[...music...]: 2011-04

2011-04-28

take care

continuing on with my post-rock week... monday, i was at the mogwai show. on tuesday, explosions in the sky's new album "take care, take care, take care" was released. i had pre-ordered it from temporary residence; i received in the mail yesterday.

the packaging is pretty nice. take a look:

"open" house, with poster, and postcard in the bottom left corner:

house, front view:

house, view from corner:

musically, there are no surprises, they haven't deviated at all from their sound. still, i like it. after a few more listens, i am sure that one of the six tracks will emerge as my favourite.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, explosions in the sky

2011-04-27

mogwai @ l'olympia

on monday, i went to the mogwai show. it was my 5th time seeing this band.

the opening band was usa out of vietnam, replacing errors, who couldn't make it to the montreal show. their set was loud. and heavy. and loud. i wore earplugs for half the set; i didn't want to pre-blast my eardrums before a mogwai set.

when mogwai appeared on stage, i noticed the absence drummer martin bulloch. they explained that he's back home for family reasons, with errors drummer james hamilton filling in for the north american dates.

i found the first couple of songs kind of slow, and maybe too calm. the energy level progressively built up, culminating in an epic ending of noise and distortion; typical for this band. there was minimal use of strobe lights; instead, there was a widescreen projection of video clips to accompany the songs.

they mostly played songs from the new album, their 7th. at this point, with such a large catalogue, i don't even expect them to play "like herod" or "christmas steps" or "my father my king" like they used to. still, they included a couple of old tracks.

setlist:
white noise
friend of the night
how to be a werewolf
rano pano
death rays
i'm jim morrison, i'm dead
san pedro
ithica
mexican grand prix
helicon 1
you're lionel richie
we're no here

encore:
autorock
george square thatcher death party
glasgow mega-snake

what i like about this band is, how awesome they sound live. they've got almost no stage presence, no stage banter (other than guitarist stuart braithwaite saying "thank you" or "merci" after almost every song), just music. and it's enough for me to keep going to their shows.

~~~

purchase: i got a t-shirt with the mogwai young team logo; it's one of my favourite albums, and the logo is pretty cool.

hearing damage: during the show, their music didn't feel too loud; it was occasionally very dense, but not causing discomfort. but after the show, and all of yesterday, my ears were still ringing. even today, i don't feel like my hearing has 100% recovered. damn.

~~~

Labels: l'olympia, mogwai, shows, usa out of vietnam

2011-04-20

no devolución

i missed out on ordering the deluxe edition of thursday's "no devolución" (only 500 copies, with laser-cut artwork); to be honest, i forgot that they were releasing some new material. when i remembered, i ordered it from the epitaph webstore. including shipping and usd-cad currency conversion, it was still cheaper than buying it from hmv.

i received the cd in the mail yesterday.

i've listened to this a couple of times by now, and i'm really liking it. overall, it's atmospheric and moody; an "experimental" progression from their previous material. the preview track "magnets caught in a metal heart" is a good example of this newer sound.

thursday - magnets in a metal heart

strangely, "empty glass" makes me think of digital ash-era bright eyes.

thursday - empty glass

i think this will be one of my favourite releases of the year. and "sparks against the sun" is my current favourite track.

thursday - sparks against the sun

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, thursday

100 lovers

about a month after i ordered this online, i received devotchka's latest "100 lovers" in the mail.

i got the deluxe edition. the disc comes encased in a box, with a clear cover held onto the box with grommets:

included in the box is a bonus dvd, a zoetrope to assemble...

... and a cherry-flavoured chapstick that serves as the spindle. the zoetrope shows a man struggling with an umbrealla in the wind, in keeping with the umbrella theme of the album artwork.

musically, there are no surprises. pretty much what i expect from this band: gypsy-inspired folk music with americana touches.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, devotchka

2011-04-13

devotchka @ le national

oh wow, i just realized that i am really behind on my blogging.

at the end of last month, i went to the devotchka show with rox.

the opening band was b.e.t.a.l.o.v.e.r.s. their music was kind of folk/americana with a hint of jazz, so i initially thought they were american. when the singer started talking, i realized they were a local band.

this was my first time seeing devotchka play a full set. i hadn't listened to the new album yet, so i was glad they decided to play quite a few old song, including my favourites: "how it ends", "the clockwise witness", "the enemy guns". it was a nice evening.

no aerial silk performer this time. but they had a dancer with an umbrella perform during "100 other lovers", as show in this video i found on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKa_GTSq96s
from the angle, i think this was filmed by the girl standing next to us.

they ended up playing a 2.5+ hour show.

we were standing next to the stage, so after the show, rox was able to grab a copy of the setlist.

setlist:
the alley
head honcho
queen of the surface streets
poland (?)
the clockwise witness
the man from san sebastian
how it ends
all the sand in all the sea
we're leaving
vengo! vengo!
basso profundo
exhaustible
contrabanda
i cried like a silly boy
100 other lovers
the enemy guns

encore:
only love can break your heart (neil young cover)
undone
ranchero (?)

~~~

Labels: betalovers, devotchka, le national, shows