Archive
Eugene’s Saturday Market Live Stage 2008
I usually head down early to Eugene’s Farmers’ Market / Saturday Market for good local veg… then sometimes, if there’s good music scheduled, I make my way back in the afternoon…
Here are my 2008‘s catches, in descending chronological order (updated as they happen -or- as I remember to write about them)…
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May 17th: Pojama People (http://www.myspace.com/glennleonard) Good thing they had a tagline on the poster at Saturday Market; otherwise, there’s no way I’d head back out in the heat (it was bloody hot today). The tagline was something along the lines of “the music of Frank Zappa.”
I found a spot in the shade (thankfully)… I bought an ice cream sandwich (which ended up being a totally messy pile of yum)… I sat down and took in some Zappa and Zappa-inspired tunes (a not as messy pile of yum). They are made up of Alli Bach on percussion, winds, vocals; Glenn Leonard on drums (and a 13-yo student, Spencer Ewing, very capably sat in a few tunes, too); Brian Casey on bass; Ted Clifford on keys; and B-Bo on guitar. Per some webpages, they also sometimes have Ike Willis sing with them sometimes, too… cool.
They played a lot of instrumental songs, and they also played some Zappa tunes with lyrics with “liberty taken to them” — almost all politically bent (which is fine with me… and likely Zappa). Here’s what they played (thanks to Glenn for the setlist corrections)…
- Zoot Allures
- Arrogant Dubya Son (new lyrics to FZ’s “Idiot Bastard Son“)
- Help, I’m Iraq (new lyrics to FZ’s “Help, I’m a Rock“)
- RDNZL
- Duke of Prunes
- Eat That Tin Kong (a mashup of “Eat That Question” & “King Kong“)
- Sofa
- If I Fell (Beatles)
- You Are What You Is / Dupree’s Paradise / Improv
- Alien Orifice / Tribute to American Idol (new lyrics to FZ’s “Tinsel Town Rebellion“)
- McCain (new lyrics to Clapton’s “Cocaine“)
- Let’s Make Blackwater Turn Back (new lyrics to FZ’s “Let’s Make the Water Turn Black“)
- Village of the Sun / Achidna’s Arf / Don’t You Ever Wash That Thing? (with “13“)
They’re playing at Sam Bonds Garage on June 28th. If I’m free, I hope to see them again. They were good (ie- not your usual cover band).
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May 3rd: Big Roy and the Twigs (http://www.myspace.com/bigroyandthetwigs) I went to see Big Roy because I know him via the head of the accounting department at UofO, Steve Matsunaga (Roy is Steve’s son). I heard some of their tunes on MySpace, and figured, “what the hell.” I showed up, and they had already started their set. It was hot (not bloody hot), but I caught 4 or 5 songs. They had some decent chops, alas, all I really remember is that they seemed to play a lot of alt-rock covers (Red Hot Chili Peppers’ songs appeared at least twice). It would have been nice to hear some of their originals, too. I was melting; so I headed back to the car. Nice set, though. Hopefully I can catch ’em again sometime…
~Dan
REVIEW: Ornette Coleman and SFJazz Collective @ PDX Jazz fest (Portland – – 2/15/08)
Gettin’ there… oy… bad “car on fire” accident just outside of Salem. Parking around the venue was wicked bad. It’s near Portland State University… which automatically means “minimal parking options” and there were tons of roads closed for construction… I ended up parking about a mile away. Grabbed a notdog from a hotdog shop en route. It was a yummy spicy Boca variety. Yay! I love living in Oregon — you can actually get a non-meat protein, horseradish-and-ketchup-into-your-system delivery device in a fauxtube-steak format from a fastfood-type outlet.
Anyway, post-dawg… I showed up at the venue at 7:23pm for the 7:30 show. I ran part of the way; so it was a close one…
Ornette Coleman @ the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
The main dude (artistic director) for the PDX Jazz Fest 503(c)(3) looked sorta like James Randi — alas, he wasn’t (he’s Bill Royston). He announced the sponsors: Oregonian A&E, Qwest Communications, and the Portland Trailblazers. My a priori understanding of the Oregonian A&E is that they have TV shows of Criss Angel-types who make your pilate mat and hummus plate disappear while playing indie rock in the background at silly volumes. I might be wrong, though. Qwest Communications is most famously known for providing reasonably-priced, high-speed internets that aren’t available at my address. The Portland Trailblazers play what I understand to be a game called “basketball.” It’s like a big game of team-based ping-pong. Except the table is huge, you stand on it, and the net isn’t in the middle, it’s on the ends of the huge table. Oh, and you can hit the net, but you don’t use paddles. You use your hands!! Oh, and the ball is huge and not made out of plastic. So, the Trailblazers are basically a ping-pong team. Once Mr. Royston got the sponsors out of the way, he introduced SF Jazz’s Joe Lovano who introduced Ornette Coleman…
Ornette started playing around 7:40pm… his band wasn’t the band from his last CD (the Pulitzer Prize winning Sound Grammar); and I didn’t get their names, as they weren’t listed in the program. He had a drummer (possibly his son), a guitarist, and two bassists (one upright, one electric). I’m more horrible with Ornette’s song names than just about anyone, though. I do know for a fact that he played “Lonely Woman” (from The Shape of Jazz to Come). I also think he played “Song X.” He only announced one song from the stage (the opener to the set), but he’s got a slight lisp and the mic wasn’t on all the way. It sounded like he said “Buttered Helen.” So, yeah, I don’t know. He and his band played a blistering hour+twentyfive improv set, only stopping briefly prior to the encore. Ornette primarily played his trend-bucking non-metallic white sax. He also played violin (lefty) and trumpet during some songs. It was a brilliant free jazz set all around. I’m thoroughly glad that I got to see this pioneer of the free jazz movement.
I left as the band left the stage the second time… to get to the Newmark Theatre for Round 2 of the PDX Jazz Fest. Luckily the Newmark Theatre is 50 yards away, if that. Which was good, because as I was planning online, Ask.com’s maps… well, they’re utter crap. It said the venues were 1.2 miles away by foot. Wrong!
SF Jazz Collective @ the Newmark Theatre
Mr. Royston announced a new sponsor for this SFJC show: American Airlines. I hear that they are a busline that provides “air vents” for every passenger’s seat. Seems “OK” for a bus trip. I’d rather fly, though. He then introduced The Bad Plus (who I wish I could have seen last week in Eugene, they rock) who introduced the 8-piece SF Jazz Collective…
SF Jazz Collective is a group that is commissioned each year to arrange and play the works of a jazz great. Past years have been Ornette Coleman (2004), John Coltrane (2005), Herbie Hancock (2006), and Thelonious Monk (2007). This year’s group arranged Wayne Shorter tunes. I haven’t gotten into Wayne Shorter (yet), but I know he played with Art Blakey, Miles Davis, and he’s on Herbie Hancock’s V.S.O.P.. Oh, I guess I’ve also heard his band Weather Report. So, I lied, I have gotten into him at least through WR and Herbie… Anyway, the SF Jazz Collective build a new repertoire each year based on a jazz great and then they all each write a new tune for the group.
The band for 2008 (links and instruments below) is Joe Lovano, Dave Douglas (one of my fav jazzmen), Stefon Harris, Miguel Zenón, Robin Eubanks, Renee Rosnes, Matt Penman, and Eric Harland. This was Dave’s 2nd season with the group. This show was their first show of the 2008 season, but they were far from rusty. They played for about an hour and half before I left (I had to bail half way through the encore in order to get home by 1am… oy). They announced their songs from stage, and they had a handy-dandy program available, too. Here’s what they played: “Go” [Wayne Shorter: hereafter WS], “Armageddon” [WS], “The Angel’s Share” [Matt Penman], “The Year 2008” [Eric Harland], “Black Nile” [WS], “Infant Eyes” [WS], “Secrets of the Code” [Dave Douglas], and the encore was announced by the pianist as “another Wayne Shorter tune that I’m sure you know.” Alas, I didn’t know it. It started out with piano… so I’ll leave it at that.
8 songs, 90 minutes. You do the math (I’ll give you a hint: divide, don’t multiply. Show all work to receive partial credit).
Also in their 2008 repertoire (sets change nightly): Wayne Shorter tunes “Aung San Suu Kyi,” “Diana,” “Footprints,” “El Guacho,” and “Yes or No.” Band member tunes “Aurora Borealis” [Renee Rosnes], “Frontline” [Miguel Zenón], “Road to Dharma” [Stefon Harris], “This That and the Other” [Joe Lovano], and “Breakthrough” [Robin Eubanks].
Oh, I forgot to say… somehow my ticket for SFJC was in the “wheelchair section.” That ruckin’ focked!! I could spread out. Totally luck of the draw on the ticket… but I tain’t complainin’…
The Appropriate Linkage:
- PDX Jazz
- Ornette Coleman
- Ornette Coleman on MySp
- SFJazz Collective
- Dave Douglas (trumpet)
- Dave Douglas on MySp
- Joe Lovano (tenor sax)
- Miguel Zenón (alto sax) – 2008 MacArthur Foundation Grant recipient
- Stefon Harris (vibraphone)
- Robin Eubanks (trombone)
- Renee Rosnes (piano)
- Matt Penman (bass)
- Eric Harland (drums)
yay… Glen Phillips and Belà Fleck next week…
~Dan – np: Charlie Hunter Trio – Copperopolis
EDIT (4/7/08): Allaboutjazz.com has a nice review of the Ornette show HERE
Favorite Concerts of 2007
Well, there are still some 2007 CDs that may or may not arrive in my hands before the year’s over (specifically Eyvind Kang, Dave Douglas, Greydon Square, Radiohead, Doug Pinnick & La Mar Enfortuna — all of which have Top 20 potential); so I’m not ready to post my “Best CDs of 2007” list, yet. Look for that one sometime in early 2008…
This blog is for my favorite concerts of 2007. I went to too many to recount in detail, but these are the tip-top ones…
- Music Now Festival 2007 (Pedro Soler, Bryce Dessner, David Cossin, the Clogs, the Havels, Osso, Amiina, My Brightest Diamond, Sufjan Stevens) at the Memorial Hall, Cincinnati-OH (4/5/07 to 4/7/07) my review
- Masada (John Zorn, Dave Douglas, Greg Cohen, Joey Baron) at the Rose Theatre at the Lincoln Center, New York-NY (3/10/07) my review
- Nellie McKay at the Shedd Institute, Eugene-OR (10/5/07) my review
- Silverchair at the Fillmore @ the TLA, Philadelphia-PA (7/28/07) review snippet
- Secret Chiefs 3 at the Bowery Ballroom, New York-NY (3/15/07) my review
- John Zorn’s Moonchild (Mike Patton, Trevor Dunn, Joey Baron) at the Moore Theatre, Seattle-WA (11/4/07) my review
- Holy Fuck at the Southgate House, Newport-KY (4/1/07) my review
- Antibalas at the Southgate House, Newport-KY (4/29/07) review snippet
- Noctaluca at the Taste of Cincinnati, Cincinnati-OH (5/28/07)
- Blackfield (Steven Wilson & Aviv Geffen) at the Bowery Ballroom, New York-NY (3/16/07) my review
OK, I guess I’ve still got coming up in 2007 Iron & Wine in Portland (12/2) and maybe David Bazan (Pedro the Lion) in Eugene (12/14); but the above concerts were my favorites of 2007…
Happy thanksgiving, yo! One thing I’m thankful for is definitely music… :-)
~Dan – np: npr jazz profiles (podcast) – duke ellington: the bandleader, pt. 1
12/24 Update: wow… I totally forgot the kick ass Zappa Plays Zappa show at Moonlite Gardens in Cincinnati, OH on 7/24/07. I think I forgot because I didn’t blog about it when it happened (gettin’ ready to quit my job and pack up and head west at the time)… but now reading this week’s CityBeat, tons of people listed it as a favorite, and man, I was at that show, too… Dweezil = awesomes! Ray White = awesomes! Frank on a big screen behind the band, singing and soloing with the live band = awesomes! 2nd time seeing the ZPZ tour in 2 years (completely different setlist, too). I think it needs to be a once-a-year thing… in perpetuity.
mini-REVIEW: Silverchair in Philly & Detroit (late-July & early-August ’07)
two little blurbs… two great shows… too much driving…
Philly~ I drove too much over this past weekend (16 hours of driving in a 34 hour window)… but I got to see Silverchair for the first time. It was at the Fillmore at the TLA in Philadelphia. The opener, We Are the Fury, was “alright.” I’ve seen better, but I’ve definitely seen worse. Silverchair came on around 10:10 and played around an hour and a half. The first two songs were muddy as hell, all bass and vocals, but luckily the sound guy fixed it by the 3rd song. They played most of the new album, Young Modern, “The Lever” and “Greatest View” from Diorama, “Emotion Sickness” and “Ana’s Song (Open Fire)” from Neon Ballroom, “The Door” and “Freak” from Freakshow, and none from Frogstomp (thankfully).
Detroit~ great show!! “Without You” instead of “The Lever” and no “Low” when compared to Philly. Fantastic set regardless!!!
~Dan
REVIEW: Ric Hordinski & Leigh Nash @ the Monastery (Cincinnati – – 6/26/07)
great show last night. Ric‘s set was loud and buzzy, but good songs nonetheless. he didn’t play anything from his new record, The Silence of Everything Yearned For, which was odd… but it was a good set anyway. and his new record is great. listening to it now… perhaps more similar to Hush but more straight-forward guitar rather than ambient guitar. Josh Seurkamp joined him on drums, and Mark Lukie (sp?) on bass (aka “Shaggy” per Bruce).
Leigh Nash‘s set was great as well. She played roughly an hour, containing songs from her solo album (last year’s Blue on Blue) as well as “Breathe Your Name” and “Kiss Me” from the 6p catalog. Cute persona and beautiful voice. We stayed for her whole set, even though I’m known for liking sleep on a weekday. It was a highly enjoyable evening.
~Dan
np: ric hordinski – the silence of everything yearned for
REVIEW: Ellery, CSO, Antibalas (Cincinnati – – late April 2007)
Great three-concert weekend… Ellery/Over the Rhine on Friday, Paavi Järvi’s CSO with Alison Balsom on Saturday, and freakin’ ANTIBALAS on Sunday. Wow… I don’t mean to sound bitchy, but Over the Rhine was the lowlight of the weekend. I think I’m done seeing them live for a long time. So, yeah, you won’t hear me bitching about how bored I was anymore. I think I’ll set my self-imposed boycott at 4 years, and see how I do. I might sneak a Taft show in or a Portland show in… but I’m definitely/officially on the bubble these days for their live shows. Eh. It was a good run.
Anyway, Ellery… great stuff. Can’t wait for a follow-up album… Tasha’s got a great voice. This was my 9th time seeing them… and it doesn’t drag. Great songs, great music. I’ll miss them when we move to Oregon. Maybe they’ll have to come out and do some label showcase shows for their Seattle-based Virt Records. As for Over the Rhine, I liked some of their newer songs… but left after/during “Ohio.”
M & I saw the CSO with guest pianist Hélène Grimaud in the spring. I enjoyed it, but the piano didn’t seem to work as well (and Margarita was bored, to say the least). This show with solo trumpet, though… it was fantastic. The Paavi Järvi-led Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra played SIBELIUS’s Night Ride and Sunrise, then solo trumpeter from the UK Alison Balsom came out for HAYDN’s Trumpet Concerto in E-flat Major. It popped, and the symphony and solo trumpet really meshed. Also impressive was the way she was belting out the notes while wearing a quite elegant and long evening gown. After the intermission, Paavo led the CSO through SIBELIUS’s The Bard and SCHUMANN’s Symphony No. 4 in D Minor. Fantastic evening… including dark chocolate pretzels from Divine’s at the show… mmm…. oh, and a veggie phillycheese from Northside’s Melt to start the evening off anyway…. mmm… Hail Seitan!
Last night was Antibalas (aka Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra). Wow. They’re an 11-piece band from NYC… maybe like an east-coast Ozomatli, but instead of the Latin feel, they’ve got the Nigerian thing going on. They’re similar to Ozo in that they’re also very funky, dancable, and political-infused. They went on around 10:15 and M & I ended up bouncing and dancing with some friends until we had to call it quits around 12:15am while they were wrapping up their last pre-encore song. Of the 2 hours, they probably played 6-8 songs… Very groove oriented and some fantastic solos by all members… they had a keyboardist, congo-player/singer, 2 guitarists, a bassist, a gourd/percussionist, a drummer, 2 trumpeters, and 2 saxaphonists (1 alto, 1 baritone). Fun evening… the main singer’s shirt was also quite spiffy.
~Dan
REVIEW: MusicNOW Fest (Sufjan Stevens, Amiina, My Brightest Diamond…) Cincinnati, April 2007
I’ll start this 1st review by saying that I truly feel fortunate to live in the city that is hosting this truly wonderful MusicNow Festival. It is elegantly and professionally put together and a trove of new and exciting music (many of the pieces from last night were world premieres).
Music Now Festival – April 5, 2007 (Day 1)
Memorial Hall, Cincinnati, OH
http://musicnowfestival.org/
Pedro Soler:
selected works for solo guitar
We showed up a little late (maybe only 10 minutes), but luckily there were some fabulous seats up near the front left. Pedro plays an amazing flamenco guitar. Very much a virtuoso. I’d say the music was not quite noodling, but also not quite all that melodic either — sort of a cross-between. His technique was fascinating to watch, and it was oft stunning. He played probably 50 minutes or so, ended with a standing ovation. He’s 68 or 69 years old and a world renowned flamenco guitarist, but this is apparently his first tour of the U.S. — with Cincinnati being one of the first dates. Bizarre choice in city to start.
Bryce Dessner’s “Memorial” (2006):
Bryce Dessner (guitar), David Cossin (percussion), Padma Newsome (viola)
This piece for trio showed off some great playing and composition. It was originally composed for the New York Guitar Festival to show off Bryce’s Spanish guitar playing. I’d say it was probably 10-15 minutes (no idea really) with some flair and highlights from Padma and David as well. David’s percussion on this piece made us excited for the next piece…
Tan Dun’s “Water Music” for solo percussion (2007):
David Cossin (percussion)
This was a third arrangement of Dun’s “Water Music.” The initial being for percussion and orchestra and the 2nd being for a percussion quartet. The solo percussion from David Cossin was brilliant and subtley played. Not brilliant in the Alanis “My Humps” way, but brilliant in the soundscapes and avant-garde asthetic kinda way. :P His main “drums” were two big plastic bowls… BIG bowls (10 gallons each is my guess). The opening was a rainfall from a colander. Next up was an odd-looking bulb with water in it, and a stem with strings (or spokes) that David played with a cello bow. It made primarily shreeking, dissonant noises; but then he warbled it around near the mic and the water in the bulb at the base ossilated the sound. Quite neato. He then went on to play different cymbals over (and in) the water and different depths with different mallets, sticks, et cetera. Two of the cooler parts of the set — 1) the wooden bowls of different sizes placed upside-down over the water… think “water tom” drums. Nice, full sounds… he played these with bigger tympani-like sticks, as well as with his hands. And 2) the water trombone… it was a clear boxy basin of water with a clear, slender tube in it. He hit it with something that resembled a Croc shoe (but wasn’t), and he raised the tube up and down. Again, “water trombone” is the best description.
Anyway, I’m a fan of one-man musical freak-shows (That1Guy, Buckethead) and a fan of composed and avant-garde music (Zorn, Zappa, et al). This was a pleasant combination of all three of those aspects of experimental music. David Cossin’s performance wins my “surprise enjoyment” award for the evening. Surpise in that I didn’t know so many artists were playing Thursday night, but I’m glad he did. The other musicians that evening were also probably glad that their gear wasn’t set up too near his 20 gallons or so of water… as some of it made its way on to the stage.
Maria Huld Markan’s “Thorri” (2007):
Hildur Ársælsdóttir (saw), David Cossin (marimba), Osso Quartet: Maria Jeffers (cello), Marla Hansen (viola), Oliver Manchon (violin), Rob Moose (violin)
Written by Markan of Amiina and performed here for the first time in public… it had a good vibe. Very much like most chamber music I’ve heard, but with a slight world feel (marimba) and oddities from the saw. It wasn’t as captivating/electronic as Amiina’s music, but I enjoyed it. Maria’s intro to it was funny. The title of the piece (Thorri) is all about what Icelanders call the Jan/Feb period in winter. They have a festival where they eat traditional, yet disgusting foods… “rotten shark” and “sour ram testicles” were uttered in an accent that was not-unlike that of Björk. Quaint. Anyway, she wrote the piece in London because she missed the bright, crisp winters she had in Iceland while suffering through a grey, rainy London winter. Great music, too…
Sufjan Stevens’ selections from Enjoy Your Rabbit arranged for string quartet (2007):
Michael Atkinson (arrangements), Osso Quartet: Maria Jeffers (cello), Marla Hansen (viola), Oliver Manchon (violin), Rob Moose (violin)
Enjoy Your Rabbit is Sufjan’s experimental, instrumental electronic album. When I first got in to Sufjan, I actually liked this album the best (it’s fucking weird as was what I was craving musically at the time). Anyway, “selections from Enjoy Your Rabbit arranged for string quartet” was actually one of the biggest draws for me for this festival in the first place. I heart Enjoy Your Rabbit; and, bonus, I heart string quartets. The formerly unnamed string quartet (named themselves “Osso” {aw-so} from the stage last night) played the selections in a very chamber music way, but paying attention to the electronic blips-and-beeps from the original by vocally “shushing,” playing pizzicato, and plucking or beating on their instruments to translate the electronic structure for their organic instruments. They played what I figured they would… the more melodic tunes from the album: Year of the Ox, Enjoy Your Rabbit, Year of the Lord, and Year of the Boar. Great stuff, and I was thrilled to be part of this world premiere.
Padma Newsome / Clogs Songs (2007):
Shara Worden (vocals), Sufjan Stevens (vocals, banjo, celeste), Padma Newsome (vocals, viola, harmonium, celeste), Rachel Elliott (bassoon, celeste), Thomas Kozumplik (percussion), David Cossin (percussion), Aaron Dessner (bass, guitar), Bryce Dessner (mandola, ukelele, guitar), Maria Jeffers (cello), Marla Hansen (viola), Oliver Manchon (violin), Rob Moose (violin), Michael Atkinson (horn), Irena & Vojt–ch Havel (cellos)
Another world premiere… the Clogs had heretofore been primarily an instrumental band. This collaborative Clogs (fronted by Padma Newsome and Bryce Dessner) featured more “traditional” song structures and *gasp* vocals. Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond) lended her operatic voice to the first three songs (“On the Edge,” “The Owl of Love,” and “The Adages of Cleansing”). She’s got a beautiful voice, but I don’t think it matched well with the songs. Viola-playing Padma switched to vocals and harmonium for the 4th song (“Red Seas”). Sufjan joined the percussionist to play the celeste (like a super-sized toy piano). The Osso string quartet also joined the band for some songs (I forget which ones). The last song (“We Were Here”) featured Sufjan on vocals and banjo and Shara Worden came out and sang with Sufjan. All in all, a great set…
I’m looking forward to Day 2 (Amiina & My Brightest Diamond) and 3 (The Havels & Sufjan).
Music Now Festival – April 6, 2007 (Day 2)
Memorial Hall, Cincinnati, OH
http://musicnowfestival.org/
Amiina:
Maria Huld Markan Sugjusdóttir, Hildur Ársælsdóttir, Edda Rún Ólafsdóttir, Sólrún Sumarliadóttir
I like Amiina a lot, having seen them open for Sigur Rós several times, and this show didn’t disappoint. It was good to pick up their debut LP (Kurr) without having to pay tons in shipping. Their sound also featured some gentle vocals in several tracks, which is a new direction for them. It almost seemed to Enya-y for me, but that’s OK. Maybe it’ll replace Bob Johnson‘s Musings as our house’s 1 massage CD (“oh no, not Bob Johnson!“). I dug their hour long set — it was a good mix of the string/organic sound and electronics. It was a very similar set-up as previous shows… instruments everywhere and the girls roaming about and playing just about everything. The saw song (“Seoul”) was played. They also had a short last song where all four girls played saws of various lengths. I can’t say I saw that coming… :D
My Brightest Diamond:
Shara worden (vocals, guitar, piano), Osso Quartet: Maria Jeffers (cello), Marla Hansen (viola), Oliver Manchon (violin), Rob Moose (violin)
Shara Worden’s been a favorite vocalist of mine since I first heard her on MySpace. Bring Me the Workhorse, her debut album under the My Brightest Diamond moniker (she has three discs as AwRy), was one of my favorite CDs in 2006. Anyway, I knew what to expect going in, but she still blew me away. Her vocals are quite possibly the richest, most beautiful in indie rock. She’s got the delicate, quirky pixie side and the grandiose, powerful operatic side. It’s compelling to see her sing. The last time I saw her, she had more of a rock-meets-strings setup. This time around, her backing band was solely the Osso string quartet (no drums/bass). I scribbled down the song titles, but I know I’m guessing on some in the italics (she didn’t give the name, or I forgot it/couldn’t hear her totally)… Apples (a very cute song), Dragonfly (from Workhorse), If I Were Queen, Bass Player (a new song), Disappear (from Workhorse), Goodbye Forever (which had the lyrics “A Thousand Shark’s Teeth” which will be her new album title), Clean Through, Gone Away (from Workhorse), Riding Horses (from her AwRy Quiet B-Sides disc), New Dawn/Day/Life (Nina Simone standard), Golden Star (from Workhorse), Black and Gusteaux (the French Sherlock Holmes), Youkali (gorgeous French lyrics, a cover from her AwRy Quiet B-Sides disc). A fantastic performance.
Sufjan is tonight… Shara and the Osso quartet will be backing him. yay!
Music Now Festival – April 7, 2007 (Day 3)
Memorial Hall, Cincinnati, OH
http://musicnowfestival.org/
Irena & Vojtech Havel:
cellos, piano strings, piano
The sister of festival curator Bryce Dessner went to Prague in the mid-80’s and bought a CD by the Havels and brought it home. That CD would shape Bryce’s musical interests as he progressed into songwriting. He essentially went on a 15-20 year hunt for this band from Prague, but finally made contact last year in order to bring them to Cincinnati to play at this festival (made possible by a grant from the Ohio Arts Council). Some people in the audience might not have liked the Havels, but I thought they were quite compelling to watch – – except for perhaps when Irena was singing (I liked it more when they were both cello-ing). They played for about an hour, 10 minutes of which was vocal and the rest was all instrumental – – chiefly avant-garde, but more composed in nature than noodling, IMO. There was some bird chirping and kittie meowing cello lines, but there were also some more standard scales. Their dual cello work was all over the place, but still structured, sort of. I loved it when they were complimenting each other (one upbeat, one downbeat). I also liked some of the more adventurous plucking below the bridge and almost strumming the cello like a guitar (rather than pizzicato). Their second to last bit was of both of them playing the piano, Irena sitting and after Vojt–ch finished on the cello he came around and played on her right, then, while standing started playing on both her right and left. It was sweet and romantic.
Sufjan Stevens:
Sufjan Stevens (vocals, guitar, banjo, piano, harmonium, celeste), Shara Worden (vocals, celeste, piano), Bryce Dessner (guitar), Michael Atkinson (horn), Rachael Elliott (bassoon), Padma Newsome (viola), Osso Quartet: Maria Jeffers (cello), Marla Hansen (viola), Oliver Manchon (violin), Rob Moose (violin)
The first time I saw Sufjan live, he and his band dressed up as cheerleaders. The second time I saw him live, he had on huge bird wings, and his band had on butterfly wings. This time, it was all about the music… no costume gimmicks. He and his lovely string-based band put on a great show. Probably my only regret in setlist was that they didn’t play “They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!! Ahhhh!” (my favorite from Illinoise), but all-in-all, it was a great-sounding, moving set… hour and a half, I think.
Here are the songs that they played (I’m not claiming 100% accuracy)…
- “Jupiter to June” (titled guess… song from way back in his unreleased conceptual songbook about the planets)
- “Dad’s Girlfriend” (titled guess… Sufjan on solo banjo… song about one of his dad’s crazy girlfriends)
- Three Stars (new one?)
- The Avalanche (from the vinyl & iTunes version of Come on Feel the Illinoise and the CD version of The Avalanche)
- All the Trees of the Fields Will Clap Their Hands (from Seven Swans)
- The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us! (from Illinoise)
- Casimir Pulaski Day (from Illinoise)
- John Wayne Gacy, Jr. (from Illinoise)
- Come On! Feel The Illinoise! (Part 1: The World’s Columbian Exposition; Part 2: Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream) (from Illinoise)
- “???” (a new one… I think I zoned out)
- The Transfiguration (from Seven Swans)
- Year of the Boar (played by the string quartet, Osso… from Enjoy Your Rabbit)
- Seven Swans (from Seven Swans)
- ENCORE: To Be Alone With You (Sufjan solo guitar… from Seven Swans)
It seemed heavy on the Seven Swans/Jebus-y stuff, but seeing as it was “Zombie Carpenter Eve” this night, I understand why… there also may have been an instrumental or two from Michigan and/or Illinoise that I didn’t know the name — thus it didn’t make it in my notes…
Fantastic festival. Day 2 was probably the most favorite, but all three days were utterly enjoyable.
~Dan