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Crash Test Dummies / Mo Kenney (City Winery Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, March 14, 2022) [DID NOT ATTEND]

March 14, 2020 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: March 14, 2022] Crash Test Dummies / Elizabeth Moen [rescheduled from May 2, 2020]

This tour was going to be a full band anniversary tour and I was really interested in seeing them all, especially after the postponement in 2020.

However, this show was far more expensive than the show in Bethlehem.  Plus, I bought tickets for us to see them in Bethlehem [which we wound up not going to, rats].

And, we had tickets to see Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, which took precedence.

Mo Kenney is a Canadian singer/songwriter based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Catching the ear of noted Canadian rocker Joel Plaskett while still in school, Kenney released their first album in 2012, which Plaskett produced. Kenney is known for their lyrical prowess and engaging stage presence

They have a lovely voice.

Posted in Brad Roberts, City Winery Philadelphia, Crash Test Dummies, Mo Kenney, Philadelphia, PA | Leave a Comment »

Hari Kunzru–Gods Without Men (2011)

March 14, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: LESLIE ODOM, JR.-Tiny Desk Concert #909 (December 2, 2019).

I knew I had heard of Leslie Odom Jr. but I couldn’t remember from what.  Apparently I have heard of him from….everything.

A Tony- and Grammy-winning star, Odom has added a slew of achievements to his portfolio since 2016, when he left his role playing Aaron Burr in Broadway’s Hamilton. He’s continued his work in television and film, written a book and released jazz and Christmas albums. He co-wrote most of the songs on his latest project, Mr; out earlier this month, it’s his first album of original material.

Dang.

His singing voice is fantastic and these songs that he wrote are really wonderful.

“Cold” is a hopeful ballad with a beautiful melody and a hint of contemporary musical theater.  It opens with a lovely acoustic guitar from Jeremy Ting and piano from Tommy King.  Odom’s voice is powerful and strong and he hits some nice falsetto notes.  This is all accented by rim shots and cymbal taps from Garrison “G-Beats” Brown.

His backing vocalists, Christine Noel Smit, Nicolette Robinson (Odom’s wife) and Astyn Turr add some nice calla and response and then harmony voices. There’s a pretty acoustic guitar solo as well.

And all the while Odom’s voice and lyrics are fantastic.

When it’s finished he says, “you are the second group of people to hear that song.”

Then he

recalled advice he’d received from a friend: “You have to get used to it — you are part of a cultural phenomenon in New York City,” Odom said, before quipping, “I feel so blessed to be a part of … Law & Order: SVU for three magnificent seasons.”

Up next is “Foggy,” which he says is the most personal song on the album.  It’s much more spare, a love song filled with the regret of failed good intentions.  It’s almost entirely just he and the piano.  Although half way through some xylophone notes add a cool echoing sound.  As the song nears its end, Astyn Turr sings along with him.

Introducing the final song, “Hummingbird,” he says “This song is admittedly… I think it’s a bop, but it’s an odd little bop.  But it has been tested by my 2 year old and it is her favorite song on the album.  For this song Tommy King and Theron “Neff-U” Feemster switch places so “Neff-U” (who worked with him to make the record) is now playing piano.

The song features some wonderful violin from Andrew Joslyn.  It’s a fun boppy song and I love that everyone raucously sings the “you’re my hummingbird” line.

I really didn’t know what to expect from this set, but Odom has a fantastic voice and his songs are really very beautiful.

[READ: August 2019] Gods Without Men

I had read a review of this book by Douglas Coupland on two occasions and each time it made me want to read the book.  So I decided to read the book.  And what a book.

Coupland had warned, in a sense, that there were UFOs and aliens–but not to be put off by them.  And he’s right.  The book centers around aliens and such, but there are no “little green men.”

Rather, the book looks more at a location and the spiritual power it has had on people throughout history.

The book bounces back and forth between various eras and the present.  In most summaries of the book, the present takes prominence–and it is the most often visited timeline in the book.  But at times I found the story in the present to be less interesting than those in the past.

The book begin in 1947 with a man named Schmidt.  Schmidt drove out to the Pinnacles “three column of rock that shot up like the tentacles of some ancient creature, weathered feelers probing the sky.”  He used his diving rods and sensed the power here.  He paid $800 to a woman who owned the property and then settled in.  Schmidt built an underground structure to live in.  He bought an Airstream trailer and set it up as a diner.  Then he put in an airstrip and a fuel tank.  Soon enough pilots were stopping in for fuel as they sailed across the desert.  Schmidt is an interesting character (with a reprehensible past).  He also, every night, lit up the lights on top of his property that said WELCOME.

One night a ship descended from the sky. Continue Reading »

Posted in Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, Aliens, Ashtar Command, Douglas Coupland, Hamilton, Hari Kunzru, Huh?, Humiliation, Iraq, Law & Order, Supernatural, Surreal | Leave a Comment »

They Might Be Giants: 30th Anniversary Flood Show (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, March 13, 2020) [POSTPONED]

March 13, 2020 by Paul Debraski

[POSTPONED: March 13, 2020] They Might Be Giants [moved to September 8]

indexMarch was going to be a very busy concert month for me.  This was to be the first of four shows in five nights.  This show was going to be for me and S.–a night of They Might Be Giants performing Flood!

It turned out to be the first of dozens of shows cancelled or postponed by the coronavirus.

Obviously, my main concern is for everyone’s safety, including the bands!

My selfish concern though is that once the shows are rescheduled that all of these shows will be scheduled on the same day!

Let’s hope the rescheduled dates also do some social distancing.

tmbg

Posted in Coronavirus, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, They Might Be Giants, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Sudan Archives / Cartel Madras / yungkamaji (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia PA, March 13, 2020) [NOT POSTPONED/DID NOT ATTEND]

March 13, 2020 by Paul Debraski

[NOT POSTPONED: March 13, 2020] Sudan Archives / Cartel Madras / yungkamaji

phrasesnotattend

Sudan Archives at Johnny Brenda’s was a show I had really wanted to see.  When I realized she was playing there the show was already sold out.  So I gave up (I don’t do resale).

Then Coronavirus came in and shows were starting to get cancelled.  The Districts had still gone on last night, but They Might Be Giants had already been postponed.

A friend of mine went to this show (she had gotten tickets early) and said that so few people had actually shown up that they were letting people buy ticket sta the door.

I didn’t think I could get tickets.  I’m not sure if I would have gone had I known there were tickets available.  The virus hadn’t hit Philly really at that time, but i think I’d have played it safe anyhow.

The Key gave a short (kind of sad) write up about the show.

DJ/Visual artist yungkamaji (whom I have never heard of) opened the show with a short set before being joined by the sisters of Canadian hip hop duo, Cartel Madras.

Cartel madras was supposed to open for clipping. a few months from now but that show was postponed as well.

Visuals from their eclectic music video shone over head as the duo traded verse on their short, mixtape length tracks. Self-classified as “Goonda Rap” (meaning thug), “Conta” and “Eboshi” bring a South Asian aesthetic to Western trap and hip-hop.

It was the last show I could have gone to for a long time.

Posted in Cartel Madras, clipping., Coronavirus, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Quarantine, yungkamaji | Leave a Comment »

Royden Lepp–Rust: Volume 4: Soul in the Machine (2018)

March 13, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: SUNNY WAR-Tiny Desk Concert #910 (November 13, 2019).

Sunny War says twice that she’s not going to talk.  She saves all of her words for her songs.

Her voice is soft and gentle, but her words are strong.

The first song “If It Wasn’t Broken” features the chorus “how would you know you had a heart if it wasn’t broken?”

Further lyrics in this slow and simple song:

so you lost your baby
so you lost your job
so you lost all faith
in the one you call god.

Dang.

These are words from a young woman who has been homeless, busked on city streets and Venice Beach, left home feeling she was a burden to her distraught mother, had her life complicated by drugs, and yet still found a way to pick up a guitar and bring joy to others.

Her songs aren’t complicated, but they feature some really excellent fingerpicking.  “Got No Ride” has a lot of beautiful interludes (including one part where she is fingerpicking and bending a string at the same time).

Sunny War began learning guitar from her uncle at around the age of seven. One of the early songs she learned was The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” an almost prophetic tune with the line, “Take these broken wings and learn to fly.” But it was the fingerpicking that was the attraction for Sunny War. She loved playing guitar that way as opposed to strumming and, as you watch this Tiny Desk, you’ll see what a fluid and remarkable guitar player she’s become.

The song also features some extra bass lines from Aroyn Davis (The first song didn’t really have noticeable bass).

“Love Became Pain” is a lot faster, with some really impressive guitar work.  Clearly from the title, though, this isn’t a happy song either.  I like the shuffle drums that Paul Allen gets using brushes on the cajón.

The final song, “Shell” opens with the lines:

“Before you rip your girl to shreds / Be sure you really want her dead.”

With such a pretty melody, too!

Much like her name, Sunny War’s music is a wonder of contradictions.

[READ: February 2, 2020] Rust: Volume 4

This book concludes the Rust saga.

Like the first book, there are a ton of pages with no dialogue.  This story is wonderfully told with just visuals.  And Lepp’s visuals are really amazing–what he accomplishes with such  limited color palette is really impressive.

The book starts with a flashback to the war 48 years ago.  It’s been awhile since I read the first book but I feel like this intro pages are exactly the same.  We see Jet Jones rescue a man by creating a large shield.  I’m not sure if there;s some more significance.  I’m also not sure if we’re supposed to know who the man is.

But the story quickly jumps back to the Taylor’s farm.  The really menacing robots are closing in.  Oz has a shotgun in ready.  And the engineer is carrying Jet Jones’ limp body away with him.

The robots arrive (why does it amuse me that they open the door) and Oz shoots, which awakens the family.

A terrible battle commences in the house with all of the people getting hurt, but with all of them doing a good job of harming the robots.  Jet comes in at the last second and smashes up some of the robots.  In the process reveals his mechanical arm.  The family is shocked, except for Oz.  Roman is furious that Jet lied. Continue Reading »

Posted in Archaia, Blindness, Chickens, Children's Books, Completed Series, Death, Fears, Graphic Novel, NPR/PRI/PBS, Robots, Series, Sunny War, Technology, Tiny Desk Concert, Violence, War | Leave a Comment »

The Districts / And the Kids / Sixteen Jackies (Union Transfer, Philadelphia PA, March 12, 2020) [NOT POSTPONED/DID NOT ATTEND]

March 12, 2020 by Paul Debraski

[NOT POSTPONED: March 12, 2020] The Districts / And the Kids / Sixteen Jackies

phrasesnotattendMarch was going to be a very busy concert month for me.

I thought that I would be starting a bunch of shows in a row with this one. Then it turned out that an event for my son that I thought was scheduled for March 19 was actually on March 12.  So that meant I would not be going to this show.

I had seen The Districts back in 2017 and enjoyed the show, but I clearly didn’t enjoy it as much as everyone else in the room who knew every word to every song.  I was much more prepared for this show, even if there was a new album about to come out for this show as well.

I was also really excited to see And the Kids, a band I have really enjoyed twice and who I can’t wait to see again.  But they had a personal tragedy affect them and they had to cancel their opening slot of the tour.  That was a major bummer.

I didn’t know Sixteen Jackies, but I had read good things about them.

Once the coronavirus started shutting down shows, I wasn’t sure if this show would get shut down.  It didn’t and it turns out it would have been my last show for quite a while if I had gone.

Sounds like it was great, but I had more important things to do.

However, I hope that when they reschedule the tour that they tack on an extra Philly day so that we can enjoy them again without the fear of contagion hanging over our heads.

Posted in And the Kids, Philadelphia, PA, Postponed, Sixteen Jackies, The Districts, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

Lauren Groff–“Waiting for the End of the World: Apocalypse Camp at the Dawn of the Great Extinction” (Harper’s, March 2020)

March 12, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: KOKOKO!-Tiny Desk Concert #911 (November 15, 2019).

KOKOKO! are a visually arresting band.  The band dresses entirely in yellow jumpsuits and they play…garbage.

KOKOKO! are sonic warriors. They seized control of the Tiny Desk, shouting their arrival through a megaphone, while electronic sirens begin to blare. There’s a sense of danger in their sonic presence that left no doubt that something momentous was about to happen. And it did!

Makara Bianko was the guy shouting through the megaphone, walking all around the room.  Then after the siren, he sat at the drums (which are held together with duct tape and electrical tape) and started singing lead vocals on “Likolo”

Dido Oweke on the “guitar” starts the simple riff.  It’s possible that it has one string and the bottom of the guitar is definitely an old can.

Backed by a bank of electronics, including a drum machine, this band from the Democratic Republic of the Congo redefines the norm of what music is and how music is made. Wearing yellow jumpsuits that are both utilitarian and resemble Congolese worker attire, this band from Kinshasa feel as though they’re venting frustrations through rhythm. And all the while they’re making dance music, all from their debut LP, Fongola, that feels unifying — more party than politics.

“Tongos’a” starts with an electronic drum pattern from Débruit on the synth (he’s making a lot of the noise and twisting knobs and chanting along) and a simple bass line from Boms Bomolo.  Everybody chants along to the chorus.

Starting “Malembe” Débruit sings an echoing opening call as he starts electronic drums and Love Lokombe plays some analog drums.

Each song is arresting and catchy as the next (although “Malembe” feels a little long.

The only bad thing about this Tiny Desk is that you can’t really get a good look at the instruments.  I mean, it’s clear that Love Lokombe is playing a rack of glass bottles.  But he’s also hitting some kind of metal scraps.  And at the end of “Malembe” Makara Bianko picks up a board with a can attached to it  There’s a guitar string, I guess, which he strums rapidly.  I guess he can change the pitch by moving the ca,  He gets a pretty cool melody sound out of it.  It’s such a cool instrument and I want to see more!

There’s a nice story about the band in this NPR piece at Goats and Soda.

[READ: March 1, 2020] “Waiting for the End of the World”

In the great tradition of authors I like writing long form non-fiction for Harper’s, Lauren Groff heads to a Prepper’s Camp to learn how to deal with TEOTWAWKI.

The camp was started in 2014 by Rick and “Prepper Jane” Austin.

Groff acknowledges that she is not he usual prepper.

I am a vegetarian agnostic feminist in a creative field who sits to the left of most American socialists: I want immediate and radial action to halt climate change, free Medicare and free public higher education for all, abortion pills offered for pennies in pharmacies and gas stations, the eradication of billionaires; the destruction capitalism; and the rocketing of all the planet’s firearms into the sun.

Amen. Continue Reading »

Posted in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Environmentalism, Goats and Soda, Harper's, Hitler, Hoax, Idiots, Illusion, Indigenous Peoples, Injustice, Knives, KOKOKO!, Lauren Groff, Military, Natural Disasters, Nazis, NPR/PRI/PBS, Politicians, Religion, Ronald Reagan, Tiny Desk Concert | Leave a Comment »

Stephen King–“The Fifth Step” (Harper’s, March 2020)

March 11, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: BURNA BOY-Tiny Desk Concert #912 (November 18, 2019).

I’ve heard of Burna Boy but I don’t know anything about him.  So:

The Nigerian singer and songwriter is one of the biggest African artists in the world. He’s also a pioneer of Afro-fusion which incorporates sonics and influences from a myriad of genres, laid on an Afrobeat foundation. The sound has been inescapable this year. The man born Damini Ogulu has been touring the world for the majority of 2019 and has at least 10 songs in the current nightclub rotation.

I was concerned when he started “Gbona” that I couldn’t understand him at all.  But it turns out the song is in Yoruba.  He even mutters something and I really like the rhythm of it, although I don’t know if its words or just sounds.

It’s weird that between the songs, there’s clapping and then silence.  No one in the band says anything.  And there’s some really long pauses.

The silence between songs must be atypical though:

his Tiny Desk performance offers something relatively different from what we’re used to seeing at his rowdy stage shows. He’s more reflective here and restrained, allowing his songwriting to shine.

“Wetin Man Go Do” opens up with some pretty, clean guitars from Gaetan Judd and some big fat bass sounds from Otis “Bdoc” Mensah.  The main melody of the song comes from Michael “Maestro” Masade Jr. or Jola Ade on the keys (they are not introduced, so I don’t know who is who).

The opening of the Tiny Desk Concert had a warning about explicit lyrics and I wondered how that would be if he didn’t sing in English. But in “Dangote” he gets this verse in

Choko, make you hustle, ma lo go
I no be olodo, I no be bolo
Wo Omo to ba lo fuck up

All of the songs feature some lovely backing vocals from Christina Matovu, although the last song, “Ye” features a sampled vocal (I thought it was Matovu’s voice filtered but it’s not).  Because she actually has a few call and response vocals and it’s nice to hear her voice alone a few times.

There’s some nice drum punctuation in the verses of “Ye” from Emmanuel “Manny” Abiola-Jacobs. Since there was some English in his songs, I thought he was saying Chewbacca (which seemed really unlikely).  So I had to look it up and this is a serious song and he’s actually saying “G-wagon”

My nigga what’s it gon’ be?
G-Wagon or de Bentley?
The gyaldem riding with me
I no fit, die for nothing

I really like the guitar sounds on this song, but overall this concert felt a little cold.

[READ: March 1, 2020] “The Fifth Step”

I started reading this story and was thinking how Stephen King’s stories used to be all about horror .  And now his stories are about people who have everyday issues and concerns.

Harold Jamieson was chief engineer of New York City’s sanitation department.  He was retired now at 68 and, despite his wife’s passing five years ago, he was pretty happy.  He enjoyed going to Central Park and reading the newspaper (if the weather was nice).

He was sitting, reading his paper, when a stranger sat on the bench with him.  He was about to get up when the man asked him for a favor.

Jamieson was definitely going to leave but the man pleaded with him and held out $20.  He said Jamieson could help save his life. Jamieson gave him five minutes.

The man, who said his name was Jack, said he was in AA and his new sponsor encouraged him to find a stranger and talk to him.  It was Step Five: Admit to God, to yourself and to another human being the exact nature of your wrongs. Continue Reading »

Posted in Burna Boy, Domestic Violence, Drinking, Harper's, Murder, NPR/PRI/PBS, Short Story, Stephen King, Tiny Desk Concert, Violence | Leave a Comment »

Fernanda Melchor–“Spellbound” (Harper’s March 2020)

March 10, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: RAPHAEL SAADIQ-Tiny Desk Concert #920/Tiny Desk Fest October 31, 2019 (December 5, 2019).

This Tiny Desk concert was part of Tiny Desk Fest, a four-night series of extended concerts performed in front of a live audience and streamed live on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

Back in October, NPR allowed fans to come watch some Tiny Desk Concerts live.  October 31st was R&B night featuring Raphael Saadiq.

Saadiq did a Tiny Desk Concert in 2009 and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.  It was a stripped down show–more acoustic than R&B and I was really impressed with his guitarist Rob Bacon.  I either forgot or didn’t know that he “lit the fuse for soul’s popular revival as the lead for Tony! Toni! Tone!”

Well, Bacon is still with him and he is the highlight of this set for me.

This was  the final Tiny Desk Fest show and it runs just over 30 minutes, with Saadiq playing seven songs.

“I’m Feeling Love” is slow and sexy with some quiet wah wah (from Bacon and Saadiq) guitar running through it.  I rather enjoyed this part

I live my life like Willy Wonka
It’s that TV Edith Bunker
Uncle Fred and Jimmy Walker
George Jefferson had that walk

After this first song Saadiq brings out a special person.  After a big introduction it turns out to be Lucky Daye (whom I’ve never heard of) although the blurb says he is a “rising soul singer and songwriter.”

They sing Saadiq’s song “Be Here.”  I liked Saadiq’s voice last time but I found Lucky Daye’s voice to be way too poppy for my taste.  But this song features some funky slap bass DaQuantae “Q” Johnson and cool synths from Daniel Crawford.  Without question, though, the highlight is Rob Bacon’s ripping guitar solo.

Up next is my favorite song of the set.  It’s called “This World Is Drunk” (and the people are mad).  It is slow and pretty, with thoughtful lyrics.  I like the story telling better than the macking.

Lucky Daye comes back out and they’re going to do two of his songs. He says he wants to sing “Call,” but Saadiq says No, let’s do “Love You Too Much” first.  Daye sings and I really don’t think much of this R&B ballad.

I like “Call” better because Bacon switches to acoustic guitar and there some nice percussion (rim shots) from Alvin Ford.  I feel like this song is a bit less poppy and more interesting.

Before the last song Saadiq jokes about when he played there ten years ago: “it was really a tiny desk.”

“And honestly we were kinda complaining about it,” Saadiq laughs, recalling that performance in 2009, back when hosting intimate little concerts behind Bob Boilen’s desk was still a fledgling idea at NPR Music. “Like, we kinda didn’t wanna do it,” he admits in hindsight. It wasn’t until the video-taped version of his set hit the Internet and began picking up views that the lightbulb went off for Saadiq, too. “It’s like probably the biggest streaming I ever had, so it’s kinda good to be back — not kinda good; it’s really good to be back.”

The final song, “Still Ray” was inspired by southern marching bands… black colleges.  I didn’t go to one of those and my school did not have a marching band.  But one day I was gonna put a tuba in my song and it was gonna be the main thing in the song.  They asked where the hook?  The hook is the tuba!

Brent Gossett comes out (technically with a sousaphone) and I really like this song a lot.  He’s right, the tuba is the hook.  Near the end of the song he cuts out the music:  Just me and the tuba.  I’ve been waiting for this my whole life!

I still prefer his 2009 set, but there’s no denying Saadiq’s charisma.

[READ: March 1, 2020] “Spellbound”

This is an excerpt from the novel Hurricane Season translated by Sophie Hughes.

This except opens with an estate, agent saying that the woman never really died, even though her body was found in the irrigation cancel. They say she changed shape as she was being stabbed.  Perhaps she was a bunny or a lizard or bird.

But once her body was found people were quick to break into her house to see if they could find treasure.

The say Rigorito and his men broke down walls and dug up the floors. They even broke down the door of the Old Witch in the back of the room–where the Old Witch’s mummy lay preserved.  The mummy crumbled in front of them and those men fled town never to return.

That’s what some people say. Continue Reading »

Posted in Excerpt, Femicide, Fernanda Melchor, Harper's, Lucky Daye, Mexico, Murder, NPR/PRI/PBS, Raphael Saadiq, Sophie Hughes, Tiny Desk Concert, Tony! Toni! Tone!, Translation, Witches | Leave a Comment »

Anne Enright–“Night Swim” (New Yorker, March 9, 2020)

March 9, 2020 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: BALÚN-Tiny Desk Concert #927 (December 20, 2019).

When I first listened to this Tiny Desk, I was delighted by the gentle way it started–pretty acoustic melodies on slightly unfamiliar instruments.  Although I usually enjoy noise and chaos, I really hoped that this whole set would stay like this.  And (for the most part) it did.

The set opens with sampled birdsong as “Vaivén” begins with a beautiful melody from Noraliz Ruiz on the Puerto Rican cuatro.  She’s joined by Enrique Bayoán Ríos-Escribano on the charango.  It’s a beautiful short piece that segues into “La Nueva Ciudad” and that’s when things changed a bit with the addition of electronics.

Their mix of traditional instruments with electronics creates not just a sonic treat but also a visual feast, as our eyes dart from one instrument to the other, drawn in by a Puerto Rican cuatro and a makeshift drum set.

Indeed

It’s impossible to not be drawn in by the visual specter of Balún. The band has refined their electronic roots with their turn toward self-discovery on beautifully crafted studio albums, and this set behind the Tiny Desk shows how expertly they deliver the same meticulous, artful music live.

“La Nueva Ciudad” opens with electronic-sounding percussion as Ríos-Escribano and drummer Shayna Dunkelman both scratch percussion instruments.  Then Ríos-Escribano plays a hand drum and José A. Olivares plays a little synth device as the melody unfolds.

Then we finally hear singer Angélica Negrón (with the purple hair).  She has a soft, high voice as gentle as the instruments around it.  Her voice is warm and inviting even if you don’t speak Spanish (it might make you want to learn).

For verse two Darian Thomas kicks in the violin with the charango adding its chords.  It’s a wonderful song, complex and fun.

Balún is from Puerto Rico and they dedicated the third song “El Espanto” to their island home.  Negrón says “El Espanto” is about cleaning up the bad energy and starting from scratch.    It opens with a fascinating percussive intro

I didn’t expect to be greeted by a mysterious, eighth member who made an appearance at the start of “El Espanto” in the form of programmed solenoids that struck the bottoms of pots and pans to create a rhythmic intro to one of their brilliantly crafted songs, mixing the folkloric with the modern.

The song starts with a weird synth sound (like an electronic folk instrument) which, along with the violin, pokes out the melody.  Electronic percussion fleshes out the staccato notes.  Midway through the song it gets huge with guitars, synths, who knows what else.  It brings a great alt rock sound and a hugely catchy melody (and Negrón’s voice is perfect for it).  Then the cuatro takes over the melody again.  The middle of the song has a ripping guitar solo from Raúl Reymund with Darian Thomas playing some wild violin.

I love that everyone sings along gently until the end of the song, when it’s a total freak out with loud electronic drums, noisy guitar, wild violin and all kinds of shaken percussion.  It’s the chaos I wanted after all!

Balún is part of a vanguard of bands that is expanding the musical landscape of Puerto Rico and it is a treat to watch them up close as they create an actual bridge between the ancient and the modern, set against a rich tapestry of vocals that extoll the virtues and challenges facing their beloved island these days.

“Punto De Encuentro” ends the set. It’s a new song.   Noraliz Ruiz picks up the bass (the first time a bass is used).  It opens with all kinds of electronics starting the song which turns onto a quiet, pretty ballad.  Thomas plucks the melody on the violin along with the synths.  Then the churango comes back with the bowed violin and all the while the complex percussion keeps the song moving along.

I had never heard of this band before this set and they totally won me over.  I’m looking forward to checking out their albums.

[READ: March 2, 2020] “Night Swim”

This story is set in Ireland.  I only find this surprising because in the story the narrator goes more or less skinny dipping which was something I didn’t think you could do in Ireland (do the lakes ever get warm enough at night?)–at least I’ve never heard of anyone doing that before.

But although that is the title and a crux of the story, it is not the entire story.

The story opens with the narrator, Michelle, driving her son Ben to a friend’s house.  Ben doesn’t talk much in general, but he seemed to open up in the car (I found that to be true about my own kids).

Michelle had not been to this friend’s house and was following the GPS map.  She was familiar with the area but not the route itself.

While she was driving, Ben began asking her “would you rather” questions: Would you rather drink a cup of lava or be drowned in a lava lake.  She doesn’t enjoy the game, but he is quite insistent.

When she answers she would rather neither of those things, he just repeats the question.

When he asks if she would rather drown in a lake or be strangled in the dark, she flashes back to the titular night swim. Continue Reading »

Posted in Anne Enright, Balún, Drinking, Ireland, Irish Writer, New Yorker, NPR/PRI/PBS, Parenting, Sex, Short Story, Tiny Desk Concert | Leave a Comment »

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