Tim Gibbons

The first time I saw Death Cab at the Disco Rodeo in Raleigh, we were leaving the show when my (then) girlfriend asked the question, "What's that guy's name, Tim Gibbons?" My roommate and I had a good laugh. Little did I know that just a year and seven months later, I'd be going to see "Mr. Gibbons" on his solo tour when he stopped by the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro.The Ben Gibbard concert was a historic event for me! It was the first show I ever went to alone. I heard about the tickets through (of all things) MySpace and snatched one up as soon as I could. No one else seemed interested when I asked around and, low and behold, it sold out in just a few days. It was really a shame because my sister and my roommate both wished they could have gotten tickets after it sold out. Oh well. I enjoyed the loner experience, actually. It was also the first time I'd ever been to the Cat's Cradle. I've never seen a venue that is, literally, a part of a strip mall. The inside looked of questionable integrity and, I must say, it could use some remodeling. That being said, there is something charming about dilapidated old places like that, especially when the music you hear there is so good.And good it was! Jonathan Rice, who opened the show up, was cool. He had some fun songs and wasn't afraid to get the audience involved. A little spastic, but hey, I'll forgive him. David Bazan of Pedro the Lion came on next and, had I been familiar with any of his stuff, I'm sure I would have enjoyed his set more. Nevertheless he was chatty and entertaining. Both of their work is worth a listen.Then It was time for Gibbard and he did an awesome job. One of the things that disappointed me about the Death Cab shows was how little they talked to us. I like to go to listen to music but when your a fan, part of the reason you go is to feel like, for a couple of hours, you're spending some time with each other. It's nice to see them and hear the music but the little things are important to me. Thankfully, Ben was much more talkative this time. He told us little stories, talked back to the crowd, and even took a request or two. Of course, another highlight for me was finally getting to hear some postal service songs live. He played Brand New Colony, We Will Become Silhouettes, and Such Great Heights. By far, though, my favorite part was when he announced he was playing a song that he'd never done live before - and it was Carolina - a really cool song from his split EP, Home, that he did with Andrew Kenny. In our version, he changed the last chorus to North Carolina. Pretty fantastic.And to top things off, it was acoustic so I left the venue without ringing ears. YAY!If you missed out head over to www.npr.org and search for Ben Gibbard. They recorded the entire show from the 9:30 Club in DC the night before my show. The setlist is pretty similar but there are some differences. I love npr; they offer it for download in mp3 format. I broke it up, named the tracks, and now I have a little live album. Woot!Until next time...