Gig review roundup - Part 1: James Murphy's electronic circus and the Adventures of the Sleepiest Icelander in London

Many things have happened over the last while, several of them gig related! In the interests of not taxing the magical gnomes that run the internet too hard, I'm splitting them into 2 sections. First up, LCD Soundsystem and Seabear!


LCD Soundsystem


Y'know, there's something to be said for small bands, and small gigs. Small bands tend to be immediate: no wibbling around with endless set-ups and checks. I was thinking this as LCD were stopped the show for the second time to poke at various medical looking monitors and twiddle dials - the electronica equivalent of making sure your hair is perfectly tussled and your jeans tight enough! James Murphy is a veteran of the scene, and it really showed in his attitude. This was a dude not to be flustered by anything the world could throw at him - technical failures were met with a slight shrug and a casual amble over to fix things, and when things weren't exactly right, he just re-started the song so they were. After what seemed like an age they finally got into the swing of it, and god damn was it worth it!


Murphy has stated several times that this would be LCD's last album, so this was something of a swansong for the band - not that you could tell in the nonchalant attitude of the members. Throwing out hits like so much candy, LCD went through an equal measure of new songs and classics. It seemed though that most people were here for the old stuff - lead single "Drunk Girls" was met with cheers and screams, but the reaction seemed almost muted for that off the new album. Or perhaps that was just because the crowd went absolutely nuts every time a song off the first two albums came on. Starting with not one, but two renditions of "Us vs. Them", Murphy and crew headed though a large portion of Sound of Silver, arguably their best album. "All My Friends" stole my heart, and "Someone Great" was given a poignant turn when Murphy dedicated it to several fans who had lost loved ones recently - a surprisingly tender moment that endeared the guy to me. As the band wound down, then came the moment most people had been waiting for - the familiar start of "Daft Punk is playing in my house" - a fantastic version that deafened just about everyone in the place! But stealing the show completely was the final song of the night, a 10-minute rendition of 'New York I love you, but you're bringing me down" that rose like a storm through the whole venue - the perfect way to end a gig!


Given Murphy's background as a producer, it's unsurprising that the sound was immaculate. Heck it should have been - he spent 1/2 the show wandering away from the mike twiddling dials! The visuals were also very well presented - there was a hefty lighting rig at the back throwing out blinding patterns, a laser light-show making it feel kinda like a rave, and even a glitterball! (yay!). The one black mark against the gig would probably have been the lack of involvement with the other members - i guess it's the price to pay for being tied behind hefty electronics, but the band weren't really lively, and mostly just seemed content to put their heads down and get on with it. But when they're putting out music like that, I'm really in no position to complain!


Seabear


If LCD was the pinnacle of high-maintenance, high-profile gigs, then it's hard to imagine a more polar opposite than Icelandic troupe Seabear, seen upstairs in the Garage in Camden. I reckon there were probably no more that 100-150 people there in total, maybe less. It felt very exclusive - like some fabled hipster Shangri-La only known by the select few. The placid blue lighting and atmospheric music definitely aided that particular image - I felt my indie cred rising just walking into the joint! Taking the stage, the first thing that hit me was how big the band were - 7 members crammed onto a tiny stage that felt the same size as a bus-stop! I spent the entire gig waiting for one of them to accidentally knock the others out with a mistimed bass swing, but it never happened. They must have practised alot!


Anyway, the music. Heading into this gig, I did idly wonder how loud they would be - bands have a tendency to ratchet it up a few notches live, but Seabear are so quiet anyway -  I didn't know if it would make a difference. They really surprised me though - they knew how to rock out! Granted, this wasn't exactly Slayer, but there were definitely some sneaky electric guitar solos thrown in when no-one was looking, and the more upbeat songs like "Softship" really benefited from the extra umph! Special mention has to be given to the violinist - "Arms" was the first song I heard of them, and it was the violin that really endeared me to them. Seeing them live made me realise just how fantastic her playing is - it really pulled the band together, and baring the vocals, was the stand-out element of the band. The horn and trumpet played a surprisingly muted part, as did the electric guitar (apart from a couple of excellent solos!); in fact, the whole band kinda seemed to be asleep! I don't mean that in a bad way (sorta), but they really did seem to be suffering from lack of sleep - lead singer Sindri Sigfússon (thank you Wiki!) kept closing his eyes like he was trying to catch quick naps in between lines, and I'm pretty sure the brass player did nod off for a brief period! Either that or they were ill - I found out that they actually had to cancel the next show, so it's quite possible! 


Finally, it would be terribly remiss of me not to mention the opening band. Seabear are one of those bands that like to support themselves it seems - their keyboardist Sóley Stefánsdóttir had just put out her solo EP, so she performed as the opener, backed by a few members of the main band. Though her stuff was very good, it was possibly a bit too laid back for a live gig - I very nearly fell asleep during it! Still, I have to take my hat off to anyone with the courage to break away from a band and do their own thing, and she's definitely doing it well!

Panda panda panda panda pan-panda!

I just got back from a rather excellent night watching Deerhoof down at the Scala. This was something of a new experience for me - though I know of the band, I honestly hadn't listened to much of their stuff - the little I'd listened to seemed cool, but I couldn't name more than a handful on songs. Anywho, I was searching for something to cheer myself up, and it seemed like a fun way to pass and evening - turns out I was totally correct! So, I'm gonna try and say some stuff about what I just heard - though it's gonna be a trifle light on details, given my general unfamiliarity with the band...

Fronted by the truly miniscule vocalist/bassist Satomi Matsuzaki, Deerhoof are rather an odd mashup of various different generes. Listening to them tonight, I heard pop, heavy rock, a touch of metal, free improv jazz, and even blues rock a la the Rolling Stones. So yeah, pretty much everything you can think of rolled into one. And you know what, it works! It admittedly took a little while to get into the swing of things - they have an extremely choppy style of playing, with very little structure to the songs - tunes can go from quiet and melodic one moment to completely over the top blasting rock the next with nary a warning. It makes listening to them highly disconcerting - you're never entirely sure where songs are going to go next - whether they are going to bring in some sort of chorus, or wander off into a bass-led jam for a few minutes.

But after a few songs I just switched the analytical bit of my brain off, and just went with the flow, and it was awesome! There is a real disarming charm about the whole band - though the lead singer seems rather sombre and serious, it's hard to take anyone seriously when they're singing about sunflowers or pandas, or pretending her bass (using a Hofner Violin "Beatle" bass - always a bonus!) is an aeroplane! The whole band had a rather fantastic stage presence - whether they were going mental with instruments, climbing the scaffolding or just raising guitar feedback to an artform!

It would be terribly remiss of me not to mention the drummer. Simply put, he is one of the most orgasmic drummers I've even seen play. Seriously - he has a love for the drums that's probably illegal in most US states! Dude spent the entire time laying into his kit with a massive half-crazed grin on his face, coordinating the time and key changes with dramatic flourishes that required one arse-load of a lot of skill. He was great fun to watch, and seemed to be the driving force behind the band - he did most of the talking between songs, and you got the feeling that even though Matsuzaki was up front, he was the real power behind the band.

If it seems like I've been hazy on the actual songs themselves, it's cause they seemed less seperate songs, and more segments for the band to jam through. Even the singing was not really distinct in any way - apart from the occasional moment of clarity, Matsuzaki uses her voice mainly as another instrument to the noise, making high-pitched beeps or single-phrase repetition to add texture to the rest of the band. Generally though, they were a fantasic band to see live, and one I'd recommend if you get the chance. Just turn your brain off, kick back and enjoy the noise!

J

p.s - if you were wondering where in the world the title comes from, it's taken from one of their songs - I'll throw a linkie-type thing up here...

Panda!

it's actually a pretty good example of their songs - disjointed segments, silly lyrics and awesome spazz-out drumming!

p.p.s - special props to the support act, a french band called 'Anabel's Poppy Day', who had some rather fun wierdo pop, which I had a blast with, despite the lead singer sounding like Betty Boop with a very bad headcold!

The Best Party Ever (again)

So, I just got back from seeing The Boy Least Likely To at Cargo in London. In short, an absolutely stonking gig. Here's the long version...

I've never been to Cargo before, but it's one of those tiny backroom venues of which London seems to have hundreds. This one was especially small, but it suited the band's sound perfectly, and it allowed everyone to get close to the band and still bounce around like mad things. While the band was setting up a couple of the members came on stage with armfuls of balloons and started throwing them at the audience - starting off a massive balloon fight that went on well into the set!

When they finally took the stage, they played a healthy mix of stuff off the new album, favourites from the old and a couple of b-sides and a storming cover of faith - "written by some guy a few years ago, but made famous by us!" This one was especially good since the guitarist and drummer seemed in cahoots, and kept hijacking the song to play 'smoke on the water' at every possible opportunity. They seemed to have kicked all the songs up a notch, and even the quiet 'my tiger my heart' was sung faster and with a lot more bite than the album version - I think I prefered the slower version, but it worked really well with every other song on the setlist.

The band seemed to be having a whale of a time up on stage - main dude Jef was bouncing around like a Tigger and one of the lasses had even made cake that she was dolling out to people (and she'd brought a cheese sandwich for herself!) I've been to gigs where the bands don't really seem into thier music or the performance (Athlete during the Tourist tour comes to mind) but this was different - every member of the band seemed to be truely loving being up on stage, and it really came across in thier performance.

So yeah, a fantasic gig from a truely talented band. Loved 'em!

J