Disappointment

Wow, how young are Operator Please? My age-shock was already in full swing, hitting a gig for a band which has been "immortalised" on the OC (I have shudders when I think about some drunk idiot lurching around on the TV, stumbling up to his friends and slurring 'Hey, It's Modest Mouse!'). Anyway, my age-schock could only be intensified when Operator Please took the stage. Their drummer looks about twelve years old. I'm sure most of the band wouldn't have been allowed in the venue if they hadn't been playing.

Nevertheless, what they may have lacked in hard, lying-in-the-gutter-bleeding-from-the-heart-because-your-significant-other-has-just-told-you-they're-not-only-lesbian-but-have-been-sleeping-with-your-sister-for-twelve-months life experience (and can't we all relate to that?) they more than made up for with enthusiasm. And volume!

Modest Mouse, on the other hand, seemed to be going through the motions. Isaac Brock is clearly sick of playing the same old tunes for the ten millionth time, and would have much preferred it this particular evening, if the Engineer had just whacked Good News For People Who Love Bad News on the PA so he could have a good lie down. They started late, they finished by eleven thirty... No chance of a second encore.

A disappointing gig for which I'd waited a long time. Since I came to Modest Mouse a little late (think "very late"), I was hoping for the same intensity they show both on "Good News..." as well as their earlier albums. A depressing indication of what popularity can do to a group, and an extra spur (in case I needed one) to see bands when they're still in the "small venue" stage.

Photo credit

Mouse by TheGiantVermin. (cc 2.0) by-nc-nd