[...music...]: 2006-05

2006-05-29

apparently, the show sold out. i was a bit surprised; i didn't realise that imogen heap had such a following here. it could be because she's had some songs on the o.c.

at the beginning of the show, the lovely imogen heap said a few words and introduced the opening act, zoë keating, a solo cellist. zoë keating used loops to create layers of music, making it sound like multiple stringed instruments were playing. her set was really good, purely instrumental, with beautiful songs. only one problem: she was sitting on a creaking chair (a minor annoyance).

next was imogen heap, coiffed in a big hairdo, with feathers and leaves. she began her set with an a capella version of "just for now", complete with hand claps and fingers snaps. afterwards, she introduced us to her "band"; she basically described her instruments and the various sound effects she can produce.

almost all the songs were from her solo album "speak for yourself". she played one old song that i did not recognise (i don't know any of her old material). she played one frou frou song, "let go", of course. she played her hit "hide and seek" near the end, just before the encore. during the encore, she covered "hallelujah", a capella, with no effects, just voice and nothing else. it was great.

i really liked that she played her songs differently than on the record; it made the music sound fresh. in the middle of the set, zoë keating came back out to play some accompanying cello on "speeding cars" and "headlock".

imogen heap talked a lot between songs; it was nice. a good interaction with the crowd (who obviously adored her). there were a couple of mistakes throughout the set, which she laughed off and the audience cheered on. she was really adorable.

she mentioned she may be back in november. i would definitely go see her again.

overall, i had a wonderful time tonight. walking into the venue, i did not expect much. so i was pleasantly surprised at how amazing the show turned out to be. i also met a bunch of new people through a friend.

~~~

cd purchase: after her set, a bunch of us got a copy of zoë keating's "one cello x 16: natoma". it was selling fast.

hearing damage: none at all. the music was absolutely lovely.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, imogen heap, latulipe, shows, zoë keating

2006-05-27

the stills

i used up my gift card to get the stills newest album "without feathers".

it sounds average. but the songs are nice.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, the stills

2006-05-23

ben lee

while browsing the music aisles, i saw ben lee's "awake is the new sleep". i got it too.

the songs are nice. happy. pop.

my taste in music has really softened.

~~~

Labels: ben lee, cd purchase

snow patrol

about two weeks ago, i was surprised to see that snow patrol has a new album out. i didn't even know that they had new material. sure, i loved the previous "final straw", but i've not heard anything from the new album "eyes open", so i did not get it. when i arrived home, i listened to a few song samples from their website. it sounded okay. then, i got a futureshop gift card. at the store today, i decided to get "eyes open".

the album sounds average. pretty standard rock. nothing too surprising. but i like it.

my favourite track is "set fire to the third bar", as it features martha wainwright on vocals. perhaps i should check out her album...

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, snow patrol

2006-05-16

mogwai @ spectrum

openers were torche: heavy and loud. this is probably the closest to metal that i'll ever hear at an indie show. at least, there were no growling vocals. or maybe there were, but i couldn't hear it. the band was largely instrumental, and the little vocals that they had were buried underneath the loud guitars. i guess they were good, for those into that kind of music. but i was not too impressed; they were too aggro-macho for my liking.

then, mogwai came on stage, wearing matching green adidas track jackets. how cute. this was my third time seeing them live, but i was still pretty excited.

they played a mix of old songs and new, with colourful lights and smoke effects, and enough strobelights to induce an epilepsy. i am not familiar with their entire catalogue, so i didn't know some of the songs. however, shame on me, i didn't even recognise the first two minutes of my favourite mogwai track "christmas steps". well, at least they played it. they also played my favourite from the new album "we're no here". they ended the set with the very loud "glasgow mega-snake".

they came back on stage for an encore. they played "my father my king". yay! fifteen minutes of music build-up, culminating into five minutes of noise, distortion, and feedback. near the end, the band members left the stage one by one, only leaving their noise behind. killer.

~~~

cd purchases: "ten rapid" and "come on die young", which completes my mogwai album collection.

celebrity sighting: on the sidewalk, after the show, i saw tim fletcher, vocalist of the stills. their new album sounds good, by the way.

hearing damage: my ears are ringing right now. i'll probably recover after i get some sleep. although i was expecting worst, for a mogwai show.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, mogwai, shows, spectrum, torche

2006-05-12

radiohead

shame on me, i only own one radiohead album...

my friend and i could not not get tickets to their show. apparently, it sold out quite quickly. i'm not too disappointed. they seem to tour often enough, i'll just catch them on their next tour. also, tickets are expensive; now i can use that money for other things.

for example, getting an actual cd. "ok computer" was their last album before they went electro-experimental. i definitely prefer their rock albums.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, radiohead

tool

i haven't listened to tool for a long time, since high school. there's a mystery about this band. their videos are odd, their album art is original, their sound is distinct. yes, there's something pretentious about them, but i used to love this band. eventually, i stopped listening to their music because the elitist in me thought they weren't "indie" enough.

when i heard the first single from the new album, i was not impressed. it sounds exactly like their old stuff. the first time i heard the song, i thought i was hearing some old material.

seeing the new cd at the store, i became curious about the packaging: what are those lenses for? i could not resist, and so i got "10,000 days", just for those lenses. it turns out, they're used to view the booklet images in 3-d. very cool. tool's album art never disappoints.

i listened to the entire album. i've forgotten how much i love this band!

i also got their early ep "opiate", just to complete my collection.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, tool

2006-05-08

summer vacation

summer vacation has just started. today, i passed by hmv and archambault. a couple of purchases.

tiga - sexor
i've been in a bit of an electronica mood lately, so i headed to hmv looking for tiga's newest release. i had only heard one song from the album, but i liked it enough to get the disc. turns out, it's really good! fun, dance, party music. it reminds me of how much i used to love dance music, back when i started to seriously listen to music, when i was in grade 5.

frou frou - details
while browsing the electronica section of the store, i saw frou frou's release. i got it too. the music is light and calming. the singer has such a nice voice. i can't wait to see imogen heap live, at the end of the month.

jean leloup - l'amour est sans pitié
jean leloup - le dôme
i really like jean leloup's last studio album "la vallée des réputations". it suck that i found out about this singer just not long before he retired. i guess i won't get a chance to see him live. i found these two older releases of his, on special at archambault. i listened to them a couple of times. it's so different from his later stuff. his early material is more "wtf?!" i'll listen to it some more; it'll grow on me, i'm sure.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, frou frou, jean leloup, tiga