While browsing my neighbors on Last.FM tonight I found a great piece of text that I just had to borrow.
Someone who shares musical tastes with me listed all of the songs that would be included her own personal soundtrack. I’ll take that – I agree with 90% of the picks.
Your Life: The Soundtrack
Opening credits: “Apnoea” – Kasabian
Waking up: “Four Kicks” – Kings of Leon
Average day: “New York” – Richard Ashcroft
First date: “When Stars Go Blue” – Ryan Adams
Falling in love: “Idler’s Dream” – Oasis
Love scene: “Blue Sky Blues” – Ryan Adams
Fight scene: “Run” – Snow Patrol
Breaking up: “Back to Black” – Amy Winehouse
Getting back together: “Seaside” – The Kooks
Secret love: “Foolish Love” – Rufus Wainwright
Life’s okay: “Lyla” – Oasis
Mental breakdown: “Rifles” – BRMC
Driving: “Gravity’s Rainbow” – Klaxons
Learning a lesson: “One Way Road” – Oasis
Deep thought: “Teotihuacan” – Noel Gallgher
Flashback: “Til Kingdom Come” – Coldplay
Partying: “Last Trip (In Flight)” – Kasabian
Happy dance: “Trains to Brazil” – Guillemots
Regreting: “Pass Me Down the Wine” – Oasis
Long night alone: “Sittin Here in Silence (On My Own)” – Oasis
Death scene: “Blackbird” – The Beatles
Closing credits: “Live Forever” – Oasis
The Fox Films fanfare played, the searchlights hunted through the crowd, and then the Rocky Getting Stronger theme blared from the sound system.
Waiting in the crowd for the aging Britpop band to make an appearance, I wondered what they would sound like in 2007. Travis began their career with All I Want To Do is Rock, a slow rock stomper that despite its mucky pace can still knock paint off any wall. They followed up with their second album, The Man Who, was Britain’s greatest album that year, bringing the band success and leaving an easy stepping stone for Coldplay the following year. This album was softer, but had more melody and honesty, with songs such as Why Does it Always Rain on Me and Writing to Reach You. Later albums dealt with more adult themes, having kids, losing loved ones, and general insecurities. Would they rock or would they roll on wheel chairs?
When I first saw Travis live, at my first Oasis concert in Radio City, they were unknowns, serving solely as background music for some of the lads waiting in line for beer. Still, they had the songs.
But now, With “Getting Stronger” coming from the sound system, Travis’s intent was clear. They were back after a few years and were ready for New York. The band ran through the crowd in boxing outfits, swinging punches in the air and giving five to fans nearby (myself included with Fran).
The set was strong, and longer than the previous night. Indeed, Fran Healy, the band’s frontman, said he had read online that fans thought the night before was too short, so he through in an extra song or two. The band was also generous with water bottles, throwing anywhere from 40 to 60 bottles into the sweating crowd. The set was full of tracks from The Man Who, all sounding as strong as ever. The new album had some highlights as well, with Selfish Jean being a stand-out track thanks to a live skit by The Daily Show’s Demetri (YouTube video embedded below). Demetri was covered in t-shirts with text related to the song, and managed to take different layers off every few seconds to match the lyrics in the music. Travis’s other albums made guest appearances as well, showing off their best overlooked gems.
The biggest complaint about Travis is their saccharine packed production, but walking out of the show with a smile, I didn’t mind.
Some songs are like packaged goods, containing the same excitement, energy, and youth each time you hear them. On Tuesday night, when the Arctic Monkeys played The View From The Afternoon at Hammerstein Ballroom, the song was as fresh as a newly opened bag of Doritos.
For the first half of the show I was stuck behind a group of nervous teenagers side by side with some balding elders. While the Arctic Monkeys sang about putting on dancing shoes and looking good on a dance floor, the group in front of me stood stagnant, killing the mood like an early last call.
But when The View From The Afternoon erupted, the rest of the crowd went wild, and I hung left around my sleeping neighbours only to be pushed up to the front of the crowd. Suddenly I was in the middle of a bouncing mob, being pushed around and pushing back, as a roar of what can only be described as blokes chanted, “The haze has descended and it don’t make no sense anymore.” When the haze of the song descended and the band played the song’s final notes, the elders were no longer around, and the concert was fresh and exciting again.
While the band was promoting a second album that sounds decent live, the highlight of the night was how fresh the band’s first album still sounded. The Arctic Monkeys entered the music scene with the fastest selling UK debut album of all time. They roared through Europe and became the indie darlings of UK importers here in the States. The young band came fast and what’s incredible is that their songs still pack the same energy years later.
The band drained my energy and I went home for a four hour nap before my trip back into the city. Despite the fatigue, my morning commute was saved by listening to tracks from the debut album on my Zune. I was awake again.
