Fun Stuff > BAND
Gigs you've been to and your thoughts.
absurdabsurd:
Foals were ok. I'm not a massive fan and was mostly killing time, but they've gained some respect from me. They played at the shittiest venue in Milan that only puts on international bands sporadically - namely the ones that aren't quite famous enough to get booked at one of the bigger, proper venues. It's a concrete basement with terrible acoustics and an abysmal sound system. Maybe 50 people showed - Italy's a tough nut to crack. Additionally, their drummer was feeling quite ill and initially wasn't even going to play. All that considered, they let out a whole lot of energy on that stage.
They're masters of theatrics, and their convulsions on stage are actually very fun to watch. The guy doing the lights completely caught on to this and initially there were A LOT OF LIGHTS, mostly on/off synchronized with the beats - until they realized they actually prefer to be able to see their instruments when they play so they asked him to keep the lights on.
They've got a much rawer edge live; more rock and less pop than on the albums, which was quite pleasant. The set was pretty standard as were the song choices - standouts for me probably include 'Two Steps, Twice' and 'Hummer' - namely, the older tracks (presumably stemming from the era when Youthmovies' singer Andrew Mears was still heading up Foals).... and the closer 'Electric Bloom' for which they brought out an extra snare that Yannis basically pummelled into the ground.
I know a lot of people look at Foals as a lot of pop crap, but basically that is what they intended to do with their most recent album. I don't enjoy it as much as the pre-album material, but I appreciate that they wanted to make more accessible music and then had the courage to do so. And if it serves as a gateway for a lot of young kids into things like Youthmovies and Battles ... well, I don't see why that should be a bad thing, really.
Daft pun:
So I saw a bunch of bands at the Motel Mozaique festival this weekend, some awesome, others disappointing.
It started out on Friday with Phosphorescent, just a single guy with his guitar playing what could best be described as lo-fi slowcore folk. He simply said "we are Phosphorescent" before unloading a giant wall of looped guitars on his audience. After this intro he played his more usual fare of songs with beautiful lyrics and sparingly used guitar action.
Next up was Pivot, an Australian experimental-electronic-rock trio somewhat reminiscent of Battles. They're signed to Warp and are set to release their debut later this year. While they showed promise, most of the songs they played were a little rough around the edges. If they refine their sound a bit they could be awesome.
Everyone should know what Holy Fuck does by now, for they are much hyped, which was apparent by the size of the crowd. They were off to a rocky start, it just wasn't quite as tight as on the album. The crowd dissolved a bit after this, most people hadn't heard a single note before I'm sure. Oh well, more room for the people left to dance, and dance we did as the band kicked it into next gear. When they finally played Lovely Allen everyone was dancing like idiots, much fun was had by all.
Trentemøller was the last act of the night. The former DJ has a couple of friends on guitar and drums to accompany him nowadays. The set was a mix of techno and live instruments. While it was good, it didn't blow me away or anything.
The second day started of with the stunning Efterklang. This group of 8 Danes make post rock that takes after Sigur Ros and Mum yet with a lot of different elements. Throughout the show every member changed instruments at least once and pretty much all of them sang, creating one of the finest shows you'll ever hear. They captivated the audience from the get go, never once letting go. The frontman actually had to point out that "this is a festival and there's lots more music playing tonight" so they could get off the stage.
Goldfrap was up next. She mostly played songs from the new album with a few older ones thrown in for good measure. This was their first show of the tour so it was still a bit new for them. Which gave them the chance to try out some stuff as well, like a countryfied version of 'Ooh La La'.
At last it was time for M83. I was expecting a lot from these guys. They started with songs from the new album. Right away it just didn't click. They didn't seem to enjoy themselves, it all sounded a bit off and the audience wasn't really into it either. It got a bit better when they played 'Don't save us from the flames' but that was the only older song they played, it never recovered. They walked off stage after 45 minutes when they were supposed to play an hour. Everyone was expecting an encore, even the DJ's were silent for a couple of minutes, waiting for them to return, but nothing. I think they'd planned to play Couleurs as an encore, was a bit weird that they hadn't played it after all, but that they'd just decided to cut their losses and call it a day.
Lexington, 125:
Wow pretty bummed to hear how the m83 set played out, I'm planning on attending the Toronto show. Could just be working the kinks out.... I hope Gonzalez incorporates some older tracks as the tour goes on though.
I saw Explsions In the Sky, only not on acid. They played a great set & sounded just like they do on the album. Ho hum.
Friday night I saw The Dodos play Mohawk Place in Buffalo. I've been listening to their album Visiter for a couple weeks or so, mostly due to the drumming. However I was a bit uncertain (as I often am before seeing a band play live) how into them I could get. One thing about the album irked me- the lyrics are at times kinda cheesy. So after seeing 2 horrible openers, (one a lonesome guy on the acoustic playing scattered chords & wailing too much about his feelings, the other a band featuring a guy on a banjo, & another looking as if he was either on the verge of an overdose, or special) it was shaping up to be a craptastic night. Thankfully the Dodos did not disappoint. From the opening track they had the audience's attention using a third member to play the xylophone & a drum that had been beaten to shit. With 3 members, they pull off the sound of a 5-piece. The guitarist/lead singer played very well, looping vocals & other various sounds providing a nice backdrop to his intricate fingerpicking. However, drums are the star of this show, & I would say the lead intrument.No kick dum, everything on stands, knocking out frenetic rhythyms without missing a beat. Definitely bonus points for the tambourine duct-taped to his foot. I have to put Logan Kroeber up there as one of the best drummers I've ever witnessed live. At one point he pulled what looked like an empty nitrous tank out & put it on his stool, then proceeded to kick out of the most jawdropping patterns I've heard. They are definitely a band that must be seen live to truly appreciate them- a very energetic show. Also a pretty long set, all the while staying interesting. Best live band I have seen so far in this short year.
Daft pun:
About the M83 show, I'm pretty sure they had technical difficulties of some sort. I remember the soundman being very nervous/freaking out about something during the gig.
sk8brder40:
--- Quote from: E. Spaceman on 14 Apr 2008, 18:49 ---he is making fun of your horrible AWESOME taste!
--- End quote ---
Ah thanks, dude! It really means a lot!
Psssh, music is music. We all like our own stuff. For instance, I think that indie music is plain terrible. It's all just noise to me. But, I respect that people here listen to it. The only people that should be taken out back and shot are hip-hop and rap lovers.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version