A blog on gigs, music, art and London.

Thursday 18 December 2008

Tindersticks at Union Chapel

Just before Christmas I went to Union Chapel in Islington to see the Tindersticks play a low key show. It was the third time I was seeing them after previously seeing them at the Royal Albert Hall and the Barbican.

Their set was largely made up of the new album ‘The Hungry Saw’ which has some beautiful moments, especially the closer ‘The Turns We Took’. They also played a few older songs (‘Her’, ‘The Not Knowing’, ‘She’s Gone’, ‘Sleepy Song’, ‘Buried Bones’). They also threw in a cover of ‘Kathleen’ by Townes Van Zandt. Stuart mentioned how he had seen Townes play the Union Chapel some time ago. They didn’t have a string section as such, just occasional cello and violin (just as much as the new album requires). Seeing them in full orchestral mode is brilliant but tonight was suitably trimmed down for the smaller venue.

As usual Union Chapel looked great, the coloured lights being projected on to the stage, the tea lights around the balcony, the beautiful striking Gothic arches, the large stained glass window, the two Christmas trees at either side of the chapel…I could go on…

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer at the Barbican

On Sunday morning I went along to see the exhibition at the Barbican Curve gallery by Mexican artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. This is the eight site specific installation it has hosted but this was my first visit.

His work 'Frequency and Volume' is an interactive pieces featuring 48 radios, which can all be tuned to different channels simultaneously. As you begin to walk through the gallery powerful lights project your shadow on to the opposing large curved wall. By changing your position you influence the frequency that the radios are tuned to. This is then broadcast at loud volume throughout the room. The frequency is also projected on to the wall, occasionally along with the name of the station.

It was fairly quiet while I was there (sometimes I was the only person there), although I still occasionally could hear frequencies being generated from the movements of others further down the curve.

I managed to pick up the following stations/frequencies: 'Meteor Burst Data' (click here to find out what this is), 'Bus Despatch', air traffic control, emergency services, BBC Radio 1 and Classic FM.

I thought it was another great interactive exhibition overall (after seeing Cildo Meireles only days earlier). The conflicting and seemingly random frequencies can be quite funny, pirate radio stations and distorted static, occasionally being interupted by fragments of a popular song being played by some commercial radio station.

Cildo Meireles at Tate Modern

Earlier this month I went along to Tate Modern to see the exhibition by Brazilian artist Cildo Meireles.

It proved to be a wide-ranging, interactive delight, with all rooms containing large scale installations which were in turns thought-provoking, ingenious or aesthetically beautiful.

There was an emphasis on the tactile throughout, a lot of the rooms encouraging participation or requiring you to feel your way through. As you work you way through the various rooms it becomes clear that Meireles succeeds in invoking some pretty big ideas and concepts; morality, history, conscience and spirituality are some that I picked out.

The exhibition really gets going in Room 2. In particular the piece ‘Mission/Missions (How to Build Cathedrals)’ is quite striking – comprising 600,000 1 penny coins on the floor being joined to 2000 bones at the ceiling by 800 small communion papers. It is quite a unique comment on the impact of colonialism on indigenous societies. More can be found on this on the Tate’s mini-site.

His piece‘Glovetrotter’ juxtaposes everyday familiarity with an alien lunar quality, various items hiding under a silver fabric mesh.

The piece ‘Red Shift’ was one of the exhibition highlights for me – a regular domestic room with one key difference in that all items are red. There are some brilliant details – you can open the fridge or wardrobe to find a further array of red objects. A spillage of red paint leads to you a side-room, which is completely dark. Towards the back you see what appears to be a sink…as you edge towards it you see it has a tap which is running…with red coloured water.

‘Fontes’ is a disorientating thrill – a small room full of identical black and white clocks and oversized tape measures and plastic numbers scattered around the floor.

‘Babel’ was another highlight for me – a huge shrine-like installation of analogue radios, stretching from the floor to the ceiling. The dark room is lit by the small coloured lights emanating from the radios. Each radio is quietly tuned to a different wavelength. It is a beautiful experience, in some ways similar to the Rachel Whitehead piece shown earlier this year at the Hayward Gallery as part of the ‘Psycho Buildings’ exhibition.

The exhibition ends with ‘Volatile’ a ‘U’ shaped dimly-lit room which requires you to remove your footwear and walk through 8 inches of white talcum powder, inviting you on a small personal journey before you reach a small, flickering candle. I have read some mixed reviews since but I thought it was just beautiful – a simple room full of visual and sensual minimalism.

A triumphant combination of artistic beauty, humour, ambition and far-reaching ideas.

Thursday 11 December 2008

Ensemble Intercontemporain at Royal Festival Hall

I picked up a late ticket to go to see the final concert in the Messiaen festival on the South Bank last night (on the centenary of Messiaen’s birth). It featured two relatively less well known pieces by Messiaen – ‘Couleurs de la cite celeste’ & ‘Sept Haiku’ and finished with ‘Sur Incises’ a piece by the evening’s conductor, Pierre Boulez.

The Messiaen pieces were relatively short pieces, both registering at the upper end of the musical scale, full of fast, dynamic high notes and featuring the striking virtuosic piano embellishments performed by Pierre-Laurent Aimard. The first piece especially picked up on the birdsong themes present in a lot of Messiaen’s work and also touched on the issue of synthasesia. It was quite unusual to see the RFH stage with so few performers – the Ensemble Intercontemporain being a lot smaller than the kind of orchestra that usually plays the RFH.

‘Sur Incises’ resulted in the stage being even more sparsely populated – 3 pianos, 3 harps and 3 percussionists combining to create a complex, slightly minimal sounding piece – not as loud or raucous as I had expected, given what I had read online and had been mentioned in the pre-concert talk. This had taken place in the St Paul’s Pavilion room and featured Gillian Moore, the South Bank’s Head Of Contemporary Culture talking about the series and concert. Some of her comments struck a note with me – especially how educational the year-long Messiaen festival had been. I didn’t know too much about him at the start of the year, but now know a lot about his life, music and passions. A great example of how the South Bank can really inspire and educate with it’s out-reaching and ambitious programming.

I was sat up in the balcony, three rows from the back on the left hand side. The view was great, you can really appreciate the full scale of the hall from up there. It had been a while since I had been to the RFH but this concert really reminded me of what a great venue it is and made me start thinking about booking tickets for more concerts in 2009.

Sunday 16 November 2008

Mercury Rev at Shepherd's Bush Empire

My busy schedule, alongside 10 days in New York has seen me neglect my blog of late. So much so that I am only now getting round to posting about going to see the magnificent Mercury Rev at Shepherds Bush Empire on 13th November. They were supported by Howling Bells.

I always find the prospect of going to see Mercury Rev play live very exciting. I think it is fair to say they are my favourite live band. The last time I saw them was almost 2 years ago, also at this venue. Their recent album 'Snowflake Midnight' had slowly grown on me after rather my lukewarm initial feelings. I had expected the new material to dominate the set list but in the end they opted for a more balanced, career-spanning (almost) set. We managed to secure front row seats in Level 1. It was the 8th time I was seeing them live, and the 4th time I was seeing them at Shepherds Bush.

They began by projecting images of iconic albums & key influences on the back of the stage, accompanied the playing of 'Lorelei' by The Cocteau Twins at loud volume (which, incidentally, is featured on the album 'Treasure' which was included on my post listing my top 30 albums). I had thought there was a chance they might abandon this routine but thankfully it looks like it is here to stay, which is brilliant news as it is such a cool way to introduce the band on stage.

As I had kind of suspected, they opened with 'Snowflake In A Hot World', which sounded fantastic and much stronger live than on record. They segued into the ambient guitar sounds of ‘October Sunshine’ before going straight into the beautiful 'Holes', the first of 5 songs from 'Deserter's Songs'. The sound was great – very loud, with the guitars (as usual) coming across as epic and beautiful as ever. 'The Funny Bird', possibly my favourite Mercury Rev song soon followed, dropping down the set from its usual opening position. We also got the magnificent ‘Frittering’ and a beautiful acoustic, slower ‘Tonite It Shows’ (accompanied, appropriately by sepia-tinted images of a dancing ballerina on the back of the stage). The shadows of the band were projected onto the backdrop throughout, which is another brilliantly simple way of making the performance look even better.

Jonathan was as captivating as ever – enigmatic, untouchable, enraptured, conducting the band throughout and seemingly synchronising the light show. Overall, a magnificent show which captured Mercury Rev at their magical, exquisite, psychedelic best. Probably the best show I have seen them play, and live personal highlight.

I think the set list went like this.........

Snowflake In A Hot World
October Sunshine
Holes
Black Forest
The Funny Bird
You’re My Queen
People Are So Unpredictable
Frittering
Dream Of A Young Girl As A Flower
Tonite It Shows
Tides Of The Moon
Opus 40
---------------------------------
Goddess On A Hi-Way
The Dark Is Rising
---------------------------------
Senses On Fire

Gehard Richter at the Serpentine Gallery

Last weekend I managed to catch the current Gerhard Richter exhibition at The Serpentine Gallery. It was my first visit to the gallery. '4900 Colours: Version II' is 49 paintings that each contain 100 small squares of colour. The combination of colours on each painting is different so each piece is unique.

I enjoyed the paintings, with their overwhelming geometricism (is that a word?) although I could not help thinking that this was an example of the 'idea' triumphing over art.

Upon leaving I enjoyed a walk through a very autumnal Kensington Gardens.

Lambchop at Union Chapel

I guess the fact that I am only blogging about this concert now says a lot about my extremely busy schedule. Anyway, on Tuesday 4th November we went along to the beautiful Union Chapel in Islington to see Lambchop. It was the first time I was seeing Lambchop (although I did manage to catch Kurt Wagner at The Borderline a few months ago - see previous post).

We arrived in good time and managed to get excellent seats upstairs in the balcony, overlooking the stage. They played pretty much everything from their new album OH Ohio which although has some beautiful moments didn't really translate into a brilliant live show. I found myself thinking back to the Kurt Wagner solo show at The Borderline and comparing the two shows. If I am honest I think I enjoyed the solo show more.


'Popeye' remained as pretty as ever and, for me, represented the highlight of the set. They did finish off with a few older songs (including a quick run through 'Up With People') but I left the venue with the feeling that whereas I had enjoyed the show I had not been blown away by it.


I think they would be good contenders for the Don't Look Back series where bands play entire albums in full. Seeing them do 'Nixon' or 'Aw C'Mon/No You C'Mon' would be great (although maybe Kurt's voice may struggle with some of the songs).

Anyway, a visit to Union Chapel is always a great occasion and tonight was no different in that respect. As usual, the chapel was beautifully lit with candles and coloured lighting and the gothic arches were as striking as ever.

Wednesday 5 November 2008

Man On Wire at Prince Charles Cinema

I went along to the PCC on Sunday to see ‘Man On Wire’, the true story of Philippe Petit, who in 1974 walked between the twin towers of the World Trade Center on one long cable.

It is an amazing story which is beautifully narrated by the key participants. Petit assembled a team of brilliant characters to help him achieve his goal (particularly the WTC ‘inside man’ with the stupendous moustache) and these all relate their individual experiences to the camera. The film also features a lot of footage filmed by the participants at the time which provides additional authenticity (if any was required).



Naturally, it features some beautiful aerial shots of New York. In the end it turns out to be a very funny and moving film.

Friday 24 October 2008

Imli

A few days ago we visited one of my favourite restaurants in London – the rather fantastic Imli on Wardour Street.

They specialize in Indian tapas style dishes and they really are quite exquisite. We went for the Bhel Puri, Chennai Fish, Spiced Potato Cakes, Chicken Shammi, Kheema Matar & Dhal Makhani with the deliciously sweet Gulab Jamun as dessert (there were 3 of us eating!).

An enjoyable and tasty experience guaranteed in my opinion…(although, disappointingly they have dropped the sublime banana pancakes from their menu...)

Go visit!

Andy Warhol: Other Voices, Other Rooms at the Hayward Gallery

There are some exhibitions which get my attention immediately and get me thinking of when I will be able to visit and there are others that kind of register in my mind but don’t fill me with overwhelming excitement. I have to admit that when I first became aware of it, the new Andy Warhol exhibition at the Hayward Gallery kind of fell into the second category. However, my interest slowly developed and I found time in my stupidly busy schedule to go along on Sunday. I had become conscious of missing certain exhibitions recently (mainly Cezanne at the Courtauld and other smaller shows) so wanted to make full use of my Southbank membership and ensure this was not another addition to the list.

Upon entering the exhibition I was slightly taken aback by just how much stuff there is in the first room. Some of his iconic prints line 2 of the walls, a three double-sided large screens fill the centre of the room, the far wall is full of various postcards, album sleeves, photographs and in the background the Velvet Underground & Nico can be heard drifting across the gallery…it is certainly a striking start to the show. As you walk up the ramp you see various Warhol quotations alongside more iconic photographs (of the man himself). From then on however the exhibition concentrates on his films and TV programmes, as well as including a selection of audio clips.

The second room features a large area containing televisions where you can sit (on carved, star-shaped wooden seats) to watch some of Warhol’s TV programmes which he made for American TV channels during the 1980s. I watched parts of different programmes he made on fashion. I’m sure Warhol would have enjoyed the fact that people were being encouraged to sit in an art gallery and watch TV programmes. I left via the striking red, white & blue curtains before heading off to listen to some of the audio recordings (in nice comfortable booths).

The final part of the exhibition is downstairs and exclusively focuses on Warhol’s films, including his epic recording of the Empire State Building………talking of which…only 27 days to go before I go to New York!

I left unsure whether I really liked Warhol’s art. His prints and paintings certainly have iconic appeal and his influence is unquestionably wide-ranging but a lot of his film and TV programmes left me cold and didn’t really make any impression. In fact, I am struggling to remember much about them (only days later). I didn’t have time to check out the other exhibition by Robin Rhodes but will no doubt return soon……

Saturday 11 October 2008

Mark Rothko at Tate Modern

I went to see the current Mark Rothko exhibition at Tate Modern on Friday evening. It focuses on his late work and in particular his 'series' of paintings, with his Seagram murals forming the centrepiece.

Time Out's slightly puzzling review had made me approach the exhibition with caution but overall I enjoyed it thoroughly. It begins in educational fashion showing smaller works which were the basis of his larger paintings. The Seagram murals dominate as expected, with their ambiguously delineated, visceral oblongs of colour resonating in emphatic style, the dim lighting projecting a hushed reverence over the room (despite the high numbers in attendance).

We then go back to delving deeper into Rothko's paintings as the exhibition shows how he layered his work. His reflective, strangely involving 'Black Form' paintings follow soon after. I sometimes like to think what paintings would sound like if they were music and Rothko's art to me brings to mind instrumental post-rock. Labradford's Mi Media Naranja, possibly.

The exhibition finishes with Rothko's 'Black On Grey' paintings which seem to have a lunar quality, although the black does bring an oppressive characteristic to the room. The slightly barren sense of serenity that these paintings possess seems to provide a fitting contrast to the colour of the earlier works.

After leaving the exhibition I walked over Blackfriars Bridge to check out the art installation by Keith Bowler, which is part of the Drift 08 exhibition - the old railway bridge being recreated with green lasers which looked beautiful in the dark of the night.

Playlist:

Asobi Seksu 'Citrus'
The Uglysuit 'The Uglysuit'

Sunday 21 September 2008

Open House London 2008

Open House held their annual London event this weekend, where buildings that are normally closed to the general public are opened up for all to explore.

I had pre-booked tickets to visit Centrepoint on Saturday, mainly for the views from the top. We were allowed to go to the 25th floor, which provides great views overlooking east and west London.



It has an interesting history, which you can read more about on its Wikipedia page. Personally I find the building quite ugly which kind of makes it fit in rather well in the Tottenham Court Road area sadly. Thankfully there are long overdue plans to completely overhaul this area. Read about them here.

On the way back east we stopped for a brief visit to the beautifully imposing Christ Church Spitalfields.

I began Sunday with an ambitious list of buildings to visit. I started by going to Wellington Arch by Hyde Park Corner. Again, I was able to go to the top and enjoy the views across Hyde Park (see below).


Next, I caught a rare silver Routemaster number 9 bus along to Trafalgar Square and then walked down a traffic-free Whitehall to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office on King Charles Street. Arguably the highlight of my day, it is a beautiful, ornately decorated building. I loved the architecture of it's centrepiece, Durbar Court in particular (see below).


Next, I headed back up Whitehall and towards the Strand, via Embankment. Once on the Strand I headed east hoping to go to see St Mary-le-Strand but found it closed. I continued and came to the second 'island church', St. Clement Danes. After a brief stop I jumped back on a number 15 bus towards Bank. Christopher Wren's St Stephen Walbrook was the next church on my journey, with it's controversial stone altar sitting unusually in the centre of the small church. I continued back along Cheapside to see St Mary-le-Bow before going to see the beautifully restored St Lawrence Jewry, completing a trio of Wren churches. All these churches seemed to share sad histories, being rebuilt after first suffering damage in the Great Fire Of London and then being destroyed in the Blitz. I picked up some literature on The Friends Of The City Churches along the way which I will definitely be investigating further.

I finished off with a visit to the Guildhall, one of London's most historic and architecturally impressive buildings (see below) before heading back home.


See more photographs at my flickr page.

Playlist:

The Week That Was 'The Week That Was'
The Shortwave Set 'Replica Sun Machine'

Thursday 11 September 2008

Kurt Wagner at The Borderline

I went along to The Borderline last night for a Club Uncut event which featured Lambchop frontman Kurt Wagner headlining.

Any visit to The Borderline (arguably London's finest live music venue) is a great occasion but to see an established name (and personal favourite) was to prove particularly special.

The line up was pretty strong, with 12 string guitarist James Blackshaw opening the evening with his ambient, warm, acoustic panoramas and Welsh singer-songwriter (and Neon Neon collaborator) Cate Le Bon, who played an assured, folk-influenced set.

However it was Kurt Wagner who was the star of the evening, delivering a perfect set of new songs from forthcoming new Lambchop album OH (Ohio). He seemed to arrive late, wandering down the steps from the main entrance into The Borderline, carrying his guitar (I love it when artists enter venues in this way, just like any ordinary punter). It wasn't long before he started his set from the bar, walking through the crowd singing 'Give It' his recent collaboration with X-Press 2 in a cappella style, before climbing on stage to huge applause.

He then sauntered into his quietly-intoned, crepescular songs, all exquisitively expressive and seeming never to overlook even the most microscopic of details. Delicately played guitar lines provide the musical backdrop. The way he can extract emotion and meaning from almost every line he sings really is something else, even more so when his vocals can sometimes barely rise above a whisper. Naturally, his trademark baseball cap was worn all evening.


He concentrated (I think) exclusively on songs from the new album, finishing with a truly beautiful cover of 'I Believe In You' by country stalwart Don Williams. It appears to be included on the new record also which is excellent news. After the gig I spotted him at the bar talking to Allan Jones, Uncut editor. The forthcoming Lambchop gigs at the Union Chapel in November should be rather special.

Sometimes words really aren't enough when trying to describe just how brilliant gigs can be......

Monday 8 September 2008

'Discovering Music' at the BBC Maida Vale Studios

I went along to the BBC Studios at Maida Vale on Saturday to see an episode of ‘Discovering Music’ being recorded.

‘Discovering Music’ is a programme broadcast on Radio 3 that selects a piece of classical music (or occasionally a particular musical theme) and analyses the various aspects of the work, throwing light on structure, historical context, themes, motifs etc.

The featured work on this occasion was Vaughan Williams’ 6th Symphony, his dramatic evocation of post-war Britain. It was presented by regular host (and my namesake) Stephen Johnson, with Martyn Brabbins conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Vaughan Williams’s 6th Symphony is a recent favourite of mine (discovered through the excellent eMusic website) and combines some powerful, dynamic playing with some of his most melodic folk-inspired lines. The opening movement in particular is excellent.

This particular episode will be broadcast on 16th November.

Before heading up to north-west London I spent a very enjoyable hour or so in the cafe at the Curzon Soho cinema, people-watching on Shaftesbury Avenue whilst listening to 'Basket Of Light' by Pentangle on my iPod.

Monday 1 September 2008

Big Star at Shepherd's Bush Empire

I went along to to see Big Star at Shepherd's Bush Empire on Thursday with JP & Toby. We had seats in Level 1 which is pretty much one of my favourite places to watch a band.

Before heading over to west London I paid a much overdue visit to the Fopp record store by Cambridge Circus and ended up picking up a few bargains - a couple of Ryan Adams and Pentangle albums. I then made my way to Goldhawk Road tube station and while waiting for JP had a quick listen to the beautiful 'Green Fields' by The Good, The Bad and The Queen on my iPod which includes a nice reference to the said west London street.

Once inside the venue Robyn Hitchcock opened and just about pulled off his set of slightly eccentric English acoustic psychedelia. Next up were Big Star - Alex Chilton & Jody Stephens from the original line up along with Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer from The Posies. We had seen them around 2001 at the Mean Fiddler but Shepherd's Bush is a far superior venue. I thought Alex looked in good shape, sporting a nice cream/beige suit combo (Toby thought he looked like Dirk Benedict). His voice may not be what it used to be but he still carried the songs well and seemed in positive spirits (I wasn't certain this would be the case).



Starting with 'In The Street' they quickly set about going through their back catalogue. 'The Ballad Of El Goodo' was included early in the set and followed not long later by 'Thirteen' which continues to sound as pretty and affecting as ever.

"Won't you tell me what you're thinking of
Would you be an outlaw for my love?"


'Daisy Glaze', 'Way Out West', 'September Girls' and 'Feel' were other highlights. I find some the of most memorable moments at gigs seem to come from the surprises that you did not envisage - their inclusion of their cover of 'Til The End Of The Day' by The Kinks was one of these moments for me. They also played two more from 'Sister Lovers' - 'Thank You Friends' and 'For You'. The fact that they had raced through all of their "hits" so early on led Toby to speculate on 'Holocaust' being a possible encore. I suggested maybe a medley from 'Sister Lovers' but sadly it wasn't to be. No 'Nightime' or 'Blue Moon' then - two of my favourite Big Star songs which have quite a special emotional resonance for me, going back to 2001 when I first became familiar with the album.

I thought they kind of ran out of steam towards the end of the gig, playing several songs from the last album and then finishing with a fun but slightly superfluous cover of 'Wouldn't It Be Nice'.

Afterwards we headed back to Goldhawk Road and caught the Hammersmith & City line back out east. For some reason, on the rare occasions I take the H & C line it always seems to be full of people who have spent the evening binge drinking which can result in some eventful journeys. Tonight however it wasn't too bad - maybe helped by the fact I had a very pleasant conversation with one of JP's Spanish friends. Can't remember his name but he is from Vigo in Galicia, north-west Spain. I decided if I was to ever pledge allegiance to a Spanish football team it would be Celta Vigo as it seemed quite similar to my own team (Newcastle United) in certain ways (geographical remoteness, lack of recent success etc). Overall then, a great evening.....

Friday 22 August 2008

The Lure Of The East - British Orientalist Painting at Tate Britain

I squeezed in a trip to Tate Britain earlier this week to see this exhibition before it closes at the end of the month. It is a selection of paintings from British artists who travelled around the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East throughout the nineteenth century capturing the landscapes, religious places and local traditions of the area.

I particularly enjoyed the beautiful landscapes in there, which captured the hazy beauty of the land really well.


Thursday 7 August 2008

Radical Light at The National Gallery

The National Gallery currently is currently showing an exhibition by the name of 'Radical Light' featuring a group of Italian painters who worked in Milan towards the end of the 19th century. I went along after work on Wednesday evening to investigate.

The exhibition apparently marks a change in direction for the NG, focusing on a smaller, lesser well know movement - Italian Divisionism - rather than opt for a big name ‘blockbuster’. Time will tell how successful this will be but my own opinion was that it is a move that should be celebrated.

It was a fairly small show - only 6 rooms. It began with a selection of landscapes showcasing the painting technique which has given rise to their name - the Divisionists. The paintings definitely have a distinct luminosity to them and the sense of light emanating from the canvas is immediately tangible. The exhibition makes quite a lot of this stylistic innovation and whereas it is undoubtedly effective the real merit for me lay in the political and social themes that were represented in the artists’ work.

The show moves on to feature images of Italy’s poor in scenes of social hardship - women working without respite in the rice fields or old men taking refuge in the church (one of highlights for me was the stark ‘The Christmas Of Those Left Behind’ by Morbelli).

Room 4 is arguably the strongest of the exhibition. It is dominated by Giuseppe Pellizza’s ‘The Living Torrent’, a powerful piece depicting a faceless, amorphous, concentrated crowd of workers in pursuit of justice. It is an imposing piece and I found it almost cinematic in certain ways. It has been called socialism’s greatest painting and it is easy to see why.

There are a few other pieces which also incorporate some of these social issues. The politicisation of these artists was what I will take from the exhibition - if you look at Italian history around the period it certainly was an eventful time - social unrest followed by government repression, assassination of the reigning monarch and eventual trade union legislation. It seems quite appropriate how the art of the Divisionists reflected these slightly turbulent times.

On a separate point while I was at the NG I took the opportunity to check out some of the paintings by Canaletto, Claude & Turner - some of the most beautiful art you will ever see!

Sunday 3 August 2008

Caramel

Just got back from seeing Caramel at the PCC. It is a movie set in Beirut and follows the lives of a number of women who work in and around a beauty salon. The events unfurl at a modest, reflective pace as the circumstances of each of the characters are slowly revealed. Throughout the film we witness moments of sadness, humour, disappointment, happiness and poignancy.



The director Nadine Labaki also features in the film as Layale, a young Lebanese woman who works in 'Si Belle', the small beauty salon. The movie shows that despite the troubled political situation of Lebanon its citizens still lead lives which contain the kind of small preoccupations and personal concerns that affect us all. The themes of love, marriage, tradition, sexuality and family all appear. The fact that no mention is made to the recent war with Israel ensures this message is carried through with quiet strength. The dedication at the end of the film adds a nice, silently moving touch.

Overall I enjoyed the film very much. It is very easy to watch, is beautifully shot and falls into the category of film that carries a message without ever overstating its case.

Tuesday 29 July 2008

Kitty, Daisy & Lewis at Pure Groove Records

I have just got back from Pure Groove Records in Farringdon where the very excellent, all-singing, multi-instrumentalist, über-cool Kitty, Daisy & Lewis were playing a show to support the release of their debut album.

They play a swinging, bluesy rock'n'roll- rockabilly hybrid, taken straight from the 1950s and dragged into the 21st century. The fact that they are all teenagers (sporting the finest haircuts this side of the war, incidentally) makes their music all the more special.

Their line up changes for each song as they swap instruments and vocals - tonight we saw guitar, banjo, ukelele, pedal steel guitar, accordian, harmonica & various percussion passed around freely (and played with confidence). With Mum and Dad on double bass and guitar respectively they played a selection from their just-released eponymous album. They look like they are loving every minute and judging by the jubilant reaction of the crowd gathered in the shop they were not alone.

Photos to be added soon.

It was my first visit to Pure Groove and I have to say I was impressed - quite minimal with a different layout to your regular record store, it doubled up as a great live music venue also. They also have various music related art on display which stands out as another point of difference. If you happen to find yourself in Farringdon with time to spare go check them out.

Saturday 19 July 2008

My Top 30 Albums

OK - I have had a couple of weeks away from concerts, exhibitions etc so I decided to keep my blog going by making some kind of record of my favourite albums.

Being male and interested in music I frequently find myself compiling mental lists of favourite artists, tracks, gigs etc. Usually when lost in my iPod or stuck on a tube etc. Listening to 'I Trawl The Megahertz' a lot recently (see below post) led me to think about recording and organising these random thoughts.

I was only going to do the top 10 but this quickly progressed to 20 and then to 30. I haven't included any jazz or classical albums as that would have complicated it too much - I will list those separately on another occasion. It has to be said that a lot of these are interchangeable depending on my mood and what I have been listening to at the time (even the number one position).

So, after much deliberation, here goes:

1) ‘Pet Sounds’ The Beach Boys
2) ‘Deserter’s Songs’ Mercury Rev
3) ‘And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out’ Yo La Tengo
4) ‘The Boatman's Call’ Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds
5) ‘Bandwagonesque’ Teenage Fanclub
6) ‘I Trawl The Megahertz’ Paddy McAloon
7) 'Tindersticks II’ Tindersticks
8) ‘Either/Or’ Elliott Smith
9) ‘Spirit Of Eden’ Talk Talk
10) ‘Grand Prix’ Teenage Fanclub
11) ‘Treasure’ The Cocteau Twins
12) ‘Trust’ Low
13) ‘Ocean Songs’ Dirty Three
14) ‘Union Café’ The Penguin Café Orchestra
15) ‘Judee Sill’ Judee Sill
16) ‘Hawaii’ The High Llamas
17) ‘Meat Is Murder’ The Smiths
18) ‘Aw C’mon / No You C’monLambchop
19) ‘Lazer Guided Melodies’ Spiritualized
20) ‘Barafundle’ Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci
21) ‘Bryter Layter’ Nick Drake
22) ‘True Love And High Adventure’ Grand Drive
23) ‘Emperor Tomato Ketchup’ Stereolab
24) ‘Hats’ The Blue Nile
25) ‘Music Has The Right To Children’ Boards Of Canada
26) ‘The Soft Bulletin’ The Flaming Lips
27) ‘Penguin Eggs’ Nic Jones
28) ‘Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain’ Pavement
29) ‘Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ Pink Floyd
30) ‘Gold’ Ryan Adams

I tried to keep it one album per artists but couldn't help include two albums by Teenage Fanclub. I could have easily included two albums by Low and Elliott Smith also.

Albums by Laura Cantrell, Sigur Ros, Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Vashti Bunyan, Midlake, Sufjan Stevens & Johann Johannson all closely missed out being included in the top 30.

Not a bad selection overall!

Friday 18 July 2008

'I Trawl The Megahertz' by Paddy McAloon

I have been listening to this album quite a lot lately. It really is one of the most beautiful and emotionally-affecting albums I have heard.

The story behind how and why the album was created is obviously central to its impact.
In the early 1990s McAloon was left nearly blinded after eye surgery. This led him to listen more to radio talk show programmes and change the way he worked as a musician/writer.

The end result was 'I Trawl The Megahertz', a beautiful orchestral, largely instrumental, late-night, melancholy piece of music. It is easy to view the album as a meditation on loss, isolation, solitude and the therapeutic qualities of music.


The title track is the album's centrepiece (although it actually opens the album) and features a female voice (actress Yvonne Connors) reading a collection of lines written by McAloon alongside statements that he heard on late night radio phone-in programmes. When these are combined and set to the lush, orchestral backdrop it results in an absorbing, powerful listen. You can find the full lyrics through a search engine but below are some of my favourites:

"Hers is the wingspan of the quotidian angel"

"I am tying a shoelace, or finding the pavement fascinating while the comet thrills the sky"

"I am jangling along to some song of the moment, suffering it's sweetness, luxuriating in it's feeble approximation of starlight"

"In the chamber of my heart sits an accountant. He is frowning and waving red paper at me"

"In the subterranean world of anaesthetics sad white canoes are forever sailing downstream in the early hours of the morning"

Certain musical motifs and themes appear throughout the album which allow it to sit comfortably as a piece of work.

Highly recommended.

(It actually got me thinking - it certainly would make my top 10 favourite albums and may even sneak into the top 5 possibly. More of that to follow soon.....)

Saturday 5 July 2008

The High Llamas at Whitechapel Art Gallery

I was at the Whitechapel Art Gallery last night to see one of my favourite bands, The High Llamas.

It was my first time visiting the Whitechapel Art Gallery. I had heard the capacity was going to be 140 but didn't quite know what to expect. My initial reaction wasn't great. The room was small (which is normally a real positive for me) but stage seemed to be tucked away in the corner and a growing number of people were already sitting down on the floor, making for a slightly claustrophobic beginning. However, later in the evening, once everyone was standing I realised that it actually worked well as a gig venue and was enjoying being there.

Support band Ladywoodsman eventually come on and they were pretty good with their percussive, lo-fi, alt-blues sound.

The High Llamas were playing their annual London show (why only annual?). Last time I saw them was in 2000 at Camden Dingwalls.

They pretty much played a greatest hits set, spanning their entire career - 'Leaf And Lime', 'Harper's Romo', 'Triads', 'Bach Ze', 'The Old Spring Town', 'Nomads', 'The Sun Beats Down', 'Hi-Ball Nova Scotia', 'Campers In Control' were all played finishing with a glorious 'Checking In, Checking Out'.
See below for some photos (not great quality admittedly).


Their songs have brilliant harmonies, beautifully simple melodies, and great lyrics. I don't think it is overstating things to say that Sean O'Hagan is one of the finest songwriters of recent times.

BBC Singers at St Giles Cripplegate

I went along to St Giles Cripplegate to see the BBC Singers perform three choral works as part of the City Of London Festival.

The concert featured 'Cinq Rechants' by Olivier Messiaen sandwiched in between two new pieces by Jonathan Harvey and Param Vir. The evening tried to combine western choral music with elements of Indian spiritualism.

Messiaen's piece was quite dynamic and full of energy. The other works had more of a distinct Hindu influence. It all added up to quite a powerful experience.

Thursday 3 July 2008

Cy Twombly at Tate Modern

Earlier in the week I went to see the new Cy Twombly exhibtion at Tate Modern. They have been promoting him as one of the most significant contemporary artitsts so I was looking forward to the visit.

I thought the show got off to a fairly slow start. His early work didn't really do a great deal for me, especially the cold, minimalistic scrawling pieces. Twombly is generally categorized as post-abstract and a lot of his earlier work would confuse the casual observer.

However, as I progressed through the show I began to enjoy his paintings more. The introduction of colour seemed to bring the exhibition to life and the themes of nature, water and seasons, although never obvious, broke through the fog of earlier abstractism.

His brand of minimalism seemed to revert to a more conventional form as the exhibition progressed. The highlight for me was 'Untitled (A Painting In Nine Parts)' which provided a much needed glimpse of aesthetic beauty. This was something I could not locate in his earlier work.

So, my thoughts on leaving were that the second half of the show generally made up for the earlier disappointments.

On a separate issue the soundtrack to my visit was 'Hawaii' by The High Llamas. Has there ever been a more consistently brilliant album over 29 tracks I thought to myself as I walked back to Bank tube station??

More on the High Llamas in my next post.....

Monday 23 June 2008

Massive Attack BUG Special at the BFI

I went along to the BFI on Thursday last week to see the Massive Attack BUG video special.

See my first post for more information on what BUG is all about. It was another excellent show with the sound problems of BUG07 a distant memory. I hadn't seen any Massive Attack videos prior to going but suspected they may be mostly dark, claustrophobic affairs. This certainly was the case with the videos for tracks from their 3rd and 4th albums. However, the videos for their earlier work reflect the lighter mood of the music. In particular the video by Bailie Walsh for 'Unfinished Sympathy' is a classic, featuring Shara Nelson walking through downtown Los Angeles.

One of the most enjoyable parts of the evening was just hearing the tracks at loud volume - especially the evocative, widescreen, layered opacity of the tracks from 1998's Mezzanine.

Host Adam Buxton was very funny as usual (and brought the usual selection of amusing youtube comments). Check out his youtube page for some of his recent stuff (including parts of 'Meebox' his pilot for the Big British Castle, which is funny - especially if you are a fan of A. Buxton).

Sadly BUG08 is sold out but I will aim to get back on board for BUG09 later in the year.

Wednesday 18 June 2008

'Psycho Buildings' at The Hayward Gallery

I went along to the Hayward Gallery this afternoon to see their Psycho Buildings exhibition.

The exhibition features the work of artists who have tackled the subject of architecture, producing works that are meant to challenge, confound and inspire.

The Hayward Gallery has always been one of the more architecturally unusual buildings in central London so I guess it is appropriate that architecture is taking a prominent role in their main exhibition of the summer as the gallery turns 40. I have always enjoyed wandering around the different levels and different shaped rooms of the Hayward and today was no exception.

The highlights for me were the contributions by Rachel Whiteread, Mike Nelson and Do Ho Suh.

Whiteread's visually stunning 'Place' , a collection of 200 small houses all internally illuminated is the most striking piece. My immediate reaction was how warm and welcoming the piece was but on further exploration it reveals itself to have a slightly eerie quality as all houses are devoid of human life.

Mike Nelson's 'To The Memory Of H.P.Lovecraft' is a dark, brooding, slightly menacing affair, the slashed walls and scattered debris suggesting some kind of dreadful event has just taken place. The ambiguity of the cause only serves to increase its impact.

Do Ho Suh's 'Fallen Star 1/5' is another interesting piece - inspired by his decision to leave Korea in the 1960s to live in New York, it is a model of his home in Korea crashing into the flat he lived in in NY. The real highlight is the detail - nothing is overlooked.

The interactive pieces, although fun, were less effective for me personally. However, the Hayward must be saluted - one of the few galleries who would consider turning part of the building into a mini lake in the name of art. There is also a small cinema showing short films that tie into the artists-doing-architecture theme.

So - another excellent exhibition by the Hayward Gallery. Should we have expected anything else?

Sunday 15 June 2008

Fleet Foxes & Beach House at ULU

I went along to ULU to see two of the best new bands around on Wednesday 11th. Seattle band Fleet Foxes specialise in harmony-laden, baroque alt-folk whilst Beach House hail from Maryland and purvey a more textured, shimmering, hazy guitar pop.

First up were Beach House. Victoria Legrand's slightly raw, arresting voice comes across even better live than on record. They played from both of their excellent albums and also included a nice Daniel Johnston cover ('Some Things Last A Long Time'). They remind me a little bit of Broadcast which is not a bad thing.

Headliners Fleet Foxes are amazingly accomplished for such a young band. What they do is not fantastically original but they have brilliant songs and do all the good things really, really well. Beautiful melodies, note-perfect harmonies, nice lyrics and proficient playing. They played mostly from their new eponymous album but also threw in some from their debut EP 'Sun Giant'. Prolonged applause followed almost every song which seemed to surprise them a little.

'White Winter Hymnal' is being relaesed as their next single and you really should try to listen to it. They are playing Shepherd's Bush Empire in November and I may well be going along.

As an aside they also covered 'Crayon Angels' by the brilliant Judee Sill (if you don't know her music please try to listen - she was a genius and has arguably one of the most interesting stories in the history of folk music).

All in all - a great gig. My first trip to ULU for over 4 years as well which reminded me what a great little venue it is.

Saturday 7 June 2008

The American Scene at The British Museum

After leaving the PCC (see post below) I decided to head down to the Hayward Gallery, hoping to catch the recently opened 'Psycho Buildings' exhibition. When I got there I was confronted with a massive queue. So, I opted for a change of plan and set off towards the British Museum. The 59 bus took me up Kingsway and Southampton Row before I disembarked next to Bloomsbury Square Gardens (possibly one of the nicest squares in central London?).

I was going to the British Museum to check out one of their exhibitions, 'The American Scene' which features a selection of prints from modern Amercian artists. Talk of prints by Edward Hopper, Jackson Pollock and Joan Mitchell had attracted me to the exhibition but when I got there, for me, it was other artists that seemed to stand out.

The show begins with a lot of prints showing New York street life and architecture. I particularly liked the street scenes depicted by Martin Lewis and the buildings as portrayed by Louis Lozowick - especially the futurism/cubism feel of his 'New York' piece (see below).



The American Midwest also gets a look in with some nice prints of rural landscapes before the show concentrates on more abstract prints. Along the way some colour prints from Robert Gwathmey also stand out - as used in the sign outside the main entrance (see below).


If you like modern art and want to see some beautiful prints of New York & America I suggest a visit - it is showing until 7th September (and is free!).

If you do go, make sure you pass through the Great Court and enjoy the spectacular glass roof.


Son Of Rambow

I went along to the wonderful Prince Charles Cinema earlier today to catch Son Of Rambow, the new film by Garth Jennings. The plot revolves around the attempt of a couple of schoolkids to make their own movie.

On the whole it is very funny, especially if you grew up in the UK in the 1980s and can appreciate all of the little references (does anyone else remember the concept of "tracking" when trying to play video cassettes?). I didn't really expect it, but it turned out to be a resounding feelgood movie also.

Definitely worth watching!


Friday 6 June 2008

London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican

I went to the Barbican last night to see the excellent LSO performing Mahler's 9th symphony.

It is a grand, vast, sweeping epic of a symphony. Quite demanding listening in some ways but ultimately very rewarding. The final movement is powerful stuff. Very sad and poignant. Click here for some background to the piece if you are unfamiliar.

I managed to quickly pop along to the Royal Festival Hall beforehand to catch a free concert by the Philharmonia Orchestra. I am happy to take advantage of any almost opportunity these days to sit inside the fantastic newly refurbished RFH. Since moving to London almost 9 years ago it has firmly become one of my favourite venues. I have had some great times there. Brian Wilson (6 times!), Yo La Tengo, Elliott Smith, Mercury Rev, Low, hearing Steve Reich's 'Music For 18 Musicians' live for the first time, the panoramic view across the Thames from the balcony during intervals, spending time in the member's area. Great memories!

See below for some pictures.

From the stalls:

From the stage:
From Golden Jubilee bridge at night:


Saturday 31 May 2008

eMusic

Following on from the last post - another great place to find excellent new music is the eMusic website.

It is a subscription based service, allowing you to download and keep MP3 files from artists on some of the best alternative record labels around. I have the 100 tracks per month download package. It can be very addictive.....

My downloads refreshed on Saturday and I have gone for the following:

Dirty Three 'Whatever You Love, You Are'
Spaghetti Western String Co. 'Lull And Clatter'
Devotchka 'A Mad And Faithful Telling'
Bon Iver 'For Emma, Forever Ago'
Beach House 'Devotion'
Tape 'Luminarium' (a real find - shades of late Talk Talk crossed with quiet electronica)
Vaughan Williams ‘Symphony No. 5’

Alan Hovhaness ‘Sympphonies No. 4, 20 & 53’

Edvard Grieg’s Sigurd Josalfar (after hearing it for the first time on Radio 3 earlier in the morning)

And I still have 27 downloads left.

Let the listening begin!

Alternative, esoteric, brilliant radio programmes

Two of my favourites radio programmes are Stuart Maconie's Freakzone on BBC 6 Music and Where's The Skill In That by Mark Russell & Robert Sandall, broadcast on Resonance FM.

Over the last couple of years I have discovered some tremendous music through these shows.

The music played is so brilliantly varied - modern classical, electronica, jazz, art-rock, leftfield indie, nu/pysch/alternative folk and all kinds of experimental stuff all get a look in (and that doesn't even get close to summarising it).

Whilst I am on the subject it would be slightly unfair not to mention Late Junction also, which is broadcast on BBC Radio 3. Another brilliant show, the only problem these days is that it is on too late in the evening (proof I am getting old I guess). They play a nice mix of classical, world, jazz and electronica. As soon as the sound comes back to my PC I will be using the Listen Again function.

Go check them all out!

Stuart Maconie's Freakzone is broadcast on Sundays 17:00-20:00 on BBC 6 Music
Where's The Skill In That is broadcast on Wednesdays 21:00-22:00 on Resonance FM.
Late Junction is broadcst on Tues-Thurs 23:15-01:00 on BBC Radio 3.

Thursday 29 May 2008

Heresy

We went along to Drill Hall on Thursday to see a recording of the excellent Radio 4 radio programme, Heresy. The show picks 3 perceived wisdoms and the panellists attempt to challenge them, occasionally with the help of the audience.

This show the 'wisdoms' we had were:

1) Radio 4 is aimed at middle class, middle aged people.

2) Rising sea levels spell disaster for mankind.

3) Men who go out with taller ladies end up looking silly.

I agree with point 2 and, on the whole with point 3 but point 1 is a little more complicated. Radio 4 may well be aimed at those kind of people but surely it has content for a wider demographic? Anyway, I like it, especially the Today programme (but then again at 31 I am close to, if not already middle aged I suppose).

The show is presented by Victoria Coren and the guests for this show were comedians David Mitchell and Arthur Smith, and journalist Michael Bywater. David Mitchell was very funny, Arthur Smith was quite funny (in a slightly rambling way) but the hack wasn't very funny at all. I guess that's why the first two are comedians huh?

On the whole - pretty amusing stuff. And free as well, which is always nice.

Heresy is currently broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Thursdays 18:30-19:00.

Fleet Foxes at Rough Trade East

Fleet Foxes are an excellent new band from Seattle.

I went along to Rough Trade East on Wednesday to see them do a DJ set in support of their forthcoming eponymous debut album.

I picked up a copy of their new CD (see below - signed!). I am generally a bit rubbish when it comes to meeting bands, never really knowing what to say. Anyway, the album sounds great - lots of nice harmony-laden baroque guitar pop. Check it out! I will be heading along to ULU on 11th June to see them play live.


Tuesday 27 May 2008

Durham Concerto by Jon Lord

I have been listening to and enjoying Jon Lord's Durham Concerto very much recently.


Commissioned as part of the celebrations to mark the 175th anniversary of the founding of Durham University it is a 6 movement piece performed by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. It is divided into 3 parts - Morning, Afternoon & Evening and is meant to represent a typical day in the city.

It is both a majestic and stirring piece, with moments of drama and colour. Appropriately it features some nice Northumbrian pipes played by Kathryn Tickell.

Overall, it is an excellent piece of music and I recommend it to anyone interested in accessible, contemporary classical music. It is available on the excellent emusic website (more of which to follow in another post).

Hopefully they will perform it in London at some point - I think it would sound great at the RFH or the Barbican!

Monday 26 May 2008

Street Art at Tate Modern

I went along to Tate Modern on Sunday 25th to check out the Street Art exhibition which opened recently. They have used the facade of the building to present 6 large scale works by various international 'street' artists.

My first thought was that it was surprising they haven't done something like this before. Apparently it is the first major public museum display of street art in London.

Overall it worked pretty well I thought. One of the most impressive pieces (in my humble opinion) is by an artist from Barcelona that goes by the name of Sixeart (see his 'piece' below).

Another of my favourites was from Blu, an artist from Bolgna (see below). One of the key features of his art is his concentration on the internal workings of the human body, which was certainly evident in his piece in this exhibition. When you see it close up there is a lot of stuff going on it there....

Some more images.




There is a separate Street Art Walking Tour around the Bankside area, I didn't manage it this time but may come back to investigate. On a similar theme, at some point I will also try to check out The Cans Festival in Leake Street by Waterloo.

Saturday 24 May 2008

The Beginning

So here it is. My first blog entry. Exciting.


I decided it might be fun to join the blog-world, mainly to keep a record of what I get up to (mostly around London). If others end up reading it, cool. It will most probably end up including stuff on music, gigs, cinema, art and general London life.


On Thursday 22nd I went along to the BFI on the South Bank to see BUG07, the regular pop video showcase event hosted by Adam Buxton. Very good it was too, despite problems with the sound. A nice mix of funny, surreal, disturbing and beautiful pop videos. Check out the link above for which videos were shown. The videos for recent singles by Goldfrapp, Sia and Sebastien Tellier were all highlights for me.

I will be going to future BUG events for sure I am thinking, possibly the Massive Attack special as part of the Meltdown festival if other stuff allows (and I book tickets in time).




I also was able to enjoy a nice Hoegaarden with lemon on the tables in front of the BFI beforehand, which set my mind towards thinking about the joys of summer in London.