1. Sigur Ros with Amiina
The quiet, peaceful, humble set of the girls of Amiina was gorgeous in its simplicity, but to say that it prepared anyone for the stunning, epic majesty of Sigur Ros is saying far too much. The haunting, moving shadows of the band that covered the screen before the stage actually overcame my senses with emotion — and that was just the opening. Besides hearing epic, building crescendos of the songs I have always found peaceful joy in, it was like seeing musicians from another world — titanic and sprawling in the fields of sound they created, and yet fragile and full of beauty, looking as if they might drift away with the passing moments. It was the only show of my life where I have seen an audience hold themselves in total silence for nearly a full minute; it was the only show this year that brought me to the edge of my seat and nearly to tears with the emotional commitment their light, sound and, well, performance instilled in me. Thus, I can honestly say that it was the greatest concert of 2006.

2. Gogol Bordello with Kultur Shock and ZOX
There was no better trio this year for a show, in my opinion: the almost indie-rock boys of ZOX, with their killer live performance and wildly innovative combination of a punk-indie sound melded with a furious violinist; the multi-origined Kultur Shock, brimming with energy onstage and in the crowd, with music that sounded like it had traveled thousands of miles in every direction to form together in one blast of wild sound; and the absolutely flooring Gogol Bordello, one of the most energetic bands of all time with their punkish energy and gypsy/Russian influenced brand of new school rock. The second show of this trio outlasted the first: following Eugene’s trip across the audience on his bass drum, nearly the entire first half of the Slim’s audience was pulled onstage to party with the band. The sight of Eugene perched atop the rafters of Slim’s, the drum held below him by the onstage crowd, was utterly astonishing, and a reminder of all the ways that music draws so much together.

3. An Evening With Tool
There is absolutely nothing like seeing a platinum-selling, arena-rocking band in a tiny club for the first time in nearly half a decade. Tool is one of the only bands that can pack this much godlike devotion and power into their fans, and the energy in that club was unfathomable when the band members took the stage. The first time I saw Tool was stunning enough; this show blew even that one out of the water. But the real kicker for me was walking to the front of the crowd and standing less than 10 feet away from the band that people would sell their souls to be near. To say I was shell-shocked wouldn’t cut it, I was positively in awe. The most powerful moment of the show was the final section of “Lateralis” — the moment Danny smacked the gong, it passed through my entire body in a way, and with a sensation, that will never again be repeated.

4. Alice In Chains with Hurt
When you establish a long-running connection with a band of the caliber, following, and stake in history that Alice In Chains has, you don’t care who their singer is or what their opening band is like. You will go to that show and sing every word of every song, you will be caught up in the massive energy of the crowd, you will revel in every single trick and surprise the band wants to share with you. This show had a ton of those: a mini-Unplugged set, including a performance of the ultra-rare “The Killer Is Me”; a powerful, respectful tribute to the late Layne Staley; and the biggest shocker of all: James Hetfield of Metallica coming onstage to sing and play “Would?” with the rest of the band. Even if you were like me, and missed the band in times of old, this was the show that reaffirmed your love and devotion to the glory of Alice In Chains.

5. Porcupine Tree with Tony Levin Band
Maybe it was the amazing musical talents and hilarious banter of Tony Levin and his band as they opened the set. Maybe it was the brilliant professionalism that Steven Wilson displayed as his show was crashing down around him. But perhaps, maybe, it was the fact that Porcupine Tree, a band whose music has always resounded to me as my favorite combination of styles, came together through a difficult and trying night to play one of the most epic shows I’ve ever seen. Over an hour of new material, with long, stunning pieces, and then a wildly entertaining return with a full set of their classic works, including “Halo”, “The Sound Of Muzak”, and of course the chilling masterpiece “Arriving Somewhere But Not Here”. This was a night of music, and I really wouldn’t have minded if it continued for hours on end past that.

HONORABLE MENTION: Ministry with Revolting Cocks and Pitbull Daycare
I’m sure that part of my reasoning behind my love for this show is the fact that it was a combination of some of my favorite industrial bands, and on my birthday, nonetheless. Also, meeting Pitbull Daycare before RevCo’s set was truly a blast, and I would say they were some of the most entertaining and best conversationalists as far as angry musicians go. Even after them, and the psychotic circus that is RevCo, the nightmarish terror of Ministry could not be matched, and the band tore the place apart with their astonishingly-loud set. What could possibly make the night more fantastic? Why, the sudden appearance of Jello Biafra, who strode onto the stage waving a burning flag before Ministry’s final song began — an epic performance of the positively evil “Psalm 69″. I don’t think I saw a single metal band compare to the gruesome fury that Ministry possessed.

WORST: Hyde with The Black List Club
I really, really, REALLY wanted to enjoy this show. I really did. But the combination of the earsplitting crowd, the horribly poppy opening band, and the silly-cum-foolish Engrish banter of Hyde really added up to a miserable time. While I could hear his songs, and I appreciated all that I COULD understand of his words, the screaming, feverish otaku girls filling the club were more than enough to make this an unpleasant experience. Besides that fact, people were being checked, and checked, and CHECKED AGAIN at the door to make sure they had no cameras, and security was threatening to erase the memory cards of camera phones if anyone wielded one. For a place like Slim’s, it was totally the wrong kind of show and brought the worst crowd imaginable. One day, I may see Hyde again — but only if it’s a full show of bands like his, and only if it’s without the ridiculous numbers of banshee-like fangirls.

1. The Mars Volta
This goes without saying, on any of my lists. No one will ever top these guys for me. The moment that the first break hit in “Day Of The Baphomets”, not only did the crowd around me go berserk, but the band onstage went absolutely supernova with energy. It is one thing to see an entire band animated and pulsing with the sound; it is quite another to see them ricocheting across the stage like rockstar pinballs, glistening with sweat before the first song is even halfway over. The Mars Volta are, and continue to be, the most impressive live band I have ever seen.

2. Gogol Bordello
However, to say that these guys were a close second would be egregiously unfair — Gogol Bordello could top the Mars Volta with some of their performances. Eugene Hutz is mindblowing in his capacity for energy, and is definitely the wild, crowd-pleasing type of singer; Sergey and Yuri, the violin and accordion player, respectively, don’t have quite as much energy as him, but their furious instrument work is nearly unmatched. Not even counting the madcap stage antics like riding a bass drum, rattling the fire buckets, and using washboards and random objects to generate even more, louder, noises, the energy of the band sucks you in and drains you, leaving you full of adrenaline and begging for more — and that’s just after a few songs.

3. The Polyphonic Spree
Nothing says “strength in numbers” like the Polyphonic Spree. Not even mentioning the fact that the band is nearly 30 people strong, including a 10-person choir, they feed off the energy of frontman / conductor Tim DeLaughter, who is like a kid at Christmas as he frolics, jumps, spins, and almost cartwheels around the stage in his joyous celebration of his music. The ‘Spree is one of the bands that you can have never seen before, and still go crazy about as they fill the auditorium with sound and bombast. True, their explosive cover of Nirvana’s “Lithium” really triggered the first spark of energy in the crowd, but the spectacle of the ‘Spree is definitely not one to be missed.

4. Mindless Self Indulgence
Henry Rollins described his first Ramones show as seeing the band members exploding into the songs with idiot-savant precision. Mindless Self Indulgence comes staggeringly close to this description, as the antics of frontman Jimmy Urine are shocking in their energy, wildness, absurdity, but most importantly, being a stickler to the beat of the music behind him. The rest of the band, while not coming close to the bombshell of energy that he is, supports extremely well with their wall of music and ridiculously-precise playing ability. If the Hot Topic poseur crowd was gone, MSI would be one of the greatest live bands you’ll ever see.

5. Revolting Cocks
The one-two-ten industrial punch of RevCo will positively knock you off your feet. Running around the stage like a hellish circus high on angel dust, the industrial, sensationalist collective that is the Revolting Cocks are a force to be reckoned with. Besides the crushing but singalong quality of their songs, factor in the wide collection of members — Al Jourgenson and Luc Van Acker, just to name two — and then throw in a harem of uproariously scintillating women, chased around the stage by Van Acker in a giant dildo costume. You’ll be wondering what other tricks the band has in store by the time they finally leave the stage.

HONORABLE MENTION: TV On The Radio
TV On The Radio is on par with the energy-spewing bands that rank in the top five of this list, but they fall slightly short, as their mostly-atmospheric wall-of-sound compositions contrast sharply with the explosions of energy that most of these bands draw. However, to say that the band is without energy is doing them a great dishonor — I don’t think the members stopped moving ONCE, and the singer was absolutely on fire with energy, rattling around the stage like a Tourette’s victim having a musical seizure. Coupled with their innovative use of sound effects and instruments, they are, without a doubt, a must-see-before-you-die-or-leave-your-town band.

WORST: TIE: Peaches / Earth
This leans a little more in the direction of the first one, but both had their equal points of terrible. Earth was exactly what their genre calls for — drone metal — and the band members looked like they would fall asleep in the middle of each of their songs, not to mention that the compositions dragged on for incomprehensible amounts of agonizing durations. However, just as bad were the antics of Peaches, the overweight and overaged strumpet that opened for Nine Inch Nails, who forced the Shoreline Amphitheatre crowd to watch as she ran around the stage and the seats, dressed in horribly ill-fitting pink and black vinyl.

1. Storm Large of Storm and the Balls
This woman is the Goddess Of Rock. She’s incredibly smart and full of a fiery wit, and as a performer she’s a blast onstage. Offstage, she has the same silver tongue and sharp wittiness, but also a compassionate side that you rarely see in performers who get big in the scene. She was wonderful to talk to and remains my favorite female in rock music.

2. Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello
Hell, I should put the entire BAND on here! They are all really pleasant, very talkative and fun, and full of that rock-and-roll energy even off the stage. I got my CD and poster completely personalized by them, with notes of advice and praise from each of the band members — they are possessions that, I imagine, I will treasure forever.

3. Jello Biafra
This guy can talk up a storm on a stage, and off! I did a bit of political debating with Biafra when I ran into him in the Ministry crowd, and he is just as solid and respectful in his arguments offstage as he sounds onstage. Despite being a cult icon that a lot of people might fiend after, he was plenty talkative and very informative about where he was headed next, and I was truly honored to meet him.

4. Dez of DevilDriver
When I was a kid in highschool, Coal Chamber’s first album blew me away. Now, I have evolved out of my love for nu-metal, but it was still a bit of a starstriking moment to finally meet Dez, the former Coal Chamber singer, in his new band, DevilDriver. To my great surprise, he was really excited about our arrival in support of the band, and talked with everyone a great deal before heading backstage again.

5. Darren of Mute Math
All of the guys in Mute Math are talkative, upbeat and friendly, but Darren is the backbone of the audience-loving faction. He’s got a wicked, sidesplitting sense of humor, as well as a calm and respectful demeanor to all of the bands’ fans. Darren talked with me the longest before and after each show, and it was a neat experience to be on level with someone of his talent and fame for that long a period of time.

HONORABLE MENTION: Aaron of The Red Elvises
Aaron was easily the friendliest guy we met this year. He was also a hardcore music nerd like us, and he fit in with both the audience and the onstage hooplah of the Red Elvises. Swapping stories of shows and bouncing off ideas about music with him made for one of the most entertaining nights of the year.

WORST: Chino Moreno of the Deftones
I really should put the other Deftones members on here, because Chino at least stopped and spoke (a little bit) to the people. The other members walked away from everyone in the crowd, ignoring them outright, one even running to get away from them. Chino was extremely untalkative and brash, in the “I’m a rock star, I’ve got shit to do” attitude that is always very off-putting to the fans who wait for them.

1. Blue Man Group
This one ought to be obvious, but just in case it’s not: When you combine a detailed fantasy story about becoming a rockstar — filled with tongue-in-cheek jokes about the cliches of the rock-and-roll lifestyle — with an epic percussion group that designs most of their instruments from PVC tubes, plastic sticks, and broken pianos, and then add a phenomenal light show (including neon-light silhouettes of the entire band for one song), there is no question that the Blue Man Group puts on one of the most mindblowing shows you’ll ever see. This one is worth every penny of your money.

2. Tenacious D
I think I mentioned the importance of a story and an elaborate stage show. Well, if you don’t have a crazy percussion setup, it’s best to go with a wild Hollywood actor, not to mention a musical ensemble that consists of the Antichrist, Colonel Sanders, Charlie Chaplin, and of course Satan himself. Short of having actual fire, this show was still epic, even in its comic relief.

3. Tool
Being a more significant contender in this race, as they had TWO major shows in the Bay Area, Tool’s shows are always majestic and full of wonder. The two Oakland shows they had were no exception, employing an elaborate set of projection screens behind the band (and over the floor in their arena show) as well as a dead-on lights show. The light displays for the arena show, including laser-light fans and giant towers of patterened bulbs, were nothing short of jaw-dropping.

4. Nine Inch Nails
This year, rather than a cloth curtain, Trent Reznor brought out the true glory of industrial music behind a curtain of steel — very much like the dropdown gate you see for stores in a mall, only about 5 times as big and covered with lights. The lights could be programmed to gyrate and undulate like projections. Coupling this spectacle with the staggering level of strobe lights and smoke machines, and you get the With Teeth 2006 tour in all its snarling, attack-on-all-senses fury.

5. Rob Zombie
How can you NOT have an elaborate show with Rob Zombie? Poledancing girls dressed and painted like zombies, fire and smoke covering the stage like the gates of Hell opening, the fury of probably over a hundred lights, projections covering every other inch of the stage — even the giant walking robot from the “More Human Than Human” video ran around the stage during the eponymous song. It was raucous and glorious, a technicolor freakshow in its own right.

HONORABLE MENTION: Radiohead
One of the best shows this year with attention to lighting and color, and definitely the most innovative in terms of a screen setup, the Radiohead show had about 10 to 12 screens, cut in odd angles like shards of glass, covering the back wall of the stage. The band members, either individually or altogether, were plastered all over these in real-time video, in amongst the seizure-inducing light show. Combined with the frenetic energy of Thom Yorke and his fellow bandmates, this show was really a special one to see.

WORST: Hyim
Innovative as it may be to have a real-time loop machine when you can’t have a full band backing you, Hyim’s stage was rather drab and dark. The only light he had was the spotlight on him — no other colors or effects were really used throughout his short set — and his songs were rather tiresome. The Independent is a great club which many bands have utilized to its full extent, so it was disappointing to see someone who made little effort to stand out.

1. Gogol Bordello’s drums
I say “drums” in plural because while the big bass drum is the key element in their set — it is carried to the front of the stage, placed on the audience, and leapt on top of by singer Eugene Hutz as the crowd carries the drum above them and beats on it from below — one should not overlook the extensive drumming done on Eugene’s “fire bucket”, a red plastic bucket that is dropped haphazardly on his mic stand before he rattles on it wildly with a pair of drumsticks. Truly a spectacle to behold.

2. Man Man’s spoons
Possible the most innovative “instrument”, the singer of Man Man produced a large silver bowl, which he mic’ed up as he began dropping spoons of various shapes and sizes into it. He finished by smacking the underside of the bowl with the mic, sending the spoons flying into the crowd and all over the stage (one of which I caught).

3. Moe! Staiano’s vinyls
The audience was admittedly perplexed when they saw a table brought out to the front of the stage, covered in pyramid-patterned packing felt and a large assortment of hard plastic vinyl records (the OLD kind, the really think and fragile ones). Crazier still was when avant-guarde musician extraordinaire Moe! Staiano took to the table with a pair of felt tipped drumsticks, using the vinyls as drumheads, occasionally attacking and shattering them, the entire piece performed in random improvisational goodness.

4. Amiina’s saw
Despite this concept being replicated by Sufjan Steven’s expansive orchestra a few months later, the effect was amazingly impressive with Amiina’s performance. One of the girls produced a large metal saw — a BIG saw, like the kind for cutting an extremely unpleasant tree branch — which had no teeth on it, strangely, and played it with a violin bow. The sound it created could be best described as a haunting whale song, watery, phantomlike, and dreamy.

5. Sufjan Stevens’ dolls
When the stage was being set up for Sufjan Stevens’ elaborate orchestra, the audience was amused by the presence of a set of blow-up dolls — a few Santas, and a few Supermans. For two of Sufjan Stevens’ songs — one being “Metropolis”, about the Man Of Steel who hails from the eponymous city — a collection of said dolls rained down from above on an unsuspecting audience, who batted and clutched at the toys with insane, childlike glee.

HONORABLE MENTION: Tenacious D’s dual-leg guitar
I’ve seen some innovative guitar designs, but this one takes the cake. During the performance of “Masterexploder”, a guitar was brought onstage for KG to play, and it was a double-neck — but rather than having the two necks parallel, they were spread apart in a wide angle, and painted and shaped like a pair of women’s legs. Appropriately, KG waggled his tongue like a spastic Gene Simmons as he wailed away on the guitar.

WORST: Mindless Self Indulgence’s dog
I only say “worst” in this case because it brought the enthusiastic crowd to a stunned, offended stupor, despite this being the final song of the night and despite carrying the second wind of adrenaline that is imbued within you for an encore. Jimmy Urine marched onstage, wildly flailing a long, furry object around. Within moments, the audience realized three things: it was a dog, it was real — and it was dead.