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REVIEW: Antibalas @ Berbati’s Pan (Portland, OR – 7/19/10)

20th Jul 10 (Tue) 3 comments

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:

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

Categories: Concert Photos, Jazz & Avant, Post-rock, World Music Tags: afrobeat, antibalas, antibalas afrobeat orchestra, berbati's pan, concert photos, concert review, fela, jewish music, nigeria, oregon, portland, rock, the sway machinery

mini-REVIEW: Tiempo Libre @ OBF/Hilton Ballroom (Eugene, OR – 7/10/10)

11th Jul 10 (Sun) Leave a comment

How does the penultimate night of the Oregon Bach Festival keep things going? By having a Cuban dance party… naturally. ;)

Wait… Cuban music at the Bach Fest?! Well, Tiempo Libre melds the two seemingly disparate styles together in quite a popular way. In fact, their latest CD, Bach in Havana, was nominated for a Grammy this past year (category: Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album).

The show moved out of the Hult Center’s confining chairs over to the Eugene Hilton’s Ballroom. The dance floor filled up almost immediately. Throughout Tiempo Libre’s two sets, the dancers spilled out off of the dance floor onto the surrounding carpet. Super fun night, super hot music!

Tiempo Libre is Jorge Gomez (piano, coros, music director), Joaquin Díaz (lead vocal), Leandro G. (congas, bata & coros), Tebelio Fonte (bass, coros), Luis Beltran C. (sax & flute), Cristóbal F.G. (trumpet, trombone), and Armando Arce (drums, timbal & bata).

If you’re reading this early on Sunday… today is the last day of the Oregon Bach Festival. Catch the festival-capping Elijah this afternoon at the Hult (3pm)! Or check back soon for the 2011 schedule… http://oregonbachfestival.com/

The Appropriate Linkage:

Tiempo Libre’s Site
Tiempo Libre on MySpace
Oregon Bach Festival
Pink Martini review from OBF (June 26th, 2010)
Bobby McFerrin/SFYCA review from OBF (July 5th, 2010)

~Dan – np: Múm – Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know

Categories: Classical, Jazz & Avant, World Music Tags: Bach in Havana, concert review, cuban music, dance party, eugene, obf, obf2010, oregon, oregon bach festival, tiempo libre

REVIEW: Bobby McFerrin & Stangeland Youth Choral @ OBF/Hult Center (Eugene, OR – 7/5/10)

6th Jul 10 (Tue) 1 comment

This special Oregon Bach Festival performance brought together two diverse but compatible vocal acts – the more straight-forward orchestral-meets-gospel Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy [SFYCA] and the vocal gymnastic Bobby McFerrin. Outside of the rendition of 23rd Psalm being penned by Bobby McFerrin, which prompted his walk on to the stage to show gratitude to the choral and conductor Anton Armstrong, the entire first set belonged to the youth. The first piece, Kyrie, showcased their angelic voices and was the start to what would become a very religious-centric repertoire…

SFYCA’s 1st Set: ~90 mins (SFYCA only)

Kyrie from Mass in B Minor [Bach]
*set change*
The 23rd Psalm [McFerrin]
Estampie Natalis [Nelhybel]
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree [Scriven]
Zigeunerleben, Op. 29, No. 3 [Schumann]
The Seal Lullaby [Whitacre]
Beautiful City [A.Thomas]

The group was very talented, but I felt they could have mixed it up in both song selection and interaction with Bobby McFerrin. Perhaps it’s my own slant, but the church music is good in moderation. Again, outside of Kyrie (which was from a Mass, but in another language and not so god-y), I could have done without most of the rest of the choral-only selections. Additionally, trading off more with Bobby in both sets would have been better in my opinion.

Bobby came on right away during the second set, which was welcome…

He started off with his standard first song improvisation – which set the stage for his vocal gymnastics throughout the show. He twisted his vocals chords into warbles, gurgles & bubbles. He moved all over the range of several octaves with ease. His style, for those unfamiliar, is much more than the “Don’t Worry Be Happy” guy, but one of vocal experimentation – not quite singing, not quite beat-boxing, not quite human. He’s a one-man band with only one organic instrument.

Beyond his initial improv song, he sang and vocalized alongside the SFYCA, who for the second set was conducted by Bobby’s VOCAbuLarieS co-writer Roger Treece. Bobby interacted a lot with both the choral group and the audience – directing us in “call & repeat” verses and improvising on some random people’s names…

SFYCA with Bobby McFerrin Setlist: ~85 mins

Bobby McFerrin solo improvisation
Circlesongs (with SFYCA)
VOCAbuLarieS[McFerrin & R.Treece]:
- The Garden (with SFYCA)
- Blackbird [Beatles]
- I Can See Clearly Now [Johnny Nash] (with SFYCA)
- Messages (with SFYCA)
- He Ran the Train / Name Improvisation (with SFYCA)
- Wailers (with SFYCA)
True Light [K.Hampton] (SFYCA only, Anton back conducting)

My favorite pieces of the evening were the initial improvisation and the Beatles cover. This show gave me a great taste for Bobby’s music, and I’d definitely recommend seeing him if he comes through your town.

The Appropriate Linkage:

Bobby McFerrin’s Site
Bobby McFerrin on MySpace
Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy
The Hult Center
Oregon Bach Festival
My Pink Martini review from OBF (June 26th, 2010)

More OBF shows are running through July 10th. Find out more at http://oregonbachfestival.com/events/

Next shows for me? The Melvins on Wednesday (not part of OBF… haha), and OBF’s Tiempo Libre on Saturday.

~Dan – np: +Live+ – Birds of Pray

Categories: Classical, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: bobby mcferrin, concert review, don't worry be happy, hult center, obf, obf2010, oregon bach fest, oregon bach festival, roger treece, set list, setlist, stangeland family, stangeland family youth choral academy

REVIEW: Pink Martini @ OBF/Hult Center (Eugene, OR – 6/26/10)

27th Jun 10 (Sun) 3 comments

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

The only appropriate way to explain the multi-culturally influenced, genre hopping band Pink Martini is that they are an Oregonian treasure. You expect some schizophrenia when you mix classical, big band, jazz, and pop with vocals in not only English, but also French, two dialects of Italian, Japanese and Turkish. However, that schizophrenic expectation melts away when you see how seamlessly they stir the musical melting pot.

Since 1994, Pink Martini has wowed not only their local Portland Oregonians, but also the world – Europe, Asia, Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, Northern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and North America. And while Pink Martini aren’t strangers to Eugene (we’re only 100+ miles south of their hometown), this was their first appearance at the Oregon Bach Festival (OBF).

The “mini orchestra” last night was led by pianist/founder Thomas Lauderdale and vocalist China Forbes and includes Timothy Nishimoto (vocals and percussion), Robert Taylor (trombone), Gavin Bondy (trumpet), Phil Baker (bass), Dan Faehnle (guitar), Nicholas Crosa (violin), Maureen Love (harp), Brian Davis (congas, drums and percussion), Derek Rieth (percussion), Martín Zarzar (drums) and more (names announced that weren’t in the program but I didn’t catch).

Saturday’s concert was only the second day of 2010’s OBF, and Pink Martini played the first bit of Bach for the Fest – Double Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor. Pink Martini also dug into many songs from their excellent back catalogue, as well as a few new tunes – including the Turkish song “A Dusty Road” from their upcoming symphonic release.

Setlist: 2 sets spanning 2+ hours

Set 1: Bolero
Let’s Never Stop Falling in Love
Sympathique
Lilly
Kikuchiyo To Mohshimasu
big band instrumental song with band solos
Fantasy in F-minor for Piano and 4 Hands (Schubert)
And Then You’re Gone
But Now I’m Back
Double Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor (Bach)
Splendor in the Grass
instrumental song – Spanish flavor
Set 2: Ninna Nanna
Tempo Perdido (Adolfo Alves)
Over the Valley
Tuca Tuca
Hey Eugene
A Dusty Road
Hang On Little Tomato
Dosvedanya Mio Bombino
Encore: Amado Mio
Brazil

Some fan favorites throughout the double set were the entrance of China Forbes with “Let’s Never Stop Falling in Love,” the tango-rific “Lilly,” and the Schubert-inspired “And Then You’re Gone” (with China on vocals) and “But Now I’m Back” (featuring Timothy Nishimoto’s vocal response). Even though the song is not about our fair city, “Hey Eugene” got the biggest crowd reaction. To cap the wonderful night of music, Pink Martini got the crowd on their feet for a conga line with “Brazil.” This was a wonderful ensemble opening to the two week long 40th Annual Oregon Bach Festival.

OBF attendees can win a chance to “cuddle up with Pink Martini.” There is a raffle to win this beautiful Pink Martini quilt (pictured at the right), handsewn by Corvallis fiber artist Karen Illman Miller. It has the band members’ autographs inscribed on each of the pink fabric martini glasses. Miller designed the quilt she calls “Singing the Blues” to help mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Corvallis Youth Symphony in 2007 (Pink Martini had performed with the CYS the prior year). Raffle tickets for the Pink Martini quilt are only $5 and on sale at the Bach Boutique in the Hult Center lobby, where the quilt is on display. The winner will be announced on July 11, prior to the Festival’s Eugene performance of Elijah. All proceeds from the raffle benefit the Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy Scholarship Fund.

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

More upcoming OBF shows are running through July 10th. Find out more at http://oregonbachfestival.com/events/

~Dan – np: Damien Jurado – Saint Bartlett

PINK MARTINI at OBF PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

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PINK MARTINI PHOTOS

all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,

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Categories: Classical, Concert Photos, Jazz & Avant, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: china forbes, concert photos, concert review, eugene, hult, obf, oregon, oregon bach fest, oregon bach festival, pink martini, set list, setlist, thomas lauderdale

REVIEW: MEDGE presents Karim Nagi @ WOW Hall (Eugene, OR – 4/30/10)

1st May 10 (Sat) 4 comments

The Middle Eastern Dance Guild of Eugene (aka MEDGE) hosts monthly shows at Cozmic Pizza. Great food, great music, and great dancing come to mind when I make my way over there the third Fridays of each month. For a special International Dance Day celebration, they brought in Karim Nagi for special workshops and moved their event down the street to WOW Hall.

Karim Nagi is an Egyptian musician, composer, music arranger and DJ. He specializes in traditional Arabic music but works in other musical mediums. He has two CDs out under the artist moniker of Turbo Tabla. He has also recorded music for Bellydance Superstars, Bellyqueen, and the Bellytwins, as well as mainstream artists like Alicia Keys, and The Urban Griot Project.

Sadly he didn’t pull out a traditional Indian tabla last night (apparently an Egypt table / darbuka is very similar to a dumbek). Regardless, we were treated to a lot of wonderful dancing and drumming. Here’s a pictorial review of last night’s show… Enjoy!

all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld & Margaret O’Brien,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution
(click for larger)

Karim Nagi (stick dance, traditional folkloric dance of Egypt)

Mem Aleph (troupe consisting of Candice Nelson, Barbie Griggs, Jeannie Anderson, Amanda Bounds, Marie Scott and Monica Trent) performing three folk dances: Syrtos from Greece; Hands Talk (a Jewish Yemenite dance); and Ma Nava (an Israeli dance)

Siobhan performing a Ghawazee-inspired dance choreographed by Hassan Khalil

Amani (choreography by Mahmoud Reda — Oriental piece with his signature balletic movements incorporated into Raks Sharqi)

Elena Villa (Arab Flamenco Fusion)

Caravan Dancers (Troupe consists of Deena, Zendra, Crystal and Erin performing a Folkloric Suite: Basket Dance, Turkish 9/8, Cane Dance, Tambourine Dance)

Sabine (Indian Sapera Dance of the Kalbeliya snake-charmers)

Karim Nagi – improvisational finger cymbal dance

>> << intermission >> <<

Jamara (dance performance to live drumming by Karim Nagi)

Devi Safir (dance performance to live drumming by Karim Nagi)

musical performance by Karim Nagi & Ishmael, a qanun player (stringed instrument from Egypt), followed by an audience participation debke, a traditional Arabic folk dance

Be sure to check out MEDGE on the web to find out about the monthly shows and upcoming special events & workshops… http://medge.org/

The Appropriate Linkage:

Karim Nagi’s Site
Karim Nagi on MySpace
M.E.D.G.E.’s site
Dancer’s links above (if available – pass along additional links if you have them)
WOW Hall

~Dan – np: Carla Kihlstedt – 2 Foot Yard

Categories: Concert Photos, World Music Tags: Amani, bellydance, Caravan Dancers, concert photos, concert review, Devi Safir, Elena Villa, eugene, Jamara, karim nagi, Mem Aleph, middle eastern music, oregon, pictorial, Sabine, Siobhan, tabla, turbo tabla, world music, wow hall

REVIEW: Jónsi of Sigur Rós @ Roseland (Portland, OR – 4/13/10)

14th Apr 10 (Wed) 6 comments

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

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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

Categories: Concert Photos, Indie Rock, Post-rock, Rock & Pop, Singer-Songwriter, World Music Tags: 59 productions, amazing, ambient, concert photos, concert review, death vessel, Go, iceland, icelandic music, Jónsi Birgisson, jon thor, jonsi, light show, pop, rock, set list, setlist, sigur ros

REVIEW: Jake Shimabukuro @ the Shedd (Eugene, OR – 3/16/10)

17th Mar 10 (Wed) 1 comment

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:

~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

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Categories: Concert Photos, Post-rock, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: concert photos, concert review, eugene, hawaii, jake shimabukuro, oregon, rock, set list, setlist, the shedd, ukulele

REVIEW: Fishtank Ensemble @ House Show (Eugene, OR – 3/5/10)

6th Mar 10 (Sat) 3 comments

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Fishtank Ensemble hit the scene in 2005 with Super Raoul. The first record hit my radar with members from bandmembers from bands I was already into: Kevin Kmetz (from God of Shamisen/Estradasphere/Secret Chiefs 3 on occasion), Doug & Tim Smolens (El Douje’s record & Estradasphere), and Adam Stacey (Estradasphere). Only Doug “El Douje” Smolens remains from that first group of guys who got me into the band, but the other members definitely kept me around…

The band is Fabrice Martinez (pictured above – violin), Ursula Knudson (pictured above – vocals, saw, violin, etc), El Douje (guitar) and Djordje Stijepovic (Bass). They play a mix of Eastern European “gypsy” music mixed with a heavy dose of Django Reinhardt influenced French jazz (dominated by guitars & violins). Think… Hot Club de Baltic States. On their records thus far, they also add in some Japanese music (from former member Kevin Kmetz’s shamisen work).

This was my first time to one of their shows. Last time they came through Eugene, I was up in Portland for another band, but my wife gave a rousing thumbs up (she ended up going to see Fishtank at Cozmic Pizza).

The band played about two hours, split up with a nice intermission / snack time in the middle. The band was red hot, and the intimate living room setting made this concert very special. I’ll admit, I’m not usually a fan of vocals as of late, especially in world music. However, Ursula nails it. Seeing her perform in concert 4 feet in front of me was quite stunning. Besides the stunning dress (!!!), her vocals were utterly fantastic! She did a lot of vocal acrobatics, which worked amazingly well with violin, bass and guitar acrobatics that the rest of the band was giving us as well.

They played a lot of material I recognized from their second album, Samurai over Serbia, as well as some new and/or traditional tunes. Here’s what I scribbled down (fixed by bassist Djordje – – Thanks!)…

Setlist:

Espagnolette
Saraiman
Arabo Andaluz
After You’ve Gone
Fraima
Woman in Sin
Swing 2003
Hopa di Bida
Am Furat de la Haidouks (Romanian Sirba dance medley)
<<intermission>>
O’Dewel
Kolo Suite (Serbian/Transylvanian Medley)
Tchiki Tchiki
Djordje’s Rachenitza
Coucou
Opa Opa
Samurai Over Serbia
Encore: Ursula’s high school song
Ciocarlia

They’ve got a new record coming out soon, called Woman in Sin. Keep an eye out for it on their webpage, MySpace, et cetera. Thank you to Michael & Carolyn for putting on a great house show! I look forward to the next Rolling & Tumble house show — Tuvan throat singers!!

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

~Dan – np: Bill Frisell – Rambler

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

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Categories: Concert Photos, World Music Tags: concert photos, concert review, el douje, estradasphere, eugene, fishtank ensemble, god of shamisen, house show, oregon, set list, setlist, Woman in Sin

REVIEW: Van Dyke Parks with Clare & the Reasons @ Mississippi Studios (Portland, OR – 2/10/10)

11th Feb 10 (Thu) 2 comments

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

Van Dyke Parks is recognized around the world as a musical genius… he’s a brilliant session musician, composer, arranger, lyricist, and singer. He has contributed to many masterpieces (check out his rap sheet). He is most well known for his collaboration with Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. While Brian is a prodigiously gifted composer, he was no lyricist, and needed one who could match the daring new music he was devising in his head. The result is their collaboration on the much vaunted SMiLE album.

I’ll admit, I’m not a fan of the Beach Boys. I just don’t care for their music. Well, I connected with Van Dyke Parks via a newer band… Silverchair (VDP did string arrangements for Diorama and Young Modern). Yeah, yeah… if you only knew them from 1995’s “Tomorrow” (from when they were 15 years old)… well, they’ve grown.

Anyway…

Van Dyke Parks rarely ever records or tours, putting at most one or two records per decade. When I heard about the shows via the Clare & the Reasons‘ email, I jumped at the chance of seeing both of these artists on the stage together. I had seen Clare & the Reasons open up for My Brightest Diamond back in Nov 2008, and I loved their French bohemian meets modern indie rock vibe.

There were only four shows slated for this rare double bill tour…

02.09.10 – Seattle, WA Triple Door
02.10.10 – Portland, OR Mississippi Studios
02.12.10 – San Francisco, CA Swedish American Hall
02.14.10 – Santa Monica, CA McCabe’s

This was only my second time up to the Mississippi Studios. I really like the intimate setting, even the crazy hovering piano. The last time I was there was for David Bazan in November. For the VDP & Clare show, I’m glad they had chairs down… whew. :)

Opener Josh Mease went on around 9pm and played 6 songs. He had a very gentle singer-songwriter style. His guitarwork was good, but his voice was simply superb (nice lyrics, too). Josh is on Frogstand Records, the same record label as Clare & The Reasons. I dug his own tunes more than the Randy Newman cover. For his last song, Clare & The Reasons came up to play with him…

Josh Mease’s Setlist: about 20 mins

missing song name
missing song name
Marie (Randy Newman cover)
Days Like This
Eleanor
Start Over (with Clare & The Reasons)

Clare & The Reasons stayed up after Josh’s last song and moved some instruments around (and subsequently lost a percussion brush). Off to a great start! :) They joked lightly about it and then… viola, they found it! Their set was a sandwich of Arrow songs, The Movie songs, and more Arrow songs.

Arrow came out late last year, but I didn’t get a chance to pick it up until yesterday. I also picked up Olivier Manchon’s brand new instrumental CD, Orchestre de Chambre Miniature Volume 1, with saxophonist John Ellis, Gregoire Maret (from a Herbie Hancock band), and more string and woodwind players. Check their albums out (click pictures below)…

What I love about the band is not just limited to Clare Manchon’s vocals, but also the wonderful multi-instrumentation from Olivier and the well rounded guitarist and upright bassist. The set was full of great percussion, strings, garbage ukelele, french horn, pizzicato strings, a borrowed saw, acoustic & electric guitars, and sublime vocals. Van Dyke Parks & Josh Mease joined them on stage for their next to last song… (apparently Bill Frisell also joined them on stage up at the Seattle show).

Clare & the Reason’s Setlist: about an hour

You Got Time
All the Wine
Perdue A Paris
Ooh You Hurt Me So
Wake Up (You Sleepy Head)
You Getting Me
This Is The Story
Alphabet City
Pluton
Pluto
Our Team Is Grand
Love Can Be A Crime (with VDP & Josh)
That’s All (Genesis cover)

Van Dyke Parks came on after a short break. He was seated at the piano and brought The Reasons (sans Clare) as his backing band. They started out with a great instrumental piece. The rest of the songs we heard were poppier tunes with some great instrumentation (as expected). VDP is an amazing pianist and composer. His voice wasn’t superb or sublime, but it fit the songs. I wasn’t familiar with his songs, but of the ones he announced while we were there… Opportunity for Two, Orange Crate Art, and Sail Away.

VDP was also a great banterer in between songs. Usually short, but funny… one of my faves was “my wife thinks that ‘cook’ is a noun.”

We only stayed for half of his scheduled hour-long set (as we had a 2 hour drive back home), but it was a great set of tunes. If anyone has the complete VDP setlist, let me know.

many more photos below

The Appropriate Linkage:

Van Dyke Park’s Site
VDP on MySpace
A VDP fan’s review of the show on Oregon Live
Clare & The Reason’s Site
Clare & The Reason on MySpace
Josh Mease’s Site
Josh Mease on MySpace
Mississippi Studios

~Dan – np: Sade – Soldier of Love

VAN DYKE PARKS, CLARE & the REASONS and JOSH MEASE PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Categories: Classical, Concert Photos, Indie Rock, Rock & Pop, Singer-Songwriter, World Music Tags: clare and the reasons, concert photos, concert review, french music, Indie Rock, josh mease, oregon, pop, portland, set list, setlist, singer-songwriter, van dyke parks

Melt Banana at Dante’s (12/12)

13th Dec 09 (Sun) 9 comments

Well, treacherous winter conditions (freezing rain and fog) kept me from making the 4+ hour roundtrip drive up to Portland to see Melt Banana Lite last night at Dante’s in Portland. I love the band, but Oregon doesn’t know how to handle road maintenance in the winter like Ohio… and cheating death isn’t my optimal trade-off for seeing Melt Banana. Maybe next time they swing through the cards will be in my favor.

The weather all kept my back-up plan from happening, too (the Portland Cello Project canceled their show at Cozmic Pizza in Eugene). Oh well…

Anyone go to MxBx in PDX? How was it?

~Dan – np: Megadeth – Endgame

Categories: Jazz & Avant, Metal, World Music Tags: concert review, dante's, freezing rain, japanese music, melt banana, melt banana lite, mxbx, oregon, pcp, portland, portland cello project, screamo, winter weather

REVIEW: Múm @ Aladdin Theater (Portland, OR – 11/4/09)

5th Nov 09 (Thu) 4 comments

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:

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

Categories: Concert Photos, Indie Rock, Post-rock, World Music Tags: aladdin, aladdin theater, concert photos, concert review, Hildur Gudnadottir, iceland, icelandic music, mum, oregon, portland, seabear, set list, setlist, Sin Fang Bous

REVIEW: Raquy & the Cavemen @ Joe’s (Eugene, OR – 9/24/09)

25th Sep 09 (Fri) 1 comment

In Cincinnati, we got to see Raquy Danziger, Liron Peled, and the rest of the Cavemen about twice a year due to the large tribal bellydance scene. Well, luckily, Raquy’s sister lives in Eugene; so we get a visit roughly once a year. They always put on a great show, full of wonderful percussive world rhythms.

I’d never been to Joe’s Bar & Grill… if I get a chance, I hope I’ll choose not to go again (or at least on a Thursday). You see, last night, besides the four different sources on the web with different start times and openers listed, was “ladies night.” So, during Raquy’s set, we got a nice dose of “two drunk ‘ladies’ shouting too loudly over the music.” One girl was literally explaining in a PhD dissertation-length exchange about how her phone was ringing, that she was going to pick it up, that she did pick it up, that she was going to talk on it, and then the volume didn’t decrease much when she was talking on it. It must have been listed as “classy ladies night” in the local paper.

Despite prior interweb research, the Ruins of Ooah (a local band) was not the opener, but rather the last band. We didn’t stick around for them, but I’ll try to catch them at another venue around town. Up first was Mood Area 52 (a local bohemian/gypsy-style band). They usually have a larger band, but last night was just accordian/vocals, cello, and double bass. The cellist, Amy Danziger, is actually Raquy’s aforementioned sister who is Eugene-local. I’ve seen MA52 several times, but usually in a more “secondary” setting… meaning, they happen to be playing I stop by for a few songs during a Saturday Market, art walk, or coffee shop visit. They played about 6 songs over 30 minutes. They weren’t mic’ed at all, but it didn’t seem to matter. They missed the loud lady convention that seemingly descended on the venue during Raquy’s set. MA52 was quite delightful, and I recommend them if they’re playing and you’re in town.

Raquy and the Caveman hit the stage around 9:45 or so. This time it was sans Nezih (only a Raquy & Liron duo band). We had caught their long-ish soundcheck, and due to it being a “school night” only stuck around until about 10:30 for their main set. They started out with several dual dumbek / dumset* songs… mostly fast, showing off both Raquy’s and Liron’s insane percussive skills. We left shortly after their song that featured Raquy on kemenche (a Persion stringed instrument) and Liron on a Liron-custom 11-string guitar (stringed and tuned with a saz in mind). A great performance by both of them… we wished we could have mustered up enough to stay longer. Next year, we shall!

*-The “dumset” is a small set-up by Liron with a dumbek set up to a kick pedal, a dumbek in hand, cymbals, riq, etc. It’s played like a regular drumset.

Raquy & the Cavemen’s fifth album, Bewitched, is out now. We picked it up at the show, and I look forward to spinning it today. Click the picture for more information on the new release:

The Appropriate Linkage:

~Dan – np: Explosions in the Sky – All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone

Categories: Indie Rock, World Music Tags: american tribal style, bellydance, bewitched, concert review, eugene, joe's, mood area 52, oregon, raquy, raquy and the cavemen, ruins of ooah, set list, setlist, world music

Mini-REVIEW: Extra Golden @ Celebration (Eugene, OR – 9/5/09)

7th Sep 09 (Mon) Leave a comment

So, Eugene Celebration is one of the many good things going in Eugene every fall. We went down on Saturday and caught the tail end of Thomas Mapfumo, Extra Golden, and much later in the evening Gift of Gab. Both Gift of Gab and Thomas Mapfumo were good, but the highlight of the evening for me was Extra Golden…

I was introduced by my friend Aaron to Extra Golden only a few hours prior, and the sound samples I heard online were “OK,” but I really only listened to a few songs for a little bit. I’m up for anything and was already planning on going to Eugene Celebration; so I was game.

Well, let’s just say that their live show was fantastic. Really fun groove, tight musicianship, and a very energetic frontman (who likes our yogurt here in Eugene). Extra Golden were formed in Kenya by two Americans and one Kenyan. I think their live set was made up of three Americans with a Kenyan singer and Kenyan drummer. They played for a solid hour plus. For the last song, their singer, Otieno Jagwasi, joined us in the crowd and danced up a storm.

I snapped a few crappy iPhone pictures. Kinda fuzzy… anyway… here are some pics from their show:

Note how one of their guitarists looks like John Locke from Lost… :)

Check out Extra Golden on the MySpaces.

~Dan – np: Extra Golden – Thank You Very Quickly Vol 3

Categories: Concert Photos, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: african, celebration, concert photos, concert review, eugene, eugene celebration, kenya, oregon, rock, world music

REVIEW: Zoë Jakes & Beats Antique @ Faerieworlds (Mt. Pisgah, OR – 7/31/09)

1st Aug 09 (Sat) 5 comments

FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM

We last saw Zoë Jakes dance with her troupe, Indigo Belly Dance Company with Rachel Brice & Mardi Love, at last year’s Oregon Country Fair. She has a fun American tribal style fusion mixed with some hip-hop pops & locks. Anyway, she’s fun, and a lot of her facial expressions remind me of one of our good friends in Ohio (who is now en route to South Carolina).

Anyway… my wife and I got free tickets to last night’s Faerieworlds 2009 festival. My wife’s working the fest Sat & Sun, but Friday’s Zoë Jakes & Beats Antique show was the main thing I wanted to see. They started right on time, 7:30pm, and played for 75 minutes. Beats Antique is comprised of David Satori (Zoë’s squeeze) & Tommy Chappel. David & Tommy both manned laptops with electronics beats and loops. Tommy also played some hand drums, and David played violin, guitar, and provided horseback rides. Zoë danced with 5 or 6 tunes, taking breaks to change and breathe. :)

The crowd was really into the band and Zoë, and were dancing all around us. Near the end, David brought up a friend who was up front, and she got to dance on stage for a bit (while Zoë was off). As the band was ending their set, the sun was going down. It was really a great scene.

The band has a new digital -EP- out called Contraption Vol 1, and can be gotten via their webpage (not on iTunes, yet). Check it out… it’s got some rad electronic, glitch-rock & dub mixed with world music.

Many pics are below (with a ZIP file with all of the pictures fit to print, but too many to actually post).

The Appropriate Linkage:

~Dan – np: downset. – Code Blue Coma -EP- no free download or torrent available, sorry.

ZOË JAKES &
BEATS ANTIQUE PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2009 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution

(click for larger)

Higher Resolution (13 pics)

Limited to 1200 pixels wide or tall (10 pics)

and this fuzzy one, because of its funny face…

Large ZIP file with more pictures (47.7Megs)
69 pictures, includes the 23 above

CLICK HERE FOR ZIP FILE (right click, save as)

Zoe

Categories: Concert Photos, Hip-hop, Indie Rock, World Music Tags: american tribal style, beats antique, concert photos, concert review, contraption, electronic, eugene, Faerieworlds, indigo, indigo belly dance, mt pisgah, oregon, tribal fusion, zoe jakes

REVIEW: Yann Tiersen @ the Wonder Ballroom (Portland, OR – – 4/29/09)

30th Apr 09 (Thu) 7 comments

(that’s unnatural)

So, I was soooo stoked about seeing French musician Yann Tiersen for the first time. His albums are quite delightful. I, like many people in the States, first heard of him via the soundtrack/score to Amelie. But then based on the Brooklyn Vegan (photo credit above) and photobear 2009 tour reviews, I got a little sad. No accordion, very little violin, and Yann on guitar for most of the night!? Pardon my French, but… viens m’enculer!? Viens m’enculer!?

Well, I didn’t know how it would turn out; so I figured it’s still a rare occasion to see Yann in the U.S. I already had the tickets, it was only 2 hours away… so… I gotta go. No photos allowed at the venue. Boo.

The opener, Skinni Dip yogurt (on Burnside – downtown), was awesome. The opener (at the venue), Asobi Seksu, played far too long. I’m having a bad streak of uninteresting / painful openers. Sorry. Just didn’t like them at all.

Yann Tiersen and his band came on around 9:45pm, and the first two solid songs were rock numbers that had very little resemblance of a Yann Tiersen song. The 3rd song was finally one I recognized, but only vaguely as it was turned into some sort of messy, too fast rock blast.

No try on the set list… it’s too difficult to remember song names originating in a foreign language to mine. Also, the set that we caught didn’t even seem to be a Yann Tiersen show. I mean, I have 95% of his catalog (all but the latest Tabarly soundtrack)… and the songs were completely foreign to the crowd. Had I wanted to go to a decent/mediocre rock band play a poorly mixed show, I would have gone to my local rock venue and paid $3 to see what was going on that night. I went to see Yann Tiersen’s songs in a live setting. Unfortunately, we really didn’t get that. I mean, I’m all for artistic expression, and the artist doing what they feel is their artistic direction versus what the fans “want” – – but to some extent on a live tour, you’d expect to give the fans what they expect… again, at least to some extent.

Maybe this was his French way of pulling a prank on us stupid Americans. It just makes you wonder. Oh well… if he comes back, I’m not buying tickets until I read some reviews with more mention of accordion solos. :)

The Appropriate Linkage:

~Dan – np: Celldweller – Symbiont -EP- & then… O.S.I. – Blood

To cleanse the palate… here’s what I was hoping for in a Yann Tiersen show…

(or)

(or, from Amelie)

Sigh. Maybe next time.

Categories: Indie Rock, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: amelie, Asobi Seksu, concert review, french music, horrible, oregon, portland, wonder ballroom, yann tiersen

REVIEW: Yael Naim @ Aladdin Theater (Portland, OR – – 10/15/08)

16th Oct 08 (Thu) Leave a comment

Mini-Review

Well, I heard about Yael Naim a week ago thanks to the NPR World Cafe podcast… she’s a Paris-born, Israeli singer-songwriter. She’s been described as “a touch of folk and a touch of jazz, with mysterious and evocative words sung with a delicate and intentionally husky voice.” After just hearing of her, I found out that she was playing the Aladdin Theater in Portland the very next week. I was just going to head up to the Aladdin if I was up for it, and buy a ticket if they had some available. Well, thanks to the power of the internets, I got an email Tuesday morning from the Aladdin, and they were giving away 50 tickets to the first people who responded to their email. And, woot, I got a free ticket. Natch.

The opener, Peter Von Poehl, was… well… absent. So the replacement opener was Grey Anne. And she was… RAD! Very quirky, indie rock girl with an electric guitar, drum, accordion, butterfly wings, echoplex, and a stuffed giraffe. Fun songs, off the wall, nice textures, strong voice, confident, quirky… She’s from Portland; so I hope she makes her way down to Eugene sometime soon.

Yael Naim and her band were really good, too. They played Britney Spears’ “Toxic” as well. That’d make my friend Bruth happy. :) I enjoyed her set a lot, but I think my favorites of hers were the ones in French. There’s something about French music that’s just… FUN. Yann Tiersen, Jeanne Cherhal, Paris Combo, and… well, Yael Naim.

Next Aladdin visit for me… Jonatha Brooke and Glen “I sat on a glass table and might not be playing guitar for a while” Phillips. Yikes. :) I hope Glen’s arm is better to be at this show, because otherwise, I don’t think I’ll go. At the end of the day, I hope he gets better more than me being able to see him.

The Appropriate Linkage:

http://myspace.com/yaelnaim
http://www.yaelweb.com/
http://www.myspace.com/perse (Grey Anne’s page)
http://www.aladdin-theater.com/

~Dan – np: Radiohead – In Rainbows

Categories: Indie Rock, Singer-Songwriter, World Music Tags: aladdin theater, britney spears, concert review, french, french music, grey anne, israeli, new soul, oregon, pop, portland, quirky, singer-songwriter, toxic, world music, yael naim

Sigur Rós photos (Portland 10/6/08)

11th Oct 08 (Sat) Leave a comment

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

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

Categories: Indie Rock, Post-rock, World Music Tags: concert photos, concert review, Med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust, oregon, portland, sigur ros, tour

REVIEW: Sigur Rós @ Arlene Schnitzer Hall (Portland, OR – – 10/6/08)

7th Oct 08 (Tue) 8 comments

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

Categories: Concert Photos, Indie Rock, Post-rock, Rock & Pop, World Music Tags: concert photos, concert review, iceland, icelandic music, Med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust, oregon, parachutes, portland, schnitzer, set list, setlist, sigur ros

REVIEW: Branford Marsalis & Philarmonia Brasileira @ Hult Center (Eugene, OR – – 10/2/08)

3rd Oct 08 (Fri) 2 comments

I first got into (Grammy Award-winning saxophonist) Branford Marsalis when I sat through the 10-disc (20 hour) Ken Burns JAZZ documentary that I got from the University of Oregon Library. Let’s just say that I spent a lot of rainy spring weekends watching these discs and getting more into the roots of jazz when there wasn’t anything to do outside. Prior to this, my jazz experience was more on the avant-garde side of things (with John Zorn), with occasional listenings of Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Ornette Coleman, et cetera. The JAZZ documentary series opened my eyes to many more beautiful jazz greats, both past on as well as those still alive and kicking.

Branford’s brother, trumpeter/band leader Wynton Marsalis, was prominently featured in that documentary as a historian of sorts as well as a leader in the current jazz movement. Branford also popped up in several spots. That set up my familiarity with the “Marsalis” name… then I started getting more into Wynton’s music, as well as picking up some Branford here and there. When I saw that Branford was coming to Eugene with a Brazilian music meets jazz concert – – well, I jumped at the tickets.

This was my first concert at the Hult Center (and thus the Silva Theater). It’s a very gorgeous facility, and I hope I can make it here for a Eugene Symphony Orchestra or other great show in the future. The Silva Theater at the Hult is similar to venues like the Aronoff in Cincinnati or the Palace in Columbus (i.e. – a great big, ornate concert hall). I also got to check out the Mayor’s Art Show at the Jacob Gallery. It had some great stuff in it, but alas, no jewelry art. I’m still wondering why my wife and her co-worker’s great pieces didn’t make it in the show.

The musical program for tonight was Branford and the Philarmonia Brasileira conducted by Gil Jardim, celebrating the music of Heitor Villa-Lobos 49 years after his death. It was Branford & the PB’s first show of the 40-day tour. They had met only the day (or two) prior. With that being said, it was unnoticeable. They were ON…

A Heitor Villa-Lobos celebration! Program

(the following was a change from the printed program – updates from the Hult Program Director)

Philarmonia Brasileira only playing Abertura Concertante: dedicated to Aaron Copland (by Camargo Guarnieri)
Philarmonia Brasileira joined by Branford Marsalis playing Fantasia for Saxophone (soprano) and piano or orchestra (1949 by Heitor Villa-Lobos) *a fave of the night*
i. Animé
ii. Lent
iii. Trés Animé
La Creation du Monde, op 81 (1923 by Darius Mihaud)
i. Overture
ii. The Chaos Before Creation
iii. The slowly lifting darkness, the creation of trees, plants, insects, birds and beasts
iv. Man and woman created
v. The desire of man and woman
vi. The closing section (coda) the man and woman kiss
< < intermission > >
Bachianas Brasileiras no 9 (1945 by Heitor Villa-Lobos)
i. Prelude: Vagaroso e mistico
ii. Fugue: Poco apressado
Scaramouche for Saxophone (alto) and Piano op. 165c (1937 by Darius Mihaud) *a fave of the night*
iii. Vif
iv. Modere
v. Brazileira
Bachianas Brasileiras no 5 (1938 by Heitor Villa-Lobos)
i. Aria (Cantilena)
ii. Dança (Martelo)
———————
Encore #1 (title not given)
Encore #2 (title not given)

The Philarmonia Brasileira was quite amazing. They swapped out members and instruments for each piece, and all 8 pieces of the night had a different feel. It was much more enjoyable than I was expecting (and I was expecting it to be quite enjoyable to start). Several of the pieces were a full orchestra, several were more string-oriented, some with piano & orchestra, one with just piano and Branford, and some with more of an exotica with Brazilian percussion. Branford was also quite great / amazing. This was definitely a more classical sax setting, but he did break loose in a more “jazz way” on the song with just him and piano. I hear he comes through often (from a Veg Club friend); so I hope to see him again in the future.

All in all = A-freakin-plus.

The Appropriate Linkage:

~Dan – np: Medeski Martin & Wood play John Zorn’s Masada Book Two – Zaebos

The Rest of the Branford Marsalis & Philarmonia Brasileira Tour

October 2008
03 – Seattle, WA – Benaroya Hall
05 – Stanford, CA – Stanford Memorial Hall
06 – Modesto, CA – Mary Stuart Rogers Theater
08 – San Bernardino, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
09 – San Luis Obispo, CA – Christopher Cohan Center
10 – Los Angeles, CA – Royce Hall Auditorium/UCLA
11 – Orange County, CA – Segerstrom Concert Hall
13 – Santa Fe, NM – Lensic Theatre
14 – Albuquerque, NM – Popejoy Hall
16 – Lufkin, TX – Angelina Center for the Arts
18 – Fayetteville, AR – Walton Arts Center
19 – Overland Park, KS – Yardley Hall Carlsen Center
20 – Conway, AR – Reynolds Performance Hall
22 – Milwaukee, WI – The Kuttemperoor Auditorium
23 – Detroit, MI – Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts
24 – Wheaton, IL – Edman Memorial Chapel
25 – Minneapolis, MN – Orchestra Hall
26 – Winona, MN – Winona Middle School Auditorium
28 – Storrs, CT – Jorgensen Auditorium
30 – Ithaca, NY – Bailey Hall Auditorium/Cornell

November 2008
01 – Bronx, NY – Lehman Center for the Performing Arts
02 – Stony Brook, NY – Staller Center for the Arts
05 – Newport News, VA – Ferguson Center for the Arts
06 – Durham, NC – Page Auditorium/Duke
07 – Rockville, MD – Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center
09 – Birmingham, AL – Stephens Center for the Performing Arts

The Roster for the Philarmonia Brasileira

Conductor
Gil Jardim

Violin
Esdras Silva
Cinthia Zanco
Daniel Stein
Flavio Meyer
Gilberto Paganini
Maria Brandào Neto
Natalia Visona
Paula Vazquez
Pedro Gobeth

Viola
Glesse Colleti
Mariana Jelen

Cello
Marisa Silveira
Ji Shim

Doublebass
Neimar Dias

Flute
Maria Carvalho
Clarissa Andrade

Clarinet
Marcos Junior
Marcelo Silverio

Bassoon
Erick Ariga

Horn
Michael Alpert
Flavio Faria

Oboe
Alexandre Ficarelli

Trumpet
Wellington dos Santos
Ismael Brandào Neto

Trombone
Sidnei Borgani

Piano
Nahim Marun Fo

Percussion
Vinicius Barros
Glaucia Vidal philharmonic filharmonia brasil brazil brazilian brasilian

REVIEW: Richard Crandell @ Cozmic Pizza (Eugene, OR – – 9/13/08)

14th Sep 08 (Sun) 2 comments

I had Richard Crandell‘s Mbira Magic (Tzadik 2004) back when I lived in Ohio. I had no idea that he was from Eugene, OR. I happened upon a listing of a performance he did earlier this spring at Saturday Market, but a day late. When I saw that he was playing yesterday at Cozmic Pizza for free… well, I jumped (and bike rode 2+ miles) at the opportunity.

Richard Crandell gave us a solid hour of full on metal. Well, fingers on metal. :)

mbira: the instrument of choice

He plays the mbira (a “thumb piano” pictured above), and he’s quite good. His compositions are very melodic, and his technique is quite fluid. It’s almost as if the instrument is part of him. He was carrying on a conversation with the sound guy when he ran into some technical difficulties, playing all the while.

Anyway, he played from around 1 to 2pm and played 9 songs… the ones he mentioned the names to are:

Bells
Missing in London
Spring Steel (based on the Japanese pentatonic scale)
Ghost Writers in the Sky

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

One of the songs that he didn’t mention the name had a mbira loop played behind his live mbira, and he used a guitar finger pick to create a nice additional percussion to the loop. His records are good as well (but mbira is more interesting to see live, IMO)… his most recent, Spring Steel, features Brazilian percussionist Cyro Baptista. Cyro’s fantastic… either with Beat the Donkey, Supergenerous, Electric Masada, Marc Ribot, or many of John Zorn’s pieces…

Richard Crandell’s records

His websites:

~Dan – np: Metallica – Death Magnetic

PS– whoa, completely unrelated, the new Metallica album, Death Magnetic, actually sounds… really… good. It’s been 20 years since that’s happened… too bad the album cover looks like they didn’t pay their invoices timely to the graphic artist. It’s crap, as has been expected with Metallica for the past 17 years. But when it comes down to the music, it’s finally not rubbish.

Categories: Concert Photos, Jazz & Avant, Metal, World Music Tags: concert review, cozmic pizza, cyro baptista, death magnetic, eugene, mbira, metallica, oregon, set list, setlist, tzadik, world music

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mini-REVIEW: Tiempo Libre @ OBF/Hilton Ballroom (Eugene, OR – 7/10/10)

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Mini-REVIEW: Extra Golden @ Celebration (Eugene, OR – 9/5/09)

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REVIEW: Yann Tiersen @ the Wonder Ballroom (Portland, OR – – 4/29/09)

REVIEW: Yael Naim @ Aladdin Theater (Portland, OR – – 10/15/08)

Sigur Rós photos (Portland 10/6/08)

REVIEW: Sigur Rós @ Arlene Schnitzer Hall (Portland, OR – – 10/6/08)

REVIEW: Branford Marsalis & Philarmonia Brasileira @ Hult Center (Eugene, OR – – 10/2/08)

REVIEW: Richard Crandell @ Cozmic Pizza (Eugene, OR – – 9/13/08)

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