Blog — Page 249 of 277

Madonna

Allphones Arena

Sydney, AUS

March 19, 2016

Clickbait is a disease.

A virus spreading from self-professed arbiters of taste under the veneer of information.

According to the narrative of the latest headlines pertaining to Madonna’s Australian performances, M has become a “self-degrading alcoholic clown” because of an experimental, improvised and vulnerable one-off, free performance in an intimate setting for her fan club members in Melbourne.

Banal, mercenary, low-hanging headlines lacking context and nuances that prove to be, more often than not, simply inaccurate.

Dispensable trivia rooted in the notion that reality is a single path from one point to another without any ambiguity. 

Life is kaleidoscopic with no event existing in singularity, yet somehow we exist in a world where the labeling and pigeonholing of the narrow lens of one’s self-created social media feed is used to deflect from consuming more substantial fodder.

The rhetorical device of verbal and situational irony needs a bit more space than the confines of sensationalist headlines aimed at generating online advertising revenue at the expense of accuracy will allow.

References to the aforementioned fabricated “controversies” were made en masse when Madonna held court in Sydney, which marked the last stop of her globe-spanning Rebel Heart world tour:

A more two and a half hour long spectacular extravaganza encompassing a 25-song career spanning set list and unparalled visual variety ensued, which seemingly has found inspiration in Chinese New Year celebrations and artistry à la Cirque de Soleil.

Having been notoriously late during previous tours and more recent shows on terra australis, Madonna literally descended among us in a cage of swords as scheduled.

Not lacking the provocative imagery and button pushing performances the brand Madonna has become known for and despite being the perfectionist and disciplinarian she is, M was in a playful mood.

Reveling in the art of being Madonna, her recently trademarked “unapologetic bitchy” attitude and a myriad of costume changes, she commanded the stage, which was a long catwalk with a circular stage in the middle and a heart-shaped stage at the end: A hybrid of a heart, cross and an arrow allowing for ample opportunities for interactions with the audience.

Her crew of 20 dancers performed tightly choreographed themed theatrics - faux medieval executions, mock martial art fighting geishas, scantily clad pole dancing nuns, a S&M inspired orgiastic reenactment of the Last Supper and simulated sex acts embedded in a multimedia mélange of sound and light on a specifically designed kinetic stage, which allowed for acrobatic and scenic moments throughout the show.

Despite the highly engaging and at times borderline overwhelming feast for the senses, the more fragile moments of the show did not lack impact, e.g. when M was solo on stage playing a cover of Edith Piaf’s “La Vie en Rose” with a ukulele.

With the seamless transition between staging, choreography, scenic props, performers, live musicians, lighting and video of a show like this it is not difficult to see Madonna has been a permanent fixture in the upper echelon of pop music’s elite over the last 30 years.

Her live performance naturalizes and complements her mediatized persona and is an uncontrived extension of her music videos.

Madonna live is in essence about enjoying oneself and a whole lot of fun.

One of the few remaining “one and only.”

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Photos by KAVV

Peter Case

Atwood's Tavern

Cambridge, MA

March 05, 2016

Atwood's has a rich history of showcasing a mix of diverse artists that have stood the test of time and Peter Case is just another fine example. This particular show on a Saturday afternoon was a treat for me being a lifelong fan of Peter's songwriting and playing. A three time Grammy nominee Case has a resume' that most musicians would die for. The first time I had heard of him was while he was in the punk band The Nerves. Their 1976 EP contained a tune called "Hanging On The Telephone" which had little impact when they released it until it was recorded by Blondie in 1978 on Parallel Lines which resulted in a smash hit for them and a bit of notoriety for Case. After the breakup of The Nerves in 1978 he went on and formed the band The Plimsouls in 1979. The Plimsouls had several tunes hit the charts from their first release like "A Million Miles Away" and "Oldest Story In The World". As a result of their popularity in California they were signed to appear in the film Valley Girls as the prom band. The band enjoyed cult status for a while which hit its peak after they broke up.

Peter has since enjoyed a solo career staying mostly within the Americana/Roots music genre and has released thirteen solo recordings. Case began to write his memoir (As Far As You Can Get Without A Passport - everthemore books 2007) covering his growing up in upstate New York in the early seventies and feeling the urge to grow as a musician. This led him on his journey across the United States searching for a place that would accept him and his sound. During that time the mantra in the music business was to get to California where he could hone his craft.

During the show Case covered songs from his newest release Hwy 62 which is full of musings derived from his daily life, like "Pelican Bay" which tells the story of a supermax prison located in the town that he lives in and the impact it has on both the residents of the town and the 3000+ prisoners locked up inside. Another gem he performed during the show was "All Dressed Up (For Trial)" a humorous take on getting arrested and having to go to court in a borrowed suit and tie. Other songs performed during the show were "Water From A Stone", "If I Go Crazy" along with his take on Dylan's "Long Time Gone". This being a solo show Peter filled in between songs with stories from his life from the early days as a sixteen year old living in upstate New York in a 6 bedroom house filled with 24 "roommates" to stories of living in San Francisco busking for enough money to eat that day, sleeping in abandoned cars at the junkyard and traveling up and down the Cali coast. Peter seems to have never given up on that rambling lifestyle, still busking albeit inside clubs rather than on the street, telling stories and writing music, detailing his discoveries. In a brief chat I had with Peter after the show he mentioned that he will be continuing to write his memoirs, something I hope he does because after reading his brief earlier release, the man has lived a life filled with music and some great stories, this will be interesting.

Sunn O)))

Manning Bar

Sydney, AUS

March 15, 2016 

Byron J. Scullin's bass bath performance installation, which was staged in steel structured, cold storage rooms at the Tasmanian port at Dark MOFO last year, was an enjoyable experience of sound and light: A large array of double 18" 2100-horsepower monolithic subwoofer speakers let a set of specifically tuned pure sinusoidal waveforms wash over one's body to create unique physical effects in the participants.

Light and scent enhanced the rumbling waves from the two bottom octaves of hearing between 30hz and 80hz.

"Bath" proved to be well chosen term as one felt soaked in sound, baptised in the circle of doom and drone and as having received the unholy sacrament of sound. While Scullin's installation lasted mere minutes, Sunn O))) celebrate their ritual of resonant, cacophonous feedback recycling and agonizingly slow riff cycling to create monolithic, tectonic soundscapes over 2 hours. 

Sunn O))) on recordings is interesting.

Live it is an experience.

A physical experience.

Physical as in changing one's molecular structure.

Once you enter the mass of Sunn O))), you surrender.

Sunn O))) hijack your body, make your corpse their instrument.

Their droning sonic onslaught will do the breathing for you as their hum resonates in your chest.

Vibrations.

Sound thickening the air more than the fog machines that have been pumping the venue full of dry ice prior to Sunn O))) materializing on stage.

A remarkably physically demanding yet meditative, massaging and relaxing experience, with the resulting tingling often prompting paroxysms of giggling in your humble narrator.

Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson, the two core members, are known for surrounding themselves with a varying cast of collaborators.

Tos Nieuwenhuizen orchestrating the synths would give Dr. Robert Arthur Moog the heebie-jeebies.

Longtime member Attila Csihar (formerly of Tormentor and Mayhem and countless collaborations such as with Current 93, Jarboe, Ulver, etc.) delivered operatic vocals, murmurs and demonic chants. A costume change at the end transformed him from the front-druid to a demonic Lady Liberty with laser beams emanating from his phalanges. More of an interdisciplinary performance artist than traditional front man.

A mesmerizing experience.

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Photos by T

The Jesus and the Mary Chain

Spectrum Now festival

Sydney, AUS

March 5, 2016

Blasphemous name - check! 

Leather-clad insolence - check!

Tumultuous, short live performances - check!

The power of myth - check! 

Distortion and swagger - check! 

Paying homage yet simultaneously opposing traditional Californian ‘60s pop melodies à la Shangri-La's with gritty, orchestrated, beautiful feedback drenched noise NYC / Velvet Underground-style - check! 

Stir the ingredients and voilà - dinner is served: An instant cult band.

Despite being heralded as "the new Sex Pistols" 31 years ago when their seminal album Psychocandy was released, the Jesus and the Mary Chain was not exactly considered a noted live act. 

Their distorted amorphous guitars, subdued vocals and detached, reticent stage demeanor would have been an example par excellence for what was initially devised by the British music as a gibe meant to ridicule the stage presence of "shoegazing" acts. That has changed.

In 2016 and with Psychocandy having become an ever-influential part of the canon of independent music and comprising the cornerstones of what was to become the essence of the alternative movement of the 1990s, Jim and William Reid flanked by a well-oiled new lineup and having grown into a professional, full-on rock band, take a well deserved, deafening and blinding victory lap. 

Drowned in tides of feedback and a light show that proved to be an additional band member and almost as integral to the show as the music, the band pulled a Benjamin Button and started with the encore: 

The prelude of the show, which was longer than their performances in the mid-‘80s, was comprised of a best-of segment with songs from their other albums, before celebrating Psychocandy in its entirety and original sequence. 

While the element of surprise as far as the set list was concerned was lacking, it was interesting to be able to compare samples of the band's earlier and later oeuvre with their much-lauded oeuvre.

The audience lapped it up and, despite the fact that a good share of the attendees were old enough to remember JAMC from their heydays, it was not merely an exercise in nostalgia: JAMC's DNA has retained its potency. 

The Jesus and the Mary Chain in 2016 neither tries to perform a note-for-note rendition of their classics nor tries to rehash what they were like 30 years ago. 

The performance whets one's appetite for JAMC's new album, which apparently has already been recorded. 

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Photos by KAVV

High on Fire

Manning Bar

Sydney, AUS

February 21, 2016

The Swiss label Off the Disk Records was founded by Thomas Mölch and Erich Keller (Fear of God fame, breaker of Henry Rollins’ microphone, and now renowned academic) in 1988, which is when they released Infest’s classic Slave LP (“Youth of Today im Elektrozaun”). Hemorrhaging quality releases since its inception, I blindly ordered Sleep’s Vol.2  7” in 1991, which was my first exposure to the wizardry of Matt Pike channeling Saint Vitus and Black Sabbath. Two of the songs on the 7” found their way on what is widely considered to be the blueprint for the evolution of stoner metal: Sleep’s seminal album Holy Mountain before they recorded a single one hour long self-immolating song called “Dopesmoker,” which became their last album.

From the ashes of Sleep and evolving from mid-paced stoner metal rose Pike’s new band, High on Fire, and while maintaining his signature guitar tone, it became an increasingly fiercer, faster, and more aggressive incarnation with him handling vocal duties as well. Cue “Masters of Reality played backwards on 78pm enhanced on mescaline”.

In a live environment, High on Fire is a virtuosic, brutish force of nature:

Backed by a stack of Orange amps, Des Kensel pummeling double bass drums, and Jeff Matz nimble bludgeoning on bass, both completing and echoing Pike’s writhing, rumbling riffage and growling, the triumvirate descended upon the University of Sydney’s campus and plowed through a close to 90-minute sweaty and career spanning display of pre-Ice Age archaic hominis.

Especially the newer material of their current album Luminiferous shines live. Produced yet again by Converge’s Kurt Ballou, the 9 heavy hitters epitomize the strong points of HOF’s oeuvre: weighty, sludgy drawn-out compositions, pushing and pulling tempos at will, circular hooks and marvels of rhythm perfection with more emphasis on vocal harmonies, anthemic choruses, and multi-layered song structures without sacrificing bile and venom.

High on Fire were brought to Australia by the heads behind Life Is Noise, a solid touring company with a focus on weird, genre-pushing, experimental, and exciting music. From dense noise to droning doom, tripped out acid-rock to screams, metal, and all the spaces in between. They’ve worked with the likes of Neurosis, Sleep, Pallbearer, Yob, Boris, Om, Tortoise, Earthless, High on Fire, Sunn O))), Elder, Grails, et cetera and have yet to stage a show that is not well planned, enjoyable, and professionally organized.

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Photos by KAVV