I’m a couple weeks removed from seeing the mighty Baroness live. That show was one of the best ones I’ve seen all year. The time leading up and afterwards put me in a rather fun mood of listening to various Baroness albums and songs. Due to that, I thought I’d put together an Ultimate Set List for my dream Baroness show.
Guideline 1: What line up of the band would it be
Guideline 2: Where would you want to see the show
Guideline 3: maximum 25 songs (In order of how the set should go)
Lineup: John Baizley, Gina Gleason, Sebastian Thomson, Nick Jost
Venue: The Bellwether or Fonda
Set List:
01) Morningstar 02) The Sweetest Curse 03) March To The Sea 04) Last Word 05) Try To Disappear 06) Front Toward Enemy 07) Jake Leg 08) Choir 09) Chlorine & Wine 10) Cocainium 11) Tourniquet 12) Magnolia 13) Seasons 14) A Horse Called Golgotha 15) Beneath The Rose 16) Anodyne 17) Under The Wheel 18) Borderlines 19) If I Have To Wake Up (Would You Stop The Rain) 20) Shine 21) The Gnashing 22) I’m Already Gone 23) Take My Bones Away Encore: 24) Shock Me 25) Isak
I love when I go see a band live that I haven’t seen in a while and I’m completely blown away. That happened the other night when I ventured out to The Bellwether in Los Angeles to see the one and only, Baroness! Riding high on their exceptionally great new album, Stone, Baroness delivered a show and set that shows that there is no slowing down for this band. If anything, they’ve only gotten better over the years. Having seen different lineups of the band over the years, I have to say this line up of John Baizley, Gina Gleason, Nick Jost and Sebastian Thomson is the best the band have ever sounded. It’s almost as though these 3 members were the missing ingredient for Baroness.
As the clock struck 9:00pm, the lights dimmed and the giant Baroness backdrop lit up and as they entered to “Embers” the opening of their new album, it was clear that business was about to be handled. Ripping right into “Last Word” it was apparent that Baroness is on a whole other level live these days. After “Last Word” it went straight into “A Horse Called Golgotha.” then onto “March To The Sea.” That trifecta alone was intense. Then came the awesome “Beneath The Rose” and from there we went into another exceptional new song, “Under The Wheel.” After that it was a nonstop onslaught of great song after great song including a personal favorite of mine “Tourniquet” from their Gold & Grey album. For their encore, they unleashed “Take My Bones Away” and “The Sweetest Curse. What a way to end the show.
Baroness are one of those bands that have such a vast catalog and cross section of influences which makes for great art, music and live shows. One of the things I loved most about this night and their set were the little extended jams to certain songs. When you listen to a Baroness album, especially those epic songs, you get swept up by it all and then live when those songs are played and they extend those parts ever so sweetly, it’s like hearing the song again for the first time. It’s quite a beautiful feeling. Another thing I have to mention is the intensity in which each member of the band played with. Watching them on stage put out the level of energy they did and play as hard as they did really upped the ante. As I mentioned in the opening, having Gina Gleason, Nick Jost and Sebastian Thomson in the band really completes the core. Their abilities as players and writers have pushed Baroness to explore different avenues which has made the band truly stand out and not be defined by one genre. This night showed that Baroness is here to stay and they are only getting better. If you haven’t seen Baroness live, I highly suggest you do as well as listening to their new album, STONE.
Baroness Set List: 01) Last Word 02) A Horse Called Golgotha 03) March To The Sea 04) Beneath The Rose 05) Under The Wheel 06) War, Wisdom and Rhyme 07) Anodyne 08) Chlorine & Wine 09) Tourniquet 10) Shock Me 11) The Gnashing 12) Isak
Encore: 13) Take My Bones Away (Tour Debut) 14) The Sweetest Curse
This is exciting! New Baroness is on the way! Today, the first single “Last Word” from Baroness’s upcoming new album, Stone was released. On September 15 the long awaited new album arrives via the band’s label Abraxan Hymns. Speaking on the album singer/guitarist John Baizley said “An important through line in Baroness is we don’t like to repeat ourselves. It’s all about the willingness to take risks. When I was younger, the whole point of music was to be different, not to do the same thing, and not to listen to parents or play by the rules. That’s kind of goofy, but in practice, it works. It’s really sort of terrifying to be at the sixth record in your career and think that you’ll have to keep up with your history rather than continually invent. So, we doubled down on continuously inventing to see where it takes us. I think this record is a good reflection of that. ‘Stone’ is a lot more alive, more direct.”
Baroness spent a month shrouded amidst the pines, holed up in a vacation rental that became an impromptu recording space replete with big, vaulted ceilings, hardwood floors, and brick/glass walls. While they wrote “Stone”, Baizley recorded and pre-mixed it in real time, giving each song on “Stone” its own sonic treatment. After the group finished tracking drums, guitars, and bass, they took everything back to Baizley’s basement studio to record vocals. Stone, is the band’s first self-produced album and was mixed by Joe Barresi and mastered by Bob Ludwig.
There are albums out there that really strike a chord with me. I’ve long believed in the true meaning of what an album is and should be. Meaning that once you put that album on, you just let it go without skipping any songs. In December, Baroness released their album PURPLE. This album is one hell of a gem. There is such a great balance to this record. The way the songs are arranged really lets you get engrossed in the depths of it. The lyrics and vocals push through in a way that isn’t over powering yet has enough force behind them for you as the listener to feel the pain, torment and hope from the band. A few years back Baroness was on tour in Europe, when they were involved in a very serious bus crash, leaving multiple people in the band and crew severely injured. During the recovery time two members left the band, and the amount of pain and depression really set in for the rest especially for singer/guitarist John Baizley. The end result of all that is this absolutely wonderful album. From start to finish, Purple grabs you and doesn’t let go. The production on this album was also handled by David Friedman (The Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev), which explains the added element of psychedelia and layers. The first song on the album “Morningstar” kicks off with a powerful riff, and gruff yet melodic vocals, setting the tone for what’s to come. “Shock Me” and “Try To Disappear are stellar standouts on this album. one listen to each and you’ll understand why. The band really shines on these songs. “Kerosene” is similar in vein to what older Baroness fans really dug about the band. The first single “Chlorine and Wine” is a brilliant song full of many different influences that really help this song shine. Lyrically the story told is deep and meaningful. All the lyric on this are deep and meaningful. “The Iron Bell,” “Desperation Burns,” and “If I Have To Wake Up,” round out the beauty of this masterpiece of an album.
Baroness is one of those bands that aren’t afraid to take chances and experiment to bring out the best of the band. Their previous effort Yellow & Green was misunderstood by a lot of their fans, but it really helped the band in dialing in on what they are. Starting out as a heavier band, each album has allowed Baroness to grow and develop their own style. The addition of the new drummer and bassist, and the bus crash has really helped Baroness become a truly great band. Purple is their defining album. I’d even go as far as saying that this is one of the best albums since the turn of the century.
There are times when I hear a band at first and write them off for sounding too much like another band I really enjoy. Over the years I’ve come to the realization that in doing so I’ve missed out on a lot of great music when it first arrived. When I first heard Baroness right after they released the Red Album, I totally passed them off as a Mastodon wannabe band. Even going as far as calling them Mastodon Light. Then something in my head changed when they released their follow up The Blue Album. They finally developed a blend of influences to make it their own. Then as bands do they progressed and created a double album of everything they enjoy. A lot of fans dropped them when they released the Yellow and Green album, due to its more laid back nature and mellowness. Yet for myself, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it made me really start to love Baroness. Now in 2015, the band are gearing up to release their newest album The Purple Album. Following a huge ordeal with a bus accident a few years back, it took time for the guys in the band to get back in the swing of things and work thorough all of the pain and agony they endured. Recently, they released the first single from the new album entitled “Chlorine & Wine.” It’s an epic of sorts that tells a story of what they all went through during their time away from music. If this is an inclination of what is to come for Baroness, I’d say they are truly paving their own path and making something they truly believe in.
AUDIOECLECTICA 