New Live Destroyer Videos - "Foam Hands," "Rivers"
Reader Paul writes in:
I was at two Destroyer shows last week - one in Calgary Alberta (June 28) at the Sled Island festival (which was really fucking good) and one in Edmonton (June 29). The Calgary show happened in a church, where Dan played solo, and unveiled two new songs - a song called "Foam Hands" and a song called "Rivers" (at least that what the set list said it was called, though Dan's writing is atrocious). The quality of the video is pretty good - front row. The shit in the background - the Elephant and the "cone" were for Chad VanGaalen's set (which, like most of his sets, was made up of entirely new songs, likely written the morning of the show).Oh, that Chad! He probably drew that elephant in his bedroom, too. Anyway, scene appropriately set, here's the impossibly cool Bejar ballad "Foam Hands"...
So good. "Rivers," MP3 links, and one more newbie after the jump.
"Rivers" sees Dan go into familiar melodies and cadences, recalling "Painter In Your Pocket" after the fuzz box stomp. Quite stylish.
Paul's gone the extra mile, ripping MP3s for your PMP of choice -- "Foam Hands" here and "Rivers here. And here's his vid of Dan's gig at Edmonton's Starlight Room: don't know the title, but Dan called it a "bluesy number," and clearly he's getting his Dylan on. Not great quality. You're so gonna watch anyway.
Posted at 2:21 PM in Video
Tags: Destroyer
damn... i'm from calgary but moved away a couple years ago. i missed sled island, but i heard it was great.
thanks for the clip!
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i was at the calgary show, crazy to see this on stereogum! "foam hands" is such a sweet song though.
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The Constantines owned Sled Island. After hearing about five new songs there's a good chance this new album will be their best yet.
"Foam Hands" does rule.
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man, I tell ya what... every time I hear this guy, it sounds like he is improvising just absolute bullshit lyrics.. I know thats harsh, but... does anyone else hear just total ranodm improv when Dan Bejar is singing? It reminds me of the guy you knew in high school who would always grab an acoustic guitar and just kinda randomly sing made up shit at parties over Don Maclean's "American Pie"
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Admittedly, I have lost interest in Stereogum during the past six months, but I do appreciate their love of Dan Bejar. They stumped for him during their Best Albums last year, and now the fanboy post of these clips draws me back a little closer.
And, the Mp3s of Roddy Woomble were great too.
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Are you guys on crack? I work at the Starlite, and Friday's show was one of the worst I've seen in a long time... Bejar was beyond hammered, to the point where he could barely play... 15 minutes into the show and people were heading for the exits.
I can't remember the last time I've been so disappointed by a live performance.
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maybe so, jf, but "foam hands" is undeniably awesome.
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every single person for whom i've ever played Destroyer loves it right away, even the least likely people
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Fuck, that Calgary show was incredible. I was like 5 rows away from him, and was mesmerized. When he got him on stage for an encore, he said something like, "You guys just screwed yourselves out of an intermission."
He also said at one point, "You guys know Lake Bonavista?", and the crowd cheered. Then he simply said, "I went fishing there...". Everyone was expecting a story but we all just laughed, and he said, "What? I wasn't trying to make a joke! I went fishing there"
My friend also said his friend wanted to get something autographed and Dan Bejar just drew penises all over it, haha.
Fuck, what a cool guy. I hope he comes back!
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@JF: Yeah, that Edmonton show was a lot worse, though I wouldn't say it was that bad... I think there were a lot of things going on there, most notably the worst bar crowd I have ever had the displeasure of seeing a concert with. With the Lou Barlow freakout a few weeks ago, there is just something about that place...
The Calgary show was night and day: he was totally sober, and sounded really tight. Plus, the acoustics in that building, the reverence of the crowd... it was a once in a lifetime show.
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@Paul: It's a chicken-egg thing though, isn't it? I mean, was the performance shitty because the crowd was disinterested, or was it the other way around? One of the big problems was the fact that a lot of people there thought he'd have a band with him - it certainly wasn't promoted as a solo show...
I still like his albums, but I don't think I'd pay to see him again.
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I saw maybe half of his show in Ottawa. Not only was it horrendous, but on top of it the guy came off as a huge asshole. A backing band MIGHT have improved things but i doubt it. It'd be hard to rock away the suck. Also, the guy sounds like he's trying to imitate Bob Dylan when he sings. Which is a horrible choice for vocal inspiration. Just sayin'
>>He also said at one point, "You guys know Lake Bonavista?", and the crowd cheered. Then he simply said, "I went fishing there...". Everyone was expecting a story but we all just laughed, and he said, "What? I wasn't trying to make a joke! I went fishing there"<<
Yeah he definitly pulled a similar thing in Ottawa as well. What a witty guy.
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>>Yeah he definitly pulled a similar thing in Ottawa as well. What a witty guy.<<
Who cares if he makes bad conversation with the crowd? The Calgary show was incredible; probably one of the best I've seen in a while.
He also said something like, "I would have had the boys out tonight, but Foam Hands sounds so good solo"
You can hear the obnoxious crowd in the Edmonton recording. Who wouldn't be turned off to play to that crowd?
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uhh, the constantines owned Sled Island?! The constantines are here every 6 months, you know. The Boredoms was the most incredible show of my life. I've seen the constantines about a half dozen times, I like them and all, but it was about 1/64,000 as good as the Boredoms. The fact that Zack (dude who owns Broken City and started the festival) got the likes of the Boredoms said a lot for the credibility of the festival. Apparently they were thinking they were going to lose money on it, but considering how nearly every big show sold out (and sold out at big $$$ ticket prices), it may have just turned a profit. who knows.
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this is awesome... all the calgarians are packed in here. i never thought i'd read 'lake bonavista' on stereogum.
i heard spoon was the best set of the festival. any witnesses?
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i saw the ottawa show as well.. i'm a big destroyer fan, but if that show was any indication of his live work, i will not be paying to see him again.
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Destroyer and the Boredoms were highlights. Skipped out on Les Savy Fav, but I heard people enjoyed it. I'm also a pretty big Spoon fan, so their set was what I expected although the people I went with weren't as impressed.
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Spoon was like the sixth best show of the festival...
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The Boredoms was one of the craziest, best shows I've ever seen. I talked to a couple of people who were a little underwhelmed with the Spoon show - glad I was on the floor for the White Stripes instead.
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