Live: Grizzly Bear @ Walt Disney Concert Hall - 3/1/08

On the first day of March, I trekked down to the Walt Disney Concert Hall with Kfuture and aspiring MC Greater Good for a very special evening with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Grizzly Bear. As you may recall, we were able to score front-row tickets through some Ticketmaster screw-up. My god, these were the best seats I've ever had for anything. If I had been so daring, I could have reclined and propped my feet up on the stage, which was only about three feet high and right in front of us. Unreal.

We arrived about three minutes before the Philharmonic started. Conducted by Joana Carneiro (who put the whole night together), the Phil performed Boccherini's Ritirata notturna di Madrid, Britten's Four Sea Interludes, and Stravinsky's Firebird Suite. The first piece featured dueling percussionists, one of which was right in front of us. It was incredible to watch the musician start by tapping the drum with his fingers and then eventually escalate to annihilating the skins with sticks à la Explosions In The Sky. Also great was the ability to watch Carneiro's face throughout the performance and filter out the sound of each particular instrument. I knew the Phil would be top-notch, but now I'm definitely going to make more of an effort to attend their performances.

Anyway, the Phil was great, but the main event was Grizzly Bear. We snuck out for the intermission and when I returned the stage had been transformed for Grizzly Bear's set. Directly in front of my seat was Chris Taylor's insane vocal/bass/clarinet/flute/accordian/sample/delay/looping/feather rig, with which he produced myriad sounds and layering, and much of the band's atmospheric elements. To the right of him was Ed Droste, who has the strongest and purest set of pipes in the group and also played some great riffs on his Telecaster and autoharp. Next was Daniel Rossen, the veritable anchor of the band with regard to rhythm and vocals. Finally was drummer Christopher Bear who ran some delays on his kit and also triggered a variety of samples/synths. Everyone sang.

The performance was beautiful and complete, featuring the tracks "Easier", "Little Brother", "He Hit Me", "Knife", "On a Neck, On a Spit", and "Shift", among many others. Each track was executed with near-masterful technique and the sounds blended perfectly (certainly a result of the performance itself and the acoustics.) Grizzly Bear seemed relaxed and calm, and very very appreciative of the venue and crowd. Taylor even remarked that he wished his clarinet teacher had been there.

It was an incredible evening overall, definitely to become a highlight of the 2008 Los Angeles concert season. And it is so inspiring to see the WDCH booking bands like Grizzly Bear, Cornelius and Neko Case both with and without accompaniments from the Philharmonic.

FYI: The WDCH is extremely strict about photography, which is probably a good thing overall. I was able to squeeze off a few shots, posted below. Also, L.A. Times article here, source of the top photo.