* as always, all content and photos copyright Alex Myers 2004 *
This show was a wild, rowdy, sweaty night in downtown Houston. Rhett dedicated "Melt Show" to those of us brave enough to sweat it out in the front row. The Meridian promised air conditioning and clean bathrooms. Well, they ran out of toilet paper before Chomsky left the stage and the place was hot enough to make even a Texan complain. But once the boys walked on stage, nothing else mattered. They tore through several tracks from "Drag It Up" - an album which is easily a thousand times better in person. "Smokers" is a prime example of just how much these boys can shake a crowd to the core - Murry's powerful delivery, Rhett's screamily perfect backing vocals, and Ken's power-armed resuscitation of the song following the middle verse is a sight to behold. And speaking of Ken, he just gets better and better every time I see him, both as a guitar player and now as a singer. So many people wondered if the Old 97's had broken up, but this show absolutely proved that they are rocking together harder than ever. On with the photos!
There are tons of photos this time. I camped out in front of Murry, so most of my shots are along the stage length to capture Ken or Rhett. Also, you might notice the change in the way I place my name and copyright within the images. Just all part of the ongoing project. Enjoy!
Towards the end of the night, the crowd was rocking out.
Here's Rhett and his mostly-dry tshirt at the beginning of the evening. Watch as it gets darker and darker.
Ken and Philip were having a great time.
The lights at the Meridian were quite nice, though.
Ken sang on many songs and got us fired up with "Coahuila".
Murry Hammond, looking as swank as usual. I just love the lights in this shot.
I got issues ... YEAH!
Wait, lyrics? What?
I love when Ken is having a good time.
Look, the shirt is still dry. Must be early in the night.
Go Ken!
Oh Philip, they never put enough lights on you. But at the Dallas show I finally got the shot of you that I longed for ...
JUMP!
Many strings were broken, as always.
Rhett harmonized to "Valentine".
Look at that line of sweat!
This is not "Valentine".
Rhett also sang "Four-Eyed Girl" (from "The Instigator") and basically proved that these are decent songs when delivered solo with an acoustic guitar.
The full band came back onstage for two encores. This is when things became really amazing.
This is one of my favorite photos of the night.
HELL YES!!