August 2009 Archives
Two anniversaries to cover today...
First, it's good to see that people are still remembering and sharing their thoughts on New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina. Over the past few years, I've offered my own commentary and recollection on the city and storm, along with the now-infamous Nagin/Robinette interview during the disaster. Love or hate him, Ray Nagin did hit the nail on the head in these ten minutes.
Listen (and read) again, experience the shock and devastation again, and make this year the year that you don't just brush aside the tragedy.
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Second, it's now been 12 years since a car chase of uncertain origin ended in a tunnel in Paris, resulting in the deaths of Dodi Al-Fayed (heir to the Harrod's fortune) and Diana, Princess of Wales. I recall sitting in a bar in Madison, WI, just before the start of my second year of law school, somewhat shocked that the crash was really the only story on TV that evening even in a bar that should have had the Brewers game (or Packers pre-season hysteria).
The good boys of Let's Wrestle, likely 6-7 years old at the time, have offered their own tribute in the form of "Diana's Hair." The song was written a year ago, so that opening line is slightly off, but "ell-leh-ven" just sets up the song so beautifully ... I've had this song running through my head for most of the day -- melancholy descending chorus, brooding disillusionment, and thoroughly random tale of youthful peeping tommery.
From the album "In The Court Of The Wrestling Let's" (2009, Stolen Recordings).
In the past few years, it seems like I only get out to concerts in clusters -- two or three nights out of four, and then nothing for another two months. 2009 has been no exception, with flurries of activity in March (aided by the pre-SXSW rush) and May (NYC Popfest). Since these events are long in the past, I'll try to keep it brief... but documentation of the events still has some personal value.
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The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, Let's Wrestle, Knight School
Bell House, Brooklyn, NY, 13-Mar-2009
This was my first trip to The Bell House, another venue from the team that runs Union Hall (a few blocks away in Park Slope). This converted Gowanus warehouse feels more like an old barn/banquet hall, with exposed rafters and concrete floor, rusticized paint job on plaster walls, and wood latticework behind bar. Wider than it is deep, with lots of standing room in the wings behind band. (Bonus points for the great beers out front; the performance space sacrifices taps but adds some surprising choices in cans.)
Nearly three years ago, I noted my support for this display of a then-commonly-held sentiment.
Given what continues to be uncovered, and even with the change in administrations, I think the message holds true for the former administration with one small change... the "I" should now stand for "INDICT," since "IMPEACH" is no longer necessary.
I suppose the noun should also be plural. There are more than enough offenses, allegations, and currently unemployed/under-employed attorneys to handle the whole shooting match...
My own last minute awareness of this show, combined with a bizarre "wait list" situation at the door fueled by baffling blog-hype, meant that I only saw one band of the four on this bill. And that band consisted of four wan, slightly fey English kids. This evening could have been a complete trainwreck, but instead it was pretty fantastic.
The xx evokes an odd early 80s melange, drifting between Eyeless In Gaza, early Depeche Mode and Cure, hints of Human League, and even Young Marble Giants. Live rhythm box/drum machine, bass, guitar, and then gtr or synth, with switches of male and female vox that evoke gothic moonlit walks through the woods without being "goth." The sonic sparseness and fragility allows imaginations to run wild until crashing into an unfamiliar riff or break. I want them to work up a cover of Joe Crow's "Compulsion" -- and that's a compliment to both the original song and the future cover.
Sadly, the music making the blog rounds doesn't always capture what the live set featured. Some of those recordings and rips and demos work, but others feel compressed. The music isn't exactly "remix ready" but that hasn't stopped the hype-mongers from pursuing that route, either. I hope that the album captures the sparseness and spaciousness -- they would honestly benefit from a Steve Albini recording session. The sound needs to be clean, unprocessed, straight-forward -- minimizing the studio trickery and overproduction that would deflect attention from the spacious performances.
Pianos captured the sonic quality requirements perfectly, while I fear that Friday's show at South Street Seaport will obscure the music with too many distractions. It's not like the band has a dynamic, active stage presence -- but the songs have talons that don't let go until the next one is ready. The set was barely 30 minutes and could have been 130 minutes for all I cared. Definitely worth hunting down, and I'll see what I can do about reviewing the album whenever I can scare up a copy.
