Monday 11 April 2011

Toad the Wet Sprocket: not really All I Want from a reunion gig

The 9:30 Club
Over the weekend, Hank and I splashed out on tickets to see old-school rocksters, Toad The Wet Sprocket at the 9:30 Club; you remember Toad from the early 90s, right?


We'd been warned that Toad had not released anything for ages and might be a bit lame.  The truth is, when I go to rock gigs at this point in my life I want two things:


1.  A place to sit down because Lord knows I do not want to stand for three hours
2.  To hear the songs for which the band is well known, not some experimental "new songs".

I would even go so far as to say I HATE it when band reunion tours consists of the group trying out new material on the audience who have paid crazy money to stand all night.  Like a wrinkly Status Quo fan,  I want to know the words!  I want to sing along!  I want to be reminded of the 90s again! 

Toad are still an awesome band.  But I didn't get a seat all night and as the end of the set approached, they'd played just three songs from their legendary Pale album before my feet hurt so much I made Hank take me home.  The playlist included a disappointing rendition of All I Want, one of the most beautiful songs of all time.  Clearly they are bored of the song, from the album which propelled them to international success.  The performance was simultaneously uninspiring and overzealous - too much drum drowning out the lead singer's iconic baritone.  Why do bands become so resentful of the very thing which made their success possible?  Ah well.  Next time I will stay home and listen to the Pale CD while seated comfortably on my couch.

3 comments:

  1. Is it just me who has never heard of 'Toad the Wet Sprocket'? Are you joking with me? Really? I'd love to know the story of how a band got a name like that! Yank

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  2. Call yourself Yank? Shame on you if you don't know Toad! They were number one for five weeks or something in the early 90s with All I Want. The band's name is apparently from "one of Eric Idle's playful and satirical Python monologues (Rock Notes)." So now you know!

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  3. Hi darlin - I don't think I told you that I read your blog, but I do, and I love it! This song will always remind me of my clock radio waking me up at 6AM in high school - it was on the radio every morning! "Yank" up there must have been using a buzzer alarm :)

    Get together next week or so?

    Mrs. Michel

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