12/31/03 Disco Biscuits/The New Deal @ Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY

The New Deal opened and played an interlocking set; Set II was a Battle of the Bands with the Disco Biscuits taking the stage under different identities
Set I: Morph Dusseldorf1> Aceetobee, 42> Basis For A Day2
Set II: Basis For A Day3 4 5, Above The Waves6> Svenghali6 7, Svenghali6 7> Above The Waves6, Blame Canada10 8 9, Kyle's Mom's A Bitch10 8, It's Easy MMMKay10 8, Chocolate Salty Balls (P.S. I Love You)10 8, Fuck That Doll10 11, Sweating Bullets10 11, Frog Legs12, Pilin' It High12, Oname' Wa13, Ohio Gozaimasu10 13
Set III: Rock Candy> Voices Insane7> Pygmy Twylyte> Voices Insane7> Rock Candy, Munchkin Invasion14> 42
1 with "Hot Air Balloon" fake-out
2 segued into New Deal set
3 segued out of New Deal set
4 with new years countdown
5 band leaves stage and an emcee introduces the Battle of the Bands
6 Performed as "The Disco Biscuits"
7 dyslexic
8 Performed as "The Cartmans"
9 with Ericalynn Gruenberg on vocals
10 1st time played
11 Performed as "Fuck the Robots"
12 Performed as "The Perfume"
13 Performed as "Panda Power"
14 completes 12/30 dyslexic version

This was my first time seeing the band that would later become one of my favorites, but I went to see The New Deal. It was also my first New Year's Eve concert.

We drove into the city and had a few drinks at a friend's apartment, thinking we had some time to kill.

When we got to the venue, the line was practically around the block, so we sat down to kill some tallboys in the adjacent deli.

We finally got inside and found our balcony seats. My least favorite thing about Hammerstein is the inability to move freely between the balconies and the floor.

I think we caught the last several minutes of The New Deal's opening set, before they segued seamlessly into the Disco Biscuits. Either way, the only music I vividly remember is The Cartmans portion of the Battle of the Bands segment the Biscuits had concocted as a New Year's schtick. "Kyle's Mom's a Bitch" and "Salty Chocolate Balls" were the only tunes I knew. I don't even remember what happened at midnight.

Talking to seasoned fans after the show, most were quick to tell me that the band should not be judged by this anomalous performance. Still, it would be a couple years before I would see them again.

Just prior to leaving, we struck up a conversation with some lovely Bisquettes in the balcony, when a young gentleman sat down in front of us regurgitating typical acid gibberish like "It doesn't matter, man!" Sadly, our lady friends jetted when the young spunion began to remove his pants. Shortly later, I saw him leaving the venue on a stretcher.