Dave in concert
As expected, this was by far the best concert experience I’ve had. It was even cool waiting since we played cards. So… the concert started very strong with excellent songs, and I was in a trance when I got to hear Pig live. Other memorable peaks were the So Much To Say-What Would You Say jam transition and All Along The Watchtower was simply awesome (did anyone get the guest guitarist’s name? I thought I heard Dave say something like “Kirk Douglas”. Anyways, he was crazy bonus music extravaganza). Warehouse and Grace Is Gone were cool. The encore had unexpected song selections… I do like The Maker, but I really wanted to hear You Never Know and/or Two Step. Next time hopefully…

NOTE #1: The Eagle Scout mini pocketknife has been permanently removed from my key chain due to its being a detriment to my unhindered entry into clubs, airports, and apparently Shoreline.

NOTE #2: I go to concerts because I like the artist’s music. I like Dave Matthews and his Band. I DO NOT GO TO CONCERTS TO HEAR FANS SING OR SEE THEM DANCE. Okay the dancing is one thing… I of all people can understand the urge to dance that music can arouse. And it doesn’t really bother me when other people are dancing and having a good time, no matter how chunk the body or how unsuitable the shirt size. But singing comes between me and my reason for being there. I want to hear the instruments and enjoy the feel of live music. I want to hear Dave sing. I don’t want to hear a crowd sing loud not quite unison off key shiet.

NOTE #3: It gets worse. Singing along is almost forgivable. After numerous listens, I eventually gained appreciation for the beauty of Cry Freedom, and now I really like it. Steve turned to me and said, “this song is boring”. When I first started listening to Dave I would have agreed. But that’s all Steve said... at least he was listening to the song and watching the band. The crowd as a whole, though, paid no respect and talked all the way through the damn song, chatting and shiet. SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT. THE. FUCK. UP. You came to the concert. You probably claim to be a fan. You know you’re surrounded by fans. You’re gonna talk all the way through one of the songs while the real fans are there to actually listen to some music? SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU GODDAMN MONKEYSHITFACEBITCHES. Times two.

So… very good concert, but some very stupid fans to go with it. I guess that’s the world. Here are some quotes to remind us how the world should be…

“I hope you’re all having a good time so far tonight, I hope you’re enjoying yourselves, cause you’re being so attentive and… (and and and and and) that’s really graceful of you and uh (and uh and uh) thank y’all very much I hope you’re having a good time.” – Dave Matthews, Live at Luther College

“Shut your damn faces and listen.” – Eecs Bangs


Fancy headphones
A while back I mentioned the Etymotic Research ER-4P audiophile earphones. Long story short: they’re supposed to sound really good and block out noise.

So I went ahead and bought ‘em. Good price on eBay. What with the reviews I read, there was no way I could not try them out. And with some other reviews, there was no way I could avoid getting the HeadRoom Total Airhead amp to go with it. So… a few hundred dollars and extensive listening later, here are my reviews:

Etymotic Research ER-4P MicroPro, part one - At first try, I was not blown away like I had expected and hoped to be. I confirmed that they were pretty comfortable, capable of deep bass despite their small size, and they seemed to block noise out about the same amount as my Sony noise canceling set. They sounded good and clear, but there didn’t seem to be anything so special about them. Plus they have a very annoying microphonic effect… the slightest touch to the wire causes a Bloodsport-people-getting-up-in-stands-to-face-shrine-when-Chong-Li-kills-Chinaman-sound (I actually tested it with a single human hair… oh it’s audible). Considering the price, this isn’t looking good. Damn that eBay.

HeadRoom Total Airhead - Another subexciting disappointment. I had read that the amp would make a big difference in sound quality, especially with high quality “cans”, because portables and headphone jacks in general don’t deliver good power. Tried it. Could not hear a difference. I tried the “processor” switch, and heard the blending feature (that’s supposed to make stereo separation less taxing on your brain)… a small and questionable change. Then at work I realized that through the CD player’s line out, low volume equals left side only. Part of the reason I got the earphones was to listen at safer volumes… but not at the expense of right-side music. I tried it several times more, hoping I’d notice something… but in the end I don’t think it’s worth the cost and I’m going for the 30-day money-back.

Etymotic Research ER-4P MicroPro, part two – You don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone. In this case, what you’ve got is a world full of ambient noise. Things you take for granted, like street traffic outside or the hum of your computer running. It’s weird when these things are silenced and all you’re left with is music. I now understand what some reviewer meant when he said this is the closest thing to having the music piped directly to your brain. It’s like the music isn’t coming from anywhere, it’s just in your head (of course this makes sense, since your ear canals are in your head). On the other hand, it’s not as dangerously isolating as I expected. I can still hear people if they talk loud, and I can hear my phone ring. These are good things, since I don’t want to be completely oblivious to my coworkers, manager, and phone calls.

The ER-4P comes with a little pouch that, when combined with a single twist tie, makes for easy no-wire-tangling compact travel. They also come with a shirt clip that holds onto part of the cord and helps a lot with that damn microphonic effect.

I finally realized just how good the Etymotics are when I switched back and forth between them and my other headphones (Sony and Koss). They just sound way more clear and natural, and notably they’re even clear at very low volume. The bass and treble aren’t overemphasized like with many headphones. At home I listened to Michael Jackson’s Invincible album, mainly to test out the bass. But I started to hear things I didn’t remember ever hearing before. Here’s the challenge: try listening to “You Rock My World” and tell me the first thing he says after the music starts. I had never noticed it before, and even knowing it was there, I had trouble understanding it with other headphones or my shelf system speakers. But it’s totally clear with the Etymotics. I figure Brendan and Steve have a good chance since they have Sennheisers… but I’d be interested to hear what answers people come up with. And you shouldn’t have to turn it up to deafening levels. But that’s up to you. So in summary, I’m definitely keeping the Etymotics and will enjoy using them every day.