Party Ends

   I learned a valuable lesson in self-restraint at the circus themed bar The Carousel Lounge where I found myself front and center for the Okkervil River live DVD taping. There were a variety of high-end film and HD cameras and cheap DV cameras capturing the night’s festivities with the intent to compile an Okkervil River DVD and because of that- there was a small handwritten sign on the door that asked politely not to take photographs or to record the show. So there I was eye to eye with Will Sheff, witnessing some of the band’s best live antics ever- and out of respect to those around me, the band, and the film crew - unable to snap any pictures. I sound noble huh? Well, the truth is if my wife hadn’t gotten on to me about the whole respect for the band thing I probably would have taken some really great pictures and who knows – maybe the flash would have caused Will Sheff to forget the words and ruin the whole thing for everyone. It was probably for the best that I didn’t indulge in the greediness of taking pictures for my little Internet site. After all, the best pictures are the ones we keep in our hearts. If anyone has any job openings at the Hallmark Corporation I am very interested in writing greeting cards, by the way. Andy snuck this picture of the back of my head and the band guilt free.

   It was great to see the band in such an intimate and surreal surrounding. The Carousel Lounge is a dive bar that typically caters to regulars and the occasional indie rock show but as far as I know has never packed in a crowd like they did for the Okkervil River show. The last time I saw Okkervil in such an intimate environment was at a bookstore collective thing in way South Austin for the opening of Will Schaff’s art exhibition. After the explosion of popularity the band has experienced since the release of Black Sheep Boy, who knows how many more chances there will be to see such a great small show. I am not certain what all the final cut of the DVD will contain but at this show they played quite a few covers which is a really smart move for the band because once the DVD is out and being hyped I can already see music journalists across the country wetting their pants over their interpretations of obscure Iggy Pop, Fleetwood Mac, and Bowie songs and how they interpret them. 

For me, the show’s highlight was the Iggy Pop cover Some Weird Sin which ended with a crazy free jazz cacophony of intense sound, with everyone in the band playing outrageous noise on their respective instruments and multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Meiburg hyperventilating on his melodica the way that Louis Armstrong would have if he were to ever explore the many wonders of the fine device. Jonathan’s cheeks were red balloons with veins were bulging out, there was complete chaos--- then the transition hit like magic. They seamlessly went into the single “For Real” to much applause…. From me…

   Another point of importance for the show is the drunk girl who pushed her way to the front right around this time and proceeded to grab Will Sheff’s beer from the ground and to drink it while rubbing against me. Everyone around was pretty shocked about the beer and my wife and I were especially shocked by the rubbing.

Keep an eye for the sure to be amazing live DVD from Okkervil River! 

And grab these free mp3s from the band!

MP3: Okkervil River – For Real

MP3: Okkervil River – a Favor