pacificlectic : concert reviews & eclectic music news

The last time I saw Radiohead was in a large outdoor amphitheatre (White River, Aug 2008), and I’ll say the move to indoors was much appreciated.  This was my first time to Key Arena.  Pretty basic arena… stage set up at end.  I arrived just as the opening band was wrapping up… the TicketMaster/Radiohead paperless ticketing was great from a no-scalpers perspective, but it took a bit longer to file everyone in timely.

Radiohead started off the set with “Bloom,” featuring the double drum set-up with both Phil Selway and touring member Clive Deamer (from Portishead) in addition to Jonny Greenwood on a small drum kit.  Jonny hit the mini-kit again (along with Ed O’Brien) for “There There” later in the set.

The light show was a LED wall behind the band with moving, suspended video screens (see photo above and slideshow below).  The moving video screens had been slowly coming down on the band until they were under an archway of lights by the time “Airbag” came around.  Ed make a half-hearted leap to hit the screen above him with his hand.

The band stuck to a lot of new stuff for this show, only digging into the first half of their catalogue a handful of times during their 23-song set.  Some highlights were the wall of Thom eyes during Thom’s piano close-up on “You And Whose Army?,” the grandeur of “Lucky,” the wild strobe and raucous “Idioteque,” the subtler / gentler piano-driven “Daily Mail,” and Jonny’s bowed guitar combined with the piano intro to “Pyramid Song.”  I’m still getting used to The King of Limbs, and while I don’t think the rockier songs worked (for me) live, the gentler stuff really hit the mark, especially “Give Up the Ghost” and the aforementioned “Daily Mail.”  “Little by Little” seemed a little off at the beginning, but other than that, no major disappointments…

Setlist: about 2 hours

• Bloom
• 15 Step
• Airbag
• Little by Little
• Myxomatosis
• The Gloaming
• Morning Mr. Magpie
• Pyramid Song
• The Daily Mail
• These Are My Twisted Words
• Nude
• Identikit
• Lotus Flower
• There There
• Feral
• Idioteque
• Encore 1: How to Disappear Completely
• Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
• You and Whose Army?
• Lucky
• Encore 2: Give Up the Ghost
• Reckoner
• Everything In Its Right Place

Soundcheck songs were Supercollider, 15 Step, Identikit and Meeting in the Aisle, but I was not in attendance for those…

A few iPhone shots from
Radiohead Seattle 4/9/12:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Matthew Lamb’s Pro-shot concert photos here on Key Arena’s FB page.:

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Radiohead’s Site
• Radiohead’s Social Media Links (see below)
  
• My Other Radiohead-related Posts~
  • The Universal Sigh (RSD 2011, PDF download)
  • White River Amphitheatre (Seattle-area – Aug 2008)
• Key Arena’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

Check out more RH tour dates below.

Next show for me… Glen Phillips (of Toad the Wet Sprocket) in Portland 4/12.

~Dan – np: Tyler Fortier – Bang On Time

Radiohead North American Tour 2012

February 2012

Mon 27 American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL, USA

Wed 29 St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, FL, USA

March 2012

Thu 1 Philips Arena Atlanta, GA, USA

Sat 3 Toyota Center Houston, TX, USA

Mon 5 American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX, USA

Wed 7 Frank Irwin Center Austin, TX USA

Fri 9 Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO USA

Sun 11 Sprint Center, Kansas City, MO USA

Tue 13 1st Bank Center, Broomfield, CO USA

Thu 15 Jobing.com Arena, Glendale, AZ USA

April 2012

Mon 9, Key Arena, Seattle, WA – USA

Wed 11, HP Pavilion, San Jose, CA – USA

Thu 12, Santa Barbara Bowl, Santa Barbara, CA – USA

Sat 14 Coachella – Indio, CA – USA

Tue 17 Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico

Wed 18 Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico

Sat 21 Coachella – Indio, CA – USA

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Montreal’s Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra appear to have an identity crisis.  They’ve been known as A Silver Mt. Zion, The Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band, Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-La-La Band with Choir, and Thee Silver Mountain Reveries.  For short hand, I’ll simply refer to them as Silver Mt Zion.  I’ll admit, I am new to their music… I got into them via ambient post-rock giants Godspeed You! Black Emperor, who share three members with Silver Mt Zion (singer/guitarist Efrim Menuck, violinist Sophie Trudeau, and bassist Thierry Amar).

More on Silver Mt Zion later…

The opener was a one-man band called Total Life.  He played a 25-minute, ambient/drone guitar & loop set (his clear guitar to the right).  It had a slow burn, then quickly morphed into a wall of sound.

For most opening gigs, this would not do, but for a post-something crowd, Total Life’s 25 minute experiment showed the audience’s patience and respect.  All bundled up, he was barely moving making the sounds, but sweat started dripping down his forehead and nose until the final note.

While GY!BE tend to stay in the ethereal, ambient, sweeping post-rock movement, Silver Mt Zion are a little more difficult to pin down.  They have many components similar to GY!BE, but they definitely write more in a “song” vein, with vocals.  Yet, I wouldn’t call them a singer-songwriter troupe.  The first two “songs” alone clocked in at 35 minutes.  They sweep, they go places, come back.  The vocals sometimes have choruses, and sometimes it more resembles lofty prayers… to whom? I do not know.

Their label describes their influences as “free jazz, community sight-singing, Minimalism and American folkways – still anchored to a punk-rock take on neo-classical and modern music tropes.”  If that narrows it down for you, well, you’re more forgiving of “genre-fication” than I.  Whatever you want to call them, they made great music on Saturday night at Mississippi Studios in Portland.

Setlist: about 90 minutes

• 13 Blues for Thirteen Moons
• There Is A Light
• What We Loved Was Not Enough
• Black Waters Blowed / Engine Broke Blues
• Take Away These Early Grave Blues
• Blind, Blind, Blind
• Horses In The Sky
• Encore: God Bless Our Dead Marines
  

  

  

more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Thee Silver Mt Zion’s Site / MySpace
• My Other Related Reviews~
  • Godspeed You! Black Emperor @ Crystal Ballroom (Portland – Feb 2011)
• Mississippi Studio’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

They only have a select number of dates on this tour.  Definitely go see them if you have the chance!  Check out more tour dates below.

Next shows for me… back-to-back Secret Chiefs 3 & Dengue Fever co-headlining in both Eugene (2/6 WOW Hall) and Portland (2/7 Dante’s).

~Dan – np: John Zorn – Film Works IX: Trembling Before G-d

THEE SILVER MT ZION MEMORIAL ORCHESTRA PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2012 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Thee Silver Mt Zion — 2012 Jan/Feb Tour Dates

• 31.01.12 Calgary, CAN The Republik
• 02.02.12 Vancouver, CAN The Rickshaw Theatre
• 03.02.12 Seattle, USA The Crocodile
• 04.02.12 Portland, USA Mississippi Studios
• 06.02.12 San Francisco, USA Great American Music Hall
• 07.02.12 Santa Ana, CA, USA Constellation Room
• 08.02.12 Los Angeles, USA Troubadour
• 09.02.12 San Diego, USA Casbah
• 10.02.12 Tucson, USA Club Congress
• 12.02.12 Dallas, USA Sons of Hermann Hall
• 13.02.12 Austin, USA The Mohawk
• 14.02.12 New Orleans, USA One Eyed Jacks
• 15.02.12 Birmingham, USA Bottletree
• 16.02.12 Cincinnati, USA MOTR Pub
• 17.02.12 Buffalo, USA Soundlab
• 18.02.12 Ottawa, CAN First Baptist Church
• 19.02.12 Montreal, CAN La Tulipe

PHOTOS FROM THE SHOW AT THE BOTTOM

I’ve been a fan of Mr Bungle/Fantômas/John Zorn collaborative bass player Trevor Dunn for a while.  When I get a chance to see him, especially within biking distance, I go.  From Trevor Dunn’s website, the “Double Solo” tour was noted as a “West Coast spit-roasting agenda. I’ll be playing a 30 min solo bass piece & Travis [Laplante] will play a set for solo tenor saxophone.“  Ah, a night of avant-garde jazz… yum!

Ryan A. Miller from Portland was up first… he played about 30-40 minutes on solo acoustic guitar.  A lot of loops, noises, and a little bit of what might seem like “futzing around,” but I dug it.  There were definitely some odd parts, but I definitely thought his set was more interesting than not.  You could tell he had skills, just couldn’t tell how they were going to evolve and manifest.  Update 2/8/12: Ryan’s band (U SCO) was the opener for the Secret Chiefs 3 show in Portland the very next week.  U SCO is a wicked, rad schizophrenic proggy, jazzy rock trio.  Excellent stuff!

Travis Laplante took his spot on the floor just off stage and gave us an initial onslaught of loud, raucous alto sax.  His first piece reminded me of Peter Evans solo trumpet show from 2008.  Ballistic, unfocused melodically, intense… what avant-garde jazz is meant to be.  His second piece was gentler and more melodic at first.  It was contained but not necessarily restrained before he finally let loose at the end.  His third and final piece was a dronier delight.

Trevor Dunn played last and gave us the 30-minute piece that he’s tentatively calling “The Pentagram.”  He dedicated it to Pisces.  It definitely had a “composed” feel to it (later confirmed with Trevor), but it was open and free enough to let him explore where it could go.  He plucked, he scraped, he bowed, he played below the bridge, he played with clothespins on the strings.  To sum it up in a word: fascinating.  You’ve gotta love it when he makes a few of his other bands (Mr Bungle/Fantômas) seem “too mainstream.”

Update 2/7/12: Check out this East Bay Express write-up of the Oakland show by Rachel Swan… waaaaaay better write-up (she’s a journalist and rightfully gets paid for it).  Gives you a better feel for the Dunn piece as a whole.

Trevor and Travis are wrapping up this tour this coming weekend… tonight in San Francisco, then Friday in Oakland, Saturday in Los Angeles and Sunday in Santa Cruz.  Check his Tour Page for more info.

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Trevor Dunn’s Site (bass)
• Travis Laplante’s Site (sax)
• Ryan A. Miller’s Site (guitar)
• My Other Trevor Dunn-Related Reviews~
  • Nels Cline Singers @ Doug Fir (Portland – Jan 2011)
  • John Zorn’s Moonchild @ Moore Theatre (Seattle – Nov 2007)
• Wandering Goat’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

Next show for me… Thee Silver Mt. Zion (splinter group from Godspeed You! Black Emperor) at Mississippi Studios on 2/4.

~Dan – np: Frank Zappa – Them Or Us

TREVOR DUNN & TRAVIS LAPLANTE PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2012 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Well, this year was once again good to the Pacific Nowrthwest on the concert front… 365 days, 67 shows, 132 artists, many long nights driving home, and a lot of photos…

My favorite concerts of 2011:

1. Puscifer :: Paramount Theater :: Seattle, WA {7 Nov} [review with photos] – brilliant new album, fantastic stripped down/meets over the top tour!
2. U2 & Lenny Kravitz :: Qwest Field :: Seattle, WA {4 Jun} [review with photos] – one of the biggest tours ever doesn’t disappoint
3. My Brightest Diamond :: Mississippi Studios :: Portland, OR {6 Nov} [review with photos] – Shara’s gorgeous voice works well even in a solo setting
4. Peter Mulvey :: three shows :: Eugene/Creswell/Corvallis, OR {10-12 Nov} [3-show review with photos] – yes, I’m an addict, but I can’t pass up any chance to see Peter in my neck of the woods…
5. Godspeed You! Black Emperor :: Crystal Ballroom :: Portland, OR {18 Feb} [review, no photos] – surreal and amazing!
6. The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger (Sean Lennon & Charlotte Kemp Muhl):: The Woods :: Portland, OR {28 Jan} [review with photos] – pure pop brilliance, Sean takes after his father…
7. Nels Cline Singers :: Doug Fir Lounge :: Portland, OR {30 Jan} [review with photos] – avant garde guitar experimentation…
8. Eddie Vedder (of Pearl Jam) & Glen Hansard (of The Swell Season) :: Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall :: Portland, OR {14 Jul} [review with photos] – Glen is a great singer-songwriter, and Eddie is an amazing performer (this time, mainly on ukelele)…
9. Explosions in the Sky / MusicFest NW :: Pioneer Courthouse Square :: Portland, OR {10 Sep} [no review] – I had to scuttle from this show to a follow-up MFNW show, but this was definitely a highlight…
10. Pomplamoose :: Doug Fir Lounge :: Portland, OR {27 Oct} [review with photos] – the youtube stars make good with a real tour… A+!
11. Over the Rhine :: Aladdin Theater :: Portland, OR {17 Nov} [review with photos] – OTR will always be a favorite
12. Opeth :: Roseland Theater :: Portland, OR {16 Oct} [review with photos] – no cookie monster screams, I missed them, but Opeth still doesn’t disappoint.
13. Erik Friedlander plays John Zorn’s Masada Book Two (Book of Angels, Volume 8: Volac) :: The John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts :: Eugene, OR {8 Jan} [review with photos] – an amazing cellist playing a amazing book of melodies
14. Toad the Wet Sprocket :: Downtown Bend Celebration :: Bend, OR {8 Jul} [review with photos] – anytime Toad or lead singer GLen Phillips are playing in my radar, I’m going!
15. Jeffrey Foucault :: Cozmic Pizza :: Eugene, OR {20 Oct} [review with photos] – Jeffrey is quickly becoming a favorite songwriter of mine, full of grit and charm…

Runners-Up: Reptet at Luckey’s (Jan), Elton John at Matthew Knight Arena (Feb), A Perfect Circle at Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (June), The Dead Kenny G’s at Sam Bond’s Garage (July), and Jason Webley & Mood Area 52 at WOW Hall (Oct).  Even after honorable mentions, I cut some GREAT ones… 2011 was a great year.

My favorite concert photos of 2011: (in chronological order)

(all images are free to use under a creative commons designation,
simply identify Daniel Temmesfeld with a
photo credit and link to pacificlectic.com.

Past Favorite Concerts Lists:

• Favorite Concerts 2010
• Favorite Concerts 2009
• Favorite Concerts 2008
• Favorite Concerts 2007

Favorite music of 2011 will be coming soon… EPs/DVDs/etc, vocal albums, instrumental albums…

~Dan – np: Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra – MTO Plays Sly

On Friday, Eugene photographer Kari Spohn and Eugene “post-something” band Mankind hit the Wandering Goat with two very different artistic openings.  Kari’s black & white photography was throughout the coffee shop… her opening starting at 5:30pm.  I dig her work – very “beauty in the everyday” and nice use of lines in concrete and steel in my opinion.

Delightful bites of caprise bread slices and sounds from the espresso machine’s froth fuzz soon gave way to the post-rock / post-metal bombast from Mankind at 6pm…

photo by Wes Hurd

Mankind is a great find for post-rock fans in Eugene.  They played a fairly tight set of some fantastical heavy instrumental music that sucks you in.  Mankind is James Madson on bass, Joe Harvey & John Hurd on guitars and Courtney Stubbert on drums.  For fans of Explosions in the Sky, think a touch heavier.  “Explosions in the Isis” perhaps.  Definitely recommended for fans of Explosions, Isis, Mogwai, et cetera.  And I’m glad Mankind are in Eugene.  I look forward to seeing them play a show where they can stretch their legs – the Goat’s stage is a bit small!

And don’t worry… the sonic takeover of the art opening wasn’t intended as a clash.  It was a compliment to the photography (Kari and Mankind are kindreds).

Over at Bandcamp, you can download (for free) the first batch of demos from Mankind.  You won’t be disappointed:

http://mankind.bandcamp.com/

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Mankind’s Site
• Mankind’s Social Media Links (see below)
  
• Kari Spohn’s Flickr / Twitter
• Wandering Goat’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

Next show for me… possibly Tin Hat at the Mission Theater (Portland) on 5/19 or Blackfield at Aladdin (Portland) on 6/1.  Or, I assume some other stuff will pop-up in May…

Breaking news as I was writing this review up… Barack Obama announced that a special force killed Osama bin Laden!  Mission Accomplished (for real this time)!  I’m not celebrating the death, but rather the justice.

~Dan – np: Porcupine Tree – XMII

Video flickers “hope” on loop. Slow build with piercing tones presumably of guitar mixed with cello & screams in the violin pickups. The vapors turn into steam, the bowing more frantic, random percussive shakes. Eight minutes, the first hits on a high hat. The steam now turning into an impending waterfall. “Hope” still flickers. The impending waterfall never comes. The sounds fall away into sweepy hallways.

Clean guitars, gentle malleted vibes, as the guitar soars upwards with the violins. The screen text and numbers jumble. The pace expands and explodes, then stabilizes. Guitars are the backbone, the drums brisk, the xylo/vibes, on the other hand, are furious. Gasping. Grasping. They’re trying to escape. The drums take over, the other players fall to the side. A stringed étude tucks it away.

Violin warming up, workshop hammering percussion until the sounds become like a train leaving the station. This one built quicker than the prior pieces. More Mogwaian versus Sigurrósient. Churning turns into hints of melodic keys. Maybe they were just car keys… it’s turned more into a tumultuous rock instrumental.  Rush.

That was the first forty minutes. The rest of Godspeed You! Black Emperor‘s two-plus hour set was full of highs and lows, and all the things that make post-rock so wondrous and confounding. Sweeping movements with The Anatomy of Melancholy text and images flashing above the band’s heads. I think sprinting away from convention is what makes this music so magical. Shying away from the press definitely adds to the mystery.

Setlist: (thanks Jason & others)

• Hope Drone
• Moya
• Albanian
• Monheim
• Dead Metheny
• (unknown)
• 09-15-00 (outro)
• Chart #3
• World Police & Friendly Fire
• Gathering Storm
• Blaise Bailey Finnegan III (aka BBF3)

Sorry for no photos from the show… t’was too packed, dark and I decided to hang back and enjoy anyway.  My opinion of the opener in the comment section.

The Appropriate Linkage:

• GY!BE’s Site
• GY!BE’s Social Media Links (see below)
  
• Crystal Ballroom’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

Check out more tour dates below.

Next show for me… Nik Barstch’s Ronin as part of Portland Jazz Fest next weekend.

~Dan – np: Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Tourdates

February 2011
16 – Vancouver, British Columbia @ Vogue Theatre
17 – Seattle, Wash. @ Showbox at the Market
18 – Portland, Ore. @ Crystal Ballroom
20 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Great American Music Hall
21 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Great American Music Hall
23 – Los Angeles, Calif @ Music Box at the Henry Fonda

March 2011
16 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Masonic Temple
17 – New York City, N.Y. @ Church of St. Paul the Apostle
19 – Philadelphia, Penn. @ Trocadero
20 Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club
22 – Athens, Ga. @ 40 Watt Club
24 – Nashville, Tenn. @ Cannery Ballroom
26 – Chicago, Ill. @ Metro
27 – Chicago, Ill. @ Metro
29 – Detroit, Mich. @ Majestic Theatre

 FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

I had heard of Nels Cline like many people… via Wilco.  I had even seen Wilco at some point on the A Ghost is Born tour (Taft Theatre, Cincinnati, 2000-and-something).  While I dig Wilco enough, more adventurous music is where it’s at for me nowadays.  I had heard of Nels and knew of his free jazz group, but I had only actually heard a little bit of his music – which gets me to my interest even being piqued in this show… enter Yuka C. Honda.

I dig Yuka’s Japanese/American sugar-pop of Cibo Matto (with fellow Japanese ex-pat Miho Hatori), but I also dig her experimental acoustic-electronic albums on Tzadik.  My love of Yuka’s solo work led to her Portland tour date popping up on my radar…and I saw “oh, and with Nels Cline, I’ve heard some of his stuff.”

Boy, was I in for a surprise.

I found out about a week before the show that Yuka was actually playing with the Nels Cline Singers (the next generation of his NC Trio).  I found out later that they’re married ; so the joint tour totally made sense to me now.

Then I found out that one of my favorite bassists, Trevor Dunn, was playing in the group for this short West Coast tour.  Trevor played/plays with Mr. Bungle, Fantomas, Moonchild, Trio Convulsant, Electric Masada, et-fucking-cetera (tons upon tons of groups).

Then I found out that Scott Amendola was drumming with them… he’s the drummer for Mike Patton‘s fantastic Mondo Cane big-band.  Then, after seeing the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger* on Friday 1/28 in Portland, I thought… “hey, GOASTT is wrapping up their tour in Seattle on the 29th, and Nels Cline is starting their tour on the 29th in Seattle.  Sean Lennon (of GOASTT) & Yuka used to be together as a couple and still work in bands together, Sean & Nels are on the same label, I bet something’s up.“  Well, yeah, something was up…

*GOASTT is Sean Lennon & Charlotte Kemp Muhl‘s band (to the R of Nels).

As evidenced above, Sean & Charlotte watched from side of the stage during the first set, until Sean disappeared only to come up on stage to tambourine with the group for the last song in the first set.

So, now that my mind was thoroughly blown with all of the players on stage – let’s get on with the music.

Despite the “Singers” namesake, it’s an instrumental band.  Actually, it’s an instrumental force with which to reckon.  The first set started off with just the trio of Nels’ guitars and the battery of Trevor & Scott.  The first song “Forge” swooned and swelled before crashing down on our ears.

The group seemed to me to be a great mix of what I love about both free jazz and post-rock.  You don’t know what to expect, and you don’t want to know what to expect.  The wave-like rise and fall is part of the enjoyment.  If the wave doesn’t take you to where you wanted to go, well, you have to give in… it’s not your wave to control.

After the first few songs, Yuka came on and joined them on keyboards and percussion.  I think she evened out the sound a bit… less chaotic, but still adventurous.

1st Set: 60-70 minutes

• Forge
• A Mug Like Mine
• Dedication
• Thurston County
• B86 (Inkblot Nebula)
• Thoughts on Caetano [with Sean Lennon]

Brilliant wall of sound and magic coming from the Singers.  Alas, I had to call it a night.  They took about a 30-40 minute break before I threw in the towel (around 11pm).  They were going to come back on and do a 2nd full set.  Sunday night, long drive ahead of me… I headed back to Eugene.  I sooo very much wanted to stick around for the second set.  The cards were stacked against me; so I scurried to my car and hit the road… if any readers caught the second set – how was it? what did they play?

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Nels Cline’s Site
• Nels Cline’s Social Media Links (see below)
  
• Yuka Honda’s Site
• Yuka Honda’s MySpace / Twitter
• Trevor Dunn’s Site
• Trevor Dunn’s MySpace
• Scott Amendola’s Site
• Scott Amendola’s Facebook / MySpace / Twitter
• Other Related Reviews~
  • GOASTT / Sean Lennon & Charlotte Kemp Muhl (Portland – Jan 28, 2011)
  • Nels Cline Singers by Karina (Seattle – Jan 29, 2011)
• Doug Fir Lounge’s Site / Facebook / Twitter

Check out more tour dates below.

Next shows for me… Sir Elton John in Eugene on 2/17 and then Godspeed! You Black Emperor the next day in Portland.

~Dan – np: Opeth – Orchid

NELS CLINE SINGERS PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2011 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Winter 2011 West Coast Tour Dates

• Jan 29 – Seattle, WA – Is That Jazz? Festival
• Jan 30 – Portland, OR – Doug Fir Lounge
• Feb 2 – Arcata, CA – Arcata Playhouse
• Feb 3 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
• Feb 4 – Santa Cruz, CA – Don Quixote’s
• Feb 5 – Los Angeles, CA – Getty Center
  

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

First off… if you haven’t seen the adorable and infectious new music video for Holy Fuck‘s “Red Lights,” you need to go check it out now.  OK, now that you’re back, on to the review…

This was the first time to the Holocene for me.  It’s a nice venue, trendy looking bar, good beer on tap (Double Mountain IRA for me).  They had a few side rooms with colorful lights, practically unusable mirrors in the bathroom, and odd fabric or paper christmas tree looking things in the performance area.  In other words, everything that makes Portland its quirky, trendy self.

I got there near the middle of the first opener’s set.  Clipd Beaks, from Oakland, were good from what I heard.  Fuzzy rock with somewhat melodic vocals, use of trumpet, but primarily traditional rock sounds coming forth.  I didn’t get any usable photos from their set as the lights were in force, yet.

Next up was Indian Jewelry, a four-piece from Houston, put out a 40 minute blast of tom percussion, dirty guitars and keyboards.  They were a little warbly, drone-y in spots, and switched off between male and female vocalists.  I enjoyed them, but I couldn’t really “re-sing” any of their songs… nice and percussive, genre-less but not aimless.  I can see them working way better live than on record, but then again, I’ve been wrong about that before.  Anyway, I’d recommend checking them out if they swing by your neck of the woods… cracked cymbals and all.

Holy Fuck started setting up immediately after Indian Jewelry’s set ended.  They went on right around 11:30 and played a full hour, with encore.  Not dissimilar from their Mississippi Studios show from earlier in the year… lots of tunes from Latin – which I am legally required to state in every mention of its name… it’s the best album of 2010 so far.  Great groove-based live/organic electronic.

There were a few absent fab live tunes (Royal Gregory, Super Inuit, Milkshake), and I think I’m going crazy, as now I’m doubting my own note-taking… did they end with Lovely Allen?  Or was it Safari?  Or am I going crazy?  Anyway… they played Red Lights, which smoked!  I love Punchy’s bass on that track…

Setlist: about an hour

• 1MD
• Super Inuit
• Foxy
• Jungles
• Red Lights
• Lucky
• Stay Lit
• Silva & Grimes
• Stilettos
• Encore: The Pulse
• Lovely Allen (I should know this with confidence, but my brain fell apart)
  italics – unsure of in the setlist, any help is appreciated
  

Great show as usual from Holy Fuck.  But… severe lack of dancing again… or at least in comparison to the grooves.  This seems to happen (i.e.- not happen) in Portland; so I don’t blame the band at all.  They should swing down to Eugene next time… we’ll show ‘em how to party!  Pretty please!

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Holy Fuck’s Site
• Holy Fuck on MySpace
• My Prior HF Reviews~
  • Mississippi Studios in Portland (June 2010)
  • Doug Fir Lounge in Portland (June 2009)
    
  • Southgate House in Cincinnati (April 2007)
• Great Recent HF Videos / Outside Links~
  • Red Lights Music Video
    
  • SXSW 2010 – Baeble Music Stage
  • BrooklynVegan‘s photo coverage of NYC show
    
• Indian Jewelry’s Site
• Indian Jewelry on MySpace
• Clipd Beaks on MySpace
  
• Holocene Portland
  

Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Metallica – S&M

HOLY FUCK & INDIAN JEWELRY PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Holy Fuck Fall 2010 Tour:

08-28 Leeds, England – Leeds Festival
08-29 Reading, England – Reading Festival
09-08 Louisville, KY – Zanzabar
09-09 Birmingham, AL- Bottletree
09-10 New Orleans, LA – Howlin’ Wolf
09-11 Austin, TX – The Mohawk
09-12 Houston, TX – Walter’s on Washington
09-13 Mobile, AL – Alabama Music Box
09-14 Athens, GA – New Earth Music Hall
09-15 Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506
09-17 Washington, DC – Black Cat
09-18 New York, NY – Le Poisson Rouge
09-19 Boston, MA – Paradise
09-20 Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
09-21 Buffalo, NY – Soundlab
09-22 Pittsburgh, PA – Brillobox
09-23 Cincinnati, OH – Midpoint Music Festival
09-24 Urbana, IL – Pygmalion Music Festival
09-25 Cleveland Heights, OH – Grog Shop
09-26 Detroit, MI – Magic Stick (Fucking Awesome Fest)
09-27 London, Ontario – London Music Hall
09-28 Hamilton, Ontario – Studio Theatre
09-29 Toronto, Ontario – Phoenix Theatre
09-30 Montreal, Quebec – Espace Dell’Arte
10-02 Ottawa, Ontario – Capital Music Hall
10-03 Guelph, Ontario – Vinyl
10-05 Winnipeg, Manitoba – Pyramid Cabaret
10-06 Saskatoon, Saskatchewa – Louis Pub
10-07 Toronto, Ontario – Republik
10-08-09 Edmonton, Alberta – Pawn Shop
10-11 Victoria, British Columbia – Element Nightclub
10-12 Vancouver, British Columbia – The Rickshaw Theatre
10-13 Seattle, WA – Neumos
10-14 Portland, OR – Holocene
10-16 San Francisco, CA – Treasure Island Music Festival
10-17 Los Angeles, CA – Echoplex
10-18 Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room
10-20 Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge
10-21 Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre
10-22 St. Louis, MO – Firebird
10-23 Indianapolis, IN – Radio Radio

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Originating from Brooklyn, ANTIBALAS (aka Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra) is: AMAYO (Vocals & Percussion), VICTOR AXELROD (Organ/Clavinet), ERIC BIONDO (Trumpet), STUART BOGIE (Tenor Sax), MARCUS FARRAR (Shekere), MARCOS GARCIA (Guitar), AARON JOHNSON (Trombone), JORDAN MCLEAN (Trumpet), NICK MOVSHON (Bass), LUKE O’MALLEY (Guitar), MARTIN PERNA (Baritone Sax, founder) and CHRIS VATALARO (Drums).

They are sooooo fun in concert, words don’t do them justice.  I saw them back in 2007 in the Cincinnati area, and haven’t had a chance since now to see them again.  I’ve been Jonesin’ for an Antibalas fix.

They’ve been busy the last couple years with the multiple-Tony Award winning FELA! Broadway musical (a tribute to afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti).  This July, Antibalas is doing a mini-tour in pre-support for their upcoming album on Anti-Records (untitled as of now).  The Sway Machinery opened the Portland show…

They were a nice horn-infused Jewish five piece rock band.  Their MySpace billed them as “Other / Blues / Afrobeat.”  Outside of the horns, I didn’t really hear the afrobeat.  Definitely Judaic and bluesy -  I dug their sound.  The mix last night was a bit bass heavy, and the vocals got drowned out, but I liked their vibe overall.  Their line-up is fairly power-packed… guitarist Jeremiah Lockwood of Balkan Beat Box, drummer Brian Chase of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, bass saxophonist Colin Stetson of Arcade Fire and Tom Waits‘ band, and the trumpet and tenor sax horn section of the band Antibalas, Jordan McLean and Stuart Bogie.  They’ve got an album, Hidden Melodies Revealed, out on JDub Records (same record label as Balkan Beat Box, SoCalled, etc).

Antibalas went on a little after 10:15 and hit the ground running with their percussive, groove-laden, horn-drenched bombast.  Lead vocalist Amayo came out at the second song and started off on percussion before moving over to lead vocals…

The sound in the club got a little more balanced for Antibalas, whose 12 band members were tightly jamming away.  Great mix of horn-heavy tunes, percussion heavy tunes.  The packed house danced away to the fun beats.  I’m horrible with their song names, and they didn’t play as many lyrical songs; so no luck on a setlist this time around.  If anyone has a setlist, pass it along, please.

Antibalas jammed away for a fairly dancey, long set without showing signs of letting up.  A fantastic night!  I’m hoping they hit the PacNW again when they come back through to support their upcoming untitled record.  Portland, Eugene, anywhere really. :)

more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Antibalas’ Site
• Antibalas on MySpace
• FELA! Musical on Broadway
• The Sway Machinery’s Site
• The Sway Machinery on MySpace
• Berbati’s Pan

Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Jon Madof’s Rashanim – Masada Rock 

ANTIBALAS & THE SWAY MACHINERY PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Antibalas July 2010 Tour Dates

• 07.14.10 – San Diego, CA – Casbah
• 07.15.10 – Los Angeles, CA – The Echoplex
• 07.16.10 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall
• 07.17.10 – Garberville, CA – Reggae on the River
• 07.19.10 – Portland, OR – Berbati’s Pan
• 07.20.10 – Seattle, WA – Neumos
• 07.22.10 – New York, NY - River to River Festival, Castle Clinton
• 07.29.10 – Philadelphia, PA – Kimmel Center, Perelman Theater

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

“Analog electronica at its finest.”

One of the best bands that you may have never heard of because of a fear of the unknown and/or an aversion to George Carlin’s Seven Dirty Words is Toronto’s experimental electro-rock band Holy Fuck.

Starting off more experimental with their self-titled debut in 2005 and moving into a more groove-fueled diet of instrumental rock in 2007, Holy Fuck has been tearing up clubs around Canada, Europe, and the United States for the past few years.  Their records are superb, and their live shows are even better.  This show in Portland was stacked with some other electro-pop favorites…

Portland-based Fake Drugs went on a little after 9pm.  They are made up of a few guys from Starfucker – Keil Corcoran and Shawn Glassford.  Their sound was a nice pop electronic.  Primarily rhythm guitar & live drums with primarily pre-recorded keyboards & loops.  Danceable and fun… not what I expected from Starfucker gents, but a good warm up.

Another Portland band, Nice Nice had a great electro-pop sound.  This two piece band was the primary tour support for Holy Fuck.  Fewer guys on stage compared to Fake Drugs, but it seemed like they had more going on.  The drummer played both live drums and electronic drum pads… there was a nice juxtaposition of both the organic and artificial sounds – usually intertwined with each song.  The singer played keys, electronic drum pads, as well as guitar.  They have a building, electronic-rock sound, much like Holy Fuck… they meshed really well, and I can see why HF brought them along.

On to Holy Fuck…

The seemingly scattered performance with keyboards, toy instruments, live drums & bass, 35mm audio strip replay, guitars, and distorted vocals ultimately leads into the music that is undeniably catchy and composed.  Brian Borchedt and Graham Walsh man the up-front melodic and non-melodic drive of the band, and bassist Matt McQuaid and drummer Matt Schulz are an excellent battery to fuel the groove.  They’re out supporting their latest, excellent record, LATIN.  It’s out now on CD, vinyl, and download formats (click picture to the right).  Personally speaking, it’s one of my favorite albums this year so far.

Holy Fuck went on at 11:25 and kicked it right off with the charged “Latin America.”  The band seemed pretty charged up, especially bassist Matt McQ… who really looked to be having a blast.  They plowed through an over hour set, hitting many of their new tunes, with some choice cuts from LP and the new version “Jungles” (on the +Ghost EP, based on the 2005 debut’s “Tonebank Jungle”).

Even if you aren’t a dancin’ fool… you’ll usually be turned into one at a Holy Fuck show.  The very danceable set was met with a severe lack of dancing from the crowd compared to past shows I’ve witnessed.  Perhaps it was a “Portland on a rainy Sunday” thing, because Holy Fuck was deep in the groove but the crowd seemed more concerned with their PBR’s.  Regardless of the “dancin’ deficit,” the crowd definitely showed their appreciation for the mighty HF via hoots & hollers…

Here’s what they played as best I remembered the song names…

Setlist: ~70 mins

• Latin America
• Super Inuit
• Foxy
• Jungles
• 1MD / Red Lights
• SHT MTN
• Frenchy’s
• Stay Lit
• Lovely Allen
• The Pulse
• Stilettos
• Encore: unknown… a really dirty, fuzzed out riff
• P.I.G.S.

Brilliant show… my favorite was Red Lights, and its deep groove and killer bass.  Jungles and Stay Lit were close behind.  Stay Lit is probably HF’s most mellow song, and it features Brian on guitar instead of the electronics table.  They ended the night with a new song (or at least new to me) featuring a really fuzzy, dirty bass followed by P.I.G.S..

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Holy Fuck’s Site
• Holy Fuck on MySpace
• My Prior HF Reviews~
  • Doug Fir Lounge in Portland (June 2009)
    
  • Southgate House in Cincinnati (April 2007)
• Great Recent HF Videos~
  • The Cake Shop in NYC
    
  • SXSW 2010 – Baeble Music Stage
    
• Nice Nice’s Site
• Nice Nice on MySpace
• Fake Drugs on MySpace
  
• Mississippi Studios
  

Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Frank Zappa – Waka/Jawaka

HOLY FUCK, FAKE DRUGS & NICE NICE PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Holy Fuck 2010 N.A. Tour Dates (so far)

• May 28 Le Poisson Rouge New York, New York #
• May 29 The Middle East Cambridge, Massachusetts #
• May 30 Johnny Brenda’s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania #
• May 31 Rock N Roll Hotel Washington, Washington DC #
• Jun 1 Grog Shop Cleveland Heights, Ohio #
• Jun 3 Turf Club Saint Paul, Minnesota #
• Jun 6 Mississippi Studios Portland, Oregon #
• Jun 8 The Independent San Francisco, California #
• Jun 10 Troubadour Los Angeles, California #
• Jul 5 Club Soda – Festival International de Jazz de Montreal Montreal, Quebec
• Jul 9 Molson Amphitheatre Toronto, Ontario ^
• Jul 30 Sappyfest Sackville, New Brunswick
  # w/ Nice Nice
  ^ w/ Metric and Passion Pit

 FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

On May 18, 2010, post-metal powerhouse ISIS officially called it quits.  They did everything they wanted to do, and said everything they wanted to say… and this May & June tour would be their last.  It was a good run: 13 years and 5 brilliant studio albums.

The break-up news was deeply saddening news to the fans, but at least we get one last hurrah.

The show opened with Jakob (a three-piece from New Zealand).  They played a solid 40-minute set of instrumental post-rock.  They had heavy moments, but they were decidedly the “calmest” of the trio of bands last night.  They were really tight and created a great, building wall of sound.  Great for fans of a harder edged Explosions in the Sky.  Jakob’s debut, Solace, is out now.

Tombs (a four-piece from Brooklyn) were more in the metal category.  Guttural vocals, double kick drum blasts, but more building in their guitar sound compared to other metal fare (e.g.- similar to ISIS versus Slayer).  A great 40-minute onslaught to our ears.  Check out their album, Winterhours.

ISIS went on just before 11pm and came out hard and heavy… while both Jakob and Tombs were tight, it seemed as though things got kicked up a notch when Isis hit the stage.  The audience crowded the stage to be pummeled by the sweeping and soaring musical backbone amidst Aaron Turner’s powerful voice…

They played a hauntingly brutal mix from Wavering Radiant, In the Absence of Truth, and a few oldies thrown in as well.  There were a handful of moments of Aaron’s more melodic vocals, but that was few and far between… the show tended to show off Isis’s more pained vocal cuts.  They played about 90 minutes… 

Setlist: (thanks for corrections from a fellow fans)

• Deconstructing Towers
• Not In Rivers, But In Drops
• So Did We
• Threshold of Tranformation
• Ghost Key
• Collapse and Crush
• From Sinking
• Encore: In Fiction
• The Beginning and the End

It’s sad to see Isis end, but at least they are ending with a kick ass tour.  Also, if you go to one of the shows (see below), there is a TON of merch… they’ve brought about everything each member has ever been involved in.  I dropped some coin for the Japanese limited edition Panopticon, Oceanic, 7.23.06 live, and the Melvin split 12″ vinyl.  That was barely scratching the surface for this excellent “Isis Garage Sale.”

more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• ISIS’ Site
• ISIS on MySpace
• Jakob on MySpace
• Tombs on MySpace
• The WOW Hall

Check out the final tour dates for ISIS below.

~Dan – np: Ellery – This Isn’t Over Yet
 

ISIS, Jakob & Tombs PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

ISIS – 2010 TOUR DATES
May 26 2010 The Casbah w/ Jakob & Tombs San Diego, California, US
May 29 2010 Wow Hall w/ Jakob & Tombs Eugene, Oregon , US
May 31 2010 Rickshaw Theatre w/ Jakob & Tombs Vancouver, British Co, CA
Jun 1 2010 Neumo’s w/ Jakob & Tombs Seattle, Washington, US
Jun 2 2010 Doug Fir Lounge w/ Jakob & Tombs Portland, Oregon , US
Jun 4 2010 Great American Music Hall w/ Jakob & Tombs San Francisco, California, US
Jun 5 2010 The Troubadour w/ Jakob & Tombs Los Angeles, California, US
Jun 12 2010 Bonnaroo Festival W/ Clutch, Melvins, Flaming Lips, etc. Manchester, Tennessee , US
Jun 14 2010 40 Watt Club w/ Melvins Athens, Georgia , US
Jun 16 2010 9:30 Club w/Melvins Washington, Washington, US
Jun 17 2010 Theater Of Living Arts (TLA) w/ Melvins Philadelphia, Pennsylvan, US
Jun 18 2010 Webster Hall w/ Melvins New York, New York , US
Jun 19 2010 Music Hall Of Williamsburg w/ Melvins Brooklyn, New York , US
Jun 20 2010 Paradise Rock Club w/ Melvins Boston, Massachuse, US
Jun 21 2010 Paradise Rock Club w/ Melvins Boston, Massachuse, US
Jun 22 2010 Port City Music Hall w/ Cave In Portland, Maine , US
Jun 23 2010 Club Soda w/ Cave In Montreal, Quebec , CA

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Jon Thor Birgisson aka “Jónsi” has a majestic voice and a penchant for clever, extravagant, and utterly gorgeous stage show that converts the already beautiful music into something worthy of an art exhibit.  His voice is well known in the indie rock scene via his long history bringing the enigmatic Sigur Rós to our shores/ears.

Sigur Rós is on a hiatus while many of the members’ families welcome new children into their lives; so Jónsi decided to follow-up his last album (Riceboy Sleeps with his partner Alex) with a “solo acoustic album.”  That “solo acoustic” album morphed into what became GO, a not-so-acoustic album.  Go fits in with the most recent Sigur Rós album (Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust).   It’s a “more accessible rock” affair full of the ideals, quirks, and high quality craftsmanship we’ve come to expect.

That high quality craftsmanship shows in Jónsi’s decision to bring in 59 Productions to work up his tour stage.  If I wasn’t sold on going to see Jónsi before, the lead-up to the show was almost unbearable after seeing the 59 Productions behind the scenes video.  More on that later… first, the opener…

Death Vessel (aka Joel Thibodeau) hit the stage around 8 and played a 35 minute set (6-7 songs).  His songs were gentle acoustic numbers, and his voice reminded me a lot of the late Jeff Hanson (nice falsetto).  The crowd seemed a little restless near the end, but I thought Death Vessel put out an enjoyable set.

Jónsi went on right at 9pm and started the show with just an acoustic guitar solo tune, Stars in Still Water.  Shortly thereafter the band joined him and the stage show began.  The walls and projectors played for about half of the songs in the set, and ranged from butterflies, to other animals, to a rainstorm that turned into a flood.  Some of the coolest effects were the burning stage-pieces early on, as well as the water flood.  It was quite astonishing how well done everything was… and it didn’t take away from the music at all.

Setlist: ~85 minutes

• Stars in Still Water (solo)
• Hengilás
• Icicle Sleeves (K14 or Red Bicycle)
• Kolniður
• Tornado
• Saint Naive (K7)
• Sinking Friendships
• Go Do
• Boy Lilikoi
• K12
• New Piano Song (K365)
• Around Us (with acoustic piano intro)
• Encore: Jonsi New Guitar Song
• Animal Arithmetic (Jonsi donned a colorful headdress)
  
• Grow Till Tall

The fave songs of the night were Tornado, Go Do, Boy Lilikoi & Grow Till Tall – as those were the ones that resonate with me the most from the record.  All in all, it was an utterly superb show, and it ranks easily in my favorite shows ever (which includes many Sigur Rós shows, too).  The stage, the songs, the voice, the beauty… I hope Jónsi comes back through soon – either solo or with his “main band.”

Speaking of bands… the band members for Jónsi’s solo tour are Alex Somers on guitar, Úlfur Hansson on bass, þorvaldur þorvaldsson on drums and Ólafur Björn Ólafsson on piano

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Jónsi’s Site
• Jónsi’s 2010 Tour Recap splashpage
• Jónsi on MySpace
• 59 Productions (Jónsi’s stagecraft masters)
• Sigur Rós’ Site
• Sigur Rós on MySpace
• Death Vessel
• Death Vessel on MySpace
• Roseland Theater
• Other Reviews of Interest:
  • My Sigur Rós Oct 2008 Review (with photos)
  • SPIN‘s Vancouver Review (April 2010)
  • Brooklyn Vegan‘s Vancouver Review (April 2010)
  • RAW Pie Recipes from Jónsi & Alex’s cookbook
    

OK, I’m off for a while… if you comment, sorry if I won’t/can’t  respond (or potentially be able to approve comments) for a bit.  Anyway, for those of you who are going to one of the upcoming dates, have fun.  It is an AMAZING show.  Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Derek Webb – Stockholm Syndrome

JÓNSI (from Sigur Rós) & DEATH VESSEL PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Higher Resolution (8 pics)

Limited to 1200 pixels wide or tall (5 DV, 27 Jónsi pics)

2010 North American Tour Dates

• april 6 vancouver, canada vogue theatre
• april 7 vancouver, canada vogue theatre
• april 9 seattle, wa the showbox sodo
• april 10 seattle, wa the showbox sodo
• april 13 portland, or roseland theatre
• april 15 berkeley, ca zellerbach auditorium
• april 16 san francisco, ca palace of fine arts
• april 18 indio, ca coachella
• april 21 denver, co paramount theatre
• april 22 lawrence, ks liberty hall
• april 24 minneapolis, mn pantages theatre
• april 25 minneapolis, mn pantages theatre
• april 26 milwaukee, wi the pabst theatre
• april 27 chicago, il vic theatre
• april 28 chicago, il vic theatre
• april 30 toronto, canada sound academy
• may 1 toronto, canada sound academy
• may 2 montreal, canada metropolis
• may 3 philadelphia, pa electric factory
• may 5 boston, ma house of blues
• may 6 boston, ma house of blues
• may 8 new york, ny terminal 5
• may 9 new york, ny terminal 5

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Jake Shimabukuro is an amazing guitar player.  The media that he uses to express that phenomenal talent is on the diminutive instrument known as the ukulele.  The ukulele’s use is more popular in traditional Hawaiian music, but it has made its way into mainland pop music recently via the likes of Ingrid Michaelson, Amanda Palmer, and one of my favorites – Nellie McKay (review / ukulele pic).

Well, Jake brings his music from Hawaii, but he is nothing resembling a “traditional” Hawaiian ukulele player.He is a master fret-worker on the ukulele and brings sounds out of it that you wouldn’t necessarily find on the islands.

Jake Shimabukuro hit the stage around 7:30pm.  His set bridged gaps between traditional Hawaiian music, to jazz, to blues, to classical, to folk, to classic rock, to bluegrass, to flamenco, to traditional Japanese music.  He played a few new tunes from his forthcoming album including “143″ and “Piano-Forte.”  The latter was written with two piano parts (left and right hand), and due to Jake only containing the standard issue “two hands” only played the left-handed rendition.  We’ll have to wait for the album for the full version.

Here’s what he blessed us with last night…

Setlist: about 90 mins

• 143
• Blue Roses Falling
• Me & Shirley T.
• Let’s Dance
• Dragon
• “Bowing for the Queen” story
• In My Life (Beatles)
• While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Beatles)
• Sakura Sakura
• Piano-Forte (left hand rendition)
• Trapped
• Five Dollars Unleaded
• Orange World
• Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
• Encore: Crazy G
  

Jake was a very talkative person, full of stories about song origins and his childhood: the too many sugary drinks induced “Me & Shirley T.,” the Carlos Montoya-influenced flamenco number “Let’s Dance,” the Bruce Lee meets Eddie Van Halen song “Dragon” (beautifully full of finger taps), playing with Bette Midler and bowing a lot for the Queen of England, the Ralph McDonald (of Jimmy Buffett’s band) 9/8-time rhythm that inspired “Trapped,” and riding around Hawaii in his dad’s old pickup truck.  Full of stories, full of excellent melodies and wicked fast hands – Jake Shimabukuro was a treat.

more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Jake’s Site
• Jake on MySpace
• The Shedd

~Dan – np: Haftor Medbøe Group – A Box of Monkeys -EP-

JAKE SHIMABUKURO PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Higher Resolution (3 pics)

Limited to 1200 pixels wide or tall (12 pics)

 FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

So, I just saw The Album Leaf & Sea Wolf show up in Portland on Friday.  Last night’s show wasn’t much different… which means… highly enjoyable.  Since I’m in the midst of “work a ton because I chose the path of becoming a CPA and now is the rough work schedule” month, I’ll keep my comments brief – but include setlists and photos, of course.

The main difference for the Eugene show was the lack of string quartet – but where I was in the crowd for the Portland show, I didn’t get much of the string quartet in my ears anyway.  It was about a half-packed WOW Hall, which was good for a Tuesday.  Sea Wolf was great.  I was more familiar with their songs, and I really started digging them.  Same 45 minute set as Portland.

Sea Wolf’s Setlist:

• White Water
• Winter Windows
• Dew in the Grass
• Black Leaf Falls
• Middle Distance Runner
• The Traitor
• O’ Maria
• Turn the Dirt Over
• Wicked Blood
• You’re a Wolf

The Album Leaf came on around 10pm. I could definitely hear more strings this time around, even though there was only the primary violinist and not a whole quartet.  Again, that was more due to my location at Portland’s show.  They played the same setlist as Portland.  I was digging the new songs, as I had gotten a few days now to let the album sink in.  I could tell Jimmy was having some problems with his in-ear monitor during a few songs.  Overall, the sound quality wasn’t as good in Eugene as in Portland.  I moved around the venue and it seemed way more bass heavy than is normal for TAL.  All in all, though, a great set…

The Album Leaf’s Setlist:

• Perro
• Blank Pages
• There is a Wind
• Within Dreams
  
• Falling from the Sun
• Stand Still
  
• 2214
  
• Outer Banks
  
• Shine
• Until the Last
• We Are
• Almost There
• Wherever I Go
• Encore: Always For You
• Red Eye
  
• Tied Knots

many more photos below

Definitely check out The Album Leaf’s new album, A Chorus of Storytellers…

The Appropriate Linkage:

• The Album Leaf’s Site
• TAL’s MySpace
• Sea Wolf’s Site
• Sea Wolf on MySpace
• WOW Hall
  

Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Sachi Hayasaka – Minga

THE ALBUM LEAF and SEA WOLF PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

The Album Leaf Spring 2010 World Tour Dates

• Feb 3: Sacramento, CA @ Harlows
• Feb 5: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge (w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 6: Seattle, WA @ Neumos (w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 7: Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater(w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 8: Bellingham, WA @ Nightlight Lounge
• Feb 9: Eugene , OR @ WOW Hall
• Feb 11: Santa Cruz @ The Crepe Place
• Feb 12: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall (w/Magik*Magik String Quartet)
• Feb 13: Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theater (w/Magik*Magik String Quartet)
• Feb 25: Lisbon, Portugal @ Lisbon Santiago Alquimista
• Feb 26: Madrid, Spain @ Moby Dick
• Feb 27: Bilboa, Spain @ 12 & Medio
• Feb 28: Barcelona, Spain @ Apollo 2
• Mar 2: Toulouse, France @ Le Phare
• Mar 3: Milan, Italy @ Circolo Milano
• Mar 4: Lucerne, Switzerland @ Sudpol Club
• Mar 5: Dunidgen (Bern), Switzerland @ @ Bad Bonn
• Mar 6: Sankt Gallen, Switzerland @ Theater Palace
• Mar 7: Munich, Germany @ Feierwerk
• Mar 9: Vienna, Austria @ Szene
• Mar 10: Dresden, Germany @ BeatPol
• Mar 11: Berlin, Germany @ Lido
• Mar 12: Hamburg, Germany @ Knust
• Mar 13: Rotterdam, Holland @ Rotown
• Mar 14: Koln, Germany @ Gebauude 9
• Mar 16: Antwerp, Belgium @ Club Trix
• Mar 17: Colmar, France @ Kraken
• Mar 18: Heidelberg, Germany @ Karlstorbahnhof
• Mar 19: Paris, France @ Maroquinerie
• Mar 20: Lille, France @ L’ Aeronef
• Mar 21: Bristol, UK @ The Thekla
• Mar 22 Manchester, UK @ The Deaf Institute
• Mar 23: London, UK @ Bush Hall
• Apr 2: Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Ax
• Apr 3: Nagoya, Japan @ Club Quatrro
• Apr 4: Osaka, Japan @ Club Quattro
• Apr 7: Hong Kong @ Grappa’s Cellar
• Apr 9: Taipei, Taiwan @ The Wall Live House

And just announced on Feb 3rd (and from Pollstar; so a different format)…

• Tue 04/20/10 – Tucson, AZ – Plush
• Wed 04/21/10 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
• Thu 04/22/10 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
• Fri 04/23/10 – Omaha, NE – The Waiting Room
• Sat 04/24/10 – St. Louis, MO – Luminary Center For The Arts
• Sun 04/25/10 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
• Tue 04/27/10 – Grand Rapids, MI – Ladies Literary Club
• Wed 04/28/10 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
• Thu 04/29/10 – Montreal, QC – Music Hall
• Fri 04/30/10 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
• Sat 05/01/10 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
• Sun 05/02/10 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
• Tue 05/04/10 – Washington, DC – Rock And Roll Hotel
• Wed 05/05/10 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
• Thu 05/06/10 – Atlanta, GA – The Loft At Center Stage
• Fri 05/07/10 – Jacksonville, FL – Jack Rabbits
• Sat 05/08/10 – Orlando, FL – The Social
• Mon 05/10/10 – Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon
• Tue 05/11/10 – Austin, TX – The Parish Room
• Fri 05/14/10 – San Diego, CA – Birch North Park Theatre

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

I got into The Album Leaf back in 2004 with In a Safe Place after hearing about the Sigur Rós collaborative songs (and Icelandic former-swimming pool studio).  I’ve been a fan of frontman Jimmy LaValle ever since In a Safe Place, which also spanned into a love of his prior band, Tristeza.  His mold of organically-infused electronic post-rock fits me well.  I missed him on his last time through (Jan 2009); so I vowed not to let it happen again… so this time, I’m hitting both Portland and Eugene, Oregon.

We got to the venue, got our tickets and ran off to grab some unfortunately salty grub (East End Bar must own stock in Morton’s).  After a speedy walk back, we arrived back at the Doug Fir shortly after Sea Wolf started .  They are an indie rock band from Los Angeles, and played a solid 45 minute set…

Sea Wolf’s Setlist:
(as per stage copy)

• White Water
• Winter Windows
• Dew in the Grass
• Black Leaf Falls
• Middle Distance Runner
• The Traitor
• O’ Maria
• Turn the Dirt Over
• Wicked Blood
• You’re a Wolf

Sea Wolf reminded me a lot of Wilco… maybe it was singer/guitarist Alex Church’s vocals.  They have a roots rock meets singer-songwriter vibe that hearkened to Wilco in my mind.  They busted out a harder rock tune (in comparison to The Album Leaf), but also had nice cello throughout their set.  Great opener… I’m looking forward to Eugene’s show to hear more.

After a short break (and a move to the front), The Album Leaf (aka TAL) came on.  The Portland show featured the Anomie Belle String Quartet (shown at the left), which presumably added nice textures to the already large, six piece band.  Where we were lopcated, we could barely hear them.

With this new album (see below), Jimmy opened up the recording to more than just himself as well.  Previous records were more in the “one man band” realm, with a band assembled for tours.  It was nice to the see the band that hit the studio with him on A Chorus of Storytellers play those same songs live.  The band was Jimmy LaValle, Matt Resovich, Drew Andrews, Gram LeBron, Tim Reece, and Andrew Pates – all on various instruments.

Being the first time seeing TAL, I honestly had no idea what to expect.  We lucked out in the placement department… as Jimmy’s gear was right in front of us.

I was skeptical if the studio lushness would translate to the stage.  Quite frankly, I think the electronic post-rock goodness, complete with drum machine and a regular drummer, worked out fantastically.  They played a lot of material from the new record, which fit in well with earlier songs…

The Album Leaf’s Setlist: about stellar 80 minutes

• Perro
• Blank Pages
• There is a Wind
• Within Dreams * fave of the night *
  
• Falling from the Sun
• Stand Still * fave of the night *
  
• 2214 * fave of the night *
  
• Outer Banks * fave of the night *
  
• Shine
• Until the Last
• We Are
• Almost There
• Wherever I Go
• Encore: Always For You
• Red Eye * fave of the night *
  
• Tied Knots

The band members switched around on instruments.  Jimmy played several different keyboards, including a Moog and a modulator of some sort.  Other members pitched in on keyboards when a violin, trumpet, small vibraphone, bass, or guitar weren’t in their hands.  While I still associate TAL as a primarily instrumental band in my mind, their last few albums have had increasingly more vocals.  I’d estimate a 1/3 to a 1/2 of the songs had vocals last night – covered by Jimmy, but with frequent backing vocals from various band members.  My friend who went along with me commented that the songs seemed fairly similar throughout the show.  Alas, I suppose that’s the rub with TAL, but I dug it fairly well.

many more live photos below

I’ll also be at the Eugene show on Tuesday; so check back for that review next week.  Oh, and definitely check out The Album Leaf’s new album, A Chorus of Storytellers.  I got it at the show, and it is fantastic!

The Appropriate Linkage:

• The Album Leaf’s Site
• TAL’s MySpace
• Sea Wolf’s Site
• Sea Wolf on MySpace
• Anomie Belle String  Quartet on MySpace
  
• Doug Fir Lounge
  

Check out more tour dates below.

~Dan – np: The Album Leaf – A Chorus of Storytellers

THE ALBUM LEAF and SEA WOLF PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

The Album Leaf Spring 2010 World Tour Dates

• Feb 3: Sacramento, CA @ Harlows
• Feb 5: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge (w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 6: Seattle, WA @ Neumos (w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 7: Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater(w/Anomie Belle String Quartet)
• Feb 8: Bellingham, WA @ Nightlight Lounge
• Feb 9: Eugene , OR @ WOW Hall
• Feb 11: Santa Cruz @ The Crepe Place
• Feb 12: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall (w/Magik*Magik String Quartet)
• Feb 13: Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theater (w/Magik*Magik String Quartet)
• Feb 25: Lisbon, Portugal @ Lisbon Santiago Alquimista
• Feb 26: Madrid, Spain @ Moby Dick
• Feb 27: Bilboa, Spain @ 12 & Medio
• Feb 28: Barcelona, Spain @ Apollo 2
• Mar 2: Toulouse, France @ Le Phare
• Mar 3: Milan, Italy @ Circolo Milano
• Mar 4: Lucerne, Switzerland @ Sudpol Club
• Mar 5: Dunidgen (Bern), Switzerland @ @ Bad Bonn
• Mar 6: Sankt Gallen, Switzerland @ Theater Palace
• Mar 7: Munich, Germany @ Feierwerk
• Mar 9: Vienna, Austria @ Szene
• Mar 10: Dresden, Germany @ BeatPol
• Mar 11: Berlin, Germany @ Lido
• Mar 12: Hamburg, Germany @ Knust
• Mar 13: Rotterdam, Holland @ Rotown
• Mar 14: Koln, Germany @ Gebauude 9
• Mar 16: Antwerp, Belgium @ Club Trix
• Mar 17: Colmar, France @ Kraken
• Mar 18: Heidelberg, Germany @ Karlstorbahnhof
• Mar 19: Paris, France @ Maroquinerie
• Mar 20: Lille, France @ L’ Aeronef
• Mar 21: Bristol, UK @ The Thekla
• Mar 22 Manchester, UK @ The Deaf Institute
• Mar 23: London, UK @ Bush Hall
• Apr 2: Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Ax
• Apr 3: Nagoya, Japan @ Club Quatrro
• Apr 4: Osaka, Japan @ Club Quattro
• Apr 7: Hong Kong @ Grappa’s Cellar
• Apr 9: Taipei, Taiwan @ The Wall Live House

And just announced on Feb 3rd (and from Pollstar; so a different format)…

• Tue 04/20/10 – Tucson, AZ – Plush
• Wed 04/21/10 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
• Thu 04/22/10 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
• Fri 04/23/10 – Omaha, NE – The Waiting Room
• Sat 04/24/10 – St. Louis, MO – Luminary Center For The Arts
• Sun 04/25/10 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
• Tue 04/27/10 – Grand Rapids, MI – Ladies Literary Club
• Wed 04/28/10 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
• Thu 04/29/10 – Montreal, QC – Music Hall
• Fri 04/30/10 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
• Sat 05/01/10 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
• Sun 05/02/10 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
• Tue 05/04/10 – Washington, DC – Rock And Roll Hotel
• Wed 05/05/10 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
• Thu 05/06/10 – Atlanta, GA – The Loft At Center Stage
• Fri 05/07/10 – Jacksonville, FL – Jack Rabbits
• Sat 05/08/10 – Orlando, FL – The Social
• Mon 05/10/10 – Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon
• Tue 05/11/10 – Austin, TX – The Parish Room
• Fri 05/14/10 – San Diego, CA – Birch North Park Theatre

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

There must be something about the Icelandic landscape
that yields such magnificent music.

I got into Múm (pronounced “moom”) via Sigur Rós.  In fact, it may have even been a direct email from Sigur Rós about Múm right around the time Finally We Are No One (aka Loksins Erum Við Engin) was coming out in 2003.  Both bands are from Iceland, both bands have quirky, sometimes ambient songs.  Where Múm differs from Sigur Rós is that they tend to be less ethereal and have more electronic, glitchiness going on with their music.  They came through Portland a couple of years ago on their last album, Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy, but I was not able to make it to the show.  Ever since hearing their albums, I have been curious how they’d pull it off in a live setting.

After a delicious vegan dinner at the new Irvington Blossoming Lotus restaurant (represent!), I got to the Aladdin right as doors were opening (a little after 8pm) and got a seat right up front.  Yay!

The first opener Hildur Guðnadóttir is one of Múm’s vocalists and did a 20-minute instrumental set.  She came out and played an initial song with just her on cello and laptop accompaniment.  The next song, she was joined by Sin Fang Bous’s drummer, and Múm’s bassist and trumpet player.  Her trumpeter played mostly what I’d call “empty notes” – a lot of wind and sputtering through the horn.   On Hildur’s second song, I thought, “there must be something about the Icelandic landscape that yields such magnificent music.”  The song was utterly gorgeous, flowing, almost glacial.  Her next two songs to wrap up her set were also gorgeous, but, wow, that second song really made me want to visit Iceland.  Her debut solo album is called Without Sinking and is available here.

Up next, Sin Fang Bous is a side project from Sindri Sigfússon of Seabear.  They played a 30 minute set that started off OK, but not all that that great.  BUT… by the end, I was really digging it.  The music was much louder than Múm & Hildur, and Sindri was also quite mumbly.  He was speaking in English, but when he announced song songs early on it was all a mash.  Near the middle of the set, his humor came out, which definitely helped me warm up to them.  “How come no one is sitting up there? (looking at the box seats)  Is that for the King of Portland?“

Later on he also announced that he had CDs, t-shirts… and little vials of blood for sale at the merch table if we wanted something to drink on the way home.  Silly.  I think my favorite song was “Clangour and Flutes” (from the Clangour album available here).  Anyway, it had a nice hook and some nice instrumentation.

Múm went on just before 10:30.  I had never seen them before; so I had no idea what to expect.  Several of the people up on stage had already been up there before (Hildur as the opener, the keyboardist/trumpter as Hildur’s back-up, their guitarist was also Sin Fang Bous’s guitarist).  It was like a little Icelandic traveling family.  When Múm came on, the front area without seats quickly filled up… so I got out of my seat and got a spot right at the stage.

Múm’s set was a lot of newer songs (of which I hadn’t heard) – happy, electronic with ambient / chamber music elements.  I had no idea they had multiple singers (Hildur, another woman, and a guy who also played keyboards, guitar, etc).  Don’t ask for names… it’s too difficult to remember or even research. :)  With two keyboardists, Múm’s electronic sounds came through in the live setting… definitely not as lush as the studio versions, but definitely commendable for a live setting.  I think, not as expected, the vocals were the primary flavor in the live show.  Hildur and the other woman singer were definitely passionate and singing their lungs out.  Here’s what the played (any help on missing / incorrect info is appreciated)…

Setlist: about 85-90 minutes

• Illuminated
• Marmalade Fires
• Húllabbalabbalúú
• Blessed Brambles
• If I Were A Fish
• Nightly Cares
• A Little Bit Sometimes
• maybe The Last Shapes Of Never
• Show Me
• unknown… sweeping, operatic, lots of “la-las”
• Dancing Behind My Eyelids
• unknown… kazoos near the end
• Prophecies And Reversed Memories
• Sing Along
• Encore: Green Grass Of Tunnel

I picked up their new one, Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know.  I look forward to spinning it later today.

I left about midway through the last song, as I had a 2 hour drive, a hard week already, and an early meeting in the morning.  All in all, it was a GREAT show.  It wasn’t as monumental / mind-blowing as the first time I saw Sigur Rós, or anything like that, but it was a really great band playing really great music.  I’m glad that they’ve been through twice these past two years… I look forward to another trip from them in the near future.

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Múm’s Official Site
• A Múm Fan Site
• Múm on MySpace
• Hildur Guðnadóttir’s Official Site
• Hildur Guðnadóttir on MySpace
• Sin Fang Bous on MySpace
• BrooklynVegan‘s NYC 10/24 review
• Aladdin Theater

Check out their U.S. tour dates below.

~Dan – np: Frog Pocket – Come On Primates Show Your Teeth!

MÚM, Hildur Guðnadóttir & Sin Fang Bous PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2009 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Their 2009 U.S. Tour Dates

• Oct 21 the Somerville Theatre Somerville, Massachusetts
• Oct 22 First Unitarian Church Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Oct 23 Black Cat Washington DC, Washington DC
• Oct 24 Le Poisson Rouge NY, New York
• Oct 26 Le National Montreal, Quebec
• Oct 27 Phoenix Concert Theatre Toronto, Ontario
• Oct 28 Logan Square Auditorium Chicago, Illinois
• Oct 29 McGuire Theater Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Nov 01 Marquee Room Calgary, Alberta
• Nov 02 The Venue Nightclub Vancouver, British Columbia
• Nov 03 Showbox at the Market Seattle, Washington
• Nov 04 Aladdin Theater Portland, Oregon
• Nov 05 The Independent San Francisco, California
• Nov 06 El Rey Theatre Los Angeles, California
• Nov 07 Yost Theatre Santa Ana, California

 

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

I love my job.  I get to be in towns that quite often host artists I like to see… so I don’t have to drive up to make a special trip.  Well, this time, it was for my second time seeing the instrumental, avant-groove, live electronic band from Toronto – - Holy Fuck.  While their name may be offensive to some, their music is delicious.  I tried to make the “gotta eat there while in Portland” stop at Blossoming Lotus, but downtown was PACKED – no parking to be found; so I crossed the River and checked out The Farm instead.  Then I scuttled off to the venue to meet some Eugene friends and take in some great music.

Crocodiles went on first, and they played about a half hour.  It was a singer & guitarist playing to a drum machine or tape.  It wasn’t too shabby.  Two man bands are usually more miss than hit, but these guys had some good songs and rocked out fairly well.

Holy Fuck took the stage around 10:15 and played a jam-packed hour or so.  I forget how infectious these guys are, even when not playing something all that melodic (though they had plenty of groove last night as well).  We got right up front, and I was able to snap some pics and a video or two (see below).  I was glad to see the audience show up, too… at first, it was looking grim, like a 10 person crowd.  By HF show time, the MFDF was filling up quite nicely.  Much groove, much film scratchin’, oft screamin’ and looping, with a thumping rhythm section…

Songs are harder to distinguish when there are no vocals (i.e.- no official “setlist” here).  I know they played The Pulse, Super Inuit, and Lovely Allen, and I’m pretty sure they played Milkshake, Safari, Frenchy’s, Jungle, maybe Royal Gregory.  Those last five are just a guess, though.  I do know that it was a bitchin’ show!!  It’s great to see them in progressively bigger venues.  First Newport, KY’s Southgate House “parlor” (i.e.- the very small room upstairs) to the real venue of Doug Fir Lounge as the headliner.  A+… and I hope it’s not another 2+ years until I get to see them again.

Holy Fuck “The Pulse” @ Doug Fir Lounge, 6/4/2009

The videos are just “OK,” but not too shabby for a digital camera (not a digital video camera), if I do say so myself.  Regardless of the video quality, quite frankly, this show is probably one of my favorite shows this year so far.

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Holy Fuck Online
• Holy Fuck on MySpace
• Holy Fuck review & pics from Brooklyn Vegan <— *great shots*
• Holy Fuck interviewed by Joe Walker (YouTube link)
• Crocodiles on MySpace
• Doug Fir Lounge

~Dan – np: John Zorn – Alhambra Love Songs

no torrent or free download available here

CROCODILES / HOLY FUCK PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2009 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Sigur Rós pictures from the Portland show on Monday, October 6th are now posted over at my review of the show:

http://jazzsick.wordpress.com/2008/10/07/sigur-ros-pdx2008/

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW are at the BOTTOM

This was my third time to the Arlene Schnitzer Hall.  It’s a great venue, and while I thought I would have gotten a better ticket via ordering from Klink (the Sigur merch site)… well, I was further to the back and left than I would have liked.  It was still a good spot for pics and hearing some wonderful music.

The opener, Parachutes, is a band I got into sometime in 2007 due to a linkage to Sigur Rós via the MySpaces.  I was excited to see them on the bill.  They were obviously influenced by Sigur Rós.  I mean… obviously.  But in my world, that’s not a bad thing.  They had 8 or 9 players, and at one point I know 10 people were playing with them.  Again, very Sigur Rós-y, slow build, xylophone, strings, bombastic drums, keys, soft vocals.  They played about 40 minutes, and I enjoyed them very much.  I picked up their EP for $5 (usð)… i.e.- a steal.  Unfortunately, my pics of theirs didn’t come out, as they didn’t have as much light on stage as Sigur Rós.

Now on to Sigur Rós…

Sigur Rós was… Sigur Rós.  This was my 5th time seeing them, and while some may consider there to be the law of diminishing returns, with Sigur Rós the diminishments are such minutae that it’s not even diminishing anymore.  Their shows are like taking a nap on a cloud during a rainstorm… or something.  It’s completely surreal, mesmerizing, powerful, gentle, sublime, and… shiny.

(not my pic… obviously)

It’s funny to me, that with their non-English song names and their non-English singing… I still knew about half of the song titles within the first few chords.  I think it’s osmosis or something, as I’ll admit that I don’t listen to them all that often (or often enough to know all of their song names).  Anyway, thanks to the SR forum, I was able to fill in the remainder of the setlist (see below)…

10/6/08 Portland Setlist: (as noted on the SR forum)

• Svefn-g-englar *fav of show*
• Glósóli
• Ný batterí *fav of show*
• Fljótavík *
• Við spilum endalaust *
• Hoppípolla *fav of show*
• Með blóðnasir
• Inní mér syngur vitleysingur *
• Svo Hljótt
• Heysátan
• E-bow – on setlist, not played
• Viðrar vel til loftárása – on setlist, not played
• Sæglópur
• Festival *
• Gobbledigook * *fav of show – confetti kaboom*
• encore: All Alright *
• Popplagið *fav of show*
  * For pronunciations of the songs and album name from their most recent album, Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, go HERE (blog link with audio).

Overall, this was an amazing time.  Every time I see Sigur Rós, I am blown away.  This was their 2nd to last date on the North American tour (and their last date in the United States for this tour); so they’ve been getting a lot of practice lately.  They were on top of their game, and put together an amazingly mesmerizing show

The Appropriate Linkage:

• http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/
• http://www.myspace.com/sigurros
• http://www.myspace.com/parachutesmakesongs (the opener)
  
• Sigur Rós @ NYC MoMA (46 minute pro-shot concert video)
• Official Video for “Gobbledigook” (1st single – video contains nudity)
• Official Video for “Inní mér syngur vitleysingur” (2nd single – from concert footage)

~Dan – recently played: Yoshie Fruchter – Pitom

SIGUR ROS CONCERT PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2008 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

Opener the Fuck Buttons were pretty good.  I’m bummed that I didn’t make it to the venue until 9:30pm and didn’t make it inside until about 9:40… as I only caught one of the FB’s set.  They were loud, but sort of an electronic post-rock duo.  Groove-oriented and somewhat repetitive, but the song I heard was enjoyable.

Mogwai hit the stage right around 10:30pm.  And they are quite possibly the loudest band on the planet (outside of perhaps Testament on the Demonic Tour).  Oy… I just don’t know why their live shows need to be so bloody loud.  It’s quite unbearable.  Their music suits a “normal” setting (unlike perhaps Testament).  I mean, what are Mogwai trying to prove by being so loud?  It wasn’t a one-time thing either… they were quite unbearably loud when I saw them in 2006 at the Wexner in Columbus, OH.

(from the Portland show)

I stayed for right about an hour.  I’m not going to bother with posting a set list, as… well… they’re a post-rock band, and it’s hard to remember their song titles.  Sorry, it was good, but I’ve got no song titles for y’all (UPDATE: setlist from fan photo).

Setlist:

• Yes! I Am A Long Way From Home
• The Precipice
• Ithaca 27ø9
• Thank You Space Expert
• Friend of the Night
• Scotland’s Shame
• Hunted By A Freak
• Ex-Cowboy
• Kids Will Be Skeletons
• I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead
• I Love You, But I’m Going To Blow Up your School
• 2 Rights Make 1 Wrong
• Like Herod
• Batcat

I’m looking forward to their upcoming album, The Hawk Is Howling, out in 3 weeks.  That way I can adjust the volume myself.

Luckily my hotel is literally 3 minutes away.  And my ringing ears shall be in bed soon.

The Appropriate Linkage:

• http://www.myspace.com/mogwai
• http://www.mogwai.co.uk/
• Mogwai’s Tour Diary about Portland: USA_Tour_Diary_pt1
• http://www.myspace.com/fuckbuttons
• http://www.fuckbuttons.co.uk/
• http://www.musicfestnw.com/

No posts for a while (meaning a few days)… perhaps (I’ve been known to be a liar).  Moving stuff this weekend to our new house.  But look out… next week is God of Shamisen (9/11) and Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey (9/12) in Eugene.  Plus Ani DiFranco’s upright bassist, Todd Sickafoose, is in Eugene (unfortunately the same night as GOS – Thursday 9/11), but I may swing by Sam Bond’s to at least pick up his new CD, Tiny Resistors, before the GOS show.

~Dan – recently played: Sufjan Stevens – Come On Feel the Illinoise!