Went to see a concert last night. Alison Krauss and Union Station performed with Tony Rice, and it was fantastic. We didn't have the best seats in the house, but the venue was decently sized for a downtown-DC location, so nothing was too far away.

They performed a huge range of things, including some songs I'd never heard them do before. And Tony Rice had a few instrumental solos, including a 6-7 minute thing that turned into a duet with Jerry Douglas. Rice's voice sounds like a back of rusty wrenches that have been smoking for 40 years, but he doesn't sing, and his fingers haven't lost a single step. He had Dan Tyminski come out for a rendition of Church Street Blues that was unbelievable.

Needless to say, Alison's voice was as pristine as ever; she's gotten a lot of power in it over the past few years as well, and damn near melted the speakers when the sound board guy had her mic up too high. She's also endearingly uncomfortable doing the on-stage patter thing that seems to be expected at concerts. She was clearly working to find things to talk about. A few songs from their recent album were great, and a favorite of mine, "Let Me Touch You For a While" (yes, please), was just stunning to hear in person. And, she's seriously attractive.

The only thing I wish I'd been able to see was the whole band doing I'm A Man of Constant Sorrow, but only because I've never seen it done live. Of course, since O Brother they've probably had to play it 400+ times, so I don't begrudge them not playing the tune. But still, I had hope.

About the only downer was that the guy next to me was recording the whole thing. Which, one, is kinda crappy since I don't think the venue or the band allows it. So if you're on BitTorrent and you get the urge, don't d/l the Thursday 5/16 DAR Hall Show. I realized he was recording once I realized he was covering the receiving mic whenever applause would start. Of course, applause also happens when a good solo is executed, when people realize the band is starting a favorite song, etc. The shithead kept making comments about my clapping, so I proceeded to clap at any provocation, hands up and loud enough to fuck with his equipment. Called me a "trained seal" at one point. Which, naturally, means I had to cough pretty badly during some of the best songs. Hopefully it fucked up his recording pretty well.

If you get a chance, I'd recommend attending a Krauss/US show.