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PJ

Wed., October 6, 2004

Andie and I went and saw PJ Harvey tonight at the Hammerstein Ballroom, which is only 2.5 blocks away from where I work. It was a rockin’ good time.

Moris Tepper opened. In retropect, I think some of his songs sounded a bit like early PJ Harvey songs, only sung by a crazy guy with only an amped acoustic guitar. Turns out he’s played guitar for Captain Beefheart, Tom Waits and Frank Black. If you put those three guys and their instruments in a metal trash can and rolled it down a hill, it’d sound like Moris Tepper. I mean that in a good way. Never mind.

The sold-out crowd packed in for PJ and there was an inexplicable rash of guys taller than six feet standing directly in front of us, so there was a lot of head-darting to catch views of the stage. PJ looked great, as always, with her shagged haircut, handbag, sleeveless shirt-blouse thing, and a skirt that appeared to be illustrated with Animal from The Muppet Show. She said very little between songs other than a quiet “thanks” or two, but she really rocked out. No one’s got a voice like hers, where in one moment, she’s singing high and clear with operatic beauty, and then all the sudden her voice swoops down low and she’s growling and you start sweating and reaching for your revolver.

She only played five of the 14 songs from her newest album, which was good because the crowd wanted the classics. Song highlights for me were “Big Exit” and “The Whores Hustle And The Hustlers Whore” from Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea. I also enjoyed “Is This Desire?” (one of her most transcendent songs), as well as the sludgy “Meet Ze Monsta,” for which PJ played police whistle and maracas. Cool.

For the fans, here’s the setlist. If memory serves, the only cover is “Janet Vs. Johnny,” which is by The Fall.

  1. Dress
  2. Who The Fuck?
  3. Big Exit
  4. Evol
  5. Victory
  6. My Beautiful Leah
  7. 50ft Queenie
  8. Shame
  9. It’s You
  10. The Life & Death Of Mr. Badmouth
  11. Meet Ze Monsta
  12. The Whores Hustle And The Hustlers Whore
  13. Harder
  14. Me-Jane

Encore 1

  1. Rid Of Me
  2. Taut
  3. Catherine
  4. Fountain
  5. Janet Vs. Johnny
  6. Is This Desire?

Encore 2

  1. There Will Never Be A Better Time
  2. The Darker Days Of Me And Him

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