noah & the whale @ union pool

belated first ny gig: noah and the whale at union pool. the guys said they were "doing a great job containing their excitement", but i on the other hand could not. it was a long wait to see these boys since they were slated to hit new york back in late july and had to cancel. they were well worth the wait nonetheless. i was annoying gal and weaved my way to the front so that saki could have a prime spot to take this pic of charlie and a certain unnamed whale.

the set covered most of the new album: "shape of my heart", "mary", "give a little love", "rocks and daggers", "2 atoms in a molecule" and the ubiquitous "5 years time". they also played a new tune but didn't catch the track's name.

charlie announced the break in tradition by busting out a electric guitar and enlightening us with a "punk" song. he headed over to the amp to "punk" up the show and checked in with tom on the harmonium. didn't you know harmoniums are punk rock?
best cover for an encore: the smith's "girlfriend in a coma" by noah and the whale. the boys hopped back on stage. i was really afraid of a repeat of the laura marling show, but they didn't disappoint. she was missing by the by and lindi ortega had to jump in the backing vocals on "5 years time". anyhoot, noah's rendition of "girlfriend in a coma" was a treat. they had me at the first 3 chords.

most unexpected run-in in the bathroom: doug, the drummer of noah and the whale and brother to charlie. when he hit the stage, i came to the realization that just 10 minutes ago i let him pass by me in the bathroom to use the sink. i noticed his boyish good looks there, but thought he was a billyburg hipster. he is polite. he thanked me for moving. since the run-in in the loo, his shirt was mysteriously unbuttoned to reveal a nicely toned chest during the set. i know one lady that enjoy that. you know who you are.