Yeah - I was lucky enough to work at the Walker for almost exactly a decade and helped set up/manage/take down every Rock the Garden during that time, including this one. I remember this performance pretty vividly: it was by far the best thing that day - I kind of couldn't believe it, because I thought they would maybe do the droning for the same amount of time as the original song, but then I realized they were at like 20 mins, with zero sign of stopping. It was awesome. I also recall startling Alan out by the loading dock behind the building, while he was smoking what I'm pretty much certain was a spliff, given the way he smelled when he came in - I had to open one of the huge loading dock doors for an incoming art delivery in one of these huge, precisely climate-controlled truck, while he was out near it, puffing away before they played an indoor concert before this RTG performance. It's pretty loud, but I had no choice, and when it suddenly powered up and opened, he jumped a bit and nearly dropped the (very likely) joint, lol.
I think a lot of people watch this out of context, so it’s funny to recall what occurred immediately before this performance. It was raining hard, and nobody was really sure if the concert would happen at all. A man sprang out of the crowd, directing everyone into the Walker parking garage. This was Dan Deacon, and needless to say the performance was memorable. After directing the crowd in a series of games, the energy was high and we formed a human hand bridge to go back outside to the next set, which was Low. Completely different energy, like the ultimate sugar crash. Everyone in the audience seemed upset. I was LIVING for it. I hadn’t heard of Low before, and I feel blessed to see such a legendary performance.
This is actually a really good drone performance. It's not rock, obviously, save for when they actually play the song, but the atmosphere is amazing. It morphs and shifts and develops, all with this really minimal textural palette. Normally bands doing this kind of thing will use loads of effects to wash out the instruments, but they seem to just be using a little delay, distortion, and playing techniques. Really great stuff.
I LOVE that they had the balls to play this live at a festival. Incredible. I saw this on 'Curtain Hits the Cast' in 1995. I had no idea who Low was and I showed up to The Bottleneck in Lawrence KS. on LSD. I fell in love with them that night. All the tables in the bar (there were tables for this show) were candlelit. There were only maybe 30 people there. Dirty Three opened (they later did that record together). It was a life changer.
I saw that tour with the Dirty 3 in Chicago. Definitely not 30 people, but so memorable and amazing. I had no idea who Low were and had no idea I'd love their music so much.
I saw them 5-6 times between 1998-2005 and I once saw them shut up a chatty bar crowd by playing this progressively louder and louder. It was utterly glorious. There's a 30 minute version somewhere here of them playing it with Godspeed.
What is amazing to me is that this performance was actually controversial. One concert-goer argued that the venue was ROCK the Garden, not DRONE the Garden. Uhm, excuse me? This is Low. A bit of research says that Low does music that is sLow. That's what they do. This is what they've always done, ever since the beginning when they were getting food and drinks thrown at them by club audiences because they insisted on these minimalist ambient songs with vague lyrics rather than the fast-paced indie/alternative rock that audiences were expected. And Alan Sparhawk was not suitably soothing the audiences' fee-fees, especially with that last pointed finger and "Drone, not drones"? Puhleeze. That's Alan Sparhawk. That's how he always is in concerts. That's Low. You knew that ahead of time when you bought the ticket, or should have. If you didn't, your fault, not theirs. They did what they do. If you didn't want what they do, you shouldn't have bought the ticket, or you should have shrugged and said "well, I'm not going to see their set because I don't like their music." And frankly, I wish I could get a high quality MP3 of this performance for my iTunes, because this is one of the coolest performances by Low that I have ever heard.
Yeah it's a cool performance, but you really don't get why people found it unexpected? I've seen Low about ten times and not once have they played a set remotely like this, particularly considering that vocal harmony and sparse instrumentation is their calling card. Yes it's cool, and yes I understand why people were surprised or disappointed
Reminds me a lot of the classic bootleg of Low and Godspeed You! Black Emperor playing this at Schuba's in Chicago a long time ago. Thanks for posting this!
Thanks for reminding about that one! I forgot how the levels were pushed so hard and the clipping is so harsh. I wish there was a cleaner copy somewhere. I got that back in the 90's.
dont know if you guys cares but if you are stoned like me atm then you can watch all the new movies on InstaFlixxer. Have been streaming with my brother for the last couple of days :)
in the void of our modern times, behold a light, into the darkness of despair, a path that seems neither grim nor desolate, only forgotten, few dare tread into the unknown, and still we LOW follow... cant have enough of this! thank you...
Could this be the greatest Punk Rock move ever? No slam dancing but a completely stunned audience. I saw a few people who understood what they were witnessing, but only a few. Must say that if I was there I wouldn't get what they were doing. Glad I got to see and meet them a few times. RIP Mimi and best wishes to Alan going forward.
Like many, I could not get a ticket to this. I am so glad that the effort was put in to do a pro-shot of this performance. After everybody else went to bed, chromecasting this up into my system was my Christmas gift to myself.
This is just unbelievable, you can see and feel the tension building in Alan and it just brings the hairs up on the back of my neck. it's mesmerizing and beautiful. They played this at the End of the Road 2019 and it was simply superb.
To date one of the bravest and boldest artistic expressions of presence that will haunt us throughout our currently continuous chasms of cognitive dissonance.
Sure, it may have been an odd choice for an entire performance. But this is the song that got me into Low to begin with and I'd have been super amped to see this.
Low is one of the only bands of this genre that I connected to. I’ll try to save the sappy bullshit for myself but this band really got me through hard, hard times. RIP Mimi thank you for caressing me to slumber when my mind was destroyed. Sleep well.
I'm still a novice but I see this as a very significant tide in music, particularly in music from the United States. It's very hard to do "Profound" in rock and pop and they have found a way to make powerful statements with very little. When Mimi sings of "turning water into wine...", that's, in a way, what they do. Having said that, this is a lot of water and you have to know what the wine tastes like to know it's there.
read the interview with Alan back then about this perfromance... the story is they tried to get Prince on stage to play guitar, they failed to do that, Alan got so bored and said fuck it...
I rescue people from death due to Opiate Poisoning, Overdose. I look after them, on graveyard shift. I blast this song in traffic on the way to work everyday in rush hour lineup. Wish it was longer.
No wonder you listen to low. Would you mind describing to me what's a day like in your regular life ? I'm an aspiring writer, I'd love to hear your story
@@simonhugo4893 You need to get a life. Dude has a normal ass job and is no one special. You're a fucking aspiring sensationalist moron. I'd love to hear the story about how you managed to choose a real profession and got properly educated. Dipshit. PS: Your writing skills are trash.
@@plasterofparisify yeah fuck you too buddy. You often trashtalk stranger out of yout ass cause they somehow managed to iritate you ? Lost a loved one to opiates maybe ?
Even more powerful than any other complex band. Low takes music to a higher level... only three chords? Well, remember: sometimes, LESS is MORE. At the end, it doesn't even feel like it's been 28" since it started to play...
closest thing we'll ever get to low sayin straightup "FUCK AMERICA" lol. fo real, ppl label them as just some happy-ass mormon couple who make twee indie songs, when in reality, alot of their work is driven by a sense of deepseated righteous rage, disappoinment, self-loathing, & general intensity. look up interviews with them concerning alan sparhawks mental break in 07 & his (continuing, i think?) drug addiction, its mad informative
Alan has a drug addiction? I've never heard this. As far as I knew, he's a devoted religious type of guy. Where'd you hear this? and from what source? A google search was inconclusive.
Max Aronow interview w/ pitchfork from 06 i believe, might also be discussed in an interview they with unkut where he describes how for a time he thought he was tha antichrist (which i think was wat inspired tha joint 'murderer')
They were infuriated at Obama's drone strikes over Syria. This entire performance was meant to be a protest of the cruelty our government was committing, hence the "drone, not drones" comment before they left the stage.
Can’t believe we’ll never get to see Alan and Mimi perform together again. Rest in peace Mimi Parker❤
They were magic together
Yeah - I was lucky enough to work at the Walker for almost exactly a decade and helped set up/manage/take down every Rock the Garden during that time, including this one. I remember this performance pretty vividly: it was by far the best thing that day - I kind of couldn't believe it, because I thought they would maybe do the droning for the same amount of time as the original song, but then I realized they were at like 20 mins, with zero sign of stopping. It was awesome.
I also recall startling Alan out by the loading dock behind the building, while he was smoking what I'm pretty much certain was a spliff, given the way he smelled when he came in - I had to open one of the huge loading dock doors for an incoming art delivery in one of these huge, precisely climate-controlled truck, while he was out near it, puffing away before they played an indoor concert before this RTG performance.
It's pretty loud, but I had no choice, and when it suddenly powered up and opened, he jumped a bit and nearly dropped the (very likely) joint, lol.
I think a lot of people watch this out of context, so it’s funny to recall what occurred immediately before this performance. It was raining hard, and nobody was really sure if the concert would happen at all. A man sprang out of the crowd, directing everyone into the Walker parking garage. This was Dan Deacon, and needless to say the performance was memorable. After directing the crowd in a series of games, the energy was high and we formed a human hand bridge to go back outside to the next set, which was Low. Completely different energy, like the ultimate sugar crash. Everyone in the audience seemed upset. I was LIVING for it. I hadn’t heard of Low before, and I feel blessed to see such a legendary performance.
lol dan deacon and Low, i'm jelly
The only time I saw them live was this performance. RIP Mimi. I loved your voice and haunting harmonies. So sad.
This is actually a really good drone performance. It's not rock, obviously, save for when they actually play the song, but the atmosphere is amazing. It morphs and shifts and develops, all with this really minimal textural palette. Normally bands doing this kind of thing will use loads of effects to wash out the instruments, but they seem to just be using a little delay, distortion, and playing techniques. Really great stuff.
I LOVE that they had the balls to play this live at a festival. Incredible. I saw this on 'Curtain Hits the Cast' in 1995. I had no idea who Low was and I showed up to The Bottleneck in Lawrence KS. on LSD. I fell in love with them that night. All the tables in the bar (there were tables for this show) were candlelit. There were only maybe 30 people there. Dirty Three opened (they later did that record together). It was a life changer.
How lucky
I saw that tour with the Dirty 3 in Chicago. Definitely not 30 people, but so memorable and amazing. I had no idea who Low were and had no idea I'd love their music so much.
I saw them 5-6 times between 1998-2005 and I once saw them shut up a chatty bar crowd by playing this progressively louder and louder. It was utterly glorious. There's a 30 minute version somewhere here of them playing it with Godspeed.
RIP Mimi :(
I can just second that.
What is amazing to me is that this performance was actually controversial. One concert-goer argued that the venue was ROCK the Garden, not DRONE the Garden. Uhm, excuse me? This is Low. A bit of research says that Low does music that is sLow. That's what they do. This is what they've always done, ever since the beginning when they were getting food and drinks thrown at them by club audiences because they insisted on these minimalist ambient songs with vague lyrics rather than the fast-paced indie/alternative rock that audiences were expected. And Alan Sparhawk was not suitably soothing the audiences' fee-fees, especially with that last pointed finger and "Drone, not drones"? Puhleeze. That's Alan Sparhawk. That's how he always is in concerts. That's Low. You knew that ahead of time when you bought the ticket, or should have. If you didn't, your fault, not theirs. They did what they do. If you didn't want what they do, you shouldn't have bought the ticket, or you should have shrugged and said "well, I'm not going to see their set because I don't like their music." And frankly, I wish I could get a high quality MP3 of this performance for my iTunes, because this is one of the coolest performances by Low that I have ever heard.
Get the song on Peggo then open Steinberg Wavelab or similar and add some more gain and normalization and it will have a way better sound ;)
Bad Tux I only wish they could have followed this up with a cover of John Cage’s “Organ2/ASLAP” (the 639-year version) or an extended 4’33”.
Yeah it's a cool performance, but you really don't get why people found it unexpected? I've seen Low about ten times and not once have they played a set remotely like this, particularly considering that vocal harmony and sparse instrumentation is their calling card. Yes it's cool, and yes I understand why people were surprised or disappointed
But they’re sooo lame
I'm actually happy they did this
That one time Low played 1 song for 29 minutes. Classic to say the least.
We'll miss you Mimi.
Reminds me a lot of the classic bootleg of Low and Godspeed You! Black Emperor playing this at Schuba's in Chicago a long time ago. Thanks for posting this!
Where could I find old Low bootlegs?
Thanks for reminding about that one! I forgot how the levels were pushed so hard and the clipping is so harsh. I wish there was a cleaner copy somewhere. I got that back in the 90's.
@@avidanterior here, knock yourself out ;) archive.org/details/LowMusic
i can't fucking believe this exists, y'all are royalty thank you
dont know if you guys cares but if you are stoned like me atm then you can watch all the new movies on InstaFlixxer. Have been streaming with my brother for the last couple of days :)
the world needs more music like this
There is a FUCK ton, just hard to find.
this music is the world...no mainstream
R.I.P Mimi Parker 💔
This is a sad day
Mimi ❤🔥
in the void of our modern times, behold a light, into the darkness of despair, a path that seems neither grim nor desolate, only forgotten, few dare tread into the unknown, and still we LOW follow...
cant have enough of this! thank you...
Definitely one of the best songs i have ever heard. I love this so muchhh.
3 of the best chords ever
Could this be the greatest Punk Rock move ever? No slam dancing but a completely stunned audience. I saw a few people who understood what they were witnessing, but only a few. Must say that if I was there I wouldn't get what they were doing. Glad I got to see and meet them a few times. RIP Mimi and best wishes to Alan going forward.
Like many, I could not get a ticket to this. I am so glad that the effort was put in to do a pro-shot of this performance. After everybody else went to bed, chromecasting this up into my system was my Christmas gift to myself.
What a beautiful, hypnotizing performance. If I ever catch this band live, I wish they'd do something like this.
This is just unbelievable, you can see and feel the tension building in Alan and it just brings the hairs up on the back of my neck. it's mesmerizing and beautiful. They played this at the End of the Road 2019 and it was simply superb.
Alan at the end says drone not drones.. What s the meaning? (I don t speak English so well)
@@philkd1740 - Drone means a continuous low humming sound that doesn't change its note.
@@philkd1740 he's saying drone, as in the music, not drones, as in drones being used to drop bombs.
this has always been the one song i've longed to hear from them in a live setting.
drone… not drones!
What s the meaning? (i m from italy, i m not into this slang)
@@philkd1740 anti-war sentiment. That is, drone (style of music), not drones (the unmanned aerial vehicles used for war/murder).
@@skeletonhaver tnx man 👍👍
To date one of the bravest and boldest artistic expressions of presence that will haunt us throughout our currently continuous chasms of cognitive dissonance.
absolutely
Rock is about taking chances. Art is about life. This is both rock and art.
Man, I thought Punk was dead. But on this night, Low showed it isn't truly gone.
lol
Low makes me cry every time... I adore them ... GO LOW!
Thanks for all the harmonies, Mimi.
I just saw them playing this amazing song last night in Toronto and I still feel blessed!
I found this video because I was just thinking about that show at The Great Hall and how amazing this song was.
Sure, it may have been an odd choice for an entire performance. But this is the song that got me into Low to begin with and I'd have been super amped to see this.
You are magnificent brave human beings. Bravo!
Awesome Low !! I wish I could've seen this live
RIP Miss Parker ♥️
I need this without those god damn ads
perfect . i saw low five times but never had the chance to see a set like this one.
I am actually in my office filing paperwork and this fits in wonderfully...passes the time quite well
Okay, this has always been my dream Low setlist. With Lullaby and Two-Step as encores.
yes please
PEOPLE WHO HATED THIS OBVIOUSLY DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH WRIST STRENGTH IS REQUIRED TO PLAY THE SAME NOTE AND RATTLE HIGH-HATS OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
forty years ago, a prog band would've pulled something like this off and people would've loved it. we've become such a stupid spoonfed society.
Low is one of the only bands of this genre that I connected to. I’ll try to save the sappy bullshit for myself but this band really got me through hard, hard times. RIP Mimi thank you for caressing me to slumber when my mind was destroyed. Sleep well.
little obsessed with this song
Utterly, utterly brilliant.
Love this! I have a couple of friends who were at the show who hated this, but I enjoy this the more I listen to it.
Saw them at Nita's Hideaway in Tempe AZ, late 90s. Loved it!
The only band that matters to me right now, doing what they do.
anyone that didn't enjoy this clearly never heard of the band before the year 2000
Absolutely Fabulous! Pure Magic :)
so damned good.
bruh, seriously, multiple ad rolls throughout an atmospheric drone song?
do you realize that at least a third of us listening are stoned?
Use adblock bro
GENIUS
wow. i'm new to this. it's awesome.
This is a masterpiece.
It's hard to get used to it ! We loved her so much ! 😢
Just awesome!!!!
To me this is just like swimming in warm water...
The soundtrack to 2021 doesn’t exi-
cathartic
No me canse de sentir aquest tema i aquesta interpretació
AMAZING.
drone not drones
I'm still a novice but I see this as a very significant tide in music, particularly in music from the United States. It's very hard to do "Profound" in rock and pop and they have found a way to make powerful statements with very little. When Mimi sings of "turning water into wine...", that's, in a way, what they do. Having said that, this is a lot of water and you have to know what the wine tastes like to know it's there.
RIP Mimi
this is THE shit! Low are fucking amazing!
It's got a Velvets and early 70's Pink Floyd vibe. Throw in some SWANS as well.
Yes YES YESSS!
i cannot explain to you how much i love this comment.
literally just got chills from reading it.
23 years heating young hearts...
Awesome, reminds me of Deep Purple's 30 min jams, but without all the bullshit.
if you play this at 1.5x speed it becomes a sonic youth song. amazing version.
so impressive
I would have given pretty much anything to have been there
Make drone,not drones...absolutely amazing performance,the crowd was lame of course
read the interview with Alan back then about this perfromance... the story is they tried to get Prince on stage to play guitar, they failed to do that, Alan got so bored and said fuck it...
i'll miss you, mimi ❣️
R.I.P. Mimi
This is the best thing.
I rescue people from death due to Opiate Poisoning, Overdose. I look after them, on graveyard shift. I blast this song in traffic on the way to work everyday in rush hour lineup. Wish it was longer.
No wonder you listen to low. Would you mind describing to me what's a day like in your regular life ? I'm an aspiring writer, I'd love to hear your story
@@simonhugo4893 You need to get a life. Dude has a normal ass job and is no one special. You're a fucking aspiring sensationalist moron. I'd love to hear the story about how you managed to choose a real profession and got properly educated. Dipshit. PS: Your writing skills are trash.
@@plasterofparisify yeah fuck you too buddy. You often trashtalk stranger out of yout ass cause they somehow managed to iritate you ? Lost a loved one to opiates maybe ?
Mimi
If you don’t like this - don’t watch it - also who cares ? - true fans love this - rip MP ❤
December 2024: coming here to remember Alan’s prophetic warning “drone, not drones!”
I want to see low
Even more powerful than any other complex band. Low takes music to a higher level... only three chords? Well, remember: sometimes, LESS is MORE.
At the end, it doesn't even feel like it's been 28" since it started to play...
RIP, Mimi.
What's Tobias Fünke doing back there at 01:31?
Drone, not drones.
Long live Low. RIP Mimi.
It's got a good beat
closest thing we'll ever get to low sayin straightup "FUCK AMERICA" lol. fo real, ppl label them as just some happy-ass mormon couple who make twee indie songs, when in reality, alot of their work is driven by a sense of deepseated righteous rage, disappoinment, self-loathing, & general intensity. look up interviews with them concerning alan sparhawks mental break in 07 & his (continuing, i think?) drug addiction, its mad informative
Alan has a drug addiction? I've never heard this. As far as I knew, he's a devoted religious type of guy. Where'd you hear this? and from what source? A google search was inconclusive.
Max Aronow interview w/ pitchfork from 06 i believe, might also be discussed in an interview they with unkut where he describes how for a time he thought he was tha antichrist (which i think was wat inspired tha joint 'murderer')
woow, this is cool, im add you to my circles.
Fucking awesome.
How much & what influence did Kramer {Shimmy Disc} have on Low ?!
Greg
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Woooooow
One of the pioneers of real electronic rock!
open up this fucking pit
This is what the cool kids listen to
RIP Mimi! ❤
...is it me, or Alan was pissed as fuck at the end?
They were infuriated at Obama's drone strikes over Syria. This entire performance was meant to be a protest of the cruelty our government was committing, hence the "drone, not drones" comment before they left the stage.
I watched this video searching for a hint of unrest
That is fuckn ace
alan is so beautiful
♡
What about that story that says the band had invited Prince to play a guitar solo while Low played this song? Can you imagine?
Way better than yoga
A lament before the rise of 'le beast oranj'!