Concert talk

[Spookrijder]

Two excellent concerts for me these last weeks with first the over-talented Andrew Bird accompanied by a super fine drummer only, his name is Kevin O'Donnel and you can admire his nice incisive touch all over Bird's great records. Watching Bird multitracking in real time his violin, pizzicato and/or bowed, his tremendous whistling and his glockenspiel while singing and still staying exciting musically is nothing less than mesmerizing. My quote below, being the entire lyrics of a song called "I", has been extended with multiple variations while the music and sounds were getting further and further away from the original. Just a pity Bird played a little too many of the less compelling songs of the last records and passed over the excellent "Action/Adventure" from the splendid and masterful piece of art that "Weather Systems" is, yes.

But, the already brilliant Andrew Bird's gig has been pitilessly shadowed in my memory by the extremely and rather unexpectedly overwhelming concert by Susanna and The Magical Orchestra. If you all know how fond I am of their album "List of light and buoys", I couldn't imagine them, and even her, as being especially memorable live. I was totally wrong! Susanna's voice has impressively evolved since the recording of the album and much traces of a certain pathos, annoying for some of you, has disappeared. Their version of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" simply erased their studio one, so much slower yet so much more intense. I have to say it was the first time I got tears in my eyes and diaphragm aches during a concert since Lisa Germano's awfully sad version of her "Cry Wolf" some 8 or 9 years ago. Besides, Susanna could dethrone Stina's abilities to cover songs for they dared and succeeded in injecting new life and soul to songs like Leonard Cohen's "That's no way to say goodbye" and "Halleluja", where Susanna simply threw away some redundant "hallelujas" without a wink of a doubt, and, o surprise, a very bare and slow and o so moving rendition of... "Love will tear us apart" where THE susanna reminded me of a higher-pitched Nico without erasing any well fixed gloomy bloom. Her dress, a little girl white thing decorated with two tiny bow ties under her neck and on her belly, and the very atmospheric if sometimes jazzy, for there were some improvisation, provided by the one man Magical Orchestra, gave that concert a very David Lynch's Twin Peaks period feel to the whole thing.
No kidding, Susanna Wallumrod could be the best woman singer I've ever seen on stage so far. Beware, she's just at the dawn of her career

[sound world]

Great to see you posting here again Spook
...and you've got me intrigued [:o]

[Spookrijder]

And, Dave, to go on further and jazzier, The Magical Orchestra is indeed one man called Morten Qvenild, he's 26 and a very nice and low profile guy. I talked a bit with him that famous evening. The guy, besides having played with Jaga Jazzist and now in Shining and The National Bank, has his own trio, called In The Country, yes a very jazz one for it's composed of piano, double-bass and drums. Check this : http://www.runegrammofon.com/v2/catalog.php?shownews=48
The guy seems fond of Paul Bley

[fog]

If you all know how fond I am of their album "List of light and buoys", I couldn't imagine them, and even her, as being especially memorable live. I was totally wrong! Susanna's voice has impressively evolved since the recording of the album and much traces of a certain pathos, annoying for some of you, has disappeared

Never seen them live but this album sounds so boring to me, sorry Spook!

[sound world]

A band Spook will really enjoy:- Acoustic Ladyland
Just saw them this afternoon at the Bath Festival along with their 'parent' co-operative,the F-ire Collective who sound and feel like one of those M-Base collaborations that Steve Coleman was doing a while back.
But the real business was Acoustic Ladyland who sound like a cross between the Ramones,Albert Ayler and some kind of thrash electronic noise.In another guise they are Polar Bear,my favourite band of the moment,but that is a grooving composition band and A.L. is a visceral sound experience.Hilariously their keyboard player- who spent the gig building great fountains of intense racket-was playing a tiny keyboard which often sounded like a Rhodes from the 60s or 70s but making the sort of sounds we used to try and STOP them making
Didn't have enough money to hang around another 5 hours and see Misha Mengelberg and then Human Chain,much as I'd have liked to-but I've heard them plenty before.
UK nightowls can see Acoustic Ladyland on TV- Later with Jools Holland- this Friday night.Good to see that programme taking a risk.Their album is called 'Last chance disco'-and you can hear some at http://www.acousticladyland.com/