Tuesday, June 14, 2011, Manic Productions presents
 |
| Photo: Sarah Barrick |
Location:
Wadsworth Atheneum (Aetna Theater)
600 Main Street
Hartford, CT
7:00pm - All Ages - $15
Buy tix now!
Earth: Here is a review of Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1
from allmusic.com, which explains Earth in its current form:
When Dylan Carlson resurrected Earth after a five-year break, he also reinvented their sound. Gone were the crushing, devastatingly slow, blown-out guitar and bass drones that essentially created the entire post-rock genre. The new Earth create a more atmospheric music with more arid soundscapes; they explore skeletal yet pronounced layered melodies inside their trademark drones, creating the aural equivalent of vast, utterly empty desert landscapes. It began on 2005's Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method, and attained maturity on 2008's Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull. With Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1 -- the first of two thematic albums proposed for 2011 -- that's still the case, but Carlson and longtime drummer Adrienne Davies have succeeded in opening up Earth's soundscape texturally and pushing beyond what was achieved on Bees. The contributions of new members cellist Lori Goldston and bassist Karl Blau make this possible. "Old Black" opens the set with Davies playing a kick drum, snare, and cymbal, with trancelike precision. Carlson pursues a series of chord changes one note at a time; Goldston creates a counter-melody just outside his frame. Blau pushes harder and slower, creating tension and a slightly shifting dynamic as the music intensifies but intentionally never breaks loose; it reveals its considerable power with restraint. "Father Midnight" commences with a two-chord vamp, played by all three string players. Carlson finds just enough extra notes to create a melody. Blau and Goldston assert themselves against this ever-so-slowly evolving lyric statement and one another; harmony and dissonance coexist without antagonism, creating a heaviness and tension that are aesthetically beautiful and emotionally resonant. The title track, a 20-plus-minute mindwrecker that closes the set, allows that dissonance in from the jump as Goldston and Blau explore the lower registers of their instruments in a counterpoint that is bridged by Carlson's low-end guitar only minutely at first. The trio gains traction in minute increases that up the dynamic tension. This creates a sinister brooding resonance that is underscored when Davies enters five minutes later. What takes place for the remainder is an exploration of intonation, space, and melody based on a minor-key blues that transcends the form. Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1 represents a further shift in Earth's evolution. It is darker -- even sinister -- and undoubtedly heavier than Bees, but it is more seductive with its mantra-like droning repetition and more elegantly detailed in its textural dimension.
Ô Paon:
Geneviève Castrée was born in Québec in 1981, she says:
"I started Ô Paon at home in 2007. I felt the need to start something new, to work harder. The songs of Ô Paon are often born out of frustration, events happen in front of me and I make my comments. I make stuff up, I create scenes. I fuck around a little bit because it's important to forget to take yourself seriously sometimes. Ô Paon has sung a little bit everywhere: in Canada, in the United States, in Europe, in Japan, in Australia and in New Zealand. It was great. There will be more occasions for me to show myself in the near future.
I choose to write and sing my songs in French, my mother tongue. People often tell me I have a weird accent. I don't know what to say about that. I sing the way it comes out. I am a well-traveled French-speaker.
I like recording by myself in my house. Clumsiness can become magic. For Courses, my first full length, I surrounded myself with people who really know music and how to play it. I went into a real studio. It was worth it."
Earth tour:
Midwest/East Coast American Tour:
6/08/2011 Mayne Stage - Chicago, IL w/ Ô Paon
6/09/2011 Mad Planet - Milwaukee, WI w/ Ô Paon
6/10/2011 Magic Stick - Detroit, MI w/ Ô Paon
6/11/2011 The Strut - Kalamazoo, MI w/ Ô Paon
6/12/2011 Grog Shop – Cleveland, OH w/ Ô Paon
6/13/2011 Johnny Brendas - Philadelphia, PA w/ Ô Paon
6/14/2011 Wadsworth Atheneum - Hartford, CT w/ Ô Paon
6/15/2011 Middle East Downstairs - Boston, MA w/ Ô Paon
6/16/2011 Le Poisson Rouge - New York City, NY w/ Ô Paon
6/17/2011 Ottobar - Baltimore, MD w/ Ô Paon
6/18/2011 Braddock Carnegie Library– Braddock, PA w/ Ô Paon
6/19/2011 Southgate House - Newport, KY w/ Ô Paon
West Coast American Tour:
7/13/2011 Doug Fir Lounge - Portland, OR w/Angelo Spencer and Wyrd Visions
7/14/2011 The Northern - Olympia, WA - w/Angelo Spencer, Broken Water and Wyrd Visions
7/16/2011 What the Heck fest? - Anacortes,WA
7/21/2011 Catalyst Atrium - Santa Cruz, CA w/Angelo Spencer
7/22/2011 Slim's - San Francisco, CA w/Angelo Spencer and Whirr
7/23/2011 Echo Plex - Los Angeles, CA w/Angelo Spencer
7/24/2011 The Casbah - San Diego, CA w/Angelo Spencer
8/02/2011 Tractor Tavern - Seattle, WA w/Tiny Vipers and Angelo Spencer
8/05/2011 Shakedown - Bellingham, WA w/Cold Lake and the Narrows
More date
here
Estrogen Highs releasing a new LP, and The Mountain Movers dropping a three-sider, then teaming up to play Cafe Nine? Sweet Jesus. 
First to open for the night was Father Murphy, a three piece experimental band from Italy. Since I hadn’t heard of them before, I was surprised to see the guy casually smoking a cigarette outside of the venue moments before was actually their singer. Without an introduction, they began to play. Father Murphy is definitely an art form. They are weird, but a brilliant kind of weird. I’m not sure how to describe their music, but they have been defined as being a little folk, post punk math rock, and avant noise. It is obvious that Father Murphy knows what they’re doing, as the sporadic rhythms from guitarist Freddie Murphy and drummer Vicar Demarin synched up well with keyboardist Chiara Lee, as she even banged a gong, chimed cymbals, and rang old, rustic looking bells. I found their music both eerie and strange, but it is really up for interpretation. Though Murphy chanted and screeched with raw emotion into the microphone, I was surprised to how soft spoken and gentile he sounded while thanking Xiu Xiu and Deerhoof during their set. While talking with Father Murphy after the show, through their thick accents they explained that this was their third time in the United States but their first time in Connecticut. If they ever decide to come back to Connecticut, I suggest you go to their show. Maybe you’ll know what I’m talking about.
While Father Murphy had all the bells, Xiu Xiu was ready with both the bells and whistles. In another oblivious state, I passed the two piece band on the street while walking toward the venue without realizing who they were. Xiu Xiu (pronounced “shoe shoe”) consists of three members, though their percussionist wasn’t present to accompany singer-songwriter Jamie Stuart and multi-instrumentalist Angela Seo. Their performance certainly didn’t skip a beat as the duo blasted beats from a drum machine and banged on single hi-hats and cymbals all while playing a keyboard, guitar, and a few odd end instruments. During one song, Seo hit her cymbal so hard that she knocked it over into the crowd. Luckily, a guy in front was nice enough to push it back to the stage, causing her to crack a smile. Stewart hunched over the microphone as if he were passionately telling a story; whispering, yelling, and wailing while strumming hard on his guitar, at one point even with a drum stick. He hopped around as Seo played her keyboard with a grim expression of serious concentration. In something I’ve never seen on stage before, Stuart pulled out a Nintendo DS to tap beats for their song “I Luv the Valley Oh” all while singing. It didn’t stop there, as their songs had Seo using different mouth instruments and bells while Stewart blew into a whistle. Similar to Father Murphy, Xiu Xiu stands alone in their music genre, though they have been described as art rock, experimental rock, indie rock, and synth pop. I will tell you, they are like nothing you’ve ever heard before, but still had the crowd moving with them. After they played their last song, I heard someone behind me say, “Well that was interesting.” I’d take that as a compliment.
In all seriousness, Deerhoof is clearly multi-talented, as halfway through their set they switched instruments which put Matsuzaki on drums, Rodriguez on bass, and Saunier on guitar, to which he sang a song. As for the rest of the performance, Deerhoof’s set was of intelligence, sweet sounding vocals, and true innovation. Though the band takes their music seriously and performs flawlessly, they present themselves in a modest, carefree way, which is a comforting quality. Deerhoof played their last song and thanked the crowd only to return for an encore by the continuous applauding at the end of their set.
