My Arts Is Crafty Darts

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Scissor Sisters @ Bowery Ballroom 4/23/2006
Take Your Mama / I Can’t Decide / Tits on the Radio / She’s My Man / Laura / Paul McCartney / Everybody Wants The Same Thing / Kiss You Off / Mary / The Other Side / I Don’t Feel Like Dancing / Comfortably Numb / Music Is The Victim / Land of a Thousand Words // Filthy/Gorgeous

Scissor Sisters “I Can’t Decide (Live @ Mercury Lounge 2005)” – The Scissor Sisters are such a fun and dependably entertaining live band that even though I came into this show with a raging toothache and stoned on vicodin, I was still able to have a pretty great time. Compared to previous Scissor Sisters shows that I’ve seen in NYC, this was a slightly mellower crowd than usual, but those last two shows that I saw were basically two of the most energetic audiences that I’ve ever been in, full stop. As you can see, the band is focusing on material from their forthcoming album, and I’m pleased to tell you that it’s going to be a pretty great record. Most of the new songs are holdovers from last summer’s gigs, but three of the selections were brand new to me. “I Don’t Feel Like Dancing” is like the ultimate Scissor Sisters song, maintaining an ideal balance of disco and Elton-ish pop. It’s a pretty obvious single, as is the rather Richard X-ish Ana Matronic showcase “Kiss You Off.” My favorite of the new songs is still “I Can’t Decide,” which has a melody so instantly ingratiating and comfortable that it feels like I’ve known it all my life. The live version that I’ve posted here is rather rough in terms of sound quality, but you should be able to the get the idea. Unfortunately it is just an audio track, and so you can’t see the adorable little jig that Jake Shears and Del Marquis perform at the end! (Click here for the official Scissor Sisters website.)

Ghostface Killah @ Nokia Theatre 4/22/2006
This is not in order, and incomplete: Be Easy, Back Like That, Ice Cream, Nutmeg, Apollo Kids, One, Child’s Play, We Made It, Mighty Healthy, Stay True, Cherchez La Ghost, Iron Man’s Theme, Wildflower, Fish, Biscuits, Run, Holla, Metal Lungies, Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthin To Fuck Wit, Triumph, C.R.E.A.M., Shimmy Shimmy Ya, I Want Pussy

Ghostface Killah “The Champ” – Though there were some changes in the setlist, this was more or less the same show that I saw at the Fader tent at SXSW in terms of flow and performance. All of the cool little things that seemed spontaneous to me in that show is now revealed to me as shtick, though it’s a damn good one. My main frustration with this set is that it only contained two songs from Fishscale, and neither of them would make my top ten on that album. My guess is that the DJ simply did not have the instrumentals for anything but the singles, but man, all I know is that if I wrote a song as ideally suited to opening a show as “The Champ,” I’d do everything in my power to make sure that it was in the set whether the vinyl was available or not. The same goes for “Shakey Dog” and “Kilo.” (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)

Papoose “Alphabetical Slaughter” – This was quite a bill, with performances going pretty much nonstop from 9 PM up til they cut out the power on Ghostface around 12:30. Non-Phixion started the show with a single song before making way for a harmonica-playing rapper whose name I can’t recall. After that, M-1 from Dead Prez came out to do a set focusing on his new solo record, most of which were heavy on R&B choruses and sounded like him trying to get on the radio circa 1997. Unsurprisingly, the highlights of his set were “Hell Yeah” and “Hip Hop.” After that, DJ Premier played a crowd pleasing set with a guest spot from Jeru The Damaja, who was pretty damn amazing. I would have much rather have seen fifteen minutes of Jeru than that harmonica guy. Mix tape star Papoose followed that up with a somewhat uneven set, but kinda wowed me with the opening “Alphabetical Slaughter,” an epic of alliteration that is like the hip hop cousin of The Fiery Furnaces’ “Sullivan’s Social Slub.” Slick Rick was the last of the opening acts, and was predictably charismatic and entertaining, though his hit-heavy set was a bit too brief. (Click here for Papoose’s MySpace page.)

Tom Breihan has a much better write-up of the show on Status Ain’t Hood.