what a random night.

arrive in northampton around 7:45, doors were to open at 9. there was already a line forming outside the club, which is on a tiny side street in the center of town. i find myself standing by two girls, natalie and a girl whose name i wish i could recall (this girl had the added distinction of never having seen howie before). around 8:30, stephanie finds me for her ticket, and we wind up talking while we wait. 9 rolls around. 9:30, 9:45...jamie was talking to a girl ahead of us at one point and said there was a 7 p.m. show in the space, and he hadn't even begun bringing in the equipment. at some point a man with long hair and a tuxedo climbed down from the floor above an italian resturant across the street--climbed down from the window. numerous people walked by wondering what was going on at the iron horse tonight, due to the long line.

finally we get in. i need to say that if i were to ever own a musical performance space, i want it to be like the iron horse. i absolutely adore it. walking in, you turn to the right and can either go up the stairs to your left to a balcony with tables and chairs, straight towards the back of the house, or right, down the stairs to the floor space in front of the stage (which is directly to your right) the four of us went for the stage and i found myself third row dead center. not bad at all.

the opening act was doing soundcheck. of all people, it was rebecca from the real world seattle. she was accompanied by her guitarist, who literally had a computer set up on stage so he could build songs (think howie's pedals taken to the next level, apparently). i wanted to know what program he used for it, but of course, i couldn't see. rebecca was pretty good, i suppose, i didn't like the fact that she took away from her performance after every song when she said something like, "it's a little different than howie". i got into a couple of her songs, but after standing around for about three hours waiting for everything to start, forgive me for not being overly loud. i liked that she drank wine instead of water, and that she only played four or five songs (see previous tirade about being tired and add to that that i just wanted to see howie, dammit).

then, after more impatient waiting (which was actually enjoyable talking with different people there--it's always bizarre to see people that i know are on buzzing, but i've obviously never met, but some of them last night were really fun), howie finally took the stage.

keep in mind that i haven't seen him headline since september, and at each show between now and then, he's been right on and professional. and didn't talk much.

he started it off on the second song (maybe? very early into the set) with some really bad notes while playing with the pedals. he sang the wrong lyric during "secret". he was blasphemous and turned the first half of "lover you should have come over" into a peppy little ditty. he messed up the pedals again. he was talking absolute nonsense. he was having fun.

it was wonderful.

i'm sick of howie being all professional and perfect and whatnot. i like being there when he's human and messes up and has fun with it. seeing him bunch up his eyebrows in frustration over the second pedal incident and flip off the pedals. hearing him explain the problem with the bad notes by talking about watching figure skating "i always want to see them fall...i don't mean them physical harm or anything, but..."

rumor had it (well, fuck rumor, i heard from a good source) that the show was being recorded for a live release (which anyone who has seen him live would agree is a great idea), but somehow, i doubt that show will be officially released any time soon. ;-)

i don't necessarily look forward to specific songs at his shows--i've heard them enough times, i know they're good. i look forward to fragments now, little bits that give me goosebumps and remind me of why i'm there. the final "we will always be the same" in "more you understand", when he wails on that high note; bits of the chorus in "sorry so sorry", the guitar breakdown and lead into the"africa" tease in "buzzing", the "still see a flash" line in "madrigals", watching him build the percussion track in "after you" by beating on his guitar. watching him bounce around hitting the necessary pedals, and watching his reaction when they do or don't work, etc. different moments that i always look forward to because it shows just how good he is. they make the live shows worthwhile, and that's why i've gone to see him five times.

the fact that he played "lover" was the icing on the cake. i wanted to hear buckley so badly, and when he started playing the chords (granted, much too fast because he was playing around with the first half), my eyes lit up. his last song before his encore was "after you", which has become my favorite song (second to "she says", obviously, which is so much better with the "one" tease) since the paradise show, and the buildup to the end of the song was outstanding. i was in shock. radiohead nods were much appreciated. i will say that by the end of his encore, "sweet," i did just want him to end the show, because at that point, i'd been standing for about six hours, with the line and whatnot. it was nearly 1 a.m., and i was exhausted. when i finally did try to move, my knees nearly buckled.

i wanted my photo with him, so i tried to get out of the club very quickly, but when he walked off the stage he walked out the front door (again, my sources are excellent) and headed up the street. i'm sure he was coming back shortly, but i needed to get home, so i did not get my picture. dammit. if anyone can help me in my "picture with howie day" quest, feel free.

but i snuck two pictures while he was performing before i was told i couldn't take pictures (dammit). so hopefully those'll come out.

oy. tired me.