The first time I went to a concert Jimmy Carter was President.  In the intervening years I have seen an enormous number of acts in venues from tiny holes in the wall to stadiums. I hesitate to even try to calculate the number of bands I have seen over the years.

But I haven’t seen a single one any better than Mekons.

Why is that? Is it songwriting? Is it performance? Is it how it seems effortless and as if you were sitting with the band in your living room? It is likely all those things and more. It is just a fact. Other bands that write great songs (and I shall mention no names) will bore you right to sleep live. Likewise I have continuously heard bands whose musical efforts, when confined to a shiny metal disc or an mp3, fall flat. They only come alive on stage. Mekons' live show may be different from the recordings but it would be difficult to say either was superior.

My admitting my age (I was very young when I went to see those Carter Administration shows, in fact, I was 3) I may make it seem as if the Mekons will appeal only to geezers. Far from it. The audience was a mix of ages. A couple of weeks before this show I attended the Hideout Block Party with my 14 year old son (he was born when I was 15). When all was said and done I asked him which act he liked best from the day’s performers. He responded, “The Welsh guy.”

The Welshman in question, in this case, was Jon Langford.

Sally Timms discussed how the band were given incentives to learn the new songs—from the just released record, Ancient & Modern. Usually she said they learned them on tour so it took three or four weeks beyond the first date before they had the songs down.

“Those poor people in Boston,” said Langford.

Lu Edmonds is playng a saz in this picture, as he usually is with Mekons. If you want to know more about the saz you can ask Edmonds when you see the band, shout at him about it between songs, I am sure he will appreciate that. OR maybe you can just go check out this video HERE.

Another great thing about a band like Mekons is that if you see them a couple of times over years you are liable to hear them playing mostly different tunes. From the last time I saw them a few years back they played only a handful of the same songs. They played Thee Olde Trip To Jerusalem early in this set and their second encore began with Ghosts of American Astronauts.

Their new record and material is as strong as anything they've ever done and it is amazing how music made over so long a period and of such variations in style, fits together cohesively in a set. Their shows are time capsules but with past, present and a little future all tossed in together.