Mike Doughty at the Duck Room

This is a 'things I love' blog. As such, I don't spend much time dwelling on things that suck. It's just more fun for me, the author, to write about those things that are awesome. And the more fun it is for me to write, the more fun it is for you to read.

That having been said, I have to start out this review by saying that this concert "experience" was the worst I've ever had. There were these guys standing behind me that would. not. shut. up. Seriously...for the entire show, they were either talking really loudly or singing really loudly. And no amount of looks or subtle 'hey...do you mind?' comments would shut them up. They were hell bent on being "those guys" at this show. They were clearly fans of Doughty because they knew all the words to all the songs. Doughty himself even had to ask the audience to 'take it down a level' not once but twice.

The best part of the evening was when the lady next to me lost her shit and yelled at Doughty.

The exchange went something like this:
Lady: Do you ever go to someone's job and take the broom out of their hands?
Doughty: Huh?
Lady (slower): Do you ever go to someone's job and take the broom out of their hands?
Doughty: Uh...no?
Lady: Those guys (pointing behind her) are stealing your broom, Dude.

The guys didn't get booted, but at least her public shaming shut them up for five seconds. I would love to buy this lady a beer. Do you know her?

That having been said, the show was pretty awesome. I think the venue wasn't quite right, but Mike Doughty and Scrap were awesome. It was a "Question Jar" show, which meant that Doughty played acoustic guitar and his only accompaniment was Andrew 'Scrap' Livingston on the cello or bass guitar. It also means that the audience got to submit questions which Doughty and Scrap answered during the course of the evening.

Turns out that Doughty won't play at your wedding, loves cherry sno cones, would go to the 1982 Knoxville World's Fair in a Time Machine, loves Steinbeck, and only sometimes misses the drugs. Also, he's still f***ing that chicken.

The limitations of playing an acoustic set meant that Doughty had to make careful choices about which songs he could tackle. Some of his catalog just doesn't stand up to that kind of limitation. But he did pull out a couple of surprises--top among them was Saint Louise is Listening. He also played a lot of songs you'd expect him to play in a setting like that--Janine, Unsingable name, Madeline and Nine, I Hear the Bells. He pimped the new album, playing about half of it. Standouts included (He's got the) Whole World (in His hands) and (You should be) Doubly (Gratified).

Staying true to his roots, his "fake last song" before the encore was from his Soul Coughing days--Soft Serve--and was, for my money, the highlight of the evening.

I was worried about the Question Jar element of the evening. Stage banter is good, but only if the person doing it is witty enough to make you care. Good singers, it is my experience, aren't always great at banter. It was nice, though, the way that Scrap and Doughty managed to interact and answer questions thoughtfully.

I think the Duck Room wasn't a great venue for this show. I'd never been there before but some frustrated post-show tweets lead me to believe that it isn't a good venue for bands who want the quiet, intimate show that a space that small has the potential to provide. I'm not sure, though, what would've been better. Off Broadway, perhaps? The only thing I know for sure is that I will probably not go back to the Duck Room any time soon.

Overall, a good show. Not a great show, but that was more to do with the venue and the concert goers than the performer.