A Place We've Never Been

Believe it or not, there is a venue that exists that neither M or myself had ever been to.  That is, until this past Friday. 

Here's an excerpt of an article describing the man we went to see: 

Mark Lanegan has had an almost textbook outlaw passage to the black heart of rock'n'roll: heroin and crack addiction, homelessness, rehab and imprisonment and a road accident that almost killed him at the age of 20. Then, few would have put money on him making it to his late 40s, or his now being able to pack a mid-sized venue so full it is physically uncomfortable.

 M and I went to see Mark Lanegan at the Cedar Cultural Center on the West Bank in Minneapolis.   The venue was small, holding about 465 people and there were probably 400 people at the show.  If the name Mark Lanegan doesn't ring a bell, he was the singer of the band Screaming Trees in the 80's/90's and was a founder of the Seattle grunge scene.  

Mark's voice has taken a toll over the course of the years and his voice is a little more raspy and a little more baritone.  M jokes that he gargles with gravel before he goes out on stage.

Mark did not greet the crowd when he came out and didn't say anything until after five songs.  It's a pet peeve of mine when artists do this.  If you want to come out and do a song, go ahead but I want you to greet us after that song, if not beforehand.  Mark Lanegan does not seem like the warm and fuzzy type so not talking to the crowd suits him.  

Mark has been associated and part of many different bands and groups over the years, but his latest project is the Mark Lanegan Band and that album was released in February. 

The show was good.  We were very close to the stage and luckily I had multiple short people in front of me.  I swear that never happens at a concert for me.  The music was loud and Mark's voice sounded good.  His band was good and he had a crazy-good guitarist that looked half mafia and half rockabilly and was well into his 50's.  They came out for an encore, which does not seem to fit Mark's style but it gave the crowd a few more songs to rock out to.

M met Mark next to the merchandise table where he was signing autographs.  He shook his hand and M told me that Mark has super soft hands. :)  

Doesn't he look like Jim Morrison in this picture?

Mark and M

These are a couple of my favorites on the new album.  The first one I think will appeal to many.  It's a slow song and the second one is a little faster and heavier. Please listen!  The only word I have to spread is that of music!