"Oh, I suppose it’s going well, so far."

And the Understatement of the Century Award goes to Mr. Kowalczyk.

With "The Dolphin’s Cry" tearing up the airwaves, The Distance To Here doing well and sell-out crowds everywhere they play, "going well" might not quite cover it. Live has always been known for their deeply personal and provocative lyrics and an intense live performance, but this new album and tour are breaking new ground. While Secret Samadhi and Throwing Copper enjoyed almost insane success both commercially and critically, The Distance To Here is a very different record. It treads new emotional ground and pushes Live into a new realm musically, while still retaining the power and energy that Live has always maintained.

Some things don’t change, though. Live still brings it all to the stage and delivers like no other. The intensity of their music is almost more than a crowd can take. Ed Kowalczyk may not fit the classic leading man role, and his bandmates, guitarist Chad Taylor, bassist Patrick Dahlheimer and drummer Chad Gracey may not be poster-boy types, but they put on a better concert than any of those pretty boys out there. We had the opportunity to see them at the Mayan Theatre in Los Angeles on October 21, 1999, and they put the sell-out crowd on their collective asses. Mixing in past hits with many songs from the new record, they tore the night up and no one left unsatisfied.

Not long before Live took the stage that evening, VOX spent a few moments with Patrick Dahlheimer.  We talked about personalities, naked chicks on poles and where "here" is.  Read on…