The lively discussions surrounding the Shackeltons album review brought to light an interesting question: Do you need to see a band live to make a definitive decision as to their merits? If the record is mediocre but the show is amazing, how does that weigh into your opinion of the band? What if the record is great but the live show is lacking?

I’m of the opinion that if a band is great live it enhances the quality of their recorded works, or at least that it will make me go back and listen to them a little more intently and notice things I may have missed. If a band puts out good records but their live show is weak, my opinion of them will decrease tremendously. How do you handle this precarious balancing act?