X was amazing at Town Hall last night, even better than when I saw them in July 2022, opening for the Psychedelic Furs, and they were flat out awesome at that show. It probably helps that they were the main act and played a longer set. It's just a shame this is probably their last NYC show and makes me regret missing those full-album shows from a decade ago which may have been the last time they played the city as a headliner. (They've done at least a few tours since as an opening band.)
The title track of
See How We Are was a wonderful surprise. I didn't think they'd play anything from that album since Billy wasn't on it, but an acoustic duet between John and Exene was a nice way of including it, a beautiful arrangement for the song. John prefaced it by saying "this goes all to all the folkies who played here," and of course one of Bob Dylan's greatest shows was at Town Hall on April 12, 1963, and I'm sure he was aware of that. Earlier in the main set, he said this might've been the nicest venue they've ever played, but that probably has more to do with the very dignified look of Town Hall, which outside of the auditorium could pass for a government building from colonial times.
A friend told me they spotted Debbie Harry there, the duo White Hills was there, and Griffin Dunne was pretty close to where we were. I'm still wondering if anyone else from NY's local punk scene attended besides Debbie Harry.
Afterwards Billy went into the orchestra aisle and met a long line of fans, making a point to shake everyone's hands. A real class act, even when joking around like pretending to sniff someone's marker, he carries himself like a soft-spoken gentleman with a very relaxed and polite demeanor.
The show ended a little after 11 p.m. We never met the rest of the band before and since this might've been the only practical chance to do so, we walked a few blocks to Joe's Pizza on Broadway (which is open until 3 a.m.) then came back around midnight when the crowd had finally thinned out and the crew was loading out. It may have been late, but when you're in Times Square, it really doesn't feel that way at all. More than any other neighborhood, it earns the city's nickname "the city that never sleeps."
Eventually Exene stepped out, looking for their ride, and she seemed genuinely surprised to see a modest group of fans still waiting. She was very sweet to everyone, and eventually John came out, rolling his luggage and looking ready to go. He also looked surprised and (jokingly) told everyone "you don't have something better to do?" before taking the time to pose for photos, sign stuff and say hi to the fans. He was extremely nice, and after a while Exene did tell everyone, "okay, he really has to leave!" Before he left, Exene said goodbye to him and gave him a really long hug. Bear in mind, the tour picks up in two weeks anyway, which kind of made the moment all the more heartwarming. Not that there was any doubt, but it just showed how close they still are after all these years.
Later Billy came out and again was very sweet to everyone and then DJ came out last and he was extremely nice too. It finally occurred to me to ask someone about
Ain't Love Grand! because a fan on social media asked if they would consider remixing it. Turns out they did have that idea a long time ago, but the multitracks couldn't be located. So I asked DJ if the band considered re-recording it since they couldn't remix it, and it sounded like he already suggested that himself but the others weren't up for it. I don't get the impression that was going to change either, but at least he tried!
It's not really the end as they will continue to do shows on the West Coast where they generally reside, and they've already booked a bunch of Christmas shows all through December (from Salem, OR to Tacoma, WA then Petaluma, Fresno, Berkeley, Sacramento, Bakersfield and Santa Ana in CA), but if you're not on the West Coast, this may be your last chance so definitely catch them if you can.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/04/2024 10:29PM by belfast.
