MOG - oharris69's Posts

Idioteque: Lollapalooza, Chicago IL Aug 1-3, 2008

oharris69 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 17:02:37 GMT

I'll get the gripes off my chest to start with: when you host a world-class concert with one of the best bands around graciously headlining Day 1, please remember to fix the mid-field speaker row for those who don't want to fight off 69,999 other punters for a front-of-mixing-desk location!!! Had a nice center spot scoped out directly behind said speakers, but as Bloc Party finished their always-lively set, they went off - then on - and off again, never to return. Radiohead was thus rendered as am impressive light-show with a mono transistor radio hidden behind a hedge with the bastard neighbours lawnmower going at 8am Sunday morning... Enough of that. Cat Power kicked off my 2008 Lolla experience around 5pm on a steamy Friday, and pretty much delivered an outdoor version of her "Jukebox" album as seen mid-winter here in Chi-Town, albeit without the small-venue intensity. I would have appreciated more Chan-authored songs than just "Metal Heart" (she covered herself, so to speak) like "Love & Communication", but that's a personal request. Something was lost in translation Friday. Moving across Grant Park past Buckingham fountain to grab grub'n'piss and head towards the main stage for Radiohead, it was obvious most of the Friday crowd were there for one thing - and had already staked their claim to turf. It was 2 hours before kickoff, no competing act at the other end, and the punters were already wading through the hot'n'sweaty crowd aiming for the front. I was happy with my afore-mentioned spot (well, apart from the lack of speakerage!) and it was right about sunset when Thom and the lads from Oxford hit the stage with a rollicking rendition of "15 Steps" from last album "In Rainbows" (the entire album was played during the evening) and right into "OK Computer" opening track "Airbag", which went down a treat, followed by "There There" from "Hail To The Thief", pummelled along with percussion. I must have seen Radiohead a good dozen times since the "OK Computer" tour back home in Auckland NZ in 1998, with highlights definitely being the shows at Red Rocks and Bonnaroo, where Justin and I had the pleasure of chatting with them briefly after the show, a couple of years after Neil Finn co-opted their rhythm section for his "7 Worlds Collide" concerts in 2001. Thom was supposedly a tad under the weather - a "secret" concert scheduled the night before at the Chicago Theatre had to be cancelled - but this wasn't apparent from the energy and enthusiasm on display through the 2 dozen songs played over the course of 2 hours, with generous helpings from both "Kid A" and "OK Computer", culminating in the triple-whammy of "Optimistic", "2+2=5" and "Idioteque". Staggering set, pity about the speaker stacks...

I'm afraid it will have to be Top 5's for 2007...

oharris69 — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 22:30:50 GMT

It seems to have been one of those years where either:

a) I haven't given enough of a toss or there been sufficient quality new releases i've been turned onto to buy/check out and/or been sufficiently taken with it, or...

b) quality reissues/listening to old faves on good ol' vinyl have dominated my listening for one reason or another.

I hear great individual songs, download, then faithfully check out the album only to end up disappointed and less 15 bucks. Radiohead was a "buy without listen" obvious choice that didn't disappoint, likewise with PJ Harvey on the strenght of hearing a single track.

The 1900s from Chicago were "my" discovery of the year, thanks to Chicago Public Radio's weekly Sound Opinions show, and live they reinforced my view as well as reminded me of the halcyon days of NZ alternative music back in the 80's and 90's of bands like the Able Tasmans, Straightjacket Fits and more recently Goldenhorse.

The Kings of Leon delivered another solid album that's still growing on me, and Liam Finn overshadowed Dad's Crowded House album with his first post-Betchadupa solo effort. Choice mate!

Top 5+1 Albums:

1900s - Cold & Kind: great melodic psychedelic pop from Chicago, very reminiscent of the Able Tasmans in some ways, The Zombies in others, and Goldenhorse for good measure.

PJ Harvey - White Chalk: Polly switches from guitar to piano, but the feeling remains...

Kings Of Leon - Because of the Times: solid 3rd album from the Tennessee family, just as incendiary live as the earlier material and dealing with more mature issues along the way.

LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver: gets to me like Moby's "Play" did back in the 90's. Melodic, pumping, lyrical, great.

Liam Finn - I'll Be Lightning: great live in concert solo, Finn the Younger delivers in abundance in studio. "Second Chance" song of the year in New Zealand.

Radiohead - In Rainbows: it's not OK Computer 2, but elicits the disparate moods in a cohesive manner from previous albums in a way only Radiohead could, yet leaves room for albums to come...

Top 5 Reissues:

Joy Division - Closer Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures Gram Parsons & The Flying Burrito Brothers - Live at the Avalon Ballroom, SF Split Enz - The Rootin Tootin Luton Tapes Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth

Top 5 Gigs:

1900s - The Metro, Chicago Joanna Newsom & Milwaukee Symphony - Pabst Theatre, Milwaukee Patti Smith - Lollapalooza, Chicago Elvis Costello & The Attractions - House of Blues, Chicago Kings of Leon - Riviera Theatre, Chicago

"The Wild, The Beautiful & The Damned!"

oharris69 — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:10:48 GMT

FRI NOV.30: Chicago IL

CAD: Nov. 30th, 2007: 7-10PM: 1837 S. Halsted

"The Wild, The Beautiful, & The Damned!"

One Night Only - A Photo Exhibition of the 70's Bay Area Music Scene by LARRY SCHORR

Larry Schorr was an integral part of the music scene in 1970's San Francisco Bay Area, both as a fan and participant. Larry roomed withJello Biafra (Dead Kennedys) when Jello was still Eric Boucher from Boulder and thinking of calling himself 'Occupant'.

On 35mm film, Larry caught history in the making front-row at the final Sex Pistols show, and perhaps the first ever Dead Kennedys show.

Through his lens, he captured early and even first US tours from Blondie, The Buzzcocks, The Damned, The Police, The Ramones, Elvis Costello, Peter Gabriel and Patti Smith, along with already legendary artists such as Pink Floyd, Genesis, Talking Heads and Thin Lizzy.

This first ever showing of the "The Wild, The Beautiful, & The Damned!" collection higlights a plethora of Punk, Prog and Rock artists of the time and place and will be exhibited one night only in Chicago:

Nov. 30th, 2007: 7-10PM: 1837 S. Halsted

Music of the times and complimentary food and drink provided!

Stevie Jams on!

oharris69 — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 18:12:18 GMT

So pleased to hear Stevie Wonder is doing a full tour, not just a 1 or 2-song tribute appearance. Missed him back home in NZ in 1986 when rain forced a cancellation - he played a small city club that night unannounced and blew the crowd away. Although I can live without pretty much anything after 1980's "Hotter Than July", even a 10th of what preceded it is timeless. I can only imagine (but hope to see!) live(ly) renditions of "As", "Higher Ground", Sir Duke", and countless others, including his tribute to the late Mr Marley, as seen here...

Punk Wars #9 #9 #9... Lucky Last

oharris69 — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 17:58:08 GMT

If it wasn't for Malcolm Owen of John Peel faves The Ruts taking the ambiguous title of this lost classic literally, they may have lasted more than an album and collection of singles/out-takes, but smack did him in criminally young. This clip is surely a treasure - if you're in a rut, you've gotta get out of it...

Punk Wars #8" Do You Remember?

oharris69 — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:13:47 GMT

...being the translation of the Swedish board game that Husker Du took their name from - along with Jello and co. in the Dead Kennedys, my fave US punk band. The b'stards broke up in the late 80's before ever touring NZ as promised...

Punk Wars: #7 "The Saints Are Coming!"

oharris69 — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:10:26 GMT

IMHO, U2 and GD can eat dags compared to The Skids!!!

RIP Stuart...

Punk Wars #6: Poly Wanna Cracker!

oharris69 — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:03:41 GMT

"Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard - but I think: OH BONDAGE, UP YOURS!" Poly Styrene, Lora Logic and co came out of late 70's UK with 1 classic album "Germfree Adolescents" - more a collection of singles than anything - and a couple of additional singles to boot, including the song they are probably best-remembered for, as the opening to my post goes...

Punk Wars #5: Oz Rawk

oharris69 — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 23:59:28 GMT

They may be Aussies (nobody's perfect!) but their seminal mid 70's track "I'm Stranded" arguably kicked off the anti-phenom known as Punk earlier than both the Damned and the Sex Pistols. Ironically, they expanded their horizons on their 2nd album "Eternally Yours"- Ed Kuepper being a huge influence here - by including a brass section and simultaneously losing Punk "cred" and alienating critics alike - but a classic!

Punk Wars #4: NZ-Wave!

oharris69 — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 23:49:52 GMT

OK - here's a stab (2, actually!) of patriotism from me in the form of The Suburban Reptiles, produced by and featuring none other than ex-Split Enz-er Phil Judd, and early Chris Knox (Tall Dwarfs) in Toy Love - both seminal late 70's/early 80's Kiwi music with attitude. Both are only presently available on the Flying Nun compilation CD "AK79" from http://www.marbecks.co.nz Enjoy!

Miss Conceptions

oharris69 — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 22:43:10 GMT

So there I was, on another flight to or from Chicago to where-ever, and I notice the young guy with tat-covered arms next to me with an identical black 5G iPod, also with superior-than-standard 'phones in-ear. I'm listening (again) to Radioheads incredible Bonnaroo show from 2006 (filmed for DVD, longest show to date, 6 new songs, etc) while he's flicking through his library, selecting song by song. I couldn't help but be surprised - pleasantly - by this kid's taste, who I fully expected to be listening to some metal band I had never heard of, as he rolled through Public Image Ltd, Bob Marley & the Wailers, to Nick Drake. We chatted briefly, swapped some recommendations - he was in the Navy and off to Florida for dive training - and I left the conversation with appreciation that people who love music can still discover "good new music" without a hope of hearing it on mainstream radio, even if it's only new to them in many cases. My recommendations were The Mint Chicks from NZ - young, fun, punky - and other fellow countrymen Fat Freddy's Drop - their debut album was the biggest selling in NZ 2 years running, over such heavyweights as the Red Hot Chili Peppers etc - and their little beaut "Wandering Eye". 4 million Kiwis and 70 million sheep can't be wrong!

Four Kicks, who's struttin' now?!

oharris69 — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:57:40 GMT

I’ve seen these baptist-belt shiz-kickers a bunch of times, but I swear their @$$es keep getting better, both in the studio and out on the road. Finally the US is taking notice to what the rest of the english-speaking world has known for years (NZ and Aussie are fave destinations) that these 3 bro’s and a cuz play solid rock’n’roll songs with lyrics both worth listening and laughing to - a la Bon Scott-era AC/DC - and have more than enough material to sustain a solid setlist night after night. As always with these guys, hard to pick faves from the set, but Caleb’s screamin’ on “Charmer” stood out, “Knocked Up” & "My Party" (also from the latest album) opened the encore set with a menacing bass, and odds’n’sods highlights for this hyped-up punteer through the sold-out gig would have be a raucous “Mollys Chambers”, a stompin’ “Four Kicks”, and the 2nd album opening double-banger “Slow Night, So Long”/”KIng of the Rodeo”. Righteous!

The Cuervo Gold, the fine Colombian...

oharris69 — Tue, 15 May 2007 19:16:40 GMT

Prior to 2000’s Grammy-winning “Two Against Nature”, few would have thought Steely Dan would reform, let alone embark on a number of tours in the intervening years between then and now, but get together they did, and tonight found the Dan at the Hard Rock Live in Orlando, in the midst of a smallish-venue Casinos’n’Clubs tour entitled “High Rollers”.

Opening with “Time Out Of Mind” from Gaucho, the band (Donald, Walter and the “Steely Dan Orchestra!”) kicked off in fine form, and didn’t let up for the next 90-odd minutes. Full setlist is posted below, but highlights included “Hey Nineteen” with a witty interlude from Fagen that segued nicely into “the Cuervo Gold, the fine Colombian...”, a fiery Kid Charlemagne” to close out the main set, and a driving “Aja” with stunning drumwork.

Both Fagen and Becker seemed to enjoy the vocal and lively crowd - the indoor Hard Rock Live facilitating this vs. an amphitheatre or stadium - and the band didn’t sound so well-rehearsed that spontaneity was abandoned, and the rawness with passion was lapped up.

The encore was 10 minutes of solid early-Dan with “My Old School” and “Bodhisattva” from Countdown to Ecstasy, both featuring blistering fretwork from Walter Becker.

Time Out of Mind Bad Sneakers Two Against Nature Janie Runaway Hey Nineteen Gaslighting Abbie Peg Caves of Altamira Monkey in Your Soul Josie Dirty Work Aja Kid Charlemagne

My Old School Bodhisattva

Elvis is in the House!

oharris69 — Thu, 10 May 2007 18:46:31 GMT

From the opening line of first song “Welcome to the Working Week” (coincidentally the 1st track of Elvis’ 1st album) the capacity-crowd at Chicago’s House Of Blues seemed to know they were in for a treat. For the following 2+ hrs, Costello and the Imposters (including original Attractions Steve Nieve and Pete Thomas on keys’n’sticks) delivered an inspiring set delving deep into the first decade of his career, no doubt due to the recent release on Rhino of “Best of Elvis Costello: The First 10 Years”, together with the 30th (!) anniversary of said 1st album “My Aim Is True”. Hard to pick standouts from the couple-odd dozen songs performed, but for me, in no particular order, they would have to include: an inspired working of “Watching The Detectives” that interpolated “Let Him Dangle” from Spike into a seamless medley (“let him have it Chris!”), a vital “Radio Radio” featuring wild Nieve-keys (actually, a highlight through the entire show!), a frenetic “Lipstick Vogue” with slashing guitar, and the encore “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding”, a sentiment more poignant by the year...

Crowded House silent no longer...

oharris69 — Tue, 01 May 2007 18:54:21 GMT

One of those oft hoped-for and long-awaited reunions that didn't seem likely to ever occur (Recurring Dreams?) - especially after the tragic loss of Paul Hester - came to pass in grand style just on sunset at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California.

Neil Finn had already been booked to play, then after a fruitful time jamming with Nick Seymour on bass, and Mark Hart filling in on guitar/keys as on "Together Alone", the search was on for a stickman, the band finally settling on Beck handyman Matt Sherrod. (sorry Willy!)

A new album is already in the can, with guest appearances/credits from longtime Finn friend and ex-Smith Johnny Marr, and is due for release July 10, but on Sunday April 29 in the 90+ degree heat it was all about the live experience. Old faves (World Where You Live, Don't Dream It's Over, Private Universe, Fall At Your Feet) were joined onstage by new tunes "Don't Stop Now" and "Silent House", the latter co-written by Neil with the Dixie Chicks, and with son Liam (Betchadupa) filling out the group on guitar and stage acrobatics, they were off on a 45min set that thrilled with flashbacks of old and the promise of new - and i'm sure the spirit of Paul was there being a larrikin.

It felt like nothing mattered, in our Private Universe...

Dave Brubeck - Take Five

oharris69 — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 17:49:06 GMT

I know this is all over YouTube, but it's such a classic moment in Jazz that I can't help but take "Time Out" to share!

My late Dad saw the Quartet at the Auckland Town Hall, New Zealand, back in 1962, and had Joe Morello, one of his drumming heroes, sign the program. I saw the band in it's near-current incarnation at both Villa Montalvo and San Francisco in CA, and was also lucky enough to meet Dave.

Emmylou Harris (no relation!)

oharris69 — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 21:00:37 GMT

Recently turned 60, though looking 20 years younger, Emmylou Harris has been in the public eye since her ground-breaking singing on both of Gram Parsons “solo” albums from 1973/74, “GP” and “Grievous Angel”, wherein for many her harmonising was one of the highlight of the already-impressive recordings. Performing in the recently-restored Genesee Theatre in Waukegan, Illinois, she had an acoustic-based band playing stand-up bass, hand-drums, guitar, etc, and covered her career to date, although nothing from the afore-mentioned Gram Parsons albums. Well worth seeing! (and she kindly signed my promo-release “Grievous Angel” vinyl after!)

By the Time I Get to Phoenix...

oharris69 — Sun, 12 Nov 2006 19:41:52 GMT

Folks tend to forget that before he became a Country/crossover superstar in the late 60’s/early 70’s, Glen Campbell was a well-respected and oft-utilised session man alongside colleagues Leon Russell and Bruce Johnson in Phil Spectors “Wrecking Crew”, and responsible for some great fretwork in the producers’ legendary “Wall Of Sound” for the likes of the Ronettes, The Righteous Brothers and also for the Beach Boys during their most orchestral, instrumental period. Campbell even toured with the Beach Boys as a live entity while Brian Wilson stayed home and created musical genius. As for the gig last night, pretty much all the hits were covered in the 90-odd minute set, starting with “Gentle on My Mind”, following with “Galveston” and also including Jimmy Webb-penned hits “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” and “Wichita Lineman” and mid 70’s crossover smashes “Country Boy” and “Rhinestone Cowboy”. Of note was Campbells addition of guitar soloing during many of the songs, adding a fresh touch to the tried and true while demonstrating and reminding of his virtuosity on the Strat. The band were tight and clean, keeping it simple. A particular highlight was the note-perfect cover of Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas”, a hit and Grammy-winner in 1969 alongside “By the Time...”

High Voltage... Rock'n'Roll?! The Mars Volta in Chicago.

oharris69 — Mon, 09 Oct 2006 23:24:41 GMT

I never tire of seeing these guys - about 10 gigs now i'd reckon - in NZ back in 2004, through Brixton Academy in 2005, and various supporting gigs (Pixies, Perfect Circle) Even though it was the first time i'd seen them, and they only had the 1 album at the time - "Deloused in the Comatorium" - possibly the most riveting was the small pre-Big Day Out club gig at Galatos Street Theatre in Auckland back in January 2004. A mesmerising experience, maybe impossible to describe to those who haven't experienced it, with seemingly telepathic interplay between the group - like all great bands have... ...and onto the latest album "Amputechture" and supporting mini-tour - only a couple of dates in between Chili Peppers support slots - and they have far more material to draw from, presenting it much like before, but with added variety of sound and texture. Are they a prog-rock band? A jam band? A mariachi band channeling Hendrix? Who cares. It's great music, great art, and a different experience whether live or recorded medium.

I felt the same why the solitary time I was fortunate enough to see Josh Haden's band Spain, at one of their final gigs, in Santa Cruz CA. I had wanted to catch them ever since first hearing and playing "Untitled #1" back in the mid 90's on my student radio show on 95bFM back home in Auckland NZ. Hearing the space in the songs, listening to the musical interplay, I felt they could just as easily have been a hard-core band, the songs came through with such intensity. I'm sure the 50-odd people who caught them in Santa Cruz felt the same. Hope you caught them.