Last year Susan and I went to the Sylvee for the Joey’s Song benefit. I actually think it was the 2022 show postponed to 2023 due to Covid, etc. This year I watched the livestream instead, partly while I was cooking and cleaning up dinner (lentil and sweet potato curry, where the lentils never got quite soft enough, but it tasted OK, now contemplating whether I should throw the rest of the lentils, from the bulk bin at coop and probably on the old side, away, or compost, or try making soup with them to really see if they stay crunchy) and partly with the cats having our regular cuddle time on the couch in my room.
Each way had its advantages. Live because it’s, well, live. The livestream was fun because I could see the musicians better.
The format was better this year. Instead of the kind of variety show style where it’s band after band, each one does three songs, then they ask for money in between, it was battle of the bands, two super groups, the Know It All Girlfriends vs. the Know It All Boyfriends, MC’d by Manitowoc Minute Charlie Berens.
Chris Collingwood and Doug Erickson in the background here.
When the show started they had a line of performers seated at the front of the stage, left to right, Brian Aubert and Nikki Monninger from Silversun Pickups, newlyweds Laura Jane Grace from Against Me and Paris Campbell, two guys I didn’t know but I think were current members of Soul Asylum (one of them might’ve been Jeremy Tappero, who’s the bass player in Soul Asylum since 2020 and the son of Joel Tappero, bass player in Spooner), and Dave Pirner, Soul Asylum. They did a few songs, including the ‘Mats Androgynous and the Soft Boys, I Wanna Destroy You.
Next Jody Stephens and John Auer did a few Big Star songs, accompanied by Kay Hanley and a few others.
Charlie Berens did a few bits including Uuuuff Da to the tune of Hallelujah, and then the battle of the bands began. They had a wheel to spin for the style the songs were supposed to be, and I thought the guys made a few bad choices. But it was probably what they practiced. For pioneers of punk, the Boyfriends did Jean Genie, which yea, I guess it counts, but could not compete with the Girlfriends Kick Out the Jams with Laura Jane Grace on lead vocal. And for the headbanger category, the Boyfriends brought out Dave Pirner, their “secret weapon”, but unfortunately – to my mind anyways – had him sing a heavy metal ballad, Feel Like Makin’ Love, while the Girlfriends did Cum On Feel the Noize. Girlfriends won, obvs.
After the battle, there were a few more acts, Portugal the Man, and Joey’s brother came out and did a Bob Seeger song. There was a long fundraising interlude, then the Know It All Boyfriends (KIAB) came back for their closing set. TBH I can’t remember what they opened with – I think I got dozy during all the asking for $$. I know they did a Matthew Sweet song, but I think that was second. Last year Doug (Duke Erickson, but still Doug to me) was much more of the frontman, when they opened with We’re Gonna Have a Real Good Time Together. But he might’ve stepped to the front, and KIAB might’ve pulled out some really cool covers, and I don’t know, because just like last year, I’d kind of had it after their 2nd or 3rd song and left. Last year Susan and I drove home, this year I got out from under the kittens, turned off the computer and went upstairs. Where I watched a few minutes of a skit on the SNL repeat with Jason Momoa that Mark had on. It was about husbands’ and wives’ interior dialogues. The men were thinking about ancient Rome and the women were thinking about astrology. The kids were thinking about dinosaurs. It wasn’t really funny, so that didn’t keep me either, so I went to bed. Where I read some of my ebook, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, which despite its age, I’ve never read. The book held my attention a lot better, and I read until Mark came to bed about 45 minutes later.