Rough Trade Records
I have not seen as much live music as I used to. I prefer the small venues but I want to sit and be able to see. It is not that easy to achieve that but it was a perfect storm the other night and I got to enjoy all three. We made our way upstairs to the balcony and sat on the bench that overlooked the stage and happened to be closest to the stage. It was just perfect.
We went with some friends to see Okkervil River at Rough Trade Records. The venue is fantastic. A small venue, almost like a miniature Bowery Ball Room, that is extremely intimate. The venue also sits inside a record store that anyone could get lost in for hours.
Bridget St. John came out before Okkervil River. What luck. She has been around the music industry for years playing with the likes of David Bowie and Paul Simon. Her voice is absolutely beautiful. 71 years old and still belting it out. The audience was mesmerized. This photo gives you an idea of how small the venue is, I took this from the back.
Okkervil River released their latest album this past week and they played the entire album. Extremely melodic 10 person band on stage from vocalists to a trombone player.
A really great night. Reminds me how much I love live music when I get to have my cake and eat it too.
Comments (Archived):
One of the things that I am at peace at with getting ‘older’ is growing up in the area during the club world where you were able to see Hendrix at Cafe Wha, the Four Tops and Herbie Mann down the street at the Village Gate and the Beach Boys at the Fillmore East all in one weekend. And when the Fillmore basically a movie theatre was the largest venue. Too cool.
And life goes on
wonderfully so!
bowery ballroom has seats upstairs near stage but it seems much to bougie to us to take a seat while most of the crowd is standing & rockin’. We have several years on you so what was your group’s feeling about sitting on a bench?
I was fine with tha bench
Small venues FTW. I’m taking my kids to their first rock concert in June (The Pretenders) at a medium-small venue here in Red Bank — The Count Basie. Very excited to rock out the right way with my spawn :-)Thanks for turning me on to Okkervil River! “Famous Tracheotomies” has that art school band feel to it. I have to confess, I didn’t think I’d like them, based upon their fashion sense. Ha! But when you said they have 10 people including a trombone player, I knew I had to check it out. Great stuff.
Our kids first concert was Lauren Hill at Irving Plaza way back in the day
Wow, that is *good*. Well done 🙂