|
Friday, March 23, 2007
Freelance Friday #4
What with this blog having been the Nerve Centre (and I choose my words carefully) for all things related to Shaggy Blog Stories over the past couple of weeks, I seem to have picked up a fair few extra readers along the way. This is precisely the point at which they all start looking at their watches, shuffling their feet, and mumbling their excuses. Yup, we're back to wittering on about pop music, to a long-suffering regular readership who would really rather read about something else! It's my house style, and I'm sticking to it! In this week's Freelance Friday round-up, you'll find reviews of albums by LCD Soundystem (ACE), Mr Hudson & The Library (OK) and Brett Anderson (BORING), as well as a review of last night's show by the surviving members of the Buena Vista Social Club. I do sometimes question the wisdom of slapping these pieces up here, as they were written for a more localised "general interest" readership. If I had been writing the same reviews for this blog, they would have been completely different pieces. But then, it suits me to park this stuff somewhere. So I'll carry on restricting their publication to Fridays only, so that we all know where we stand. Incidentally, Post of the Week has been a bit quiet this week, so the field is still wide open for late nominations. You have until tonight.
Buena Vista Social Club – Nottingham Royal Concert Hall, Thursday March 22.
 (An edited version of this review originally appeared in the Nottingham Evening Post.)Despite the recent loss of its three biggest names - Ibrahim Ferrer, Rubén González and Compay Segundo – the Buena Vista show rolls on, with star billing passed to four other key members. All are respected elder statesmen of the Cuban scene, who have enjoyed a new lease of life following the remarkable explosion of worldwide interest in their music. Leading a frisky three-piece brass section, with a nice line in nifty (if occasionally shaky) formation dance steps, we had veteran trumpeter Guajiro Mirabal. Over on double bass, Cachaito López bears the unique distinction of having played on every track on every album in the Buena Vista series. Trombonist Jesús "Aguaje" Ramos – a spirited, commanding presence – doubled up as band leader. Clearly suffering from some unfortunate finger trouble, guitarist Manuel Galbán kept a low-key profile, only once taking centre stage. The twelve piece band – natty in their double-breasted suits, and with an average age of at least seventy – also featured a younger pianist called Orlando, whose comparatively youthful vigour added an important extra dimension. His pounding, emphatic solos were rapturously received. With no unifying backbeat to rely on, the rolling, fluid rhythms folded into each other, underpinned by rump-shaking basslines that all but begged you to get up and dance. In the overly reverential confines of the Royal Concert Hall, this proved impossible until the closing numbers – at which point, urged to our feet by the band, the whole atmosphere loosened up. If only we had lost our British reserve a little earlier. Labels: eveningpost, gigs, popmusic
Album reviews: LCD Soundsystem, Brett Anderson, Mr Hudson & The Library.
(Edited versions of these reviews originally appeared in the Nottingham Evening Post.)Sound Of Silver
LCD SoundsystemDFA/EMI ***** This time three years ago, largely thanks to the underground classic Losing My Edge, LCD Soundsystem’s pioneering “dance-punk” sound was perched at the very apex of cool. Following an uneven, over-hyped debut album, the bleeding-edge fashionistas may have moved on – but the band have stayed more or less in the same place musically, and sound all the better for sticking to their guns and refining their basic stylistic template. Sound Of Silver might be less club-heavy, but it’s also more cohesive and purposeful. The straightforwardly chugging back-beats are augmented by skittering, understated details, and topped with James Murphy’s arch lyrics and clenched, moody chants. At times, the vocals seem to be deliberate pastiches of Murphy’s heroes: Davids Byrne and Bowie, and the Human League’s Phil Oakey. The early 1980s post-punk influences are still there, but the occasional nods to moody Chicago house add something fresh to the mix. The sardonic North American Scum is an obvious standout. So is the compelling, addictive All My Friends, which repeats a single piano chord for over seven minutes. This is dance music for grown-ups, and it’s an absolute delight.
Brett Anderson
Brett AndersonDrowned In Sound ** Of all the British guitar bands which came to prominence during the mid-1990s, Suede’s musical legacy remains the most underrated. Following the band’s disappointing final album in 2002, and a vain attempt to re-capture former glories by re-uniting with guitarist Bernard Butler as The Tears in 2005, former Suede front man Brett Anderson has finally decided to launch himself as a solo artist. At this stage in his career, this could be make or break time. Perhaps for this reason, the album plays it very safe in musical terms. This is a clear move into “adult contemporary” territory, pitched at an audience who will have grown up with Anderson, jettisoning brash twenty-something hedonism in favour of tasteful thirty-something Angst Lite. The eleven songs are mostly mid-paced, vaguely wistful in tone, and augmented by politely swelling string arrangements. The overall effect is reminiscent of Richard Ashcroft’s similarly problematic solo work, following the demise of The Verve. The overall sound is pleasant enough, and Anderson’s vocals have never sounded stronger – but the songs simply aren’t there. This is thin, forgettable stuff, which half-heartedly strives for profundity, but simply ends up sounding tired and forced.
A Tale Of Two Cities
Mr Hudson & The LibraryMercury *** Following an impressive support slot on Amy Winehouse’s recent UK tour, many curious eyes will be focussing on this debut from Oxford English literature graduate Mr Hudson and his band. Those hoping for an accurate representation of the live shows might be in for a slight disappointment. This is a noticeably tamed version of their sound, with much of the liveliness and funkiness reined in. Instead, what we have is an amiable collection of melodic, accessible pop-rock, whose downright politeness sits easy on the ear. Thanks to the relaxed, conversational, bloke-ish vocals and the light, sparse ska and trip-hop influences, comparisons with Lily Allen, Just Jack, Plan B and The Streets are inevitable. Other influences stretch further back: to Paul Weller, Joe Jackson, Tom Robinson – and, as a reworked version of On The Street Where You Live (from My Fair Lady) demonstrates, to the era of the classic Hollywood movie. Some distinctive and gorgeous piano work brightens up the sound, but the album’s overall mood remains low key and easy-going, with an increasingly mellow and reflective quality in the second half. Labels: albums, eveningpost, popmusic
Shaggy Blog Stories: a photo pool, and a suggested MEEM.
Until now, I've never been particularly grabbed by the whole Flickr phenomenon. But there's a first time for everything, and I do find myself very much grabbed by this splendid "pool" of book-related photos. Do please feel free to add your own. (taken by Timbo)Might I also be so bold as to suggest a Shaggy Blog MEEM, as inspired by this fellow? If you own a copy of The Book, and if you have enjoyed reading it, then I think it would be rather lovely, and in the true spirit of our Community, to link to three people whose contributions you have particularly enjoyed. Especially if they are people who are outside your circle of regular reads. Credit where credit's due! Spread the love! God, I'm such an Internet hippy. Labels: comicrelief
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Shaggy Blog Stories: the first sightings.
Left to right: MissMish (page 152), Mike (page 11) and JP (page 54) discuss their favourite passages, at this afternoon's impromptu signing session.
The first copies of Shaggy Blog Stories arrived through people's letter boxes this morning. These lucky "early adopters" have received Version One of the text, which does contain a few super-rare (one hopes) typos. So if the last line of Page 198 contains the word "unsavourary", you're quids in. You will also need to make one very important correction, as one of the pieces doesn't make proper sense without it. Pencils out! Now, turn to Page 158, and cast your eyes to the bottom of the page - but please, WITHOUT taking a sneaky advance peek at the rest of the piece. You'll only spoil it for yourselves. Where the text says "Three hundred and (*)", you need to add an R, thusly: "Three hundred Rand (*)" That was our one truly awful howler. The rest, I can live with.
Update: MORE TYPO NEWS: It looks EVERYONE has got the "rare" early version, which I corrected within the first 24 hours. Hooray! We'll ALL be quids in!
PHOTO NEWS: Want to know what the book looks like? Dave Walker of The Cartoon Blog has the first photo of the beast in captivity. MORE PHOTO NEWS: Here's what two copies look like. Update: STILL MORE EXCITING BREAKING PHOTO NEWS: Here's what SIX copies look like.
While I was in the middle of editing this post, a DHL parcel arrived in our office's reception area, bearing my colleague JP's copies. I have now cast mine eyes upon the finished article, and I can see that it looks Good. Really, really Good. Praise be!
SALES NEWS: We've just hit 400 sales, and we're also straight in at Number Three on Lulu.com's own best seller charts; just behind e-Start Your Web Store with Zen Cart, and just ahead of Unleashing Capitalism: Why Prosperity Stops at the West Virginia Border and How to Fix It. Labels: comicrelief
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Shaggy Blog Stories: first copies to be delivered on Thursday?
I've heard that quite a few of you have had your order statuses upgraded from "FULFILLING" to "SHIPPED" over the course of today, which would imply that the first few copies of the book may be arriving through your letter boxes tomorrow. This makes me madly impatient, as my own orders are still stuck at "FULFILLING"; a state of affairs which is, of course, anything but. If you receive a copy of the book on Thursday, could you drop me a comment ( "Woo! First!") and let me know? I might then ask you a few questions about typos, as it will be interesting to see which revision has been picked up. (We're already onto Version 6.) I deleted yesterday's rather lengthy post, by the way. I don't know about you, but I thought it carried just the merest whiff of paranoid, ill-tempered, stress-induced, slightly hysterical over-defensiveness, which could, just possibly, be interpreted as "over-reacting". Thanks to all who responded, for helping to restore a proper sense of perspective. I now intend to Rise Above Such Things, with all the lofty graciousness that befits a man in my perceived position. Labels: comicrelief
|
