i think i saw warhol there.

one of the few bands that morgan and agree on is broadcast. to me they are one of the most interesting groups around today. they have a style and sonic structure that i appreciate. they draw influences from all over, library and field recording, vintage electronica, and sixties krautrock to name a few. i’ve seen them live several times so i knew this was a show not to skip, and i wanted to make sure morgan got a chance to finally see the. the sixties log cabiny basement of the doug fir was the perfect venue.

the reviews of show’s i’ve been reading have said that the openers kind of stole broadcast’s thunder, i didn’t find that the case. the selmanaires played first and then were the back-up band for atlas sound. i thought they were both fine, just a tad boring and not my kind of music. i don’t think they were a good choice for opening for broadcast, at least not at this point in their career. atlas sound’s set did have two good surprises, first trish (from broadcast) came out and sang with them, then for the last song laetitia sadier (from stereolab) joined them. these guest vocals brought some energy, something atlas sound didn’t have.

broadcast’s current direction is into a more sonic collage territory, a lot less structured and groovy than their previous sounds. they opened the show with a twenty-minute noisy psych-out jam, that wouldn’t have been out-of-place as a soundtrack to a party at andy warhol’s factory.

after the sound piece they moved into a mix of the poppier early songs and the collage sounds off the recent release, broadcast and the focus group investigate the witch cults of radio age. there was definitely a contrast between the two styles, but they melded well. i love the new direction, it is exciting to see them being fearless.

trish and james helmed two tables of mixing boards, samplers, a laptop,  and a  moog or korg (sorry don’t remember which). a couple of times trish picked up a small string instrument, i have no clue what it was though.

i could tell that something was bothering them about the show, probably something to do with the sound on their end, but that didn’t stop them. by the time broadcast’s set was over, i was so impressed. while a totally different experience than the other times i saw them, it was still broadcast, and it’s inspiring to see a group make music that come off as being part of them.

here’s excerpts from a recent wire interview with broadcast, it’s excellent an read.

cups of tea are a clock.

years ago josh gave me a copy of the raincoats 1979 debut album. i was immediately enthralled by it and had one of those “why have i never listened to them before?” moments. the raincoats are right up my post-punk alley, i quickly acquired as much of their material i could.

despite them being somewhat active in recent years i had written off my chances of every seeing them live. when i heard that the raincoats were coming to portland as one of the four planned u.s. shows i was a little dumbfounded. also, i couldn’t believe that they were going to be playing a tiny venue, holocene.

the current line up of the raincoats is remarkably close to the original.  the original raincoats,  ana da silva (vocals and guitar) and  gina birch (bass and vocals), were joined by anne wood (violin) around 1996. they have gone through a string of drummers and for this tour it was vice cooler, who did an excellent job.not surprisingly the set list was mainly off their first couple of albums, and a couple from the most recent (1996’s looking in the shadows ). they knew what people wanted to hear and they delivered. the songs still  sound just as fresh and relevant today, not showing their 20+ years of age at all.the women of the raincoats were so glad to be playing, telling stories and thanking everyone multiple times.they were frenetic whilst playing, lots of jumping, rocking and dancing. they showed no sign of fatigue, i think they could have played all night. i was eagerly waiting for this, i had such high hopes for it and wasn’t let down. they played a high energy, fast paced set, at times i couldn’t believe they are pushing 50.i’m so glad that the raincoats came to town, and hope to see them again someday. as a bonus i scored a limited edition show poster that is totally frameworthy, thankfully morgan agrees, so look for it on our walls in the future.

this was my first show with my new camera that i am still figuring out how to use properly, so far i love it, i just need to master it.

one night i saw boobs.

still playing catch up, i can’t believe it’s been three weeks since i went to see erase errata and the again reformed team dresch. i was really excited for this show i just knew it was going to a lot of fun. erase errata i’ve seen four or five times and always had a great time. years ago i saw team dresch and remember them being awesome. i had faith that even though neither of them have been particularly active for the last couple of years, they would be in solid form.

i like rotture as a venue. it’s a good size and has a good outside balcony (usually full of smokers). i was glad to see that they raised the stage, seeing was a problem sometimes. the crowd was elated and possibly one of the friendliest crowds i’ve experienced since moving to portland. the first two bands were good and well received, but i can’t remember a thing about them.

when erase errata came on it was just like old times again. the reason i love erase errata is because they have a sound and spirit that is akin to the great post punk/no wave bands; the pop group, the slits, the index (who are really proto and way ahead of their time), come on, devo, the raincoats. it’s a sound i’ve always connected to. erase errata played kind of a greatest hits show, energy was high, and they sounded as tight as ever. it was one their best shows i’ve seen. i really got my twitch on, and so did beth ditto, who was standing next to me. sadly there were no new songs or promise of a new album.

team dresch had been in the crowd all night so it wasn’t a big deal when they took the stage no one paid attention until they started playing. they also stuck to the greatest hits format, and the crowd knew every word.  my favorite songs were alway the kaia ones, so i was glad that i was standing next to her. they rocked it like it was still 1997. some of the women in the crowd were so excited they took there shirts off and i got to see boobies for the first time in a while. including those of jenny hoyston, the lead singer of erase errrata, she had replaced beth ditto next to me.

when the show ended, sometime after one a.m., i was in such a great mood that i had a very enjoyable bike ride home.

they’ve come a long way.

i had some apprehension about going to cocorosie, the last time i saw them i was not very happy about the show. they had a full band and a beatboxer with them. the beatboxer was distracting, and too loud in the mix. the band was sloppy, they never seemed to get it together and the show was a mess. in the end i decided to go, it helped that i like the aladdin theater. i was also lucky enough to have don accompany me.

when don and i got to the aladdin  we were struck by the dress of the crowd, there were a lot of creative outfits. cocorosie seems to have accumulated and interesting collection of fans. we settled into some seats mid way through the opening act, katie stelmanis. they had an electro riot grrl sound, think sleater-kinney working with neu!. i enjoyed them. no need to own the records, but i would see them again.

as the time for cocorosie to come out came near, the sold out crowd headed toward the stage. don and i abandoned our seats and moved several rows up and had and excellent view. i could already feel that it was going to be a good show. the crowd seemed to be in a great mood, no matter what everyone was going to leave happy. the venue darkened and cocorosie walked on stage. at first it was just bianca and sierra, playing on a near black stage. they played two songs,  i couldn’t tell you the names. they were operatic and reminded me of the first time i saw them. piano, modified toy samples and vocals. it was fantastic, and a great way to start the show.

the band, piano, bass and beatboxer, have a name but i don’t remember it. i’m pretty sure the beatboxer’s name is spleen. sierra was on the piano or harp, bianca manned a station of modified toys and samplers. they both contributed their own style of vocals, sierra’s operatic vocal skills sounded fantastic and filled the hall, bianca’s squeaky childlike hip-hop influenced cadence was just creepy enough. the acoustics of the aladdin really worked for them,  to me the aladdin always contributes a “church hall” effect.

i couldn’t even come close to a set list. i recognised quite a few of the songs, i’ve never memorized coocrosie’s song titles. the new songs are stunning, and a great new direction for them. they’re getting a lot clearer in their vision of hip hop/opera/minimalist avant-garde. the current band set up is the best i’ve seen of them. the beatboxer was remarkable, he added such texture and rhythm, without ever being obtrusive. he performed a solo in one song that floored the crowd, it took about thirty seconds for the applause to start. the other members of the band were always on point with the rest, talented guys. they just didn’t stand out. for a group as creative as coocrosie, i was let down by the visuals. the lighting was competent, but the video was a collection of short clips only lasting 15-20 minutes total, projected on a screen most of the time. we probably watched the loop 5 or six times.

we left that night totally in love with cocorosie. and like i thought everyone left happy.

hippie stank.

the t:ba festival has come and gone. and as in the past i didn’t go to anywhere near as many events as i wanted, in fact i only made it to three. one of these years i’m gonna have to invest in an all access pass.

i started with opening night at the works. this year the works was held at washington high school, which has been empty since the eighties.

two floors of classrooms were used as galleries, each focusing on one artist’s installations. for the most part, the installations seemed a little slipshod to me. even after i read the descriptions, i still felt like they were just not refined enough. a couple of the rooms had some good imagery (stephen slappe and johanna ketola), but didn’t have any direction or cohesiveness. the only one i really liked was ethan rose’s sound piece made up a modified music boxes. it was the only one that felt like it fully realised.

gang gang dance capped off the night fantastically. their brand of tribal noise dance jams was well suited for the high school auditorium. if only the shirtless hippy behind me didn’t reek of hippie sweat. also i must be getting old because i just don’t find moshing and crowd surfing appropriate at anytime. it’s not fun getting kicked in the head.

i went to see a hitoshi toyoda silent slide show titled spoonful river. the presentation took place on the lawn of washington high school. it was a collection of images taking place over a year, which hitoshi spent half in new york and the other half traveling japan. there was plenty of beautiful imagery; insects, plants, city scapes, small villages, etc. i couldn’t help looking for a narrative or a connective thread, but i couldn’t find one. what i didn’t understand was the inclusion of pictures of family and friends. i understand that they were part of the year, but it took the presentation into a vacation slide show direction. either it needs time to be refined, or i need some one to explain it to me.

on a grey sunday afternoon i went to sound artist ethan rose’s live installation with local folkie laura gibson and video artist ryan jeffery. they performed in the windows of the pdx contemporary gallery, with the manipulated sounds broadcast on the sidewalk where the crowd watched, listened and stopped traffic. I stayed for three of the four hours, during that time it rained a bit and we experienced a beautiful sunset. ethan rose sat behind a mixing board and a couple of laptops most of the time. laura gibson switched between sitting in front of ethan and standing in the window. every time she moved a different string instrument was used. ethan manipulated the sound creating a soundtrack for urban nature.

i wasn’t too impressed with the video work. mainly composed of nature collage, it worked well with the sound, just not too original. it was also unfortunate that it was barely visible until it got dark.

i don’t know if i’ll still be in portland for next year’s t:ba festival. i’m sure it would be worth traveling back here for.

give your leaders each a gun and then let them fight it out themselves.

awhile back radiohead announced they wouldn’t be release a full album for a while. instead they’re going to do a series of singles, eps, and whatever else they think up. here’s a round up of what they’ve done so far.

“these are my twisted words”

“these are my twisted words” is available free on w.a.s.t.e., there no reason you shouldn’t have this song. it’s classic guitar based radiohead, sounds like a track left off in rainbows. i like how the lyrics don’t start until halfway through the song, setting up the feeling of longing that the words describes.

“harry patch (in memory of)”

“harry patch (in memory of)” was written for the last surviving british soldier from the first world war, and was recorded a few weeks before harry patch’s death in late july. the opening strings are a new direction for radiohead, i hope they continue to explore that. jonny greenwood is really developing his modern composition style. this song is available for purchase on w.a.s.t.e. and the proceeds go to royal british legion, an organization that aids british veterans and their families.

here’s what thom has said about harry patch.

i had heard a very emotional interview with him a few years ago on the today program on radio4. the way he talked about war had a profound effect on me…..i very much hope the song does justice to his memory as the last survivor. it would be very easy for our generation to forget the true horror of war, without the likes of harry to remind us. i hope we do not forget. as harry himself said: “irrespective of the uniforms we wore, we were all victims”.

“feeling pulled apart by horses”

“feeling pulled apart by horses” is actually and older radiohead song that used to get played live as “reckoner”. “reckoner” was turned into a completely different song on in rainbows. thom and jonny have reworked the song and released as a thom solo 12″. “pulled apart” has the feel of a kid a b-side.

“the hollow earth”

“the hollow earth” is the b-side to “feeling apart by horses”. it’s a track that came out the eraser sessions, thom felt it needed some more time to gestate. if has a heavy autechre and dubstep influence, which works well with thom’s vocals.

“all for the best”

“all for the best” is another thom solo track that appears on a tribute album to mark mulcahy, ciao my shining star. mark mulcahy was the lead singer of connecticut’s little band that could, miracle legion. i’m not in love with this track, i was never a miracle legion fan. thom’s version is good, but it doesn’t surprise me.

look at what you’ve done to me.

poor positive negativity, i’ve been ignoring you a bit. since the start of my new job description and the work blog that comes with it, i have been working a lot more. also i’ve been trying to eek out the last bit of summer fun with outside activities, t:ba events, movies and general socializing.

i’m well into the ‘c’s of my a-z project, today i listened to eight different versions of “crazy in love”. most by antony & the johnsons, some by beyonce. they are both equally great and i could have listened to many more versions easily.

beyonce

antony & the johnsons.

win or lose, it don’t tell the tale.

i forget now which documentary had the malvina reynolds’ song “little boxes”, i do remember  filing it in my memory banks. it took me a little while to remember to track it down. i got sings the truth a couple of weeks ago, it kind of blows me away. malvina’s use symbolism and writing was light years ahead of her time. “little boxes” is a statement on suburban conformity, and her song “the new restaurant” is about the harmful effects of food industrialization on society. she also covered the dangers of nuclear war (“what have they done to the rain?”), the stupidity of violent racism (“battle of maxton field”), and poverty (“bitter rain”). this is the kind of album i want to copy for all my friends, it’s incredible.

“little boxes” a video someone made of a project.

“the new restaurant”

the a’s.

i started a project, listening the songs (close to 20,000) on my ipod in alphabetical order. someone i follow on twitter inspired this, i can’t remember who, and i am to lazy to read through all the twitters to find out. i started out only doing it at work and on my bike rides to and from, a couple of weeks ago i committed full time. i have only taken breaks when i’m at home and wanted to listen to a certain album or song.

it took me close to three weeks to get through all the ‘a’ songs. including 13 versions of antony & the johnson’s “another world”, and the entire soundtrack to philip glass’s einstein on the beach (all songs start with “act”)  i was surprised by how well it all flows together, noise and drone fits nicely alongside musicals and pop. i’ll post about every letter and comment on some of the songs, that popped out or really worked at the moment i heard them.

a-a-a o-o-o eh-eh-eh ee-ee-ee 00-00-00 - vladimir martynov

this was the first song that played, it’s a avant garde choral piece by a russian composer vladimir martynov. it was a great way to start, and set a good tone.

all or nothing at all – jimmy scott

jimmy scott is a big talent with a delicate yet grand voice. coming on after sean paul and the small faces, “all or nothing at all”, it felt like it was my first time hearing jimmy scott all over.

american life (featuring missy elliot) (american dream remix) – madonna

while the regular version of madonna’s “american life” comes off like the the whinings of a spoiled rich girl. mix up the beat a little and add a guest spot by missy elliot, it turns into a cheesy pop classic.

angry (featuring tippi irie) – the bug

“angry” came on while i was riding home one day. my bike ride home takes me through the pearl neighborhood of downtown portland. the pearl is full of people shopping and cars driving stupidly slow, this song about injustice and poverty was fitting in my bizarro world. it was followed by “angry inch” from Hedwig, which also seemed right.

army of me – liars

“army of me” is one of my less favorite bjork songs, the liars have made it into a masterpeice of distorted noise rock.

i’m into the ‘bi’ section of the b’s at the moment, is should be at least another week till i’m out of the b’s.

self defense against the present.

i’ve been busy lately so i’m a little behind on my posting.

last week thom yorke performed a rare solo show at the latitude festival in suffolk, england. he premiered a new song called “present tense”  since he played both radiohead songs and songs off the eraser, it is not clear where this song may go. my theory is that it will end up on the next radiohead album, which i hear they are working on now. it is hard to tell where this song will end up, or how it will sound when recorded. radiohead have been known to play songs for years, working on them till they are how they should be.

so here it is, thom yorke and “present tense”.

at the moment i think it’s ok, the sound quality is off so that might be part of it. the lyrics, from what i understand, are strong, continuing in the personal vein of in rainbows. i think it still needs some fleshing out.