Apples in Stereo
[02.12.2007]
Assembly of Dust
[02.04.2007]
The Hackensaw Boys
[01.27.2007]
Paul Luc
[01.20.2007]
Local Honey / Slim Cessna
[01.13.2007]
Bob Seger
[12.14.2006]
Skinks / Rahim / Transcontinental Booze Hounds
[11.25.2006]
The Big Sleep
[11.18.2006]
Local Honey / The Izzys
[11.10.2006]
Cloud Cult
[11.07.2006]
Grand Buffet / Magnolia Electric Co
[10.31.2006]
Norman Nardini
[10.28.2006]
Wilco
[10.20.2006]
Wilco
[10.18.2006]
Kid Congo Powers
[10.12.2006]
Dave Alvin
[09.23.2006]
Wolfmother
[09.22.2006]
Mountain Goats
[09.20.2006]
World Party
[08.27.2006]
Gil Mantera's Party Dream
[08.16.2006]
Whiskey Daredevils / Local Honey
[08.11.2006]
The Silver Jews
[07.28.2006]
The Bottle Rockets / Marah
[07.27.2006]
Slim Cessna's Auto Club
[07.15.2006]
Alejandro Escovedo
[07.10.2006]
Cat Power
[07.09.2006]
Life In Bed / The Transcontinental Booze Hounds
[07.07.2006]
Violent Femmes
[07.01.2006]
Guitar Zack Wiesinger / Pittsburgh Pirates Loss # 54
[06.30.2006]
The Black Crowes \ Robert Randolph \ The Drive-By Truckers
[06.25.2006]
Pearl Jam
[06.23.2006]
The Octopus Project \ Black Moth Super Rainbow \ Amoeba Knievel
[06.19.2006]
The Bottle Rockets
[06.14.2006]
Govt.
Mule / Local Honey / Wil E. Tri
[06.08.2006]
Tehran Iran
[06.03.2006]
Astronautalis
[05.25.2006]
Grand Buffet / Cobalt Black
[05.19.2006]
Phil
Boyd w/Manny Theiner & Weird Paul / The Codetalkers feat. Col. Bruce
Hampton
[05.15.2006]
The
Four Seasons Boys
[05.11.2006]
The
Supersuckers
[05.02.2006]
The Breakup Society
[04.28.2006]
The Four Seasons Boys / The
Gris Gris
[04.19.2006]
Rhett Miller & The Believers
[04.14.2006]
Good Brother Earl
[04.08.2006]
Slim Cessna's Auto Club
[04.03.2006]
"Guitar" Zack Wiesinger
[03.25.2006]
The Minus 5 / The Silos
[03.24.2006]
The Mendoza Line / Great Lake Swimmers
[03.12.2006]
Dave Alvin
[03.10.2006]
Apollo Sunshine
[03.07.2006]
Lyle Lovett / John Hiatt / Joe Ely
/ Guy Clark
[02.14.2006]
Marah
[02.12.2006]
Marah / Slim Cessna's Auto
Club
[11.12.2005]
Ted Leo + Pharmacists / Sharon
Jones and the Dap-Kings
[11.08.2005]
The National
[11.02.2005]
Modey Lemon
[10.07.2005]
Gang of Four
[10.04.2005]
Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers
[09.24.2005]
Thunderbirds Are Now!
[09.22.2005]
The Walkmen
[09.17.05]
Circle
[09.15.05]
Akron/Family, Great Lake Swimmers
[09.05.05]
Los Lobos
[08.21.05]
Grand Buffet, Magnolia Electric
Co.
[08.20.05]
Joe Ely
[08.19.05]
Solomon Burke
[08.14.05]
Billie Joe Shaver
[08.11.05]
Robert
Randolph & The Family Band
[08.07.05]
Oneida
[08.06.05]
Richard
Buckner
[07.13.05]
NYC Road Trip
[07.08.05]
Stars
[06.23.05]
Aimee
Mann
[06.19.05]
Bobbie
"Blue" Bland, Michael Penn, Erin McKeown, OPEK, The Mavens
[06.18.05]
The
Holmes Brothers
[06.15.05]
Drive-By
Truckers, Deep Purple
[06.11.05]
Los
Lonely Boys, Martin Sexton
[06.10.05]
Marah
[06.08.05]
Brant Bjork & The Bros.
[06.03.05]
Railroad
Earth
[05.20.05]
Andrew
Bird
[05.17.05]
Ryan
Adams & The Cardinals
[05.13.05]
Rosavelt
[05.12.05]
Green
Day
[04.23.05]
The
Shins
[04.15.05]
Bonnie
"Prince" Billy and Matt Sweeney
[04.14.05]
The
Beakup Society, Whiskey Daredevils
[03.25.05]
Apollo
Sunshine
[03.12.05]
From The Jayhawks: Gary Louris
and Mark Olson
[03.11.05]
Clem Snide, Archer Prewitt
[03.07.05]
Norman
Nardini
[03.04.05]
The SPUDS, Norman Nardini
[02.18.05]
The Comas
[02.15.05]
Tarbox Ramblers
[02.12.05]
Black Tie Revue
[01.28.05]
Elvismas, Shade
[01.08.2005]
Chalk Outline Party, Comrad
[12.18.2004]
One Star Hotel
[12.10.2004]
Ted Leo + Pharmacists
[12.03.2004]
Thanksgiving Eve / The Italian
Club / Blairsville, Pa
Sue Foley
[11.20.2004]
The Whiskey Daredevils
[11.19.2004]
The Arcade Fire, The Cynics
[11.15.2004]
Steelers v. Patriots
[10.31.2004]
Mike Watt
[10.21.2004]
Magnolia Electric
Co.
[10.14.2004]
The Mendoza
Line
[10.09.2004]
The Black Keys
[10.07.2004]
The Secret Machines
[10.06.2004]
The Fiery
Furnaces, Charles Bissell (The Wrens)
[09.23.2004] |
Rhett Miller & The Believers
04.14.2006 / Rex Theatre / Pittsburgh, PA
 This was just insanely fun! I don’t think Wifey and I have enjoyed ourselves this much at a show since the Jayhawks thing last year. I guess it helps when you know most of the songs for a change. Funny thing is, we hadn’t really committed to this until we were at this venue last week and saw they took out all the damn movie theater seats. Now it’s probably my favorite joint. The Supersuckers should rock here in two weeks.
We got to the Rex near 10 P.M. and I was surprised Rhett was already on. Turns out we had missed close to eight songs already. The band was playing “Rollerskate Skinny” and Wifey and I got our beers and joined the crowd. I’d say there was an average turnout. Rhett’s new solo disk, The Believer, has gotten mixed reviews and it seems too poppy for the diehard Old 97’s fans. He isn’t really doing anything radically different here to distinguish himself and pick up many fans on his own, either. So it really helped that over a third of his setlist was devoted to 97’s tunes with the rest covering his two solo disks. The band was more than competent and it’s refreshing to see a girl drummer for a change.
We were hanging towards the back at first and run into friends Joanna, who I think is an Old 97’s fanatic, and bouncing up to us is Hugh, in an exceptionally buoyant mood. Right away he is showing off the great pictures of Rhett he’s already snapped and then gets called on recording a movie with his camera by some security guy, “Dude, it’s a camera. I’m taking pictures.” Right about this time the band goes backstage and Rhett is doing a few songs solo. Hugh already knows the setlist and is yelling out song names so I call him out on being such a nerd fanboy.
I warned Wifey that I was letting loose at this one but couldn’t bring myself to get started on the flask sitting in my camera bag and was sticking to beers. So I just started passing that thing out to anyone who’d have it. We worked our way up to the very front and it was so worth it. The rest of the night became a huge sing-along. “Come Around,” “King Of All Of The World,” “Murder (Or a Heart Attack),” “Buick City Complex.” These are all just tight songs and Rhett and the band were really into it. I think he mentioned earlier that this was his favorite time playing in our city and would have to call Murry up and get the rest of the boys here.
I must have been sipping off the flask ‘cause I found myself pumping fistfuls of beer and finger pointing Miller and I probably had a shit-eating grin on my face. A killer version of “Singular Girl” had most folks up front singing at the top of their lungs. You would have thought you were at a damn Dashboard show. They wrapped it up with two encores and the crowd quickly cleared out.
We walked down to Dee’s with two friends but on the way down Carson I realized that they may have been staying out with us for politeness sake only. Just got that vibe. So we quickly downed one and headed on our way.
That included on last stop at the storied Hilltoppers Pub on Troy Hill. Bands every Friday. Cheap beers. I was a little wasted by this point and we got into some weird conversation with parents of our son’s friend. I don’t remember much about the band and the batteries had died in my camera so maybe it was all just a dream.
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