this", but Robert Smith clearly forgot at least some of the words, and my heart broke or at least a few parts chipped off. Other people have told me he does this occasionally and maybe he didn't even forget but was just mumbling or something, but for me it was a real downer. If *I* know all your songs forwards and backwards, surely you can too, especially for what it costs!
posted by masquesoporfavor at 10:14 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I've seen Fionna Apple do an entire set squatting with her back turned to the audience. I'd heard her performances were hit or miss but it felt sort of aggressively rude and the tickets were pretty expensive.
posted by Saminal at 10:44 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Saminal at 10:44 AM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Cat Power (again, saw her like 15 years ago and I did not find this endearing at all, and definitely was like I'll never do that again)
Yup, circa 2000/2001 and it was the only show I ever walked out of not because it was boring but because it was *excruciatingly painful* to be there. Love her voice and a lot of her music still, but I would never ever see her again on purpose (did see her as a guest vocalist in Central Park some years later and she'd improved her stage presence but not to the point I'd subject myself or anyone else to that).
posted by stagewhisper at 11:01 AM on January 9, 2018
Yup, circa 2000/2001 and it was the only show I ever walked out of not because it was boring but because it was *excruciatingly painful* to be there. Love her voice and a lot of her music still, but I would never ever see her again on purpose (did see her as a guest vocalist in Central Park some years later and she'd improved her stage presence but not to the point I'd subject myself or anyone else to that).
posted by stagewhisper at 11:01 AM on January 9, 2018
My wife would argue Sonic Youth, but their live antics soured her on their recorded material as well, so that's maybe a ymmv one.
Interesting. I saw Sonic Youth twice in the mid-late 80s and both times it was one of the best shows I've ever been to.
posted by stagewhisper at 11:05 AM on January 9, 2018
Interesting. I saw Sonic Youth twice in the mid-late 80s and both times it was one of the best shows I've ever been to.
posted by stagewhisper at 11:05 AM on January 9, 2018
Smashing Pumpkins could be very hit or miss in the 90s. I saw them on Lollapalooza in 94, and they were sloppy, and tempos were all over the place, and Billy was screechy and the whole thing was a mess. Then again, i saw them on the Mellon Collie tour, and it was a fantastic show.
Nthing Cake. The band sounded okay, but John McCrea is a complete ass. Would not see again.
Also Nthing the Cult. Ian Astbury is oddly uncharismatic. How the Doors thought he would be a good stand-in for Jim Morrison I can't imagine.
posted by curiousgene at 11:23 AM on January 9, 2018
Nthing Cake. The band sounded okay, but John McCrea is a complete ass. Would not see again.
Also Nthing the Cult. Ian Astbury is oddly uncharismatic. How the Doors thought he would be a good stand-in for Jim Morrison I can't imagine.
posted by curiousgene at 11:23 AM on January 9, 2018
nthing Cake and echoing the comments re: audience hostility. I actually saw them circa 2001 at a festival alongside Modest Mouse, who were in contrast positively delightful. I mean, Isaac Brock seemed pretty wasted and periodically hostile over the course of the set, but it was an enjoyable form of hostility -- enjoyable if you enjoy early-to-mid-era Modest Mouse, at least, it worked with the material. Cake just got petulant and weird and forced the audience to chant the chorus to Nugget for over twenty minutes, possibly just to see if we would, or possibly to see how long it would take for us to really sincerely mean it when we kept yelling 'SHUT THE FUCK UP,' but either way it was Not A Good Time.
Van Morrison was also pretty bad, live, but didn't seem to be doing it on purpose, at least. He just kinda didn't give a shit at all.
The Fiery Furnaces were also pretty bad live, but that seemed more borne out of awkwardness than anything? If Van cared too little, they cared too much; they seemed nervous as hell and kept speeding up the tempo of their songs and blew through an entire album of content in less than half an hour, then blew out a speaker.
posted by halation at 11:27 AM on January 9, 2018
Van Morrison was also pretty bad, live, but didn't seem to be doing it on purpose, at least. He just kinda didn't give a shit at all.
The Fiery Furnaces were also pretty bad live, but that seemed more borne out of awkwardness than anything? If Van cared too little, they cared too much; they seemed nervous as hell and kept speeding up the tempo of their songs and blew through an entire album of content in less than half an hour, then blew out a speaker.
posted by halation at 11:27 AM on January 9, 2018
Even when Dylan himself is on, he sounds almost nothing like the albums. You know that moment when the first few notes of a song come on, and the hardcore fans start to cheer in recognition, and then the rest of the audience as everybody realizes what they're hearing? With Dylan that "moment" can take most of the song. The phrasing, instrumentation, everything is so different that it's literally unreconizable until you start understanding the words. Admittedly, I would be pretty tired of singing the same songs the same way since 1961, but if you're looking to hear the studio version it is just not happening regardless of whether you got "lucky" or not. Plus there are so many people smoking pot at his shows that it can be hard to breathe.
posted by wnissen at 11:53 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by wnissen at 11:53 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]
Blues Traveler is boring as all hell live. Luckily, the ticket was free, and I'd only gone because I didn't have anything better to do at the time, so I didn't mind walking out.
posted by sarcasticah at 12:01 PM on January 9, 2018
posted by sarcasticah at 12:01 PM on January 9, 2018
I've seen Willie Nelson a couple of times, once about 10 years ago and once about three years ago. Both were really bad experiences. A lot of medleys and playing the same song multiple times. He forgot a lot of the words. I understand that sometimes he can give a good concert but it was not either of the nights I saw him.
posted by Quonab at 12:05 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Quonab at 12:05 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
The worst band I've ever seen is Mac Demarco (opening for Phoenix). It was like you put a bunch of 12 year olds up there to screw around for 45 minutes. I actually didn't even know who it was until I looked up that show just now, and judging by their videos, that's part of the "charm."
Just to counter - I've seen both Cake and Modest Mouse in the last several years, and both put on good shows. Cake I saw in Oakland, which is basically a hometown show for them, so maybe that's why, but it was actually fun! Modest Mouse seemed completely fine and not wasted at all, though I'm not a huge fan of the band.
posted by cnc at 12:05 PM on January 9, 2018
Just to counter - I've seen both Cake and Modest Mouse in the last several years, and both put on good shows. Cake I saw in Oakland, which is basically a hometown show for them, so maybe that's why, but it was actually fun! Modest Mouse seemed completely fine and not wasted at all, though I'm not a huge fan of the band.
posted by cnc at 12:05 PM on January 9, 2018
Love Autechre's albums, hate their live shows.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 12:11 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by rabbitrabbit at 12:11 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Co-signing Dylan. Cat Power is nervous as hell but I still enjoyed her show.
Will add:
The Stone Roses - love the band, but Ian is famous for not being able to sing (their 1996 Reading Festival performance was apparently so bad that people were walking away laughing).
The Pogues - I've seen Shane so drunk that he's needed the mic stand for support, and is slurring his words. Still love their live shows, but it's mainly for the audience participation.
Spiritualized - my friend went from being a rabid fan to hating them after seeing them stand completely motionless and ignore the audience for the entire show
posted by Pink Frost at 12:58 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Will add:
The Stone Roses - love the band, but Ian is famous for not being able to sing (their 1996 Reading Festival performance was apparently so bad that people were walking away laughing).
The Pogues - I've seen Shane so drunk that he's needed the mic stand for support, and is slurring his words. Still love their live shows, but it's mainly for the audience participation.
Spiritualized - my friend went from being a rabid fan to hating them after seeing them stand completely motionless and ignore the audience for the entire show
posted by Pink Frost at 12:58 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I love Aimee Mann, but, MANN, was her show dull. She was stilted and seemingly scared. She barely moved, and the songs sounded just like they do on her albums. So there was no real point in seeing her in concert.
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs were really sloppy when I saw them. I walked out, which I almost never do.
Honestly, though, the worst show I've ever seen was The Grateful Dead. This was on one night of the "legendary" nine-show stand at Madison Square Garden in ... 1990? Utterly listless, floppy, BORING performance, no matter what their fans think. At the time, I was semi-interested in The Dead; that show made me hate them forever.
posted by Dr. Wu at 1:32 PM on January 9, 2018
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs were really sloppy when I saw them. I walked out, which I almost never do.
Honestly, though, the worst show I've ever seen was The Grateful Dead. This was on one night of the "legendary" nine-show stand at Madison Square Garden in ... 1990? Utterly listless, floppy, BORING performance, no matter what their fans think. At the time, I was semi-interested in The Dead; that show made me hate them forever.
posted by Dr. Wu at 1:32 PM on January 9, 2018
I was a bit disappointed after hearing Starset live. I thought the show was good overall but you couldn't hear the vocals half the time.
posted by cp311 at 2:47 PM on January 9, 2018
posted by cp311 at 2:47 PM on January 9, 2018
I have heard from multiple sources that Moby puts on a thoroughly boring show.I saw Moby with Bush in 2000. It was a thoroughly adequate show. Not boring. Also not especially exciting. I was neither over- nor underwhelmed. It was maybe the most late-nineties rock show ever, in much the way that the Spin Doctors/Gin Blossoms/Cracker show I went to in the mid-nineties was the most mid-nineties rock show ever. (Cracker was awesome. The Spin Doctors were the Spin Doctors. I assume the Gin Blossoms were there, because it has their name on the ticket stub.)
posted by curiousgene at 3:40 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Spin Doctors/Gin Blossoms/Cracker show
I saw that show - in a pouring rainstorm at an outdoor venue in Atlanta. My friend was a twin of the Spin Doctors lead singer, which made for a lot of fun on the lawn as people kept coming up to us to figure out if he was the Spin Doctors guy. Had issues with some high school kid that was hitting on my wife. Good show, but it is Spin Doctors that I have no memory of actually being on stage that night.
posted by COD at 5:33 PM on January 9, 2018
I saw that show - in a pouring rainstorm at an outdoor venue in Atlanta. My friend was a twin of the Spin Doctors lead singer, which made for a lot of fun on the lawn as people kept coming up to us to figure out if he was the Spin Doctors guy. Had issues with some high school kid that was hitting on my wife. Good show, but it is Spin Doctors that I have no memory of actually being on stage that night.
posted by COD at 5:33 PM on January 9, 2018
I am a huge Jethro Tull fan, but it took me three terrible shows three years in a row to finally realize that they're no longer performing even close to their peak. And maybe they never were, in my lifetime? I have fond memories of seeing them for the first time in the early 90s, but it was one of my very first concerns as a young preteen and maybe my experience was colored by that? I'm still tempted to buy tickets every time they go on tour, but... no.
Similarly, my then-partner and I spent a lot of money to finally see Bob Dylan live about 10 years ago and emerged super disappointed. He doesn't sound great anymore, and he played strangely revamped versions of his classics. I get that after 30 years you're tried of playing the same song the same way, but.
I was also really put off by seeing The Who about 10 years They weren't bad they just... weren't trying. And they made several unkind jokes about the folks who shelled out for front row tickets.
And I attended a truly awful P-Funk show a few years ago, but I am told by friends who have attended their shows before and since that they had great experiences, so maybe it was an anomaly.
I don't want to give the impression this is just because they're all, uh, aging bands, though! Because know who still put on amazing shows within the past 5 years? Steely Dan, Rush, Fleetwood Mac, John Prine, Yes, and the Moody Blues.
Also, sometimes it's the fans who ruin the experience, not the artist. Like I'm pretty sure Jack Johnson puts on a great show? But I may never know for sure, because both times I've gone to see him perform I couldn't actually hear him sing and play over the audience singing along to everything.
posted by rhiannonstone at 6:09 PM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
Similarly, my then-partner and I spent a lot of money to finally see Bob Dylan live about 10 years ago and emerged super disappointed. He doesn't sound great anymore, and he played strangely revamped versions of his classics. I get that after 30 years you're tried of playing the same song the same way, but.
I was also really put off by seeing The Who about 10 years They weren't bad they just... weren't trying. And they made several unkind jokes about the folks who shelled out for front row tickets.
And I attended a truly awful P-Funk show a few years ago, but I am told by friends who have attended their shows before and since that they had great experiences, so maybe it was an anomaly.
I don't want to give the impression this is just because they're all, uh, aging bands, though! Because know who still put on amazing shows within the past 5 years? Steely Dan, Rush, Fleetwood Mac, John Prine, Yes, and the Moody Blues.
Also, sometimes it's the fans who ruin the experience, not the artist. Like I'm pretty sure Jack Johnson puts on a great show? But I may never know for sure, because both times I've gone to see him perform I couldn't actually hear him sing and play over the audience singing along to everything.
posted by rhiannonstone at 6:09 PM on January 9, 2018 [2 favorites]
The Shins were the most boring show I've ever seen. That said, I've got tickets to Aimee Mann in another week or so, so that record may not stand based on previous feedback!
Some of my favorites have been the Foo Fighters, Coldplay (believe it or not; but Fiona Apple opened for them and she suuuuckkked), The Police, the B-52s...
posted by wwartorff at 7:36 PM on January 9, 2018
Some of my favorites have been the Foo Fighters, Coldplay (believe it or not; but Fiona Apple opened for them and she suuuuckkked), The Police, the B-52s...
posted by wwartorff at 7:36 PM on January 9, 2018
Nthing Van Morrison. I've seen him a number of times -- once was great. (It was being recorded for a live album.) Once was good enough. The other three times it was just awful. If he's in the wrong mood, he just doesn't try.
Apparently, he's often in the wrong mood. I know a guy who used to be a roadie for Morrison. They called him "the poison dwarf."
posted by wryly at 7:51 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Apparently, he's often in the wrong mood. I know a guy who used to be a roadie for Morrison. They called him "the poison dwarf."
posted by wryly at 7:51 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
I'm not sure if they're even really still around, but Jakob Dylan and the Wallflowers were terrible when I saw them back in college: unforgiveably late and totally unengaged. People started throwing things at the stage.
The only performance I've ever actually walked out of was Sting. This was at a festival back in his Desert Rose phase, and he was a)unforgiveably late; and b)spent most of his time on stage meditating/chanting rather than actually performing any songs.
posted by TwoStride at 8:24 PM on January 9, 2018
The only performance I've ever actually walked out of was Sting. This was at a festival back in his Desert Rose phase, and he was a)unforgiveably late; and b)spent most of his time on stage meditating/chanting rather than actually performing any songs.
posted by TwoStride at 8:24 PM on January 9, 2018
gil scott-heron didn't even get on his plane from nyc. the band said, "well, ya know, gil is kinda emotionally tied to the city. he didn't get on his plane. if you like, we can play a few sets for ya?"
felt like a complete set-up, to me. well, he's dead now. he's not showing up, anymore. even in nyc.
posted by j_curiouser at 9:41 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
felt like a complete set-up, to me. well, he's dead now. he's not showing up, anymore. even in nyc.
posted by j_curiouser at 9:41 PM on January 9, 2018 [1 favorite]
Marilyn Manson is infamous for his terrible shows. I have seen him once, and yeah, it was terrible. Though because of who he is and what he does, you never quite know if he's being an asshole on purpose. Either way, I'd never pay money to see him play again.
posted by BeeJiddy at 12:38 AM on January 10, 2018
posted by BeeJiddy at 12:38 AM on January 10, 2018
I've seen NOFX a couple times, and once they weren't terrible. Rancid, though... Armstrong was clearly stoned out of his mind, unable to play his guitar, and drooling all over himself. Not a great show, outside of watching the rest of the band try to cover for him.
posted by Ghidorah at 5:52 AM on January 10, 2018
posted by Ghidorah at 5:52 AM on January 10, 2018
I've seen Aimee Mann several times on the JoCo Cruise, and she's always been GREAT there -- but, in her first year, she was a bit more standoffish in general, so maybe it's a comfort thing.
I saw Willie many years ago here in Houston, but well into his old age. He's definitely lost a step or two, but he's an icon -- and turns 85 in April. I wouldn't go seem him again, but I generally advise those who haven't seen him to do so if they have the chance. I mean, he's WILLIE.
posted by uberchet at 6:22 AM on January 10, 2018 [1 favorite]
I saw Willie many years ago here in Houston, but well into his old age. He's definitely lost a step or two, but he's an icon -- and turns 85 in April. I wouldn't go seem him again, but I generally advise those who haven't seen him to do so if they have the chance. I mean, he's WILLIE.
posted by uberchet at 6:22 AM on January 10, 2018 [1 favorite]
And I attended a truly awful P-Funk show a few years ago, but I am told by friends who have attended their shows before and since that they had great experiences, so maybe it was an anomaly.
In the tech/stage crew community P-Funk is well known for being highly erratic in the quality of their performance (because drugs & lots of them). Also for being lackadaisical about start times and end times (I've heard more than one story about how first the venue turns on the house lights, then makes all the audience leave, then turns off the sound system, then turns off all the electrical power to the band's amplifiers and instruments, then finally they stop.) They were pretty "meh" the couple of times I worked one of their shows.
OTOH, you kind of expect a certain level of chaos at a P-Funk show, and as far as we can tell the audience always seems to like it, so I've no idea if their reputation for "sometimes they're great, sometimes they stink on ice" is common among the general public.
posted by soundguy99 at 7:42 AM on January 10, 2018
In the tech/stage crew community P-Funk is well known for being highly erratic in the quality of their performance (because drugs & lots of them). Also for being lackadaisical about start times and end times (I've heard more than one story about how first the venue turns on the house lights, then makes all the audience leave, then turns off the sound system, then turns off all the electrical power to the band's amplifiers and instruments, then finally they stop.) They were pretty "meh" the couple of times I worked one of their shows.
OTOH, you kind of expect a certain level of chaos at a P-Funk show, and as far as we can tell the audience always seems to like it, so I've no idea if their reputation for "sometimes they're great, sometimes they stink on ice" is common among the general public.
posted by soundguy99 at 7:42 AM on January 10, 2018
The Replacements, all three times. Very drunk, all three times.
posted by JawnBigboote at 9:05 AM on January 10, 2018
posted by JawnBigboote at 9:05 AM on January 10, 2018
I'm not sure if they're even really still around, but Jakob Dylan and the Wallflowers were terrible when I saw them back in college ...
Saw them at a state fair years ago, and neither the band nor the audience seemed to know why they were there. Case in point: I witnessed crowd-surfing to "Sixth Avenue Heartache."
posted by DrAstroZoom at 11:10 AM on January 10, 2018 [4 favorites]
Saw them at a state fair years ago, and neither the band nor the audience seemed to know why they were there. Case in point: I witnessed crowd-surfing to "Sixth Avenue Heartache."
posted by DrAstroZoom at 11:10 AM on January 10, 2018 [4 favorites]
I'd second Marilyn Manson - it was exactly like the CD.
Willie Nelson too - both times I've seen him I'd describe his concert as relentless -like the Ramones - just song after song with little banter - except instead of 45 minutes it's 3 hours.
posted by The_Vegetables at 12:51 PM on January 10, 2018
Willie Nelson too - both times I've seen him I'd describe his concert as relentless -like the Ramones - just song after song with little banter - except instead of 45 minutes it's 3 hours.
posted by The_Vegetables at 12:51 PM on January 10, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by fritillary at 12:37 AM on January 9, 2018 [3 favorites]