Concert
Friday June 12, 2026
Another week has snuck up on me. I was going to talk some more about our day trip to the factory in New York, but nobody wants to hear another long-winded whinge about the house. So, audible for brevity’s sake. I want to eat dinner and watch Widow’s Bay.
On Sunday, Lindsay and I went to our first concert since Desi was born. After taking Goose all day Saturday, my heroic mom came into Melrose to stay with Des on Sunday night as we went to see Tank and the Bangas at the Sinclair with Wayne and Sharon Godbout.
This was more of a Lindsay show than me. I like some of their music, but wouldn’t really describe myself as a “fan” or anything like that. Still, I like live music and appreciate any opportunity for a night out. Suffice to say, I figured it would be fun, but nothing special.
Well, Tank and the Bangas were so damn good live, they made me think seriously about the best concerts I’ve ever been to. I don’t think they crack my top 5, but they were pretty close. Just a completely electric energy from the second they stepped on the stage.
A lot of their music I’ve heard is a little jazzier and headier — honestly, more like Oberlin music. I’ve seen them described as “joyful New Orleans noise” and that feels right. They’re Treme come to life at Mardi Gras. Their new album, however, is a little poppier and heavier on the hip-hop lyricism. Tank, the frontwoman, has this infectious energy and makes some crazy sounds come out of her body. We were dancing the entire night, which was a major relief after an opener whose soporific spoken word poetry was so far up her own ass it had grease marks.
Anyway, Tank and the Bangas so exceeded my expectations, I allllllmost put them in my top 5 when I was thinking about this this week.
What are the best concerts you’ve been to? I want to hear about them. I like when people let me know they’ve read this; it gives me a reason to keep doing this. Comment or reach out.
Here’s my top 5:
The Black Keys: Corn Exchange, Edinburgh
I somehow managed to squeeze my drunk ass dead center and about 80 feet from the stage just in time for “Lonely Boy,” and I didn’t know it was possible for two people to rock like that. I’m not sure I even moved for a solid 30 minutes, I was so transfixed by how in-sync Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney were.
Taylor Swift: The O2, London
Taylor gets a huge bump because I was very much anti-Taylor when I went to this show in 2011. When visiting my ex, Jenny Taylor, in London, she wanted to see Taylor and I wanted to go to Wembley Stadium. We did both, but her thing was better. Part of the reason the Eras Tour is so mystifying to me is that she was still a huge show 15 years ago. I mean, this was a 20,000-seat stadium and it’s easily the best stadium show I’ve ever seen… again, 15 years ago. It made me a big Taylor fan for a while.
“Sparks Fly” is the best song I’ve seen performed live. I had never heard it before but it blew me away such that it earwormed me for weeks and I still find myself thinking about the pyrotechnic burst on the first “drop everything now…”
Rilo Kiley: MGM Music Hall, Boston
I’ve talked about Rilo Kiley before, so I won’t get into this one. There really wasn’t anything uniquely special about this show except for who they are to me. It was the last show we went to before Des was born, though, so I guess that’s special.
Disclosure: Coachella
Disclosure was really blowing up in 2016, so they got to open for Guns n’ Roses at Coachella. I was sort of meh about their music and wasn’t over the moon about camping out before their set so we could have decent spots for Guns n’ Roses, but that’s what we did.
I was wrong. Another two-man act, Disclosure does some crazy music-making stuff on stage. They’re an incredibly talented duo. Sam Smith came out to perform “Omen” and saved the British Isles from the shame of Ellie Goulding’s performance that weekend.
Aerosmith: Tweeter Center, Mansfield, MA
This was my second-ever concert, in 2002. (Santana was first, the year before.) With the whole fam. Smelled weed for the first time. Kid Rock opened and was predictably incredible for 12-year-old me, especially when he brought out a woman in a cage who strutted around the stage in lingerie before returning to the cage. Wonder if my parents regretted bringing me at that point, but I’m sure they forgot all about it once Aerosmith came on. 54-year-old Steven Tyler may have been peak Steven Tyler — “Dream On” live still reverberates through my subconscious.
5 - Jimmy Buffett. Saw him downtown St. Paul with my sister Sara at an outdoor, summer event where everyone was enjoying lots of cheap, Midwestern beer (rather than margaritas) 4 - Little Feat. I saw them multiple times at Sugarbush. The venue was probably better than the music. It's hard to beat a beautiful Vermont summer night 3 - Grateful Dead at Alpine Valley in WI. I've seen the Dead multiple times (not hundreds though!). This was a great show due to venue and my age. 2- Phish. I've seen Phish multiple times (even saw them when they were a bar band). I saw them at Sugarbush, probably early 90s. It was a great show. (Your dad really doesn't like jam bands. ; ) 1 - Bruce Springsteen. Saw him in Mpls with a bunch of college friends. It's hard to beat the Boss.
Couple of things, are you saying Santana was your first concert? We went to The White Stripes at the Opera House, Boston which I thought was your first concert. That was a good one. As for my top 5? Wow, I've seen so many great concerts, but I'll try.
The Beatles of course. Busch Stadium, in the pouring rain. I was 9. It was I think their 3rd to last concert. It was right after John said they were more popular or whatever he said than Jesus. The christians were busy protesting and burning albums. What John later said he meant was they had a broader worldwide following which was true.
Red Hot Chile Peppers - Tweeter Center. Foo Fighters opened. I was in 6th row. Dave Grohl came out and stood with guitar and mic stand next to me (I am not kidding) and did a song. He sat in on drums with the Chile Peppers. Flea kept his clothes on. Californication tour. It was great (aside from the drunk woman in front of me who needed to stand on the chair until she fell off).
Bruce Springsteen. Fleet Center from a sky box courtesy of Softbank. The 10PM curfew came after he'd been playing for 2.5 hours already and he said "screw it, I'll pay the fine" and played another half hour. The man can entertain.
Jeff Beck. Anyone of the 4 or 5 times I saw him, though best may have been at the Orpheum from close up seats.
And what else? Buddy "Fucking" Guy as Mick once called him. At the South Shore Music circus. Great show.
But, I've seen so many. Rolling Stones 4 times, first in 1981. The Who 4 times, first in 1980. Led Zepplin, BB King (first in the 70's at Constitution Hall, W.D.C), Grateful Dead, Dead Again, Elton John in the 70s (wrote a French Paper at the Cap Center, didn't get such a great grade on it), Fleetwood Mac (early Nicks/Buckingham era), David Bowie Diamond Dogs tour, Clapton "I shot the sherriff" era. Frank Zappa (and Dwezil a few times) , Santana (in the 70s and the 2010's), Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt (70s and 2000's). Saw Keith on his own and with the New Barbarians.