Slint at the Avalon
“Good morning, Captain.”
Hollywood, California
March 13, 2005
Slint was an obscure indie rock band who, when they weren’t bathing in Kentucky’s loveliest lakes, played a few shows and released a grand total of two records from 1986 to 1991. These comedians thought it would be funny to release one of them–a classic album full of mooooody and quiet, loud, quiet, loud, quiet, loud, quiet, loud indie rock–just a hot minute before they broke up. Called Spiderland, the disc, of course, grew in popularity in subsequent years, made an impression on other like-minded outfits and became the toast of the town.
“It felt good to be alone.”
A decade and a half after they disbanded, Slint decided that legendary status was overrated, so they embarked on a reunion tour in 2005 to take the music to the people! Normally, I cringe at band reunions and avoid them like the plague. I don’t want to see an old codger version of a band I liked 20 years ago hobble onstage with their walkers and sweat to the oldies. But, Slint isn’t like that. Since I like them so much and they never played in California back when I bought Spiderland in 1991, I couldn’t pass up this possibly once-in-a-lifetime chance.
“Wash yourself in your tears.”
The performance itself was a very accurate recreation of the band’s records–in fact, it was almost too perfect. If I want to listen to an album, I’ll just stay at home. A little spontaneity goes a long way in my book. Despite that, and the fact that I also hate giant shows at places like the Avalon that are sardine-packed with human cattle, I still enjoyed it overall. I likes me some Slint!
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