August 2nd, 2003
What a very special show for lowfive. Lots of firsts. When those adorable bastards known as The Match had to cancel on account of "swollen wisdom teeth", we had to come up with a plan. Lucky for them that "adorable bastards" are much more amiable than bastards of the regular variety. With only hours before showtime, and lacking a band, Gabe, Ian, and myself decided we would try an acoustic set. In theory this was going to be great - the church we rented had a piano, ian has fancy soft sticks, and gabe has an acoustic guitar. on top of that, Jess can play the violin. And Tracy was going to be at the show (she sang "It always snows...." on our old album). There were so many cool things we could have practiced and done well.
But then Sparky* the van (*not actually named Sparky), decided to go and overheat the entire ride to portland. And on top of THAT, we got there late, couldn't practice, and nobody was showing up for the show!! The bands were there in good spirits, and after we explained what was going on with the lineup changes, 3/5 of Lowfive started playing. Literally playing, or that's what it seemed like. It was so weird hearing the songs all stripped down and empty like that, to the complete silence of the 2 dozen people in attendance. on top of that, i was in the corner of the hall on a piano with my back to the audience and my face to the piano - unable to see gabe or ian.
We naively started our set with our normal rockers (Lie Down With Dogs), so it seemed like the experiment was going to be a failure. However, after 10 minutes or so of settling in, and the gradual progression to our softer material, things were starting to gel. Also, mixmaster Fiery Jay was starting to get the levels right, both for the house mix and for our monitors. By the end of the set, i think we were actually sounding really good, and people were actually enjoying themselves. Of note: we played "It Always Snows When You're Here" for the first time EVER live. For those who don't know, Gabe wrote it on the crapper one day during the recording of "Paths..", and came down to the basement and recorded it. Never to be played again.... or so we thought!!
I think a Lowfive acoustic set will be really good if we get a chance to work on it a little bit. I hope to do it again in the future, so anybody who missed that action may get another chance! Plus we'll try to work in those extras (although Jess DID play the violin during our set... from the back of the hall.) Tracy was videotaping, but she ran out of batteries or tape of something - HOW IS THAT FOR BEING CANADIAN!?!!? My good God.
Anyhoo, after us, Portland's The Leftovers went on. They too were featuring some missing members, but unlike us, they got substitute players. Also unlike us, they totally switched around their lineup to accommodate. They are great sports, and although the set was pretty loose, i do want to play with the REAL lineup in the future.
Next up was By Chance all the way from PROVIDENCE RHODE ISLAND! For those of you who don't know, Rhode Island is a small island off of the coast of Newfoundland Canada, and is the half brother of Easter Island. Special thanks to those guys for making the trip all the way up, and then ROCKING THE HOUSE OF GOD on top of that. Well done, By Chance. And best yet: those guys are great guys too! They helped us tear down, and even wanted a group photo. Gold stars.
Lastly, Kid Named Ferocious, from Massachusetts played their songs. They're a new indie rock band that you have to listen to. And i recommend doing it by way of their HILARIOUS website. These guys will start smoking if they keep at it. We'll have them back up in maine with a quickness so you can see them. Unvicariously.
Anyway, small turnout, best show. Great bands, best attitudes. Most fun in a while. Weird sentences. OH. Sean Higgins came to this show. He cut his hand in the van.
/caleb
SETLIST
coming soon....
