Four of Two

March 29, 2008 - The Music Hall - Portsmouth, NH - Rock Show

This was the second show of the day at The Music Hall. This time around we were seated in the front row of the balcony on the Flansburgh side. The way the balcony curved around the theater we were right next to the stage and had a great view. The only downside was not being able to safely stand up and "jump in the air" as the railing was really low and the balcony was really steep.

Before the show some of the techs came out on stage and started flinging foam fingers out into the audience. The people up in the balcony were all hollering for fingers too but try as they might, the guys couldn't get them up to the balcony. They did managed to get one over the edge right where we were sitting but since we already had ones from the early show we gave it to the people behind us.

The setlist: Doctor Worm - Why Does the Sun Shine? - Clap Your Hands - Particle Man (with the I Love to Sing insert) - Damn Good Times - Hey Mr. DJ - Letterbox - Cyclops Rock - Withered Hope - Apartment Four - Alphabet of Nations - Memo to Human Resources - Older - Take Out the Trash - I'm Impressed - Drink! - It's Not My Birthday - Bee of the Bird of the Moth - Istanbul - The Guitar - James K. Polk - Mesopotamians - One Dozen Monkeys - Ana Ng - Fingertips - Birdhouse - Robot Parade

Flans invited the people in the orchestra to come down to the stage almost immediately and I was a bit jealous. But the great view made up for it. I noticed a few kids in the audience below that managed to sneak past the theater staff despite the 14+ age limit. We actually saw an underage kid being turned away as we came in which is the only time I've ever seen that happen.

Flans said there seemed to be a clause in their tour contract that stated that one Giant must be sick at all times. Tonight it was Linnell's turn. He was singing the praises of something called Throat Coat. I looked it up later and it's a kind of herbal tea (and yes, I was dorky enough to buy some and it works great for sore throats). He also wore a pullover the whole show despite it being warm enough that the rest of the band had stripped off their long sleeves only a few songs in. I imagine he was probably pretty miserable but he did a good job of not showing it. Flans did most of the talking on stage between songs, though Linnell did throw in some quips here and there.

They talked again about Marty's new baby and joked about how he was probably getting more sleep now that he was back out on tour than he would at home. They also said they were really glad to have him back because, while the guy filling in for him had been great, it made the whole part of the show where they talk about Marty really not work.

They attempted to do a segment in the middle of the show called Hot Topics where they invited the audience to ask questions. If memory serves it was supposed to be related more to current events rather than stuff about the band though there was discussion of Flan's favorite color (yellow). The segment didn't last long because someone in the audience shouted "less talk, more rock" and Flans played some guitar in response. If there were other questions posed I don't remember them.

I also don't remember why it came up but Linnell at some point was talking about how Necco Wafers are the exact size and taste of the old Connecticut Turnpike tokens and could be used interchangeably. I think it was part of a discussion about candy, possibly related to either Halloween or candy you get from your grandparents but I'm really not sure.

The music was top notch. I would have expected a more Flans heavy set given that Linnell was ill but it was a pretty even mix. There were a lot of songs from The Else and 123s as well as a lot of the big hits which was great for me, as a relatively new fan, since it was largely stuff I was familiar with. My boyfriend was psyched to hear Hey Mr. DJ, which was new to this tour and sounded incredible, and Letterbox which they hadn't played in quite a while. I was happy to hear The Mesopotamians again since that was really the song that sold me on the band in the first place. For Drink! instead of having everyone in the audience shout "drink" twice, Flans divided the theater in half. The right half was supposed to shout "drink" first, then the left. It only sort of worked. We were apparently a tempo-challenged audience.

My favorite part of the show was Fingertips. They played it at the show I went to at The Stone Church but like much of these early shows, I don't remember it. But I definitely remember it at this show. It was the end of the first encore and I must have been focused on Linnell on the other side of the stage when, during I Walk Along Darkened Corridors, I suddenly realized that Dan Miller had climbed up into the old theater box seat right under where we were sitting and was standing half on the railing and half on the sound equipment playing some really wailing guitar. I have no idea now he got up there since I didn't see him do it but it was awesome.

After the show ended and we headed down to the first floor we passed the doors to the orchestra level and saw that Marty had come out to sign stuff for people but we figured he'd be gone by the time we fought our way through the crowds to get down there so we didn't try.

I was on a serious TMBG high at the end of this day and seriously considered skipping work the next day to go to the show in Vermont but I'm far too responsible to actually do that (lame, I know). Made due with announcing the next day that we were going to the next show in Albany in April. I believe the boyfriend was bemused but, of course, agreeable.


14 days until The Great TMBG Road Trip. Can't come soon enough. I am entering severe withdrawal. It has been over two months since my last show. I sound like an addict. Oh wait, I probably am :-P