Customer Reviews

Live at the Brattle Theatre/Griffith Sunset Ep

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Griffith Sunset is mesmerizing, bizarre, transfixing - Dando at his most creative, with none of his pop sensibility. The songs he's selected here are quiet, self-conscious gems, from longing alt country riffs to quasi-antique ballads. Beyond some well-planted distortion and the occasional echo of a scratching turntable, this is just Dando and his guitar. Music made for a journey - be it on foot, in a car or just in your head.

Evan Dando is Back!!! He is better than ever. This CD lets us listen to his melodic voice in an intimate setting. Evan Dando is perhaps the best at performing an acoustic show. His EP with a little alt-country is terrific as well. I saw him...at a show and he was superb there as well....

After the 1996 release of "Car Button Cloth," Evan Dando began to drift further and futher out of sight until by the year 2000, he had dropped of the face of the Earth altogether. This left many of his hard core fans wondering whatever happened to him, and more importantly, if we would ever see or hear from him ever again. This live album shows that Evan Dando is back, and alive and well. The album contains plenty of Lemonheads' classics, some well chosen covers, and some new Dando compositions that are excellent, and make one look foward in anticipation for his new solo album which (hopefully) be coming out soon. The compositions are all played acoustic, which give the performances a much warmer intimate feel, plus it reveals new facets of the songs that one might might miss during a electric performance. After a long period of obscurity, Evan Dando is back in our lives again, and we all should be thankful.

I can't say enough about this one. Evan Dando's deep, sexy voice shines in this live acoustic set.
If you love Evan, as I do, you'll listen to this over and over again. Dando pairs his deep, yet tangential lyrics with cutting guitar riffs and his fluid vioce. Songs like "My Drug Buddy" and "The Turnpike Down" mesh very well with the more obscure "Stove" and "Thirteen". Every song is better than the next. The only thing missing is backing vocals by Juliana Hatfield! All ED fans should own this gem.

I don't often provide my opinions given the appreciation of music and individual taste makes providing an opinion more or less irrelevant such is the subjectivity of the task ... how many times have we all enjoyed music that has been given horrible reviews by those whose ears are supposed to somehow represent the tastes of individuals (be they aged 12 and seriously discovering music for the first time ... or, in my case, 38 and 24 years of serious devotion to certain groups and 'styles' of music. The often erroneously titled 'Alt Country' is a good label for the EP of covers atached to this 2CD set from Evan D. Some wonderful interpretations (Sam Stone ... a heartbreaking rendition when you consider the hole in Dando's arm where so much money has gone - same goes for Hank Williams), and some - to my ears - not so great (Ba-Di-Da, Fraulein).

In any event, to return to the reason for providing a brief review - the individual who provided the 2 star review had listened to what is, admittedly, a very intimate, solo acounstic show in front of what sounds very much like a moderate size audience. However, he stated he listened to it once and put it away in preference of his own self-compiled compilation of Dando's 'best' live performances (to his taste). I must admit, when I first bought this CD I felt somewhat deflated after the first FEW listens. Noew, many times later, I know I can put this piece of music own and close my eyes and with a gale blowing outside and the lovely strains of a man who has lived his songs be warmed by both a crackling fire and the honesty and subtle effort that is obvious in this perfomance. Which is great - given that when Mr Dando was in Melburne last, it was an atrocious debacle ... not interested in being there, no respect for his own catalogue of wonderful rocking pop and alt country ... not a word given to an audience who had braved the lements and paid their hard earned coin to be entertained. I'm no blond fan, praising everything released by an artist I have enjoyed in terms of their best albums (It's a Shame (w/ Lemonheads, I'm So Bored)as well as the brilliant songs that are scattered across albums that habve been less than stellar - Big Gay Heart (Sneaky Pete and all! One can't fail with the most innovative pedal steel player to have emerged from the country rock scene (with apologies to Rusty Young and Red Rhodes)), Into My Arms and many, many others.

Always give albums a second, third, fourth listen - this is the sound of a man at peace - something that is warmly captured wonderfully on the live CD. Not his greatest release in the world but one with a definite place in his canon - as well as one with a time and place at various points in my life - to pick me up and let me know that whatever drugs, alcohol and life throw at you (or to be honest, me) there is a soundtrack of redemption waiting ...

Any fan of intimate acoustic music will love this album, but more importantly fans of Evan/The Lemonheads must hear this! This is the kind of album that if he had played on MTV Unplugged in the 90's would have gone down as legendary - it is that good. Dando clearly has not lost his talent and it is interesting to hear him in such a vulnerable setting. Just Evan and his acoustic guitar. Dando's voice is strong and deep and he really sings with passion at this concert. It is one of my favorite albums to listen to in the car on a nice summer day - not sure why but the setting just seems to fit.

All I can say is I wish the acoustic set was longer... I saw him at Joe's Pub in Manhattan a year or two ago and he played acoustically for 2 hours, and it was awesome!! Dando's great!

I've seen Evan Dando about 6 times, starting in 1992, and the last time I saw him (February 2001) was one of the best. This album shows why. Some of his best songs performed acoustically, without a band to drown out the lyrics and Evan's underrated voice. With the new songs I've heard only live (including "All My Life," written for him by Ben Lee), I'm very optimistic about his next solo album. He's talented, married, and seems to have his act together. The Griffith Sunset EP is a nice addition to a great live set.

I picked this CD up as soon as I saw it was available. I'm very fond of Dando, especially his acoustic stuff. To be kind, this CD is just not all that great. I've heard better tunes off some of the music swapping sites. I've listened to the CD once and have put it away for the duration. I would much rather enjoy my own compilation of his acoustic sets and radio appearances. I sincerely suggest you put your money to better use.

I was at the 9:30 pm Brattle concert on the night of October 18, 2000, which I believe is the source for some of the songs on this CD (he played another show earlier in the evening as well). It was a very, very good acoustic show -- his voice was deep where it needed to be ("Ride With Me"), and raw when he had to be ("Rabbit", which unfortunately did not make the final cut). He also played some great stuff I hadn't heard before, like "Frying Pan".