SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-The Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto (December 10, 2016).
This show is the second of two shows at The Horseshoe Tavern featuring the return of Dave Clark on drums, Hugh Marsh on Violin and Kevin Hearn on Vocals and Keyboards.
After about an hour, there is a ten minute intermission, but this show is about twenty minutes longer overall than the previous night’s. And the sound quality is 100 times better–nice and full.
The band plays the same five new songs this evening but not all together. Surprisingly, (a little although I get why it is this way), the set list is pretty similar to the previous night. The only songs played the first night that were not played the second night were “It’s Easy to Be with You,” “People’s Republic of Dave” and “Self Serve Gas Station.” The only songs played the second night but not the first were “Palomar” “Halloween Eyes” (!), “Horses” and “Christopher.”
On the download, the intro to “Stolen Car” is actually about 5 minutes of drum machine before the band comes out. Then Dave Clark plays a bit of an introductory drum solo while I gather the rest of the guys ambled out. After about 2 minutes of drums, Martin plays the guitar opening to “Stolen Car” and he sounds fantastic singing it. It’s a really lovely version and Martin hits those high notes with no problem. When it’s over you hear someone say “never open with a show stopper.”
Bidini says, “More songs about breaking the law. Although ironically we will not be performing “Breaking the Law” (booo) I guess… never say never, eh?”
Tim sounds great on “King Of The Past” and Kevin does the whole Mister Rogers introduction for “Fan Letter To Michael Jackson” which again sounds different (but only a little) with all of the extra keyboard stuff. The band is always tight on this song.
Dave apologizes for the TFC, Toronto Football Club, loss. Was anybody there? Nobody. Good. We don’t want any angry football fans here.
Have you said hello to Dave Clark yet? Dave is playing with a stolen timbale tonight, although he made good. Way back in the 1980s, Dave stole that drum from Mr McKay’s music class at Martingrove Collegiate. However, one wintry morning a couple of years ago he enumerated the value of the drum and paid them $500 for it. “Then I walked home to my old house. You could have rolled a bowling ball down the roads and not hit a thing.”
I love “P.I.N.” more with each listen. The four-string guitar sounds great and the band is always having fun. Whether it’s Kevin’s keyboards floating around or Tim’s interjections midsong, it’s always fun.
Clark is gonna play some brushes for “Mountains And The Sea” which sounds much better at this recording than the previous one. Mid-song, Dave whispers (that’s Hugh Marsh on the violin).
Then Bidini introduces Martin’s fancy guitar …two necks… two guitars? Siamese guitar? Then he notes “a very interesting discussion going on back there. Are you all discussing my post lounge debut?.”
Martin: Dave’s very exited about the mike… going hand held.
DB: I seized the mike.
Tim: Let’s limit that to one song.
Martin: Seized the mic? It’s right in front of you.
Kevin: Carpe Mikem [much laughter]
DB: That’s my stage name.
Tim: I think they’re discussing music stands on stage … Lack of commitment?
Martin: Bands that have music stands I want to kill them all… they’re racist…. I don’t know.
They finally start “Northern Wish,” but after a beat Clark says, “Let’s start that again. I’ll tell you why. Because I saw a squirrel go by.” It sounds great and is followed by Tim’s “Palomar” which is dedicated to the dog that’s accompanying someone in here.
They play “saskatchewan” which opens with a long meandering opening, that’s quite lovely.
They take the ten minute break which on the download is primarily synthy jazz, although it doesn’t really seem to be from the club. When the ycome back Dave says “Our break was good. We beat up some yuppies in the alley. Do yuppies till exist? We are probably yuppies.
DB: Can you see Tim is he lit enough? No!
Tim: My sister came last night and complained about the light show. I was in the dark. I said that’s the way I like it.
Martin: That’s bass-ial discrimination, Tim’s lightning.
Tim’s “Music Is The Message” also sounds much better in this fuller situation, although it is still primarily piano and Martin’s quiet soloing. When it’s over, someone shouts “Happy Birthday Tim.”
Kevin explains that “Chemical Valley” is from a recording he made with Martin and Hugh last winter, (with Gavin Brown on drums). Dave says that he and Tim were on a cruise. There’s lots of Hugh Marsh’s soaring violins.
Kevin says that Martin’s going to sing his song called “The Albatross.” Martin “The Unlucky Albatross.”
Dave tells a story of Martin working at the Royal Ontario Museum as a young fellow. Martin says he defleshed an ostrich and a rhinoceros while getting bones for comparative paleontology. He brought the meat home to eat.
DB: The Tielli’s were famous for their rhinoceros soup.
Martin: The rhino was worse, it was rank, But we got to have a piece of real rhino.
DB: Is it true your dad made grappa with the rhinoceros bones?
Martin: Horn, David, grappa cornuto.
DB: It’s the bands secret.
Kevin: Anyway, Martin’s going to sing his new song. It’s called, “The Albatross”
Tim: Mr Reality over there.
DB: Fucking talk show host.
Kevin: Happy birthday, Tim and here’s Martin with his new song “The Albatross.”
This version is really good and much more fun, but it still feels more like a solo Martin song than a Rheos song. But “California Dreamline’ sounds terrific.
Its followed by a 10 minute “Dope Fiends and Boozehounds.” (Three Martin songs in a row). There’s a beautiful flute-like melody playing throughout the song (Kevin, I assume) and another cool drum solo from Dave Clark. At he end of the song when it gets to the “dark side of the moon” and the howling starts the sounds get kind of dark and spooky and weird and someone plays the riff for Pink Floyd’s “Money” while some howling goes on.
More banter: “This is the end of our Canadian tour.” “Did you know it was Tim’s birthday? He’s 71.”
Tim: That last song really went to the dark side didn’t it? For a moment, I was on the dark side.”
“Claire” sounds great with Martin playing a wonderful solo and then mid-song it just stops dead. Tim was saying to bring it down and Martin was saying to bring it up. Tim says he wanted to hear more of Martin’s guitar. “It’s your birthday, you can hear all the Martin you want. I want a guitar solo for my birthday, Martin. I want some violin on this guitar solo. Wah wah wah, it’s all about me. And a little drum solo at the end.
There are cool keyboard twinkles that lend atmosphere to the opening of “Shaved Head.” The song sounds amazing although just before the ending, there’s a pause with much laughing (but Martin doesn’t lose it). I wonder what happened.
After the encore, Chris Brown comes on to play keys for “Queer.” After the song, Kevin sings “Waiting For My Man” with the refrain of “Hey Chris Brown what are you doing uptown? Chris Brown / Uptown. They start jamming a bit and Dave says, “C’mon, Tim, it’s your birthday, so Tim sings a few lines of “Halloween Eyes.”
After a pause they start playing “Horses,” but Martin says, “Clarkie, just think about the Royal Albert in 1987 and the guy named Tex with the fart gas can and the cowboy hat.
Clark: He didn’t even work there, he just took it on himself. He was like a vigilante fart gas man.
Martin: What do you mean he didn’t work there?
DB: You were very disturbed by Tex and his fart gas canister.
Martin: I’m disturbed that fart gas in a can even exists, Dave.
Kevin: Yeah, Dave.
Martin: That’s just weird in itself. Stop your song that they wanna hear.
Kevin: Yes, let’stalk about this.
after some discussion
Clark: I’ve got a giant can of Beano in the back.
Martin: What’s Beano for?
Clark: It’s for starting songs, lets do one.
“Horses” rocks. Midway through the song he starts singing “Smoke on the Water” but no one really seems to play along with him.
DB: I’m still in that Dope Fiends Black Hole.
Martin: That Pink Floyd black hole?
Kevin: There’s a cream for that.
Clark sing “Super Controller” which sounds much bigger and more fun with those “ba ba bas.”
There’s another encore break and they come back for “Legal Age Life” which was performed acoustic in the crowd and is thus silent till the ending part. The recording doesn’t really follow them and you can hear people talking at one point someone even says, “that is them, I thought it was a bunch of other people.” Then you can hear the end of the song.
Finally, they’re back up on stage and Martin says, “somebody get me a shot, the bar’s closing.” This leads to an awesome version of “Christopher” to end the night.
It’s a fantastic show and confirms that they are back and better than they have been in years. Next time I see that they are playing I need to haul myself up to Toronto to watch them.
[READ: January 28, 2018] “One, Two, Three and Four Rabbits”
This was a story published posthumously and was translated by Ezra E. Fitz.
I pretty much never knew what the heck was going on.
It starts with
I. The Future…
From where is the future related?
That’s all of Part I.
Then
II. The Past (more…)
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SOUNDTRACK: KHRUANGBIN-Tiny Desk Concert #743 (May 16, 2018).
The sound of the guitar that Khruangbin create is so dead on for an old sixties band that as they started this set I thought perhaps it was a sample they were opening up with.
I Just Read About That... 