Oh no, it sounds like it would have been a near perfect night, if only they had toned it down some. I do love live music, but only when I am dancing or attending a concert specifically to listen to music. When dining out, I don't want to listen to loud music, conversation is more than enough.
Had they dropped the volume by 30% it would have been great -the band were really quite good - but as it was all one could hear was noise.
I don't even like loud cafes, there's a good one here that I like but the place is always loud due to the natural accoustics of the place...I can't fit there when it's busy.
I'm with you on the conversation thing...it's where I find value especially considering the group I was with last night, I can stay home and blast my (super-amazing) sound system if I want loud music. Anyway, we had a good night, even if we ended up divulging all the state secrets we should have hidden due to the Guantanamo Bay/hellish cacophony torture music.