Ben Folds -- Lawrence, KS -- October 27th, 2009

Sixth time. Best time! Good crowd, great song selection. And it was just him and his piano, only the 2nd time in like...6ish years. Amazing.

Dog
Annie Waits
All U Can Eat
Effington
Gone
Sentimental Guy
Emaline
Jesusland
Still Fighting It
Unreleased song (The Secret Life Of Morgan Davis)
Unreleased song (Girl [I think])
New Song - Picture Window
New Song - Levi Johnston's Blues
New Song - Belinda
You Don't Know Me (feat. Kate Miller-Heidke)
Kate
Landed
Freebird/Rock This Bitch
Bastard
Dr. Yang
Such Great Heights (Postal Service Cover)
Army
Evaporated
Zak and Sara
Happy Birthday to Sydney
Not The Same

Encore:
Song for the Dumped
Narcolepsy
Philosophy

10/10

First time seeing Ben Folds play Evaporated, Song for the Dumped, and I think Emaline. I think it might be the first time I've seen him do Such Great Heights, too.

The opener was Kate Miller-Heidke from Australia and she's the 2nd best opener I've ever seen with Ben Folds (first would be Rufus Wainwright). She did an excellent cover of Toxic by Britney Spears. After she helped with You Don't Know Me, Ben took photos of her and her guitarist with the crowd being happy, us booing them, and then Kate "pissing" on the stage. :D

Ben Folds -- Kansas City, MO -- May 30th, 2009

Happy birthday to me! When I found out Ben Folds was playing in Kansas City the day before my birthday, I was ecstatic and I wasn't let down!

The opening band was Rachel Unthank & The Winterset. They're a folk band from England. They were alright, but got a little boring after a while. Nothing special, nothing too bad. 5/10

This was my 5th time seeing Ben Folds and the best since Way To Normal came out. He seemed really loose and playful. He cracked a lot of jokes, had a lot of crowd banter, and even went out into the crowd once! It was definitely the most joking/friendly I've seen Ben. The set is still full of Way To Normal tracks and the staple tracks as well, but there were some gems thrown in there. Namely: Battle of Who Could Care Less and Boxing. Boxing was the highlight of the night for me. Ben said the band is cooling down and going to record their new album. I can't wait for it and I can't wait for them to be back. :)

Effington
Brainwascht
Sentimental Guy
Kate
Lovesick Diagnostician
Battle of Who Could Care Less
Bitch Went Nutz
Annie Waits
There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
Dr. Yang
Hiroshima
Jesusland
Before Cologne > Cologne
Free Coffee

Ben Solo:
Boxing
Best Imitation of Myself
Gracie

Narcolepsy (extended)
Errant Dog
Landed
You Don't Know Me
Zak And Sara
Rockin' the Suburbs

Encore:
Kansas City Blues improv
Army
Not The Same
One Angry Dwarf

10/10

I have video of Annie Waits, Imitation, Gracie and Narcolepsy. I will upload it soon!

2008: The Year In Review

Top Ten 2008 Albums
note: these are only for albums i've purchased

1.


Ben Folds
Way To Normal
"His best musical offering since leaving Ben Folds Five"
Standout Tracks: Bitch Went Nuts, Brainwascht, Kylie From Connecticut


2.


Metallica
Death Magnetic
"The best thing for Metallica: Their best album since Cliff died"
Standout Tracks: The End Of The Line, All Nightmare Long, The Judas Kiss


3.


Hail Of Bullets
...Of Frost And War
"Solid Old-School Death Metal from a supergroup of some of the genre's finest"
Standout Tracks: Ordered Eastward, Red Wolves Of Stalin, Nachthexen


4.


Unleashed
Hammer Battalion
"Merciless offering of pagan death metal that stays true to its roots"
Standout Tracks: Hammer Battallion, Carved In Stone, The Greatest Of All Lies


5.


Deicide
Till Death Do Us Part
"It really is Deicide's most brutal album - EVER!"
Standout Tracks: Hate Of All Hatreds, Not As Long As We Both Shall Live, Angel Of Agony


6.


Arsis
We Are The Nightmare
"Equal parts of all their previous releases, this album shreds"
Standout Tracks: Shattering The Spell, Falling Winds Of Hopeless Greed, My Oath To Madness


7.


Hellhammer
Demon Entrails (Compilation)
"Absolutely essential to anyone who considers themselves a fan of extreme metal"
Standout Tracks: Euronymous, Crucifixion, Messiah


8.


Toxic Holocaust
An Overdose Of Death
"Bringing back the punk to thrash, a very enjoyable album"
Standout Tracks: Nuke The Cross, Future Shock, Feedback, Blood and Distortion


9.


Hate Eternal
Fury And Flames
"Shoddy production can't keep you from banging your head to this disc"
Standout Tracks: Whom Gods May Destroy, Bringer Of Storms, Fury Within


10.


Judas Priest
Nostradamus
"Classic Priest hidden within their most progressive offering yet"
Standout Tracks: Pestilence and Plague, Conquest, Nostradamus

----------------

Top Albums I Purchased This Year (Any Year)

1. Ben Folds - Way To Normal
2. Skeletonwitch - Beyond The Permafrost
3. Judas Priest - Metal Works '73 - '93
4. Morbid Angel - Altars Of Madness
5. Suicidal Tendencies - Prime Cuts
6. Impaled - Death After Life
7. Origin - Echoes Of Decimation
8. Metallica - Death Magnetic
9. Sodom - Sodom
10. Obituary - Cause Of Death

Honorable Mention: Death - Leprosy

Top DVD's I Purchased (Any Year)

1. Iron Maiden - Live After Death
2. Dark Funeral - Attera Orbis Terrarum - Part 1
3. Metallica - Live Shit: Binge & Purge
4. Slayer - The Unholy Alliance

Dishonorable Mention: Necrophagist - Summer Slaughter 2007

Top 5 New Bands To Me (Any Year)

1. Skeletonwitch
2. Judas Priest
3. Suicidal Tendencies
4. Impaled
5. Obituary

---------------------

Top 15 Performances Attended

1. Skeletonwitch (1st time)
2. Ben Folds (1st time)
3. Ben Folds (2nd time)
4. Obituary
5. Judas Priest
6. Skeletonwitch (2nd time)
7. Suicidal Tendencies
8. Unleashed
9. The Flaming Lips
10. Boris
11. Origin
12. Misery Index
13. Napalm Death
14. Iced Earth
15. Phobia

Honorable Mentions: High On Fire, mc chris, Hate Eternal (both times), Troglodyte (2nd time)

Top 10 Concerts

1.
Obituary w/ Unleashed
October 1
Kansas City, MO

2.
Skeletonwitch
February 11
Manhattan, KS

3.
Ben Folds
April 5
Kansas City, MO

4.
Ben Folds
October 22
Kansas City, MO

5.
Origin w/ Misery Index, Abysmal Dawn
August 9
Lawrence, KS

6.
Suicidal Tendencies w/ Terror, Whole Wheat Bread
November 29
Kansas City, MO

7.
Blackest Of The Black 2008 w/ Danzig, Dimmu Borgir, Moonspell, Skeletonwitch
October 31
Kansas City, MO

8.
Wakarusa 2008 w/ The Flaming Lips, Blackalicious, many many more
June 6th
Lawrence, KS

9.
Boris w/ Torche, Lair Of The Minotaur
July 23
Lawrence, KS

10.
Alice Cooper
September 12
Hutchinson, KS

Honorable Mention:

Iced Earth
November 12
Kansas City, MO

Worst Performances

1. Cobra Starship
2. 36 Crazyfists
3. Carnifex
4. Drowning Pool
5. Annotations Of An Autopsy

Top 5 Newsmakers

1. Metallica releasing Death Magnetic
2. Cryptopsy turning to Deathcore
3. Iron Maiden's Somewhere Back In Time Tour
4. Judas Priest/Heaven And Hell Metal Masters Tour
5. Chinese Democracy

Ben Folds -- October 22, 2008 -- Kansas City, MO

2 hours and 27 songs later, Ben Folds left another mark on the Kansas music scene. His second performance in Kansas City this year was opened by Australia pop-artist Missy Higgins. Her music more than once dipped into semi-country and sometimes reminded me of a female Johnny Cash. She multi-tasked: she played the acoustic guitar on some songs, the piano on others. Her guitar came through clear the entire time, but the keyboard seemed a bit muted at times. Missy's accent made her songs that more memorable, and the crowd was very receptive. She played her songs for 45 minutes and then made way for the real reason everyone was there that night.

Set included:

Going North
Ten Days
Scar
The Sound Of White

8/10

An ominous recording of a chant came over the speakers for what seemed like an eternity, but finally, Mr. Folds & Co., which included two more instrumentalists aside from the bassist and drummer, took the darkened stage. They opened with the fake song, Way To Normal. Explanation: A couple weeks before Ben Folds' latest album, Way To Normal, was released, he released a “leaked” version. This version had all songs with the same title on the actual CD, but different song. Except the song Way To Normal, which stayed on the fake album, even though the real album still retains the title. Confused yet? Don't worry, Mr. Folds explained it thoroughly to the crowd throughout the night. The main set was loaded with every song from the new album except for Errant Dog, and almost every song except Brainwascht had its fake version played as well. A couple oldies were thrown in as well, but the new songs are poised to be classic Ben Folds staples. The piano did seem a little muted late into the set and the bass way too powerful, but it was quickly remedied. Also: The crowd ate everything up the musicians on-stage threw at them. And we loved it. The first encore included a very rare Ben Folds Five song, Fair, and the should-be new closer to concerts, the fake version of The Frown Song. A man wearing a giant sad face mask joined Ben on stage while he sang how music “has the power” to change the world. Of course, the crowd wanted more, so Ben came back once more for the crowd-interacting epic “Not The Same”. This was my fourth time seeing Ben Folds, second this year, and the man continually out-does himself each time. Can't wait until he comes back.

Highlights: The Frown Song, Fair, Brainwascht, The Frown Song (fake)


He keeps getting better each time I see him!

Way To Normal (fake)
Effington
You Don't Know Me (feat. Missy Higgins)
Gone
Brainwascht
Doctor Yang (fake)
Doctor Yang
Annie Waits
Pre-Cologne/Cologne
The Frown Song
Bitch Went Nuts
Landed
Kylie From Connecticut
Free Coffee
Free Coffee (fake)
Hiroshima (B-B-B-Benny Hit His Head)
Zak And Sara
Bitch Went Nuts (fake)
encore:
Fair
Still Fighting It
Philosophy (Inc. Misirlou & Dr. Pyser)
Kate
Rockin' The Suburbs
Underground
Army
The Frown Song (fake)
Not The Same

10/10

NOT METAL: Ben Folds

Hopefully, you're one of the few that got tickets in time for tomorrow's Ben Folds performance, because it is sold out according to the Uptown Theater's website. Opening act is Missy Higgins. To read my review of his show at UMKC back in April, click here.

Best Class Ever

Today is my first day of class and in my Music Listening class, we're required to go to 4 concerts and one more for extra credit. Credit is given based on a report of them.

Expect more in-depth than usual reports for:

Alice Cooper (Sept. 12)
Impaled (Sept. 15)
Obituary (Oct. 1)
Ben Folds (Oct. 22)
Danzig (Oct. 31) (although this one will probably be more about Skeletonwitch)

I may switch out Danzig for Metallica.