Friday 4 June 2010

Taylor Hawkins Showing His Skills



Telling from the number of people at the main stage of the Melkweg many people either don't know Taylor Hawkins or are not interested in seeing him play with his Coattail Riders. Or may not like his music. Around 100 people did want to see the Foo Fighters drummer playing with his own band. I was a bit worried because of their latest album which isn't too great. Because of the few people I could get up real close to his nice sparkle finish drum kit with the hawk on the front.

Taylor Hawkins & The Coattail Riders at Melkweg Amsterdam, Wednesday June 2 2010 (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)

The back of the stage holds the same image as the new album's cover. The rest of the stage holds the musician's instruments and that's it. They like to keep it small and simple so much is clear. They kick off the show with the album's opening track 'Not Bad Luck'. It sounds so much better than on the album. The song gets a lot more body and the harmonies sound normal. This will be typical for the rest of the songs. They all sound better live. The Coattail Riders show they are skilled musicians and seem to be enjoying themselves. Hawkins himself is relaxed and keeps telling how thankful he is that we are showing up. He looks like a really down to earth and likable person which is admirable for someone who's playing in one of the biggest rock bands in the world.

Hakwins isn't a great singer. His vocal range is limited although he does have a pleasant voice. He doesn't have a lot of power and it sure isn't helpful that the vocals aren't loud enough in the mix. But in the end his drum skills are stealing the show. The drum kit is positioned at the front of the stage like all musicians. When he's playing his face is showing his usual restrained look. You can see he is used to playing big arena's by the powerful way he's hitting his kit. Still it's all very tasteful. The way he can combine drums and vocals is impressive since some drum parts are kind of progrock and are pretty complicated. He even makes one of my favourite songs from the first album 'Get Up I Want To Get Down' look like a piece of cake. They end in style with a great version of 'Way Down' which is the best song on the album.



Although the album may not be too great Taylor Hawkins & The Coattail riders show that they can put down a good rock show. They are obviously enjoying themselves a lot and this tour is probably like a big vacation to them. What a way to see something of the world and earn a bit of drinking money on the side. See you at Rock Werchter guys!

2 comments:

  1. Thanks. Toch maar eens kijken op Werchter dan. Nice pics!

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  2. Yeah, he sure is worth checking out.
    Liked the pics myself too. I borrowed them from someone else though.

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