Pocket Universe

Now that I’ve talked about my participation in the Jonathan Coulton concert, I’ll take a step back and discuss the concert and DVD shoot in general.

Again, for those of you unfamiliar with Jonathan Coulton, there is an excellent primer on his website, along with an excellent list of suggestions to get you started: most popular songs, funny songs, sad songs, songs that are both funny and sad, geeky songs, and sweet songs. My personal favorite is The Future Soon, an autobiographical tale of a lovelorn schoolboy who dreams of a better future. Take some time, look around, listen to some music, and read about a genuine self-made internet phenomenon.

As for the concert itself, the venue was set up with multiple cameras, including one mounted on a large boom that threatened to brain a few viewers as it passed within six inches of audience members’ heads. Because it was being filmed, the audience was also well lit (by lights, if not alcohol), so the mood was a little different from a normal concert. The audience was buzzing as we waited for the show to start, and several people were dressed for the occasion in full zombie makeup.

The opening band were Paul and Storm, who, not coincidentally, opened with their song, “Opening Band.” They played a generally truncated set, leaving plenty of room for possible reshoots during Jonathan’s set, in case he made a mistake or two. Their music is a perfect counterpoint to the headliner, being more laugh-out-loud funny, which nicely balances out Coulton’s music, which is equal parts funny, sweet, and melancholy.

The Jonathan Coulton set was brilliant, as always. For much of the time, he accompanied himself on the guitar, although some songs included Paul and Storm on backup vocals and miscellaneous percussion. He was also joined by Kristen Shirts, winner of the Code Monkey remix contest and accomplished ukulele player, for Code Monkey, Tom Cruise Crazy, Creepy Doll (where she completely stole the spotlight), and Still Alive, the song which Jonathan wrote for the closing credits of Portal.

Jonathan returned with his Zendrum version of Mr. Fancy Pants, complete with an extended remix in the middle. I also never truly appreciated Skullcrusher Mountain until this show, when the audience took over singing the final chorus. But the two most amazing moments came during I’m Your Moon, a love song from Charon to Pluto lamenting Pluto’s planetary declassification, and I Crush Everything, a song about a self-hating giant squid who is in love with a sailboat. Both of those songs were so profoundly beautiful and sad that the audience sat in perfect silence, entranced by the performance and unable to think of anything else. I have seen very few genuine moments where an entire crowd was so completely focused on a performer. It was something that still sticks with me today.

Then, after the audience favorite Re: Your Brains, and a rousing sing-along of First of May, Jonathan walked up on stage, pulled down a projection screen, and proceeded to introduce his special guests: Leo Laporte (host of The Screen Savers from way back in the TechTV days, and über–podcast host today), Merlin Mann (founder of 43 Folders and many other things), and Veronica Belmont (former CNet host, and current host and producer of the Mahalo Daily podcast), each carrying their respective Rock Band instruments. (Personal geek trivia: I first met Merlin about a year ago, at my first Jonathan Coulton concert.) The four of them went on to perform Still Alive, which will soon be a downloadable song in Rock Band. Leo went out twice and Merlin went out once, but Veronica saved them each time, but Leo’s third failure sang the band right at the end, and they failed with 99% complete. However, as Jonathan pointed out, 99% is still an “A.”

So that’s the show in a very large nutshell. At the moment, I can’t imagine a more satisfying nexus of geekdom. I mean, having Jonathan and Merlin perform the song from the end of Portal, in Rock Band? I’m tempted to draw a Venn diagram just to show how many of my disparate interests intersect there (including my love of Venn diagrams!). And as a bonus, I got to talk to Jonathan and Paul and Storm afterwards, as well as two fine gentlemen from Harmonix (makers of Frequency, Amplitude, Guitar Hero and Rock Band), whom I followed around and heaped with fanboy praise for quite a while. And once the DVD comes out, you can experience just a taste of what a wonderful night it was.