OT Encores

Not if when the lead singer says "these are our last two songs" they
*actually* mean it. Rather than meaning "these are our last two songs
before we make you clap for two minutes before we condescend to come
back out again and do two more".

That's because it's the convention..

Phil

 

'ang on a mo - *you* are calling someone else a curmudgeonly old git?
--
Champ

ZX10R | GPz750turbo | GSX-R 600 racer
My advice as your attorney is to buy a motorcycle
To email me, neal at my domain should work.

 

Pete Fisher wrote:

[of encores]

Especially the Kaiser Chiefs.

 

From a review of Elbow[1] at Leeds last week:

'...and when Garvey announces "the last song", a fan shouts, "Stop
talking bollocks." "You wouldn't say that to any other band, would
you?" chuckles Britain's cheeriest miserablist, confessing that there
will be an encore'.

[1] I saw them at Brixton on Tuesday - superb.

 

"Oh My God", someone got that reference.
--
+----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Pete Fisher at Home: |
| Voxan Roadster Gilera Nordwest * 2 Yamaha WR250Z |
| Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" |
+----------------------------------------------------------------+

 

But then I'd miss the songs (which are usually the 'crowd pleasers')
that they haven't played yet. As Phil says, why the need to call them
back? We all know they are going to come back.

 

More often than not nowadays, at least in the folk world, the first
(and usually only) encore serves this purpose. The "last" song is a
foot-stamper, leaving the audience on a high and shouting for more.
The encore is a quiet song letting the audience down gently and
sending them home happy. The "encore" system works. I really can't see
why people have such a problem with it.

 

"People" don't. It's just Kathryn. And she's special.
--
Champ

ZX10R | GPz750turbo | GSX-R 600 racer
My advice as your attorney is to buy a motorcycle
To email me, neal at my domain should work.

 

Something similar happened at a Lowgold gig I went to years ago. They
said it was their last song, someone in the crowd shouted a comment, and
the singer reorted something like "well of course we're going to be back
out in a minute, but you've got to play along, haven't you?"

 

And OMG is the final song of their encore.

 

1. It's completely artificial. People *know* it's not the end of the
concert so why pretend?
2. It wastes time. In the period the band spends waiting off stage they
could be playing more music (or at least extending a song in the Prog
world).
3. My hands hurt.

And your arguement about the style of songs changing for the encores -
why can't that be done *without* the artifical division of the encore
call?

Phil.

 

Ah - the old 'denigrate the questioner' trick. Well done.

Phil

 

Good point. I don't get to as many gigs as I used to, so perhaps this is
becoming the new convention on the folk circuit at least. Then Strawhead
members were never conventional. Not many people have played a
serpent[1] alongside Richard Thompson. I prefer the possible frisson of
a not guaranteed , previously unheard final piece, but the quiet encore
would be a close second.

[1] No, just no OK.
--
+----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Pete Fisher at Home: |
| Voxan Roadster Gilera Nordwest * 2 Yamaha WR250Z |
| Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" |
+----------------------------------------------------------------+

 

Always? I see LN's point.
--
+----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Pete Fisher at Home: |
| Voxan Roadster Gilera Nordwest * 2 Yamaha WR250Z |
| Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" |
+----------------------------------------------------------------+

 

<Marvin Mode>

Sounds ghastly

</MM>

Phil

 

Meh, crowd pleasers my arse.

 

This isn't the case in the rock/indie world. The last song of the main
set will generally be a high-tempo one, then the first song of the
encore will be a ballad or at lease a quieter one. The "absolutely
final" song will often be an "anthemic" type song or one with audience
participation.

Of course, this is a bit of a generalisation but backed up up by the
fact that I do see a lot of rock/indie bands live.[1]

I agree.

[1] Six so far this year, inc. Editors, The Enemy and Elbow (twice).