Overheard backstage at New Pornographer's show:
Girl #1 From 'The Organ' (NP's Opening Act): I hate googling because all I ever find are those, what are they, like on-line web-diaries?
BLAINE: Web-logs - blogs.
Girl From 'The Organ'2: And they're always so terrible!
BLAINE: Those are people who aren't even qualified to write.
Girl From 'The Organ'1: And they trash people!
Girl From 'The Organ'2: They totally do!
Girl From 'The Organ'1: You can get really low self-esteem from that kind of thing.
CARL: You can get low self-esteem from anything.
I've been the cruel prick them Organ girls were referring to, and I don't wanna be one no mo'.
New Pornographers live makes it clear I've been missing the point of everything so far's they're concerned. Their show is too much fun to analyze, and I always take the act of listening to their cds way too seriously. In fairness, I only do this because one of their song-writers is a religious experience for me, while the other, I tend to think is kind'a - eh. Carl's written great stuff though, and he played a whole bunch of Dan-songs, (Testament to Youth a Verse, Breakin' The Law, Execution Day - all outstanding!) Nico's got the pipes, Kurt's a wicked-ass drummer, Todd Fancy came up with some awful fine hooks, and the bantering was frequently funny, (if occasionally tense: Carl's "who's your favourite pornographer?" prompted Nico's "they're not here to listen to us talk" - which gave way to - you guessed it! - more rock!).
I was very glad to have gone.
Check out Blaine's video, for The Laws Have Changed if you care to. I'm eagerly awaiting his follow up to the excellent Low Self Esteem Girl, Male Fantasy, which will star the one and only Sir Robert Dayton. Everyone who's seen it so far has said they can't tell if it's a masterpiece or the creepiest thing they've ever laid eyes on. So... sounds promising then. (Expect to see it at TIFF, or VIFF-of-the-curiously-hideous-website, in the coming months).
Ah, what a talented lot they is.
Posted by ÿ at July 10, 2003 04:21 PMWhoa - you went to this show? Thx for keeping me in the loop, Cap'n Backstage.
"Not even qualified to write" shall be my new tagline.
Posted by: D on July 11, 2003 10:32 AM .Dude, I totally forgot about it. I got a call asking if I could be on Church Street in 15 minutes, got on my bike and went. The show was sold out. Sorry, ok?
Bejar's doing a solo show on the 18th - buy your ticket if you haven't already. I'd have bought you one - seriously - but my sister bought me mine.
As for this 'Cap'n Backstage' quip, I mentioned I was backstage because I wanted it clear I'd over-heard the performers dissing webloggers, in much the same way performers over-hear webloggers dissing them. I had a quasi-epiphany about how needlessly snarky they/I can be from the confines of relative anonymity. I'm going back into my 'if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all'-phase, which, the last time I tried it, resulted in three weeks of total silence.
Posted by: ÿ on July 11, 2003 01:37 PM .Ah, just teasing pal. Sadly, I'll be outta town on the 18th. Unless...
Posted by: D on July 11, 2003 02:21 PM .Geeves, you're not a cruel prick. The Organ girls need to grow up. That's just the risk you take when you google yourself.
Posted by: spoon-fed on July 11, 2003 06:05 PM .i think bands google just to get the what-up on how the people are responding to them. i don't think that is a bad thing to do. you have to expect that there are people out there who won't like what you are doing and that is fine to. i don't think they need to grow up, i think they just need to realize that they have a good thing going and not worry about what other people think. it is easier said than done but it is probably the best way to go.
Posted by: thug on July 23, 2003 07:21 PM .Yeah thug, you said it. So big deal - so I didn't like The Organ's set all that much? That alone doesn't make me a malicious prick. It just means I'm outside their target audience. I do think there's something to fostering good vibes on line by not taking needless pot-shots at insecure people who might be googling around to find out what's being said about them. But I think there's a way to make the point without straying from the parameters of constructive criticism. Though shit, is being harshly judgemental ever an easier way to get the point across sometimes!
Posted by: ÿ on July 24, 2003 12:13 PM .Thug wrote
"i don't think they need to grow up, i think they just need to realize that they have a good thing going and not worry about what other people think."
Isn't realizing that they have a good thing going and not worrying about what other people think, a part of growing up?
Posted by: spoon-fed on July 25, 2003 11:30 AM .basically i don't think it is fair to call them immature for googling because i'm pretty sure if any of us were in a band we would do the same, strictly out of curiousities sake....i imagine that they are just curious too, so if they give a shit about what is being said about them (which is simply human nature) they will soon realize that it is not worth worrying about what others think , especially if it is negative. that was the point i was trying to make...
Posted by: thug on July 28, 2003 02:12 PM .i am that girl you are referring to. and here i am checking in once again to see what is being said about me. this conversation is, hands down, the best thing i've ever read.
the only question i have is: what were you doing backstage? are you sure you are not referring to the merch table?
Uh, man, did I just get burned? Is that a burn? I spent a bit of time at the merch table, and from the likes of the loiterers in those parts, I can only deduce this was intended as a burn.
And seeing as how I'm still confused about how to respond, I'd have to say it was an effective one at that, Katie.
What was I doing backstage? I don't know. Security was loose, maybe?
Posted by: ÿ on July 31, 2003 11:41 AM .Oh my. I can't believe you can still get entertainment of this caliber for FREE in 2003!
You handled yourself well, ÿ. Dry-mouthed, sweaty-palmed, desperate diplomacy at its finest.
Posted by: Albertross on July 31, 2003 01:57 PM .It suddenly got zingtastic back here!
Zing! Zing! Zing™!
In a battle between rockstars and bloggers, I think we know who will win, and it ain't the ones with trackback pings. So y, let's just give up now, shall we?
Posted by: D on August 1, 2003 12:20 PM .Ugh. I think the burn here is being in The Organ. This is not open to argument.
Posted by: tv on August 1, 2003 01:28 PM .People think love is an emotion. Love is good sense.
-- Ken Kesey