Every week on WECI, my kid hosts a show of themed music in at least five genres (and inevitably includes an Avett Brothers tune). This week, I got to join them for a show themed on artists we’ve seen live.
I wanted to include more than I had space for — a short Godspeed You! Black Emperor song still would have eaten up a fifth of our time — but also wanted to offer the story behind each of my selections.
You can find the full playlist on Apple Music.
Fantastic Negrito, “About a Bird”
We saw Fantastic Negrito together backstage at Blues & BBQ at the end of a long, hot July day. Evelyn also reminded that, because of its title, it starts off practically every time my phone connects to the car.
Catharsis, “Sabbat”
A weird show in a conference room at the Des Moines Botanical Garden on the eve of the 2000 election. The band, a bunch of anarchist punks who seemed to have freed themselves from day jobs, assured the audience the election winner wouldn’t matter to us. There is nothing new under the sun.
Mitski, “I Bet on Losing Dogs”
I saw Mitski live kinda accidentally when we went to Mission Creek Festival in 2019. She gyrated while she sang in a table in the middle of the stage. Our kid learned — “holy shit, you’ve seen Mitski?!” — from a photo of the marquee showing up on the TV’s screensaver; she added this on my behalf.
Elizabeth Morn, “Songbird”
My kid’s pick and the only artist in the set that I don’t think I’ve seen play.
The Lonelyhearts, “Next Year Is Shaping up to be Real Awesome”
When I helped produce Java Blend for IPR, we saw a lot of different performers. This one stuck with me because it was one of the few CDs I had with me in my solo drive from Iowa City to Tampa for a summer gig.
Indigo De Sousa, “Cry/Die”
Another Mission Creek show, but this one with my kid. Honestly, this is a stand in for “Kill Me,” which is unplayable on actual terrestrial radio.
24thankyou, “Car Cold, I’m Veering”
Another show we saw together, at an Englert local showcase. Super fun. The kid picked this one, which was better than the one I had.
Melt-Banana, “Free the Bee”
I have no idea what the lyrics are, but the Japanese thrash band melted my face at Gabe’s in the early 2000s.
Tragedy, “Never Knowing Peace”
A loud, hot, packed Theta Beta Potato living room show that ended with a bit of a thud when the band blew a fuse to end their set.
The Avett Brothers, “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise”
The first time I saw them required a road Wisc., trip to the High Noon Saloon in Madison, but I saw them three more times, the last at what I thought was a terrible, new, glitzy venue down the street from the High Noon Saloon in Madison, Wisc. get off my lawn.
William Elliot Whitmore, “Hell or High Water”
Another show I saw with my kid at the Englert. Catchy. Fun. Bluesy. Hipster.
John McCutcheon, “Barnyard Dance”
I saw McCutcheon at my elementary school in Alaska, listened to his kid’s albums on tapes in our family car, and just went to see him again with my dad.
St. Paul & the Broken Bones, “Half the City”
Horns, energy and catchy as hell, their performance marked the start of Blues & BBQ’s move to nationally and internationally turning bands and I still can’t believe we pulled them off.
Kevin Burt, “Elenor Rigby”
A staple in Iowa City who I’ve seen countless times — including immediately before his International Blues Challenge win at my 15th wedding anniversary party.
The number of these bands also makes me realize what a treasure The Englert Theater in Iowa City is.