Bon Iver's "Babies"

This was the song that made me cry last night at the Bon Iver concert. It's on their new EP.

more shows

WAY too many shows in the last few weeks:

The Sea and Cake: wrote a review here. I was kind. They were awful. Opener Death Vessel was great, though. This was the third show I've been to with Elizabeth, who still kindly goes to shows with me despite duds like this. Previously, I took her to see the Acorn (we were the only fans there) and Pale Young Gentlemen (we were the only fans there). Oh well!

Wheat: wrote a review here. This show was so much fun, despite the fact that E was in a horrible mood with a head cold. At least he was happy for Wheat's set (how could you not be?). What also made E happy was the guy in the above photo. I don't even remember who opened for Wheat, but E liked that dude in the band.

The Acorn / Calexico: wrote a review here. I totally overplayed the Acorn's album last Spring, so I hadn't listened to them in ages. It was nice to remember why I like them so much. They were awesome at the Somerville Theatre. It was also my first real exposure to Calexico. They were great.

M83: wrote a review here. This was the first show I went to with Luke and Laura, so that was really fun. The show was great, though taking photos was nearly impossible, since they played in the dark.

Lots and lots of concerts

I've clearly neglected this blog (no posts in over a month!). Long ago, I stopped writing anything intelligent and instead focused solely on music. And music's not really inspiring me much these days. I'll probably keep updating periodically until January, so I have a full year of posts.

That being said, I've gone to a lot of shows, so for the sake of consistency, I'll list them here. In addition to the ones on the sidebar, I've seen:

- Fleet Foxes (wrote a review here)
- Radiohead
- Wilco + Andrew Bird
- Wakey Wakey (where we ran into Ben Kelley)
- Matt Pryor (wrote a review here)
- Walkmen (wrote a review here)
- Low (wrote a review here)
- Dr. Dog + Delta Spirit (E wrote a review here. I thought the show was boring.)
- Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise (wrote a review here)
- Throw Me the Statue + Jukebox the Ghost (wrote a review here)
- Pale Young Gentlemen (wrote a review here)

Tonight, I'm going to see Wheat! Oh, I love Wheat. I'm pretty proud of this interview I did with them here.

I'm also going to see two more shows in the next week, so expect some more links to reviews soon.

Heir 2 tha Streetz

I can't tell you how many times E and I have spent Saturday night at home watching this local access hip-hop tv show. We even know all the lyrics to the intro. I'm afraid it might happen tonight, too. And somehow we still maintain a reputation for going out a lot. You have no idea.



P.S. E thinks Mosley needs to get a role in the opening credits, playing the part of "bad ass pit bull #2."

The Singing Saw at Christmastime

Anyone who knows me well knows my unhealthy obsession with Sufjan Stevens' Christmas box set. Even in the middle of summer, not a week goes by without me thinking, "Boy, I'd really like to hear "Get Behind me Santa" right now." Due to this intense love and my tendency to over play music, I limit myself to listening to it December 1st--January 1st. It takes discipline. I occasionally make the exception for "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," because it's probably my favorite song (and favorite recording of it), and technically, it's not a Christmas song.

This year, I'm excited to have a new obsession (though not a replacement, of course). Julian Koster's putting out an album of all singing saw Christmas music. Here's Koster is in all his singing saw Christmas glory:


On a related note, I hear that Low is putting out a Christmas 7" on SubPop. When I saw them at the MFA last week, they played one of the tracks, and it was rather terrifying. To quote my review:

A new Christmas song started off innocently (“Tapping on the rooftop…”), but quickly turned menacing as Sparhawk yelled “Santa Claus is coming!” The words were not so much a gleeful declaration as they were a command to get the hell out of the house.

On a final note, for those of you who don't know, I finally bought a piano! And I'm in desperate need of good Christmas music. I have one book that I grew up playing, but the music's a little too basic. Let me know if you have any good sheet music I can borrow. Thanks!

last night's concert: low

E and I saw Low last night at the MFA. A review will be forthcoming. I wholeheartedly loved it. E? Not so much. One of the few music related things we disagree on. "Breaker" is my favorite song from their last album. And today I discovered the video (a year and a half after its release). So. disgusting. Naturally, that's why I'm posting it here.

Last night's concert: Matt Pryor

If your name is Jill and you sang "Campfire Kansas" on stage with Matt Pryor at Harpers Ferry in Allston, I have some cute photos. Write me a comment with your e-mail.

Here's my review of the show. It was good, nostalgic fun.

Mitch Hedberg

I'm dangerously close (one day!) to not posting for a whole month, so here goes. Today The New York Times informed me that my favorite comedian Mitch Hedberg died of a drug overdose, uh, three years ago (obviously, I don't follow comedy very closely). I watched some YouTube videos today to confirm that he was as funny as I remember. He was, indeed.

This was the first joke I ever heard from him, which gratefully someone put on YouTube:



This was Mitch on Letterman:

Airborne Toxic Event's "Does This Mean You're Moving On"

My new favorite song / video:

My Brightest Diamond's "The Gentlest Gentleman"

An absolutely stunning version of Shara Worden performing "The Gentlest Gentleman" is over here. Better than the one I posted here. I need to learn the ukulele fast!

I'm so desperate to play music lately that I've been playing my Philip Glass piano sheet music on the dining room table for lack of a piano. And today I looked up all the guitar chords to Neutral Milk Hotel's songs from In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. At least I have a guitar at home, but I stink big time. I'm thinking of trading my epiphone for a cheaper model whose action will make it easier to play.

Partisan Cookies Shack

This probably means nothing to you, but means everything to me. From Merge Records' blog:


While you're there, check out the new Music Tapes album Music for Clouds and Tornadoes. I've already pre-ordered the LP, because I'm obsessed.

The Walkmen's You and Me

I love the new album from The Walkmen so much. I'd try to write something intelligent about it, but that would take some effort. And no one reads this blog anyway. You can stream the whole album here.

a Roxbury sunset

Tonight's sunset from the roof. See all the photos here.

E turns 30

Photos from E's 30th birthday party are here. We had a lovely weekend with E's brother and his wife.

Weekend run down:

- Friday we did a highly recommended pub crawl: River Gods -- Miracle of Science -- T.C.'s -- our roof deck. On the way, we picked up some random musician, who crashed at our place.

- Saturday, we hit Carson Beach before the party (yeah, Boston beaches!).

- Sunday we walked the whole city, and E accidentally ordered $80 worth of crabs at the Barking Crab. His response to the mistake? "If I knew I was going to order an $80 entree, I would have worn pants."

And now I'm about to pass out from exhaustion.

Video: Psychedelic Furs, live in Spain (June 2008)

How awesome is this? And who knew the Psychedelic Furs did a bunch of shows in Spain last month? And they played some Love Spit Love covers! Here's "Am I Wrong:"



and "Ghost In You:"


And on a related note, Tim Butler's myspace page is one of my favorites--for really no good reason.

Doves to play first show in 3 (long) years

From Heavenly Records:

"Doves first gig in nearly 3 years, their first since recording their hugely anticipated 4th album (due out 2009):"

Friday 12th September
Royal Festival Hall - Doves / Very Special Guests / Cherry Ghost

LoRox BBQ

This past Saturday, we had our first bbq / jazz concert of the season at Frederick Douglass Peace Garden. See all the photos here.

Mark Knopfler's "Last Exit to Brooklyn"

Mark Knopfler was in town this past weekend, which inspired me to listen to the Last Exit to Brooklyn soundtrack--moving stuff. Here's "Finale:"



I still haven't finished the novel on which the film's based (haven't seen the film either). It dives so deeply into the depravity of man, that I can only read about ten pages at a time before I feel sick.

Speaking of morally thought-provoking and troubling works of art, The Dark Knight is incredible. We talked about it for an hour after the film ended. I'm still thinking about it. If you haven't seen it, be on the look out for John Ringhofer's father as an extra. And if you don't know who John Ringhofer is, well... you're missing out.

From Half-handed Cloud's myspace page:

I haven't told many of you but my father (also named John Ringhofer) acted as an extra in the brand-new Batman film "The Dark Knight." I haven't seen it yet, so I'm not sure that they used his shots (there's a chance they didn't). I don't think he has a speaking part, but he describes his scene this way:

"I'm the Captain of the tug boats evacuating people from Gotham City. I'm wearing a bright yellow/green plastic jacket and a black police type hat talking with three or four other guys about what to do with civilians and prisoners."

He once told me to look for his scene near one with a crowd of people pulling rolling-suitcases towards a ferry boat. Anyways, if any of you are going to the film, let me know if you find him? I'll probably try to go in the next week or so to see for myself. Pretty neat.

Thanks,
john

Fleet Foxes show review

Reviewed last week's Fleet Foxes show over here. Don't miss an opportunity to see them live.

I can't believe Robin Pecknold is only 21--makes me feel extremely unaccomplished at 28. And, yes, I did buy the vinyl.

Blonde Acid Cult's "Shake It Loose"

Just because it's Friday, and we all need a little pick-me-up.

a plethora of XANADU related news

In case you don't know what I'm talking about (for shame!), this clip pretty much says it all:



Xanada is on hulu!!!

And a special edition widescreen edition dvd was just released.

And the good folks who brought us the Buffy sing-along (yes, I've attended this, if you're wondering) will soon bring us a Xanadu sing-along.

I also heard that Olivia Newton-John just got married.

Wow, this has been quite the exciting week for Xanadu enthusiasts.

ESD#51: shahhhks

On a rather tedious road trip, I once read aloud to E Michael Crichton's short piece of non-fiction "Sharks" from the book Travels. Just to annoy E, each time I read the word "shark" I pronounced it with a thick Boston accent: "shahhhk."

I realize we do this kind of thing a lot, often when we're a little punchy from, say, a long road trip. Like this past weekend, while driving through Maine, E insisted that his favorite song on the ipod was Band of Horses' "No One's Gonna Love You," only because I think the song's stupid. He played it on repeat, sincerely closed his eyes while singing, did his dumb dance, hummed it in the parking lot of Market Basket. What a punk.

Low's coming to Boston!!!

via Brooklyn Vegan:

Low's playing the MFA in September! Yeehaw! Plus Sigur Ros the week before and the Dodos the week after that.

The Fall will be good for music, indeed.

ESD#50: blade runner

E and I saw Blade Runner last night at the Brattle. I had never seen it. Now I'm inspired to finally read a Philip Dick novel (since I aspire to be Jonathan Lethem). Afterwards we went to Shay's for a beer on the patio and were freaked out to see a little dove hanging from the tree next to us. It was as though Roy's soul had followed us from the theater to the bar. So I made E take a photo:

Roy and his dove / soul:

E and his dove / soul:

ESD#49: maine

E and I spent July 4th in Boothbay Harbor, Maine with my folks. Boothbay footbridge:


The town is a total tourist trap, but has cute things list rock skipping contests (note the benefits of participating include trophies, candy and FAME)...


...and bears...


...and community bands! Check out the kick ass percussion section:


Oh, you want video, too?

E dancing to the hot beats:


Finally got to use my camera's fireworks setting:


We stopped by Marshall Point, one of my favorite places in the world.


I took some glamor shots of E:


Then we managed to find a sandy beach in Pemaquid. Cute place!


See all my photos here.

Last Night's Concert: Frightened Rabbit

E and I went to another show, and I reviewed it here: Frightened Rabbit and Oxford Collapse at TT the Bear's. It was our first time at TT's. I thought the space was good, but the sound was pretty bad. E missed the entire Frightened Rabbit set, because he was picking up a friend from the airport.

I kind of hate it when people say you'll never be able to see so-and-so band at [insert small concert venue] again, because it sounds like they just want bragging rights. But I'm gonna say it. Frightened Rabbit's gonna blow up. Their new album's awesome.

I put one song from each band on my muxtape, too.

I made you a mix-tape #7

Anticipating some upcoming roof deck parties, I've made some summer mixes. I updated my muxtape with some of my favorite tracks from the mixes. I tried to keep it all new stuff from the past few months, but there are a couple 2007 tracks. Here's the track list:

The Dodos - Fools
Mobius Band - Friends Like These
Evangelicals - Skeleton Man
Frightened Rabbit - Head Rolls Off
Santogold - Creator
LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
Oxford Collapse - Please Visit Your National Parks
Pomegranates - Thunder Meadow
Sigur Ros - Gobbledigook
Lykke Li - Dance Dance Dance
The Acorn - Low Gravity
Wheat - What Everyone Keeps Telling Me

Eddie Veddar solo show in Boston

The only time in my life that I've been star struck was when I saw Eddie Vedder perform solo at a 2000 Nader Rally (why does this story keep popping up on my blog)? Well, he's playing a solo show at the Opera House in Boston with Liam Finn. This is ridiculous. I can't wait.

P.S. If you google image search "eddie vedder msg nader rally" my face shows up from this blog. Hilarious and oh so meta.

Menomena's muxtape of b-sides

Just discovered that Menomena posted a muxtape with various b-sides and rarities. It's pretty awesome. That is, if you like Menomena.

Philip Glass

I've developed an inexplicable obsession with Philip Glass. Today I bought the sheet music to Metamorphosis I-V and Madrush. Now all I need is a piano. I'm dying to play. I think I may be getting over this whole indie rock phase and moving on to strictly classical.

This piece kills me:

Low: You May Need a Murderer

I rarely read Pitchfork, as I find it all way too pedantic, patronizing, pejorative, [insert disparaging p-word here], but I occasionally do so for album reviews. Their My Brightest Diamond review is quite p-pitiful, further p-prompting my p-proclivity to read elsewhere. However, I'm glad I read it, because they linked to a live performance of the ukulele piece "The Gentlest Gentleman" I mentioned in my review of their Berklee show. This particular video was in New York and sung with Clare from Clare and the Reasons. The song starts around 2 minutes. How beautiful is Shara Worden, might I add?



The other reason I'm thrilled I went over there is that I saw an ad for a DVD about Low (!) called "Low: You May Need a Murderer." You can see a clip on Pitchfork TV. I'd love to check it out, but I guess I should watch "A Skin, A Night" about the National first. Though this looks far more interesting. How beautiful is Alan Sparhawk, might I add?

time capsule!

[Photo from Boston Globe]

This is so awesome. Fortunately there was nothing culturally offensive in there, as E and I had feared. Yeah, Roxbury!

buy your Sigur Ros album today!

Sigur Ros' Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust comes out today, so I'll be at Newbury Comics during my lunch hour making some purchases. It's been streaming at their website for awhile now, but you can now also stream it at AOL Spinner.





Since this blog used to be about Wu-Tang (sort of), I should mention that RZA's new album is streaming over there, too.







Regarding other new releases, My Brightest Diamond's A Thousand Shark's Teeth is phenomenal. We saw them play at Berklee last Friday, and I wrote a review. Shara Worden's music is even better live.

things I love: music and life edition

This past week was A+ for many, many reasons, but most importantly, because the Celtics won the mutha flippin' NBA championship! I'd like to dedicate a whole post to the long history of my basketball fandom, but I'll save that for another day. Here are some ridiculous photos of E and I celebrating on our roof deck after watching Game 6 at Drew and Jes' house. Word of warning: do not drink mystery green Celtics punch, like we did (witness the green tongues). We were a mess the next morning. I missed the parade, which went right by my office, because I was on a conference call. I'm still bitter.

In music news, most importantly, I HAVE PRE-SALE SIGUR ROS TIX FOR SEPTEMBER!!! I'm so excited, I'm bursting at the seams. They went on sale at 9am the day after the parade disappointment, and I was a nervous wreck as I couldn't get through and had another flippin' meeting at 9:30. Sure enough, 9:30 came and I still hadn't gotten through. I led the fastest, most efficient meeting of all time, tried again at 10am, when I finally did get through despite the sold out claim on the website.

Last week, I bought three albums at Newbury Comics. They're all fantastic (but I knew that before buying them).

1. The Dodos - Visiter
[website] [myspace]

2. Evangelicals - The Evening Descends (missed their Middle East show Friday, as I was at another show)
[myspace]
exemplary mp3: "Skeleton Man"

3. Chris Garneau - Music for Tourists
[website] [myspace]

Overheard at Newbury Comics:

Cashier: My friend told me I'd like Chris Garneau.
Chick with 3 cds in hand: Yeah, it's kind of sleepy, breathy... like Sufjan Stevens, but not as... BIG?

And that, my friends, is why I should not try to write about music. Yet, I continue to do so, as I wrote a review for the My Brightest Diamond show at Berklee (should be up soon [Ed-here it is.]). The show was awesome. Two Asthmatic Kitty shows in two weeks (Cryptacize before)! Like I said, it was a great week.

Josh Joplin's "Camera One"

Do you remember this song? I keep on finding music I used to listen to around 2000-2001, but haven't since. This was one such artist. Here's Josh Joplin's "Camera One." Joplin's playing at Club Passim this Sunday.

Doves to finish new album by end of summer

From the Doves' website:

Hi all,
Sorry not been any word from us for a while, but there's been no real news here apart from our usual writing / recording. Rest assured we are working all the time and not just in the pub or hoovering the garage!
We aim to have this record finished by the end of summer, songs are already starting to be mixed.
STOP PRESS!! news just in
We might be treading those boards again this Sept with a couple of UK gigs, nothings confirmed yet and we cant give you details, but you'll be the first to know when things are going to happen (we are gonna try and work out some free tickets for the faithfull on doves.net) it'll be great to step out into the outside world again and play some of these new songs live.
As ever thanks for you're patience and hopefully see you soon
Andy, Jez and Jimi
x

Which makes my Doves' countdown (over there ----->) even more stupid, but I'm keeping it up anyway! Can't wait!

Pomegranates, Cryptacize (live), midnight bike ride

E and I saw Cryptacize at the Middle East Upstairs on Wednesday. We had a great time, though it was kind of a weird night. I'll explain in my review, which will hopefully be up soon. [Ed.-here it is.] Here are some stinky photos.


Ben & Vesper


Spitzer Space Telescope


So what else has been keeping me out until all hours of the night? Oh, how 'bout those Celtics?! That's right, not only am I now a wholehearted Red Sox fan, but I also love the Celtics. This series has been incredible, especially Thursday night. You should hear these Boston sports radio guys go off on L.A. Two things they particularly despise: 1) celebrity fans, and 2) European players--quite reflective of Boston's odd mix of despising pretensions yet harboring latent racism.

What else? How 'bout riding my bike 30 miles in the dark on a Friday night? Yep, it was the second annual Justin birthday bike ride on the Minuteman Trail. This time, there were about 30 of us, including some SCUL friends. We had a nice soundtrack of Vivaldi, Jello Biafra, new wave synth pop [Ed.-I googled it, and we were listening to early Ministry, before they turned into an industrial metal band. And now this is my favorite new (old) album.] and thrasher metal. Good times. Here are some photos.

Birthday couple.


Brett and Ben.


Gratuitous bike shot.


See all the photos here.

Finally, I've been listening to a lot of Pomegranates lately. In theory, you can stream their new album here, but I can't get it to work. I was first introduced to them when they opened for the French Kicks in Boston a couple months ago. The more I think about it, they were the best part of that night.

E published in The Believer (sort of)!!!

What a lovely surprise to open up The Believer this evening and see none other than my husband in the Letters to the Editor! A woman living in our neighborhood (whom we know) also had a letter published regarding the same article.

E wrote in regards to Eula Biss' "No-Man's-Land," a piece relating Little House on the Prairie and the pioneer concept to quickly gentrifying neighborhoods. Both E and I were quite moved by the piece, as we relate to issues we see in our own neighborhood. I certainly gave the piece a few careful reads. E even wrote a personal e-mail to the author, and they had a very thoughtful exchange. She invited us for coffee if we're ever in Chicago (hmm... maybe that Amtrak trip I've been planning?).

Here's what he wrote:

"It was a delight to read such profound honesty found in "No-Man's-Land." When parsing a piece of classic literature, in this case the pioneer tales of Laura Ingalls Wilder, contemporary readers are in danger of making connections and observations simply for ironic amusement. Yet Biss skillfully used the frontier stories to unmask questions from her daily life. This allows the reader close access to the tensions she experiences as an outsider to her Chicago neighborhood. We should be so bold to follow her example, probing stated and unstated motivations for where we live. What is valued most? Safety, proximity to parks, public transportation, home size? In offering her experiences, Biss lets us consider the pioneer attitude of folks who move into "bad areas" and those who make room for the newcomers. Gentrification may be a four-letter word, but is is a cultural process that has and will continue to shape the American urban landscape."

Mobius Band's "Friends Like These"

This video makes me giggle. It's also a great song. Mobius Band's "Friends Like These":



Awhile back, I wrote a review of the Cut Copy + Black Kids + Mobius Band concert at the Paradise. It never got posted, so here's what I wrote about Mobius Band.

Mobius Band is three Brooklyn lads with a sound that's heavy on the bass, drums and synthesizer. The lead singer plays the bass, so they're a lot like the Police. OK, that last part was a joke, but I've read such asinine things about this show line-up (like Youngblood of Black Kids sounds like Robert Smith!?), that I thought I'd add fuel to the ass-clown fire. In fact, Mobius Band sounds a lot like fellow-New Yorkers French Kicks with they're drum jams, mix of vocal styles and synth touches. But since I recently saw French Kicks perform, I'd say that live, as compared with the former, Mobius Band is a lot more goofy and lighthearted and a lot less pretentious.

Switching up lead vocals are Peter on bass and Ben on guitar/synthesizer: Peter with a droning, twangy style and Ben with a more melodic, dreamy tone. Live, they serve as nice counterpoints, exhibited in their two most popular singles, the danceable “Friends Like These,” with Peter on lead, and “Hallie,” with Ben on lead. Notably, despite the fact that this seemed to be the crowd's first exposure to Mobius Band, these were the only two songs that inspired dancing (or, frankly, general interest)--and this was a crowd ready to dance, as proven later in the evening. So Mobius Band picked their singles well.

Sigur Ros, G. Love, Cryptacize, post-grunge

What's not to love about Cryptacize?

After being such crazy rock stars for awhile, E and I haven't been to a show in three weeks! Thus, I'm pumped to see Cryptacize this Wednesday at the Middle East Upstairs. Just in time, Saint Sufjan himself wrote a nice piece on them for the Asthmatic Kitty website. If I could write half as well as that man, I'd be happy.

In other tour news, Sigur Ros is playing the BOA Pavilion on 9/19 (thanks, Brad!)! Bring the tissues for when they play "Ára bátur," my current favorite song off the new album. If you don't tear up when the orchestra swells at the climax, you likely don't have a soul. This show will totally make up for the fact that we're not going to Radiohead (I wouldn't let E buy tickets, and now I'm regretting it).

G. Love and Special Sauce are playing the Pavilion 8/14. Should we go for the sake of high school nostalgia? [Ed.-E just read this and said "no way." So I guess we're too cool for G. Love now. Once you've seen Dirty Projectors, you don't go back.] Man, I have so many good memories of Philly G. Love shows--the best of course being New Year's 2000, when we all awaited the apocalypse by making out on stage. OK, I wasn't making out, but I was there with E, about a year and a half before we started dating. You know, it's kind of embarrassing to admit it, but I've definitely seen G. Love live more than any other artist (probably four times? maybe five?).

Oh, you know what's even more embarrassing? I think I saw The Verve Pipe three times back in the day. Ha! In my defense, of all the shitty post-grunge bands of 1996-2000, Verve Pipe had some good qualities. I did some post-grunge research the other day, and discovered Brian Vander Ark's website (anyone want to book a house show?). My research also produced this sad little fact: Sponge and Marcy's Playground are playing a Carnival Cruise. Remember back then when everyone thought rock was over and Prodigy and Chemical Brothers were going to usher in a new era of electronica music? Wow. Glad we were wrong about that. Though I did buy "The Saint" Soundtrack to prepare myself.

stream Sigur Ros

Too amazing for words.

ESD#48: BRASILLLLL!!!!!

And now this space has turned into a photo blog. Why not?

Last night E and I went to the Brazil vs. Venezuela soccer game at Foxboro.


We had a blast, despite some logistical nightmares (like E not realizing the game was Friday until a neighbor on the street asked him, "Aren't you going to the game tonight?"--thanks, Kyle!).


To put it mildly, E was excited about the game.


OK, let's make that ecstatic about the game.


Stinkin' Pats!


The game was preceded by the Revolution vs. Dallas game, of which we caught the last fifteen minutes. Obviously the Revolution would win, because they have the far superior uniforms. Seriously, isn't this jersey crazy hot (well, the font's a little lame, but the cut's great)?

[original source]

We were up 2-0, but Dallas scored exactly at 90 minutes, and the Revolution looked like they were dying, so the following couple of minutes were kind of nail biting--just blow the whistle already! In the end, we won 2-1. Here are the highlights.

The goalie Matt Reis is a total beast. He had a career high 10 saves that night, and we saw some pretty phenomenal ones. He got a standing ovation when he left the field.


Exhibit phenomenal save:

[original source]

As Reis said in the highlight interview, obviously not everyone was there for the Revolution. Major understatement! We went to a game a few years ago, and the stadium was maybe 1/8 full?

We were hard pressed to find any Venezuelan fans. Can you spot one? I can't!


Everyone stood up for the pre-game pump up songs. Due to our love of Gob and "Arrested Development," our favorite was "The Final Countdown." As E said, that song works in any language. I can testify that I've heard it multiple times in Mexico. Check out E dancing on the left of the frame.


And here's the chorus!


I like this video of "We Will Rock You" because the cute little boys in front of us have really bad rhythm.


Brazil takes the field! The crowd goes wild!


Warm-ups.


Brazil national anthem. You can hear E singing the lyrics "pan de queijo," his favorite Brazilian pastry.


The Brazilian fans were awesome. One lady had a Brazilian flag painted on her big pregnant belly-can't believe I didn't get a photo! I've spent a lot of time with Brazilians so I'm always interested in cultural differences. Soccer definitely introduced me to some new ones. For example, some of the crowd's responses were confusing. After Venezuela scored their first goal (at five minutes, ugh), the crowd started a pump up chant, clearly saying, "No problem! We'll get 'em back!" But then at halftime, when we were down 2-0, they booed the team when they went to the locker room, as though to say, "Step it up, losers!" E also pointed out that the Brazilians probably weren't happy with the condiments at the snack bar, because we've never seen a Brazilian eat ketchup. When the game was over, and Brazil lost 2-0, people were surprisingly in great spirits. I chalk it up to a fun night celebrating nationalism, but who knows.

Random field shots (that first one was taken near the end of the night, so it had cleared out a bit).