I go to concerts like some teenagers go to the mall. I’ve hit 113 shows this year and may even hit one or two more. I’m not as prolific as say the dude from Chromewaves or Atlanta staple Kenny Crucial, but I’ve gotten around. I’ve been able to narrow my favorites to a top 20. By the way, I know I’m not the world’s best photographer – forgive my less than professional looking attempts at gig shots (Chris in Warwick, RI, that means you, too!)
1) The Dismemberment Plan @ The Black Cat, Washington, DC: 4/27 & 4/28. Yes, that’s two shows and basically cheating but they were the two shows I never thought I’d get the chance to see. It’d be my luck to get into the band that would define my college years and become my favorite in the year that they were breaking up and aside from the emotional impact, their live show was everything my friends had ever said it was and more.
2) Daft Punk@ Keyspan Park, Brooklyn, NY: 8/9. My friend looked at me when they went on and said, “This is never going to happen again.” We felt like we’d been rocked for three or four solid hours when in fact the robots?/humans?/aliens? in the pyramid had only been working their magic for 90 minutes.
3) The Arcade Fire/LCD Soundsystem/Blonde Redhead/Les Savy Fav @ Randall’s Island, New York, NY: 10/6. It was everything that my first Arcade Fire show should’ve been in terms of the energy ranging over that large field. James Murphy was gold (as were the guest appearances by various members of Arcade Fire and The Rapture among others). Blonde Redhead was the band that surprised everyone. Unfortunately the power that Les Savy Fav has in a crowded room was lost on this crowd which is too bad since they remain one of my favorite live acts.
4) Gogol Bordello @ The Fillmore at Irving Plaza, New York, NY: 7/20. Picture the last show you’ve been to where the front of the room by the stage is losing its head and going stir crazy. Now picture that spread across the entire floor and you’ve touched the tip of th iceberg.
5) The Rapture @ The Masquerade, Atlanta, GA: 1/27. They didn’t play a dud the entire set. It felt like every single song was the most exciting surprise of the night up until Olio when Luke Jenner, who had owned the stage like it was his own personal dance party did a stage dive over us all and then stayed onstage afterward until every last straggler had left.
6) Ted Leo & The Pharmacists @ 9:30 Club, Washington, DC: 12/8. The man gives 200% every time he gets onstage but this final show of his tour was over and above even a regular performance as he broke out with the rarely played but well-loved “Ballad of the Sin Eater” and broke his guitar. The crowd wasn’t leaving without a second encore so he had to do “Dirty Old Town” a capella.
7) The Hold Steady/Art Brut/1990s @ 9:30 Club, Washington, DC: 11/20. Craig Finn looked like the most joyful, excited person who had ever graced the stage of the 9:30 Club. And he earned my respect by actually rocking out to the entirety of Art Brut’s set. Their kitsch may get tired over the course of an album but Eddie Argos rivals Travis Morrison for most entertaining banterer of the year.
8 ) Pitchfork Music Festival @ Union Park, Chicago, IL: 7/13, 7/14 & 7/15. Another cheating trick because it means that I get to lump Sonic Youth, Of Montreal, Stephen Malkmus, The Klaxons, Slint, Voxtrot, The Twilight Sad, Junior Boys, De La Soul, Clipse, Menomena, Fujiya & Miyagi and Professor Murder all into one place. Of Montreal in Atlanta probably would’ve inhabited this place by themselves had I not gone to Chicago.
9) M.I.A. @ 9:30 Club, Washington, DC: 11/29. I’d seen her in New York in July but at the time Kala hadn’t even been leaked, much less released and being in a rather large pit of photographers meant the energy just wasn’t there like it was in DC when she invited people onstage for 10 Dollar.
10) Bloc Party/The Noisettes/Annuals @ Millennium Center, Winston-Salem, NC: 6/2. The Annuals (who I saw the most times this year) put on the set of their lives making it hard for the feral Noisettes and applause-hungry Bloc Party to follow. But Bloc Party put on a set that was 90% perfect…making the two “grab a beer here” songs forgivable. Especially since they broke out the second drum kit for “Sunday.”
11) The Go! Team @ 9:30 Club, Washington, DC: 10/30. I don’t think I’ve ever danced so much in my life. How Ninja could completely out-dance us all and still belt out the songs is beyond me.
12) Manu Chao/Thievery Corporation @ Merriweather Post, Columbia, MD: 6/23. My concert buddy for this show still gets comments of “dude, NO fair” when he tells people that he saw both of these acts on the same stage.
13) Mission of Burma @ The EARL, Atlanta, GA: 1/13. The way to start out the concert-going year with a proverbial (and literal) bang. With a guest appearance by Pylon’s Vanessa Briscoe. That was a pretty sweet welcoming to Atlanta.
14) Rufus Wainwright/Neko Case @ The Tabernacle, Atlanta, GA: 8/13. I already knew that Neko Case’s performance would leave me in a special place but when she said that Rufus Wainwright would be amazing…she wasn’t kidding. I think the word I’m looking for here is fabulous.
15) The White Stripes @ The Cannery Ballroom, Nashville, TN: 5/18. The best actual road trip of the year – and finally getting to see the band in a SMALL venue like I’d meant to do during their Elephant tour.
16) The Black Lips @ Lenny’s, Atlanta, GA: 4/12. Poorly ventilated club. Check. Flying half full beer cans. Check. Cole Alexander releasing his spit all over the audience. Roger. The kind of gritty yet powerful garage rock that actually makes this kind of show worthwhile. Oh hell yes.
17) Okkervil River @ Rock and Roll Hotel, Washington, DC: 9/30. The band was sick. Will Sheff’s voice actually cracked at the end of the encore. But the energy of an overpacked room revived them and when every single member of the band is singing every single word…it’s something special.
18) Decemberists @ The Tabernacle, Atlanta, GA: 4/6. It shouldn’t have been any surprise that a band with a flair for the dramatic would put on such a spectacular live show – but it was a most pleasant one.
19) TV on the Radio @ Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA: 4/13. The fact that it was a very Young Liars-heavy set made me almost as happy as seeing the Noisettes come out to add extra percussion for “The Method.”
20) Deerhunter @ The Drunken Unicorn, Atlanta, GA: 5/5. I missed their insanely crazy performance at Lenny’s a month earlier, but the off-kilter energy in that intimate venue complete with a pipe-climbing guitarist saved what would’ve otherwise been a disappointing night (for reasons that had nothing to do with Deerhunter.)
Honorable Mentions: Band of Horses, The National, The Evens, Andrew Bird, Jens Lekman, Girl Talk
Val’s A-list (The coolest people that I met) : Luke Jenner (The Rapture), Jesse Sandoval (The Shins), Brian Whelan (The Broken West), Ian St. Pe (The Black Lips), Robbie Guertin (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah), Everyone from Elvis Perkins in Dearland, Amanda Kapousouz (Tin Cup Prophette), Jason Caddell & Eric Axelson (The Dismemberment Plan), Jim Eno (Spoon), Shingai Shoniwa and Dan Smith (The Noisettes), Jason Chronis (Voxtrot), Adam Rizer (Oxford Collapse), Joe Posner (Get Him Eat Him), Everyone from Gist, Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), Merideth Munoz & Erik Bruner-Yang (Pash), Jay Smith (Middle Distance Runner), Carol Bui.
To all the bands I saw – thanks for a great year in live music and I can’t wait for ‘08!
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hahaha I didn’t know Kenny had a website. That’s awesome.
How I envy you
, I just got around to see a few concerts this year, but man how you’ve compensated 
. Great shots and tastes 
I’d love to see more shows.. but my favourite bands rarely visit the country I study in
nice list…. you saw some great shows! (and your gig photos are better than mine. for whatever that’s worth…)
wow – 113 concerts! and I thought I got around! But I did see Manu Chao perform in LA – a-mazing! and the album got a lot of nice end of year recognitions, like being named one of top 10 by Time mag!
dayala – i was lucky enough to see manu at coachella – amazing!!! his website is all over the place – http://www.manuchao.net