November 30th, 2009 |
Posted in Live Music Reviews by zack
It’s amazing how something – a band, a genre, or a culture – can unexpectedly take over your life for a little while. MONO, post-rock, and Japan did just that to me for the past month or so. I have been going to all kinds of crazy sites about Japanese spirits, reading too much Murakami, and talking to cats. I think I may have even lit candles while listening to “Hymn to the Immortal Wind” (yikes!). It all came to a head last night at MAO Livehouse.
Even the weather was perfect for the show that evening. The grey, misty atmosphere was a fitting counterpoint to MONO’s moody tropes. This might sound a bit dramatic, but with all the stuff I have been checking out about spirits and such, I was a little bit scared for the show and what was going to happen. Maybe scared is not the correct word. Anxious, trepidated? It was definitely not your ordinary show.
It was interesting that I happened to find this study of the post-rock genre by the world’s tallest rock critic. Coincidence? I think not. This was a showcase of unabashed “post-rock bands”. Nary a lyric was uttered throughout the entire night. This could have been anticipated, but it seemed to throw a bee in some patrons’ bonnets. The main themes of the night were discipline and supreme musicianship, from the opening band, Hua Lun, to Sugar Plum Ferry, who put on a very long and engaging set.
Sugar Plum Ferry
One thing that was a bit disconcerting about Sugar Plum Ferry was that the bassist played with his back to the crowd for the entire set. We were speculating on the reason for this. Disfiguring scar, unfortunate goatee, and silver dollar-sized hairy mole were the prevailing theories. However, their set was tremendous and ended with the guitars leaned up against the amps, wailing and chirruping, while the band members left the stage. I love that little tactic.
When MONO finally came on, it was not unlike the other bands in terms of the systematic formula. However, the level of skill and timing rises and sets with this accomplished band. The format is really predictable, I will say. Quiet, loud, quiet, loud. When the strobe lights come on you know you’re in for some serious rib-shaking shit. Even though you know what’s coming, it still moves you. The noise was powerfully palpable. If silence is something you can hear, then cacophony is something you can feel.
What I liked about the show is that the players were resolute. They had a job to do and they did it immaculately. They invited you to enter their movie and become a part of it. You could lose yourself within that dreamscape.
It’s as if when you’re in the forest, you become a seamless part of it. When you’re in the rain, you’re a part of the rain. When you’re in the morning, you’re a seamless part of the morning. When you’re with me, you become a part of me. -Ms. Saeki’s 15 year-old ghost from “Kafka on the Shore”.
I think we can definitely say that the MONO show tonight was a success and one of the more controversial shows in recent history here in Shanghai. Everyone had an opinion. Some didn’t get it, some loved it; but, whatever your opinion, the sign of a good show is discourse after the fact. It’s healthy because it shows the scene is growing into a community of discerning participants
I am standing solidly on the side of the artist on this particular fence. If you were not moved by MONO’s display of raw power and frantic fragility, you did not accept the invitation dangling in front of you. You did not step through the Entrance.
It’s a hard thing to give one’s self over to the emotion of something we don’t completely understand. I can see where your coming from, but I just don’t want to visit there.
MONO
tags: Hua Lun - Hymn to the Immortal Wind - Kafka on the Shore - Mao Livehouse - MONO - Paul Shirley - Sugar Plum Ferry
November 25th, 2009 |
Posted in Editor's Picks by zack
The weekend is a fickle mistress, but what a hot broad. If you are like us, people who live for live music, you love the weekend. You know it biblically. Sure, there are shows during the week, but many can’t fully enjoy them due to work constraints the next day. Friday, 5:01, 3:31, whatever time you’re clocking out, that’s the furthest from Monday you’re getting.
But the weekend can be disappointing, like all relationships with fickle mistresses. We always start out with such high hopes. Then something happens—the show sold out, the taxis never showed, or you got stuck at home on the couch and fell asleep early. If sleep is the cousin of death for weekend plans, then the couch is its bitchy, still-hot ex-wife.
The Monday after a disappointing weekend can feel a bit like being a jilted lover, but there’s no need to worry. You know why? Because Editor’s Picks is your marriage counselor, that’s why. We’ll get you back on good footing with the weekend.
Thursday, November 26th
Indie Heart Attack at Not Me, 9 PM
Thanksgiving is definitely my favorite holiday. Maybe on this one I will follow the meal with indie rock, rather than football and Trivial Pursuit. Tune in next time to find out what happened!
No cover
Not Me
21 Dongping Lu,
French Concession
Hengshan Lu and Wulumuqi Lu
Hao Ting ft. Nat Alexander at Anar, 9 PM
Or maybe it will be house music! You never know. What I do know is that this VOID guy gets around and that he is spinning the goods, rather than clicking them (vinyl versus computer). For some reason this just sounds cooler.
No cover
Anar
129 Xingfu Lu,
Changning
near Fahuazhen Lu
F-Visa Ghetto
Friday, November 27th
MONO at MAO Livehouse
This is the choice salmon sashimi cut of the weekend. Check out my semi-coherent preview right here on Layabozi, your one-stop shop for long-form ramblings. I have a feeling this one could be Alfred Packered (well-attended, not cannibalistic) so do not dally if you want to get in. Support from Sugar Plum Ferry and Hua Lun.
180 kuai (advance) 200 (at the door)
MAO Livehouse
570 Huaihai Lu, Building 32, near Hongqiao Lu
Ashura at Yuyintang, 9 PM
This is the second band to come into Shanghai from Chengdu recently. I listened to a few songs and I thought it would be fun live. If you’re turned away at MAO or you want a cheaper option, this is the show for you. The two are not far apart, geographically speaking.
40 kuai
Yuyintang
1731 Yan’an Xi Lu,
Changning
Entrance at Kaixuan Lu
Quality Control presents Tucker at Shelter, 10 PM
JAPANESE INVASION!
Just kidding.
False alarm.
This is just one of three Japanese musical acts that will play Shanghai this week. It leads me to wonder if they take the same plane over. And are they teppanyaki, Haiku, or Oyama type bands? Tucker is a one-man, electro artist. One of my best friends used to be a one-man band and, let me tell you, it is never not fun.
50 kuai
The Shelter
5 Yongfu Lu,
Xuhui
near Fuxing Lu, Metro Line 1 Changshu Lu Station
Saturday, November 28th
Shanghai Rock 2009 Release Party at MAO Livehouse
So I was doing my scientific “research” for the Editor’s Picks column and I was like: “What the hell is going down on Saturday night?” And then I realized it was this, only this. This is going to be fun. Come see some music that started out in a dingy hole in the ground and now hits the bright lights of MAO Livehouse. By the way, every time I enter 0096 or Juju or Shelter, I think: “Thank God there hasn’t been a nuclear attack on Shanghai.” Nothing I can think of would be worse than holing up in one of these rat’s nests to wait out a nuclear winter.
This is also a bargain pick because your hard-earned 50 kuai includes entry and a free CD
MAO Livehouse
570 Huaihai Lu, Building 32, near Hongqiao Lu
Verse at Yuyintang, 9 PM
Verse is China’s purported premier funk band, an assertion that I will not dispute because I have not heard many Chinese funk bands. Could be true, though. Maybe you should check it out.
50 RMB
Yuyintang
1731 Yan’an Xi Lu,
Changning
Entrance at Kaixuan Lu
Sunday, November 29th
Sultans of Swing, Yuyintang, 9 PM
Farewell and Welcome Party, House of Blues and Jazz, 9:30 PM
It seems that the music gods want you to wind down a bit at the end of the weekend with some blues at these two venues. Or you could just lounge around the house in your underwear like me.
30 RMB at Yuyintang
No cover at House of Blues and Jazz
I already wrote (cut and pasted) the Yuyintang address twice in this column so you can damn well scroll back up, you lazy bastard.
House of Blues and Jazz
60 Fuzhou Lu,
The Bund
near Sichuan Lu, Metro Line 2 East Nanjing Road
福州路60号
近四川路, 地铁1, 2, 8 号线人民广场站
By the way, I just got Hotspot Shield and checked out Facebook for the first time in awhile. Check out who friended me!
Bonus time-waster:
It’s scary what people are searching these days.
tags: 0096 - Anar - Ashura - Hao Ting - House of Blues and Jazz - Hua Lun - Indie Heart Attack - Mao Livehouse - MONO - Nat Alexander - Not Me - Quality Control - Shanghai Rock 2009 - Sugar Plum Ferry - Sultans of Swing - The Shelter - Tucker - Verse - Void - YuYinTang
