Ever listen to an album so thoroughly and with such enthusiasm that when it comes time to meet its maker you’ve already set yourself up for disappointment? Managing expectations is what they call it, and I’m well familiar with the routine. But what happens when the live show not only stands up to such obscene expectations but obliterates them altogether? Suddenly, the band you had pegged as a Steely Dan reveals itself as a Grateful Dead, and all those layers of studio goodness you got used to and never thought could come across live end up pummeling you in the face with a renewed sense of urgency and vigor.

Which is to say this: Bombadil is a devastatingly great live band. The last time I was this wary of spewing hyperbole upon seeing a live show came after seeing Grizzly Bear at the Society for Ethical Culture last November (a show that ended up being one of our tops of 2007). The parallels are worth noting too; similar to last night, I had entered that show with extreme reservations about the Grizz’s ability to bring it live before having my nose (and ears) shoved in it for the rest of the evening. It’s just that when the recorded version of a band presents itself so intricately and fully realized, you can’t help but suspect some studio sleight of hand.

Well shame on me. Bryan, Daniel, Stuart, and James crashed the drab stage of Trash Bar with an instant jolt of technicolor magic, all clad in bright colors and pith hats, strewn-about toys and pirate sashes, all the while transforming the room into their own personal vaudeville pageant. Frantically twitching about the stage, they seemed to be physically assaulting the songs from A Buzz, A Buzz with added layers of frenetic joy and swagger. It was certainly a sight….

And this is where the bad news comes in. Still coping with the lingering effects of jetlag (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking with it), I completely forgot to charge the camera and witnessed the entire spectacle slip away from eternal preservation as the pulsing low battery signal gave way to blackness. Whoops. What you see above was my frantic attempt to get at least one picture while I could.

So what else did I miss capturing and what did you miss by not going? More costume changes, impeccable musicianship, funny anecdotes, flying limbs, and a trio of new songs sequentially involving the following: newlyweds who may or may not have drowned(?), a bear named Otto that hates Polish children, and an entire tune sung in Spanish whose lyrics involved having something (I definitely heard a “tengo” in there somewhere).

But maybe the camera mishap was for the best. I remember the protagonist in The Beach (the good book version by Alex Garland not the shitty movie version by Danny Boyle) remarking on how he never takes pictures when traveling because the memories in his head were invariably purer versions of what his camera could ever capture. Well that’s my excuse now too, and as it stands I think I’m now remembering a giant bear named Otto onstage at one point during the show….I mean come on, nothing from these guys would surprise me at this point.

See Bombadil Live:
16 July - Portland, ME @ One Longfellow Square
17 July - New York, NY @ Rockwood Music Hall
18 July - Jamestown, NY @ Mojo’s
19 July - Dayton, OH @ Canal Street Tavern
25 July - Winston-Salem, North Carolina @ Finnegan’s Wake
26 July - Floyd, VA @ FloydFest
28 July - Lawrence, KS @ Jackpot Music Hall
29 July - Denver, CO @ Dulcinea’s 100th Monkey
30 July - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Palladium
01 Aug - Portland, OR @ Pickathon
02 Aug - Portland, OR @ Pickathon
06 Aug - Eugene, OR @ Sam Bond’s Garage
07 Aug - Cottage Grove, OR @ Axe and Fiddle Pub and Music Club
10 Aug - San Francisco, CA @ Amnesia
12 Aug - Los Angeles, CA @ Hotel Cafe
13 Aug - Phoenix, AZ @ Rhythm Room
19 Aug - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
21 Aug - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
22 Aug - New York, NY @ The Living Room
23 Aug - Brooklyn, NY @ Hank’s Saloon
26 Aug - Washington, DC @ The Red & The Black
28 Aug - Winston-Salem, NC @ The Garage
05 Sept - Boone, NC @ Black Cat
06 Sept - Asheville, NC @ Westville Pub
12 Sept - Mount Pleasant, SC @ Fiery Ron’s Hometown BBQ
13 Sept - Gainesville, FL @ “The Real Big Deal” Music, Camping & Arts
19 Sept - Bristol, VA @ Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion
20 Sept - Bristol, TN @ Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion
26 Sept - NPR, NC @ WUNC’s The State of Things
27 Sept - Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
05 Oct - Apex, NC @ Jordan Lake Arts & Music Festival
12 Nov - Grantham, PA @ B-Sides - Messiah College
17 Jan - Riverside California @ Private Party

Listen: “Cavaliers Har Hum”

See Also:
- Bombadil Hits NYC TONIGHT and Thursday
- EAR FARM’s Top Albums of 2008 (so far)
- Matt talks about Bombadil on Blog Fresh Radio
- Band of the Week: Bombadil

Visit Bombadil on MySpace.