agreed, barry, that set was fantastic. i'm still sad that trio hasn't been recorded well.
m
the most memorable live shows you've attended
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Salty Swift
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Did you catch the live duo of Borbetomagus and VoiceCrack back in 94 at FIMAV? Loud to the extremes and a terrible, spewing mess of smegma. Even though I had earplugs installed in both ears, after the show, I still felt constant ringing for the rest of the day. [it was a morning show in the hockey arena from what I recall]Fracture wrote: Another show I saw last year, this time at the Victo fest, was the Borbetomagus and Hijokaidan collaboration which is pretty much the exact opposite of Palestine...of course, it was everybody playing as loud as they possibly could and really just a huge mess, but it was a shocking display of aggression and endurance (the latter on the part of the performers and on the audience).
it WAS Victo, after all.
Care to elaborate on the last sentence? How exactly do you see Victo shows as different from any other life shows?
"A little older, a little more confused"
a large portion of the audience at victo is there just because the festival is there, with no particular interest in the music or musicians. not to mention the fact that the breadth of music means that few parties are interested in all of the music.
which is to say, people taking off early from a victo show is pretty much par for the course. when kim gordon's group (later named 'sweet ride', aren't they?) played in 2001, maybe 75% of the audience was gone before the end of the set.
m
which is to say, people taking off early from a victo show is pretty much par for the course. when kim gordon's group (later named 'sweet ride', aren't they?) played in 2001, maybe 75% of the audience was gone before the end of the set.
m
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Salty Swift
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Since I've been coming to FIMAV for the last thirteen years or so, I've not found the people to be there simply because "it's Victo". I've actually met a wide array of people who've learned about music they may not have known about through exposure at one concert or another. I guess I hang around with the wrong crowd.mudd wrote:a large portion of the audience at victo is there just because the festival is there, with no particular interest in the music or musicians. not to mention the fact that the breadth of music means that few parties are interested in all of the music.
which is to say, people taking off early from a victo show is pretty much par for the course. when kim gordon's group (later named 'sweet ride', aren't they?) played in 2001, maybe 75% of the audience was gone before the end of the set.
m
"A little older, a little more confused"
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Salty Swift
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Sure I've met the locals. I always mingle with them in my broken French - that's pretty mandatory if you want to get served at any establishment over there.mudd wrote:you mean you haven't met any of the local people who go to the shows? there's a lot, either from the town itself or from throughout the province. most of them enjoy it a lot, but obviously extreme noise has a little less appeal than rene lussier...
m
Another thing, try not to make fun of Lussier.
He's a national [provincial] hero over there.
Can you imagine Quebec without him?
"A little older, a little more confused"
I went to Victo for four years, 1996-1999. the most memorable shows for me, chronologically and short:
1996: Evan Parker Electroacoustic Ensemble. this was in the large hockey rink venue, with Sainkho also guesting on one of the two sets. notable for the sheer amount of sound floating around in the air, maybe more to process than I've ever heard at another show, including MIMEO. also because it was the first time I met Thurston Moore, who sat at our table and put up with my probably geeky questions.
1997: Fushitsusha, an amazing midnight show in the smallest of the three rooms, with Haino conducting his rhythm section like marionettes. my friend was reviewing this one for the NY Times, and we conducted a kind of impromptu interview with Mr. Haino and the others in their hotel room later that night, around 3 AM. there was incense burning, traditional Japanese music playing quietly, and the atmosphere was incredible. Haino is a pretty small guy, but when I shook his hand, I felt like the world might explode.
1998: Nihilist Spasm Band, if only to hear 'No Canada' performed in Canada. I was a bit too into it, I almost got into a fight with the Canadian gent in front of me.
1999: ISO, surprisingly in the big hockey rink. this was one of the few sets I was really excited for and went very early to sit up front and center. this blew my mind, I'd seen Otomo before a bunch of times, but this was the first in this post-Tetreault vein, really exciting. somehow they filled the room also, this set was worth the whole trip this year on its own, although Milford Graves wading into the audience, tossing Bruce Gallanter over his shoulder and parading him around was also pretty fantastic.
that was the last year I went to Victo, my taste doesn't overlap more than a couple of sets a year with Michel's, and I generally get those people to play NYC also, so that saves me a trip. I do like the live sound in those venues, though, maybe someday Michel will take me up on my offer to do something jointly.
1996: Evan Parker Electroacoustic Ensemble. this was in the large hockey rink venue, with Sainkho also guesting on one of the two sets. notable for the sheer amount of sound floating around in the air, maybe more to process than I've ever heard at another show, including MIMEO. also because it was the first time I met Thurston Moore, who sat at our table and put up with my probably geeky questions.
1997: Fushitsusha, an amazing midnight show in the smallest of the three rooms, with Haino conducting his rhythm section like marionettes. my friend was reviewing this one for the NY Times, and we conducted a kind of impromptu interview with Mr. Haino and the others in their hotel room later that night, around 3 AM. there was incense burning, traditional Japanese music playing quietly, and the atmosphere was incredible. Haino is a pretty small guy, but when I shook his hand, I felt like the world might explode.
1998: Nihilist Spasm Band, if only to hear 'No Canada' performed in Canada. I was a bit too into it, I almost got into a fight with the Canadian gent in front of me.
1999: ISO, surprisingly in the big hockey rink. this was one of the few sets I was really excited for and went very early to sit up front and center. this blew my mind, I'd seen Otomo before a bunch of times, but this was the first in this post-Tetreault vein, really exciting. somehow they filled the room also, this set was worth the whole trip this year on its own, although Milford Graves wading into the audience, tossing Bruce Gallanter over his shoulder and parading him around was also pretty fantastic.
that was the last year I went to Victo, my taste doesn't overlap more than a couple of sets a year with Michel's, and I generally get those people to play NYC also, so that saves me a trip. I do like the live sound in those venues, though, maybe someday Michel will take me up on my offer to do something jointly.
The most recent one for me:
Silence: John Cage
18 ? 21 October 2006
Vancouver New Music Festival 2006
ScotiaBank Dance Centre
Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano (John Tilbury)
A single grand piano in the center of the stage lit by a white flood light. John comes out in his trademark black leather jacket and sits at the piano. He looks at the first page of the score and then begins those familiar opening notes of the Sonatas and Interludes. After he plays each section he would stop and turn the page. Then we would again examine the page, putting a gap and some silence between each of the sonatas and interludes. A prepared piano never sounds exactly the same and the preparations can shift and subtly evolve during the course of a performance. Of course some parts will be a bit slower or faster and the sound of the room is always different as well. So this piece, which John has played so many times, was familiar yet different. But it was absolutely sublime and fascinating to watch John play it. He would cross hands often to play treble notes with his left hand and bass with the right, most dramatically in Sonata IVX with the simple melodic phrase being played with the left hand whilst underneath it the right continuously massages a couple of keys. Then the left hand would cross back over and pick up a note or two.
Gordon Mumma was overheard saying about seeing Tilbury; ?I came for the Sonatas and Interludes, I just put up with all the rest.? This was the musical event of the year for me, my favorite pianists playing an amazing piece of Twentieth Century composition in an excellent setting.
(really the whole Cage Festival was a revelation for me. Night after night there was memorable performances, things that made me reevaluate my approach to playing music and my thinking of the musical issues that concern me)
Silence: John Cage
18 ? 21 October 2006
Vancouver New Music Festival 2006
ScotiaBank Dance Centre
Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano (John Tilbury)
A single grand piano in the center of the stage lit by a white flood light. John comes out in his trademark black leather jacket and sits at the piano. He looks at the first page of the score and then begins those familiar opening notes of the Sonatas and Interludes. After he plays each section he would stop and turn the page. Then we would again examine the page, putting a gap and some silence between each of the sonatas and interludes. A prepared piano never sounds exactly the same and the preparations can shift and subtly evolve during the course of a performance. Of course some parts will be a bit slower or faster and the sound of the room is always different as well. So this piece, which John has played so many times, was familiar yet different. But it was absolutely sublime and fascinating to watch John play it. He would cross hands often to play treble notes with his left hand and bass with the right, most dramatically in Sonata IVX with the simple melodic phrase being played with the left hand whilst underneath it the right continuously massages a couple of keys. Then the left hand would cross back over and pick up a note or two.
Gordon Mumma was overheard saying about seeing Tilbury; ?I came for the Sonatas and Interludes, I just put up with all the rest.? This was the musical event of the year for me, my favorite pianists playing an amazing piece of Twentieth Century composition in an excellent setting.
(really the whole Cage Festival was a revelation for me. Night after night there was memorable performances, things that made me reevaluate my approach to playing music and my thinking of the musical issues that concern me)
"Please everybody, if we haven't done what we could have done, we've tried"
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negative potential
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Total Music Meeting 2004, Berlinische Galerie
Fred Van Hove's long solo piano performance, which was issued under the title "Berliner Roll" on this disc.
The restrooms in the Berlinische Galerie are right next to the concert space, so ocassionally one could hear the door shutting during the set.
And of course, having had a few beers, I had to go. Like I said, it was a long set.
Vinny Golia was standing right in the doorway of the concert space the whole time, totally riveted by Van Hove's performance.
When I'm done doing my business, I emerge from the toilet, and Golia turns to me with panic and says "get the door! get the door!" to insure that it does not make a sound when it closes. I of course followed his instructions, and made sure it glided shut without a sound.
Fred Van Hove's long solo piano performance, which was issued under the title "Berliner Roll" on this disc.
The restrooms in the Berlinische Galerie are right next to the concert space, so ocassionally one could hear the door shutting during the set.
And of course, having had a few beers, I had to go. Like I said, it was a long set.
Vinny Golia was standing right in the doorway of the concert space the whole time, totally riveted by Van Hove's performance.
When I'm done doing my business, I emerge from the toilet, and Golia turns to me with panic and says "get the door! get the door!" to insure that it does not make a sound when it closes. I of course followed his instructions, and made sure it glided shut without a sound.
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negative potential
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- Joined: Tue May 13, 2008 8:45 am
one more for tonight...
Berlin, 2002, shortly after my arrival, so around spring time.
Found out from a listings magazine that Alexander von Schlippenbach was playing a duo set with Walter Gauchel at a club in Charlottenburg.
The club is called Fl?z. This was actually the only concert I ever attended at the place, since usually they have a lot of music that doesn't interest me. Strangely, my Fodor's guide to Berlin kind of lists it as an important Jazz institution, which it might have been at one time, but they certainly offered a lot of Non-Jazz music in the time I lived in Berlin.
This was also my first time venturing out into Charlottenburg. And man, fucking West Berlin exactly like it looks like in movies like Christiane F - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo. That jarring architectural clash of ultra-modern postwar architecture with remnants of pre-war apartment houses. West Berlin always struck me as the archetypal 20th century western city (I'd say that East Berlin was archetypal for the eastern bloc, but frankly I haven't been to enough eastern bloc cities).
It was raining that evening. I got to the club early, actually, to the bar that sits atop the club (it's a basement club). A few locals were drinking, none of whom would actually end up attending the concert. A drunken patron insisted on chatting with me, and I humored him. He claimed to be a Silesian, which anybody knows is codeword for "reactionary."
When the concert started, I went downstairs. The only attendees were me and some other guy. Walter Gauchel had the flu, so Schlippenbach played a solo set consisting almost entirely of Monk tunes.
During the intermission, I spoke to the other attendee. He was an American from the midwest, Illinois if I remember correctly. He was amazed that hardly any people were in attendance, since he himself was attending the concert on the advice of a friend who had told him that Schlippenbach was one fo the contemporary greats of Jazz. We chatted about music in general. The guy was quite a Mekons fan. Apparently also something of a lefty politically. He told me he was irritated by Anti-Bush sentiment in Europe, since Clinton was also a vile, neo-liberal war criminal, but only Bush was the target of resentment. I agreed that there was something lame and populist about hating Bush but not hating Clinton.
We went and watched the rest of the show. More Monk tunes. Schlippenbach is *the* Monk interpreter after Lacy.
Berlin, 2002, shortly after my arrival, so around spring time.
Found out from a listings magazine that Alexander von Schlippenbach was playing a duo set with Walter Gauchel at a club in Charlottenburg.
The club is called Fl?z. This was actually the only concert I ever attended at the place, since usually they have a lot of music that doesn't interest me. Strangely, my Fodor's guide to Berlin kind of lists it as an important Jazz institution, which it might have been at one time, but they certainly offered a lot of Non-Jazz music in the time I lived in Berlin.
This was also my first time venturing out into Charlottenburg. And man, fucking West Berlin exactly like it looks like in movies like Christiane F - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo. That jarring architectural clash of ultra-modern postwar architecture with remnants of pre-war apartment houses. West Berlin always struck me as the archetypal 20th century western city (I'd say that East Berlin was archetypal for the eastern bloc, but frankly I haven't been to enough eastern bloc cities).
It was raining that evening. I got to the club early, actually, to the bar that sits atop the club (it's a basement club). A few locals were drinking, none of whom would actually end up attending the concert. A drunken patron insisted on chatting with me, and I humored him. He claimed to be a Silesian, which anybody knows is codeword for "reactionary."
When the concert started, I went downstairs. The only attendees were me and some other guy. Walter Gauchel had the flu, so Schlippenbach played a solo set consisting almost entirely of Monk tunes.
During the intermission, I spoke to the other attendee. He was an American from the midwest, Illinois if I remember correctly. He was amazed that hardly any people were in attendance, since he himself was attending the concert on the advice of a friend who had told him that Schlippenbach was one fo the contemporary greats of Jazz. We chatted about music in general. The guy was quite a Mekons fan. Apparently also something of a lefty politically. He told me he was irritated by Anti-Bush sentiment in Europe, since Clinton was also a vile, neo-liberal war criminal, but only Bush was the target of resentment. I agreed that there was something lame and populist about hating Bush but not hating Clinton.
We went and watched the rest of the show. More Monk tunes. Schlippenbach is *the* Monk interpreter after Lacy.
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user_1950
Los Glissandinos, Red Room, Baltimore, October 7, 2006
The Red Room adjoins Normals bookstore, located in the Waverly section of Baltimore. I've come to think of these spaces as the embodiment of the Baltimore scene (which admittedly I'm still exploring): low-key, serious about their music-making and listening, but wearing it lightly, with a strong sense of the absurd. Normals is filled with these funny little signs and drawings, warning you where Red Room pond forms when it rains, etc.
I felt like I had been given a reprieve when I read about this show, having missed them in DC, which is much closer to where I live. I got there early for once, and Klaus was, with a straight face and monotone voice, telling the Red Room collective member handling the door (Audrey Chen) that, "we have an extensive list of comps (long pause): two people."
Los Glissandinos played the second set, and when I was walking to a seat after the break (there's maybe 25 folding chairs and a couch) this little boy runs up behind me, puts his left arm around me, and grabs my package with his right hand, and squeezes! The funny thing about the Red Room is that this didn't seem particularly out of place. He then ran off to grab some other guy. LG was set up and ready to play (they had been for a while, I sensed they really wanted to get to it), and a guy from the Red Room stood up to introduce them, but kind of stumbled over their name, and in that gap, a woman sitting on the couch with a bright red coat (who I later realized was Bonnie Jones), shouts out, "Introducing THE GLISSIES!" Everybody in the room cracks up and applauds, and that one gesture transformed the feeling in the room. It was like everybody, musicians and audience, could relax and focus, and LG made some wonderful sounds. I particularly remember Kai's long, plangent tones, that just built and built in the middle third of the set. I'm new enough to hearing this kind of music live that I'm torn between closing my eves (remarkable how different things sound without the distraction of sight) and wanting to watch how each person is producing their sounds, and how they interact with each other. I ended up doing a bit of both.
Several in this thread have written about concerts where things clicked for them. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think this is what happened for me that night. Over the next several months a lot of cds in this area of music started to sound richer to me, moving from being interesting to having more depth. Of course the depth was there all along, but I hadn't heard it earlier. I'm still not certain if attending this performance changed my way of listening, so easy to fall into the post hoc trap when writing about past events, but at the very least this was a good concert.
The Red Room adjoins Normals bookstore, located in the Waverly section of Baltimore. I've come to think of these spaces as the embodiment of the Baltimore scene (which admittedly I'm still exploring): low-key, serious about their music-making and listening, but wearing it lightly, with a strong sense of the absurd. Normals is filled with these funny little signs and drawings, warning you where Red Room pond forms when it rains, etc.
I felt like I had been given a reprieve when I read about this show, having missed them in DC, which is much closer to where I live. I got there early for once, and Klaus was, with a straight face and monotone voice, telling the Red Room collective member handling the door (Audrey Chen) that, "we have an extensive list of comps (long pause): two people."
Los Glissandinos played the second set, and when I was walking to a seat after the break (there's maybe 25 folding chairs and a couch) this little boy runs up behind me, puts his left arm around me, and grabs my package with his right hand, and squeezes! The funny thing about the Red Room is that this didn't seem particularly out of place. He then ran off to grab some other guy. LG was set up and ready to play (they had been for a while, I sensed they really wanted to get to it), and a guy from the Red Room stood up to introduce them, but kind of stumbled over their name, and in that gap, a woman sitting on the couch with a bright red coat (who I later realized was Bonnie Jones), shouts out, "Introducing THE GLISSIES!" Everybody in the room cracks up and applauds, and that one gesture transformed the feeling in the room. It was like everybody, musicians and audience, could relax and focus, and LG made some wonderful sounds. I particularly remember Kai's long, plangent tones, that just built and built in the middle third of the set. I'm new enough to hearing this kind of music live that I'm torn between closing my eves (remarkable how different things sound without the distraction of sight) and wanting to watch how each person is producing their sounds, and how they interact with each other. I ended up doing a bit of both.
Several in this thread have written about concerts where things clicked for them. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think this is what happened for me that night. Over the next several months a lot of cds in this area of music started to sound richer to me, moving from being interesting to having more depth. Of course the depth was there all along, but I hadn't heard it earlier. I'm still not certain if attending this performance changed my way of listening, so easy to fall into the post hoc trap when writing about past events, but at the very least this was a good concert.
Let's see, I think it was about 1997 or so in the dead of winter, From Ashes Rise were playing at a little, scummy basement in Menominee, Wisconsin called The Crack Cellar (or maybe it was "The Blue Tile Lounge" at that point). I had seen From Ashes Rise a couple times before and pretty much new what to expect-- downtuned, heavy but tuneful punk. This was before they got to be a slightly bigger band, signed to Jade Tree or were much more known than a patch on some crustie's ass flap. I'm not much of a dancer, really, at least in punk venues; I'm usually turned off by the overt macho shit that goes on with "hardcore" dancing, but as soon as From Ashes Rise started to play the room just exploded. There was about 40 punks stuffed into that dank catacombs, mostly drunk, all enthused, all swaying and running around-- sweat and beer and fists in the air. I remember it as a constant battle to stay on my feet in the front row, sweating and screaming a random chorus along with one of the singers. I think the band were a little overwhelmed by the response, but it was inspiring and angry and passionate and fun, everything I felt underground punk rock was at the time. One of those concerts you feel as though you are actually taking part of something the rest of the world would never be able to understand or participate in.
Flash forward to London in the winter of 2003, Joe Mcphee's first trip to the UK (or was it in 25 years? don't remember), housed in a cool little chapel that I forget the name of. The opener's were a guitar trio. I almost fell asleep during their set. They weren't bad as much as slightly boring-- tiny events strung together. I remember seeing one of the guitarists playing in Lucky Rabbit at Bohman Bros loft a few weeks before or so. Lucky Rabbit were much more interesting. Anyway, the show was then set up as John Edwards and Paul Hession and Joe Mcphee each playing a solo and then playing as a trio. Edwards was pretty fun, Hession went through the motions, but Mcphee really scraped the cobwebs off my brain. He played soprano. From the first notes, it consumed the room, just shimmering cataracts of notes, sound bouncing off the walls and floating around the room. There was such control in his playing, but also a playful, cunning attack to it all. He smiled after he was finished and the whole crowd was silent for a few seconds before applauding. I became a fan of his after that. The trio itself wasn't too impressive, but that solo lives on in my memory. Then I rushed over to the Red Rose to catch Evan Parker play a duo with John Russell (Joe Mcphee showed up later and sat next to me, but I didn't say anything about his show; I'm kicking myself now). A few years later in Milwaukee I told Mr. Mcphee that I saw him play in London and he smiled and said "Oh, yes, at that great venue."
Circle in Chicago 2006, winter. I remember getting drunk and dancing in the front row like an epileptic shoe salesman. I didn't know anyone there and probably was "that guy." But it was one of the best rock shows I've ever seen. I've never heard a Circle record. I don't know if I want to now, as I don't think it could possibly live up to that performance. Just pure, caustic rock and roll.
Hmm... all winter shows.
Flash forward to London in the winter of 2003, Joe Mcphee's first trip to the UK (or was it in 25 years? don't remember), housed in a cool little chapel that I forget the name of. The opener's were a guitar trio. I almost fell asleep during their set. They weren't bad as much as slightly boring-- tiny events strung together. I remember seeing one of the guitarists playing in Lucky Rabbit at Bohman Bros loft a few weeks before or so. Lucky Rabbit were much more interesting. Anyway, the show was then set up as John Edwards and Paul Hession and Joe Mcphee each playing a solo and then playing as a trio. Edwards was pretty fun, Hession went through the motions, but Mcphee really scraped the cobwebs off my brain. He played soprano. From the first notes, it consumed the room, just shimmering cataracts of notes, sound bouncing off the walls and floating around the room. There was such control in his playing, but also a playful, cunning attack to it all. He smiled after he was finished and the whole crowd was silent for a few seconds before applauding. I became a fan of his after that. The trio itself wasn't too impressive, but that solo lives on in my memory. Then I rushed over to the Red Rose to catch Evan Parker play a duo with John Russell (Joe Mcphee showed up later and sat next to me, but I didn't say anything about his show; I'm kicking myself now). A few years later in Milwaukee I told Mr. Mcphee that I saw him play in London and he smiled and said "Oh, yes, at that great venue."
Circle in Chicago 2006, winter. I remember getting drunk and dancing in the front row like an epileptic shoe salesman. I didn't know anyone there and probably was "that guy." But it was one of the best rock shows I've ever seen. I've never heard a Circle record. I don't know if I want to now, as I don't think it could possibly live up to that performance. Just pure, caustic rock and roll.
Hmm... all winter shows.
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user_353
I would like to see that, it's unfortunate that Michel seems to be ever so slightly out of touch...the program for this year's fest is borderline sad, made worse by the fact it takes place on the same weekend as the No Fun Fest, which is much more worthy of the car ride in my opinion.jon abbey wrote: that was the last year I went to Victo, my taste doesn't overlap more than a couple of sets a year with Michel's, and I generally get those people to play NYC also, so that saves me a trip. I do like the live sound in those venues, though, maybe someday Michel will take me up on my offer to do something jointly.
On the subject of Victo itself, it IS easy to bash, but I mean there's just so much about it that is really ridiculous. mudd basically covered what I meant by my "it IS Victo after all" - everybody sitting down in the incredibly vast colis?e like they're watching a play, instead of a concert. It works very well for some shows, and much less so for others. Don't get me wrong, I'm not somebody who can't appreciate a show sitting down or whatever. But, you know...sitting at those little tables watching Wolf Eyes two years ago was borderline surreal. And of course I'm not dissing the crowd either - I don't think I'm any better than so-called "jazz snobs" for enduring a Borbetomagus set or whatever. A lot of the people there are very nice, genuine people who are more musically adventurous than the stereotype would dictate. But then, of course, you do get the people who walk right out and don't want to hear any of it. Or you get the group across from me last year laughing through Keiji Haino's performance every time he shouted into the microphone.
I definitely recognize all the effort and money that goes into Victo on a yearly basis though, especially when you consider that it takes place in the middle of nowhere. It could be worse for me, in terms of festivals in the surrounding areas.
/thread hijacking
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Salty Swift
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Jon,jon abbey wrote:I went to Victo for four years, 1996-1999. the most memorable shows for me, chronologically and short:
1996: Evan Parker Electroacoustic Ensemble. this was in the large hockey rink venue, with Sainkho also guesting on one of the two
1997: Fushitsusha, an amazing midnight show in the smallest of the three rooms, with Haino conducting his rhythm section like marionettes.
1998: Nihilist Spasm Band, if only to hear 'No Canada' performed in Canada. I was a bit too into it, I almost got into a fight with the Canadian gent in front of me.
1999: ISO, surprisingly in the big hockey rink. this was one of the few sets I was really excited for and went very early to sit up front and center. this blew my mind,
that was the last year I went to Victo, my taste doesn't overlap more than a couple of sets a year with Michel's, and I generally get those people to play NYC also, so that saves me a trip. I do like the live sound in those venues, though, maybe someday Michel will take me up on my offer to do something jointly.
Few points.
That hockey arena has some nasty acoustics happening.
I've no idea what kind of shit you were on that night, but I can count on the fingers of my two hands good shows [sound-wise] presented in that venue - Borbetomagus / VoiceCrack duo, Jon Rose's "Music in the Age of Shopping", The [EC] Nudes, Taylor/Oxley/Dixon...
Not all Canadians are "gents" as you put it so nicely.
One of my most awkward Victo moments was back in 94 when I spotted Otomo in the bathroom, peeing with a cast on.
All of a sudden, I got an urge to ask him to give me a station ID for my radio show. The fuck with it - out of all place I though the public washroom is an appropriate place for a thing like this.
Year later, I hung out with Bob Ostertag for the duration of the day.
At the next edition, it was David Moss.
All performers I meet at Victo are always friendly and down to earth....but the hockey arena has got to be traded for a better venue!
"A little older, a little more confused"
Great comments Paul Howe. I thought The Glissies set at EQ3 was stunning. A friend wildly unfamiliar with anything quite like this came along and made it all the more memorable (every time I've seen him since he brings up the Jerman/Davis kickoff with great incredulous laughter). Between their disc and that set, I'm 100% sold. I love Kai's patience and how things are almost episodic. Now that's E.A.I.
Jon. . .did that Reijseger/Sclavis set you brought up way, way back take place at Victo? I've been forever envious. Man, that FMP still remains in my five favorite albums, period.
Jon. . .did that Reijseger/Sclavis set you brought up way, way back take place at Victo? I've been forever envious. Man, that FMP still remains in my five favorite albums, period.
well, for the two I mentioned, I was pretty much front and center, I think the closer you are, the better. we sat in the center of the room for Merzbow thinking that the rear speakers would be as powerful as the front ones and it would be a quad kind of thing, but not even close.Salty Swift wrote:That hockey arena has some nasty acoustics happening.
I've no idea what kind of shit you were on that night, but I can count on the fingers of my two hands good shows [sound-wise] presented in that venue
and yes, Frau Schau, the Sclavis/Reijseger was at the first of those Victos, the Chadbourne/Lovens that year was also quite good (92% abstract improv, only to move into an Ernest Tubb song towards the end, nice stuff).
is it cheating to post stories of memorable gigs that you played?
this is some pretty bottom of the barrell shit, this one, but it really takes quite a few cakes.
the year is 2003, the venue is the downstairs area of a HORRIBLE faux english pub in brisbane, the occasion is part of a fledgeling local arts festival, designed to showcase the creativity of brisbane's resident artists. the specific theme of this sunday afternoon gig is "homemade & modified instruments".
so. 1st up....
ross manning, giving us a taste of his circuit bent walkie-talkie feedback system. he throws a few of these things around a table for a while, gets a couple of folks from the small audience to wave some around. this is all self amplified by the little internal speakers, but he manages to get quite a full sound out of them, and the spacialisation of the sound is nice, as is the way they can be played simply by moving aroung withing the field of their transmission.
next up , michael norris, demonstrating his homemade brass percussion instruments, largely feedback driven. due to some fuckup on the part of the "soundguy", michael's set of screeching, scraping & clanging is accidently put through the in house music system upstairs, where folks are trying to have quiet sunday afternoon drinks. after about 5 minutes of this mixup, an irate as hell woman in her mid40's comes downstairs (not staff, just a customer) and starts yelling incoherently at michael & the rest of us, ending with "do you have any fucking idea how horrible & annoying that sounds!?". to which michael deadpans in response "yes".
i am next, showing off my recordless turntable act. the turntable i am using is actually an old picnic style portable from the 1950's, and i am basically using it as a percussion interface, with the stylus acting as microphone. however, due to an overzelous application of rubberbands the previous evening i have managed to break the butchered stylus i have on it ( a not uncommon event at the time), but i havent realised this yet. i spend a few minutes swearing at my gear, trying to get it to behave, until i finally figure out what it's problem is. i apologies to the crowd, and explain the drama. lucas abela jumps up from the crowd, and declares " does anyone have a safety pin?" this seems pretty random, but i do have one, "yeah. i do" i say. "you can use it as a stylus!" he says. i spend a minute of so jamming it in there, and lo & behold, he's right. i play with this desperately unreliable contraption for about 5 mins, having to fix it 3 times in that period.
lucas was next to play, back in the days when he was still using contact mic'd metal objects to amplify his vocalisms, and running them through pedals. today however, he uses this set up to deliver a "stand up comedy" act. mostly telling jokes related to the issues that have been had with this venue over the last couple of days of the festival....
"what did the venue owner say to the experimental musician?"
"turn that shit off or i'll fucking kill you! (blast of noise)"
"what did garry bradbury say to the covers band"
"wow! you cunts really suck! wanna fight? (burst of noise)"
and so on....
as we are leaving we notice that an area of the floor on the upper level which we could all have sworn was an open hole the other night has been filled in. we debate amongst ourselves about this, since it had been a big part of the issues with the previous gigs of the last few days (noise issues, etc). eventually, someone decides to test it out by climbing over the bannister which blocks off this part of the floor. and prompty falls straight through, down one level onto their arse.
the venue staff are instantly over to this guy, and are freaking the fuck out, thinking that the ceiling has fallen down ON TOP of this guy. he assures them (and us, in all honesty) that he's fine, and we get the fuck out of there before they realise he's sitting on top of a pile of floor, not under a pile of ceiling.
then we go and have chinese food & get wasted.
flaky lofi gigs rule.
this is some pretty bottom of the barrell shit, this one, but it really takes quite a few cakes.
the year is 2003, the venue is the downstairs area of a HORRIBLE faux english pub in brisbane, the occasion is part of a fledgeling local arts festival, designed to showcase the creativity of brisbane's resident artists. the specific theme of this sunday afternoon gig is "homemade & modified instruments".
so. 1st up....
ross manning, giving us a taste of his circuit bent walkie-talkie feedback system. he throws a few of these things around a table for a while, gets a couple of folks from the small audience to wave some around. this is all self amplified by the little internal speakers, but he manages to get quite a full sound out of them, and the spacialisation of the sound is nice, as is the way they can be played simply by moving aroung withing the field of their transmission.
next up , michael norris, demonstrating his homemade brass percussion instruments, largely feedback driven. due to some fuckup on the part of the "soundguy", michael's set of screeching, scraping & clanging is accidently put through the in house music system upstairs, where folks are trying to have quiet sunday afternoon drinks. after about 5 minutes of this mixup, an irate as hell woman in her mid40's comes downstairs (not staff, just a customer) and starts yelling incoherently at michael & the rest of us, ending with "do you have any fucking idea how horrible & annoying that sounds!?". to which michael deadpans in response "yes".
i am next, showing off my recordless turntable act. the turntable i am using is actually an old picnic style portable from the 1950's, and i am basically using it as a percussion interface, with the stylus acting as microphone. however, due to an overzelous application of rubberbands the previous evening i have managed to break the butchered stylus i have on it ( a not uncommon event at the time), but i havent realised this yet. i spend a few minutes swearing at my gear, trying to get it to behave, until i finally figure out what it's problem is. i apologies to the crowd, and explain the drama. lucas abela jumps up from the crowd, and declares " does anyone have a safety pin?" this seems pretty random, but i do have one, "yeah. i do" i say. "you can use it as a stylus!" he says. i spend a minute of so jamming it in there, and lo & behold, he's right. i play with this desperately unreliable contraption for about 5 mins, having to fix it 3 times in that period.
lucas was next to play, back in the days when he was still using contact mic'd metal objects to amplify his vocalisms, and running them through pedals. today however, he uses this set up to deliver a "stand up comedy" act. mostly telling jokes related to the issues that have been had with this venue over the last couple of days of the festival....
"what did the venue owner say to the experimental musician?"
"turn that shit off or i'll fucking kill you! (blast of noise)"
"what did garry bradbury say to the covers band"
"wow! you cunts really suck! wanna fight? (burst of noise)"
and so on....
as we are leaving we notice that an area of the floor on the upper level which we could all have sworn was an open hole the other night has been filled in. we debate amongst ourselves about this, since it had been a big part of the issues with the previous gigs of the last few days (noise issues, etc). eventually, someone decides to test it out by climbing over the bannister which blocks off this part of the floor. and prompty falls straight through, down one level onto their arse.
the venue staff are instantly over to this guy, and are freaking the fuck out, thinking that the ceiling has fallen down ON TOP of this guy. he assures them (and us, in all honesty) that he's fine, and we get the fuck out of there before they realise he's sitting on top of a pile of floor, not under a pile of ceiling.
then we go and have chinese food & get wasted.
flaky lofi gigs rule.
-
user_4641
Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert Wembly Stadium 1991. Where else could you see Guns and Roses and Liza Minelli on the same stage?
Eddi Reader - Celtic Connections 1996. She has a fantastic voice.
The Martyn Bennett Tribute - Celtic Connections 1996 Sadly missed and died too young.
Martyn Bennett 1971 - 2005
http://www.martynbennett.com/" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;
Around 1991 there was a VERY heavy German rock band I saw in Edinburgh with two of my mates who were fans of some really hard music at that time. It was memorable because, as the German lead singer came on, he said (to the Scottish Crowd) :
"Hallo England"
Which was recieved with hostile reaction to a bemused frontman, who was animatedly accosted by the guitarist, before he shouted,
"Ah sorry, Hallo Scotland"
The evening got better when a guy managed to get on stage, and hotly pursued by security, scaled the spinal tap-esque p.a system.
He proceeded to jump off the pa tower and 'slam-dive' the crowd.
It was like the parting of the red sea as this guy fell what must've been about 20 feet into a crowd that simultaneously took one step back and let him hit the floor. He 'bounced' as he landed and was hurriedly attended to by several paramedics who took him away.#
Didnt like the band at all, -but it was memorable.
Eddi Reader - Celtic Connections 1996. She has a fantastic voice.
The Martyn Bennett Tribute - Celtic Connections 1996 Sadly missed and died too young.
Martyn Bennett 1971 - 2005
http://www.martynbennett.com/" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;
Around 1991 there was a VERY heavy German rock band I saw in Edinburgh with two of my mates who were fans of some really hard music at that time. It was memorable because, as the German lead singer came on, he said (to the Scottish Crowd) :
"Hallo England"
Which was recieved with hostile reaction to a bemused frontman, who was animatedly accosted by the guitarist, before he shouted,
"Ah sorry, Hallo Scotland"
The evening got better when a guy managed to get on stage, and hotly pursued by security, scaled the spinal tap-esque p.a system.
He proceeded to jump off the pa tower and 'slam-dive' the crowd.
It was like the parting of the red sea as this guy fell what must've been about 20 feet into a crowd that simultaneously took one step back and let him hit the floor. He 'bounced' as he landed and was hurriedly attended to by several paramedics who took him away.#
Didnt like the band at all, -but it was memorable.
heh, this reminded me of one:RobGordon wrote:Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert Wembly Stadium 1991. Where else could you see Guns and Roses and Liza Minelli on the same stage?
in college, I worked one summer (1986) for the company running the festivities for the 200th anniversary celebration for the Statue of Liberty. for most of the time, this involved my being a walking messenger between the NY Coliseum and 33th and Park Avenue, pocketing the subway tokens they gave me and walking fast enough to make it in roughly the same time. but once the week of the festivities came, I got a bit more responsibility. one of the events was an all-star concert in Liberty State Park, which was nationally televised, and I was in charge of the photographer pit, making sure they didn't go outside where they were supposed to be.
I can't find a full schedule online, but there were a bunch of heavy hitters, Johnny Cash, Whitney Houston, John Denver. the audience was in a big field, all sitting down on their respective blankets, all pretty mellow. so finally they go to the last commercial break, and all of these state troopers come out of nowhere and form lines in front of the stage. I'm thinking "why is this happening now, we've already had a bunch of big stars, who's coming up that they need to do this now?".
then the one, the only, the legendary Barry Manilow hits the stage. and the crazy thing is they actually needed the police, because all these hefty middle-aged women charged the stage, screaming and yelling for their hero. I can't remember a thing about the music, sadly including Johnny Cash, but that scene was very memorable.
last two posts made me think of this recent post on daniel menche's blog: http://danielmenche.blogspot.com/2007/0 ... organ.html" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;
myself, the only arena show i've seen worth mentioning was the hard knock life tour. hip hop shows have a well deserved reputation for being half-assed, but these guys really put on a show, especially DMX. also on an arena note, quite jealous my wife got to see britney spears in her prime - and got paid for it as she was an escort for the community center she worked at.
myself, the only arena show i've seen worth mentioning was the hard knock life tour. hip hop shows have a well deserved reputation for being half-assed, but these guys really put on a show, especially DMX. also on an arena note, quite jealous my wife got to see britney spears in her prime - and got paid for it as she was an escort for the community center she worked at.