Where I find new music: Part 6 - concerts

Well this sounds a little backward doesn't it ? Don't we only go to concerts by musicians we already know and like ?  Sure we do, but we may not always know all their material or perhaps the constant playing by our spouse has numbed our senses and we've lost our appreciation for their art. We may also stumble on a opening band that are new to us or we've only heard a small sample of their material.

I'll start with the later as an example.  I like the bad Travis.  I was never a huge fan, but went with the gang to see them live a few years ago.  This year, their lead singer Fran Healey released a solo album which has been getting pretty constant spousal airtime around the house.  In both occasions, I loved their live performances and has made me want to listen more attentively to their music.  Actually, now I've re-listened to Fran Healy's latest album, it sounds quite different to the bare bones acoustic performance (my preference) on Friday night.  However, his beautiful lyrics haven't changed.

I saw Elbow open for Coldplay a few years ago.  They had a few UK hits, but I didn't know a lot of their older material.  They put on a fantastic show, perhaps one of the best openers I've ever seen and as soon as I got home, I downloaded a few older tracks and listened with a new ear to songs I'd passed on the first time around.

And finally, there are the total surprises.  These are often smaller bands or local talent that I see opening for old timers or hot acts from the UK or US.  Some of these finds include: Carney who opened for The Boxer Rebellion; Von Iva who opened for Glasvegas; Diane Birch who opened for Mat Kearney; and our favourite local lads, We Are The Take who opened for fellow Canadians The Waking Eyes and The Arkells.