Pavement. Actual Pavement.
May 5th, 2010 by Jim Kennedy
In case you didn’t go to Pavement last night and are consoling yourself that it probably wasn’t all that good and they were most likely unrehearsed and shambolic, well, you should probably stay off the internet today.
After the glow, the scene, the stage, the set
Talk becomes slow but there’s one thing I’ll never forget
I’m not saying that when the list of top ten reunion gigs of all time is compiled, Pavement 2010 will definitely make the list. It’s too early to call - ‘all time’ is a long time. A straw poll of punters leaving Tripod last night, though, would probably have put it in the top one of all time. Personally, I thought about sneaking onto the gear truck outside and stowing away to EdinburghGlasgow, the second date on the European tour.
Huge shoutout out to Martin and Catherine for sorting me out for a ticket. This endeth the argument about twitter being a pointless waste of bandwidth. Martin also posted the above setlist photo. I can’t vouch for its accuracy, the night is a blur of fave Pavement tunes. I do remember that among other highlights, the night ended with Box Elder. If ever there was a song that left you wanting more, Box Elder it is.
The band were onstage for almost two hours, tearing through the back catalogue. They played pretty much everything everyone wanted to hear, they were rehearsed (something apparently you couldn’t count on back in the day), they were tight, Malkmus’ vocals were just the way they always were. They had their own sounddesk, and another one on the stage. I don’t know what that was about, but, hey, the sound was great, so props to the sound guy. Also, props again to Conor at Trig Films (formerly Handj*b Productions) who grabbed some great footage, as always. Here’s Shady Lane:
I’ve always loved the ‘fake ending’ in the middle of Shady Lane. Here’s Gold Soundz:
Keep an eye on TrigFilms, they’ll probably post more video over the course of the day.
If you’re going to see Pavement anywhere in Europe on this tour, enjoy. Sorry that this review is all over the shop, but any attempt at journalistic detachment or cool-eyed analysis is beyond me today. A more measured analysis can be found over on Electric Whipcrack, my fact-checking cuz.
Congratulations to everyone at the gig who managed to hold it together and not blub like little girls in front of their mates. It was a close run thing there for a while during certain songs. I can certainly say I had a moment or two of blinding clarity when it hit me that, finally and against all reasonable expectations, I was standing watching Pavement on stage playing a set of Pavement songs. Actual Pavement.
Anyone get a shot of Bob Nastanovich dancing onstage with his wife towards the end of the gig? Very sweet.
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oh……….fuck! Did the bouncer say “Hi Jim” on the way in, or did you actually not leave the Tripod at all in the last week
I shall never say a bad word about Pavement or twitter again. I preferred your review to your fact checking cuz. Box Elder was one of those songs that has always struck with me too. Went to see them a couple of times, last time with Conor and Sean. No one near us talked that much so the only cribbing was about the band on stage at the time.
Saw them first when they performed in the Rock Garden doing Slanted and Enchanted, and they were all over the - but I loved it anyway.
Great to see those Vids.
I was offered a ticket two weeks back and couldn’t take it due to other commitments. FML.
‘Fact checking’ [ Sound of disgusted ‘tsssks’ ]
Good review and ta for the clips Jim. Is it ‘actual’ Pavement to distinguish from ‘virtual’ Pavement ?
Can you make a compo claim after tripping over an actual crack in a virtual Pavement ??
Think I saw them twice - once in Barralands in Glasgae supporting SY and then that other gig you mention Donagh (was it the Red Box at the time?). Both times I was hammered so can’t pass comment on Pavement’s playing. In the Red Box I was hammered in that nasty and edgily paranoid way - but I do remember them chanting ‘Fuck French rugby!’ at some point in the gig (the Bleus had done their usual stroll after 20 minutes of token resistance against the best 15 our Private Schools could put out earlier in the day). Also seem to remember shouting ‘Fuck Irish rugby!’ back…
As I say - nasty and paranoid in an edgy sort of way…
Donagh - I just stashed my sleeping bag in the corner for the week and scrubbed up every morning in the loo. I’ve lived in worse places.
I was worried that they might be all over the shop, this being the first gig in the European tour, but they were already touring in the states, so I guess they had it all sorted.
Donal - bah humbug. I hate when that happens.
Sean - That sounds like you were on fine form that evening. The ‘Actual Pavement’ line was supposed to be some kind of attempt at conveying my own inarticulate and inexpressible deep shock at finally, after all these years, being at a Pavement gig. You know the way parents tell excited kids tripping over themselves trying to express themselves to ‘use your words’? Trying to write about the gig, I felt like that kid. Clearly, my literary device didn’t come off… My first draft of this review read more like: “Pavement! OMG OMG Sooo good. SERIOUSLY!”