Posted by Kevin Miao

Live Review: Dispatch @ Boston, MA’s Agganis Arena (10/06)

Bands: Dispatch, Good Old War
Location: Boston, Massachusetts’s Agganis Arena
Date: October 6, 2012
All pictures by Avery Fiftal for Lost In The Sound

About 12 hours before the doors of the concert even opened, the three members of the Boston-based band Dispatch began work on their national service project at the Boston Arts Academy with about 200 other volunteers. Amplifying Education is a campaign started by Dispatch to support local organizations and improve the education of children across the United States. On the same day most shows, the band will get together with over a hundred fan volunteers and try to make a big difference in the lives of children across the country. I went near the end of the event to check it out and help out. Near the end of the event, I noticed two friends waiting to get more paint. They were simply looking around and were amazed at the work that they did in only a couple hours. As the event came to a close, it was clear to see that the hours of hard work in the school created bonds between people that met that same day. Some people came to just help and see the band, as they could not make the concert the same night. You can watch a video of Dispatch playing “The General” with students at the Boston Arts Academy during the event.

Good Old War opened for Dispatch at the Agganis Arena in Boston to promote their new album that came out earlier this year, Come Back as Rain. For the majority of the audience, it was just enjoyable music to listen to as they bought their drinks and snacks and sat down. The crowd had fans of all ages. As diverse as the people there were, there was not a short amount of fans of Good Old War. “Coney Island” was met with applause and cheer while parts of the crowd sang along. As the opening show ended, the stadium gradually became  full as everybody found their seats waiting anxiously for Dispatch.

As soon as Dispatch came on stage, everybody in the stadium stood up as they opened with “Time Served”. The crowd was energetic and almost everybody stayed standing the entire show. When some of the unfamiliar, new songs from Circles Around the Sun appeared, a number of people would sit down. However, all of the songs that were written before their long hiatus were met with liveliness from the entire crowd. The crowd knew all the live versions of every old song they had such as the repeating chant of “go now you are forgiven” in “The General” or the amazing build-up and introduction of “Flying Horses”. Throughout the show, the three main members of Dispatch had other people join them on stage, but as they ended with “Elias” there only remained Chad, Brad and Pete. It was amazing to see thousands of people sing along to such a powerful song that was made 16 years ago for their debut album, Silent Steeples.

There were fans of all ages at the show and it was awesome to see so many different kinds of people singing along to songs by a band I never thought would get back together. Dispatch knew how to have fun and entertain the crowd while still remaining musically adept. This is the first time I’ve ever been to a Dispatch show and before I have always heard stories of how great the energy of the crowd was. Going to the concert solidified my opinion of Dispatch being a great band that can have so much fun at a concert and having one of the best fan bases that a band can have.

Setlist:

  1. Time Served
  2. Bats in the Belfry
  3. Circles Around the Sun
  4. Here We Go
  5. Sign of the Times
  6. Bang Bang
  7. Lightning
  8. Feels So Good
  9. Flag
  10. Outloud
  11. Beto
  12. Two Coins
  13. Flying Horses
  14. Josaphine (with Good Old War)
  15. Melon Bend
  16. Passerby
  17. The General
  18. Open Up
Encore:
  1. Get Ready Boy
  2. Mother and Child Reunion (Paul Simon cover)
  3. Elias

Listen: Freelance Whales – “Diluvia”

Freelance Whales is an indie rock band from Queens, New York.  The band’s sophomore album, Diluvia, is currently streaming on NPR. You can listen to it on the NPR website. Freelance Whales has been compared to The Postal Service and Sufjan Stevens, but in their newest release it feels as if they have finally created their own, unique sound.  Diluvia has many of the similar attributes that many fans loved about their first album, Weathervanes, such as use of the banjo and glockenspiel. Check out a number of tour dates and see if the band’s coming to your city. Freelance Whales is a fun band to see live.

10/04 -Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
10/05 – Minneapolis, MI @ 7th St Entry
10/06 – Madison, WI @ Redamte
10/07 – Iowa City @ Maintenance Shop
10/10 – Dallas, TX @ Trees
10/11- Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
10/13 – Mexico City, MX @ Capital Corona Festival
10/14 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/16 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey
10/18 – San Francisco, CA @ Mezzanine
10/20 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir
10/21 – Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
10/23 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
10/24 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird
10/26 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird
10/27 – Nashville, TN @ The End
10/28 – Atlanta, GA @ The Loft
10/30 – Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
10/31 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
11/01 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
11/02 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
11/03 – Boston, MA @ Paradise

Watch: the xx Live with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra

 As a part of the BBC Orchestra Presents… series, the xx has performed live with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in a seaside resort of Bridlington in East Yorkshire, England. In the concert, the xx performed arrangements of songs from xx and Coexist. You can watch the performance below or listen to the archived broadcast on BBC here. The xx recently released their sophomore album Coexist and are on tour promoting the new album. Check out tour dates below the video.

10-05 Vancouver, British Columbia – Vogue Theatre
10-06 Seattle, WA – Paramount Theater
10-07 Portland, OR – Roseland Theater
10-10 Las Vegas, NV – The Pool at the Cosmopolitan
10-11 San Diego, CA – Soma
10-12 Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium
10-13 Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Forever Cemetery
10-14 San Francisco, CA – Treasure Island Fest
10-16 Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
10-17 Boulder, CO – Boulder Theater
10-19 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
10-20 Chicago, IL – Congress Theater
10-21 Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theatre
10-24 Quebec City, Quebec – Imperial De Quebec
10-25 Boston, MA – House of Blues
10-28 Bronx, NY – Paradise Theater
10-29 Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory
10-30 Baltimore, MD – Ram’s Head Live

Watch: Azealia Banks – “1991”

Rising New York hip-hop artist Azealia Banks has just released the music video for “1991”. The 1991 EP was released earlier this year and has received overall good reviews for the singles “212” and “Liquorice”. Justin Mitchell, who has previously worked with KiD CuDi and Death Cab for Cutie, directed the music video that you can view below. In the music video, you can see Azealia Banks simply being Azealia Banks posing and dancing in this simplistic music video. Her debut album, Broke With Expensive Taste, has again been delayed to a further release date. So far the expected release date is February 12, 2013, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it was delayed again.

Listen: Closed Sessions, Vol. 2

Chicago-based independent hip-hop record label, Closed Sessions, has just dropped the full mixtape for Closed Sessions, Vol. 2. They have been dropping singles for the last couple months and Vol. 2 features classic hip-hop artists such as Blu and Raekwon and also many rising talents such as Freddie Gibbs, Action Bronson and Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire. You can also listen and download Vol. 1, which was released 2010. Check out a series of behind-the-scenes videos for the making of Closed Sessions, Vol. 2 here. Download or listen to the mixtape on Soundcloud below. You can also check out a trailer for Vol. 2 below.