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Te-Ping Chen–“Lulu” (New Yorker, April 8, 2019)

April 8, 2019 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: COURTNEY MARIE ANDREWS-Tiny Desk Concert #838 (April 3, 2019).

There is nothing worse than liking an artist and then having another artist with a similar name come along at the same time.

When I first heard of Courtney Marie Andrews, Courtney Barnett was just releasing her latest album.  And so every time I heard the name Courtney, I tuned in to see what Barnett was up to.  When it was followed by Marie Andrews, I was always disappointed.  Especially since I didn’t find this Courtney all that interesting.

Courtney Marie Andrews is part of that incessant tide of country musicians trying to crossover.   Okay technically she’s Americana, but certainly on the country side of Americana.

On the plus side, Courtney has a really powerful voice which is a pretty impressive thing indeed.   But I don’t really care for these three songs all that much.

“May Your Kindness Remain” opens with just keys (Alassane Gregoire Diarra) and her singing.   Even with little accompaniment, her voice is powerful and string.  And the lyrics are interesting:

“And if your money runs out
And your good looks fade
May your kindness remain
Oh, may your kindness remain”

The drums are brushed (William Mapp) and for the most part the song is pretty quiet.  Courtney herself is playing some simple chords and notes.  But as the song (and her voice) build toward the final chorus, she hits a big fuzzy guitar chord which really wakes up the song.

“Rough Around the Edges” opens with piano and bass (Ole Kirkeng) and vocals.  It’s a delicate song that definitely leans more country.

“This House” is dedicated to the best dog who ever lived (it would churlish to mock that the golden retriever is named Tucker–I’m sure it had a red bandanna too).  So yes, dead Tucker is buried near This House and he gets a mention in the lyrics. It’s that kind of song.

[READ: April 3, 2019] “Lulu”

This is a story of twins in China.  The narrator was born first “indignant and squalling,” while Lulu came next –perfectly quiet.  Lulu was precocious, and their parents showed their fondness for that.   She was always reading and easily got honors.  While the narrator… didn’t.  He rebelled against her brilliance by playing lots of video games.

Their parents were workers–their mother in a warehouse, father as a government employee.  They believed in the system and stood fast by it.

When it was time, Lulu scored high enough on exams to earn a place at university.  Their parents were thrilled.  The narrator also went to college, but with far less fanfare.  He says he didn’t really miss her then (he wasn’t old enough to realize it).  Plus Lulu was a huge user of social media.  He was able to find her “anonymous” account pretty easily since he knew so much about her and that’s how he kept tabs on her.

She came to visit when her school was in town for a debate and they had dinner.  They talked mostly about him.  Lulu thought video games were a waste of time but he said “it’s a profession now, you know… you can win big prize money.”

By the end of the night he finally asked Lulu about herself.  She said she was pregnant but would be getting an abortion. The father, Zhangwei, was a good man and they would be staying together: “He’s very noble.” Continue Reading »

Posted in Activism, China, Courtney Barnett, Courtney Marie Andrews, New Yorker, Prison, Short Story, The Dog Dies, Tiny Desk Concert, Twins, Video Games, Violence | Leave a Comment »

Muse (Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA, April 7, 2019)

April 7, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 7, 2019] Muse

Three years ago (I can’t believe it was that long), I saw Muse at this very arena.

It was an incredible spectacle.  And I knew that I would see them again if they came back.

And here they were.

The last tour was in support of their Drones album and it was a marvel of technological excess–drones floating all over the place and marvels of wirelessness.

They had said that this album and tour was meant to more humanizing.  But that did not mean less spectacle! Continue Reading »

Posted in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Deftones, Ennio Morricone, Game of Thrones, Muse, Philadelphia, PA, The Troggs, Wells Fargo Center | Leave a Comment »

SWMRS (Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA, April 7, 2019) [MUSE]

April 7, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 7, 2019] SWMRS

I was unfamiliar with SWMRS when I heard they were announced as Muse’s support act.

They formed in 2011 as Emily’s Army.  They recorded two albums under that name, then changed it  to SWMRS.  The band features brothers Cole and Max Becker (They are both singers and guitarists, with Cole taking more lead vocals (and hypeman) and Max playing more lead guitar).  The drummer is Joey Armstorng (obligatory mention that he is Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong’s son).  They also have had Joey’s brother Jakob on rhythm guitar.  Brother-to-no-one Seb Mueller is the bassist.

But it was their politics that made me excited to see them.  From a bit in Rolling Stone:

the subversion of patriarchy is part of what drives the band. They are a product of their respectively progressive upbringings in Oakland, where the young band members grew up loving riot grrrl and entrenched in feminist teachings. “I became aware at a pretty young age that I was benefiting too much from the patriarchy,” Becker, a current Berkeley student, explains. “It’s one of those things where you don’t think about it until you play a hundred shows and only see aggressive, hyper-masculine dudes crowd surfing on top of 14-year-old girls. We feel like it’s our duty to uplift the voices that aren’t as easily heard as ours.”

That’s pretty awesome.  And an encouraging sign for the youth of tomorrow. Continue Reading »

Posted in Beach Goons, Destroy Boys, Muse, Philadelphia, PA, SWMRS, The Clash, Wells Fargo Center, WKDU 91.7FM--Philadelphia, PA | Leave a Comment »

María Gainza–“Both Sides Now” (Harper’s, May 2019)

April 7, 2019 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Molson Centre Montreal, QC (December 9, 1996).

This is the 21st night of the 24 date Canadian Tour opening for The Tragically Hip on their Trouble At The Henhouse Tour. According to this host of the RheostaticsLive site: This in my opinion is the best show of the tour.

This show opens with the recording of the French language hockey game.  This time you can clearly hear him shouting Esposito!  After the recording fades,

It opens in a very amusing way.  I imagine that Dave and Martin are lying on the stage, because Dave asks, “Martin can you sleep?  I should have been asleep hours ago.”
Martin: “No, I can’t sleep.  I was up all night listening to the Local Rabbits.  Those riffs will keep anybody awake.”
[Tim starts playing the bass].
Dave “I had this weird dream we were playing in a giant rock stadium, opening for Ringo’s All Stars.  It felt really weird.  And everyone was speaking a different language.”
Martin: “Ringo’s really giving it this tour.”
Dave: “I’m just gonna get out of bed and see what Tim and Don are doing.”

They launch into “Fat.”  I really like the nice little bass tag Tim adds to the end while Martin sings “Bye Bye.”

“Aliens” is a nice surprise–I feel they just don’t play it all that much.  The feedbacking guitar segues nicely into a rocking “All the Same Eyes.”

It’s followed by a fun and bouncy “Michael Jackson.”  At the end, Martin says, “It feels good to be alive.”  Tim deadpans, “sometimes.”

Thanks to CSRG & CHUM FM and C5 for coming down and talking to us today.  This is a song [“Bad Time to Be Poor”] that’s getting played on the radio in all the finer dentist offices in the land.

Some cool sounds from Martin open up “California Dreamline.”  The ending part totally rocks until the denouement where it sounds like someone rocks so hard they may have de-tuned their guitar.

They wish Happy birthday to Gary Stokes, the finest soundman in the land.  Which leads to a lovely “Claire” that segues into a quiet intro for “Horses.”  It builds slowly and powerfully.   Lots of repeated lyrics in the middle–threaten to chop, chop.  These signs will wilt–they’re just paper ink and paper.

While martin ends with some wailing horse noises, Dave sings the first two lines of “Another Brick in the Wall” to end the show.

[READ: April 9, 2019] “Both Sides Now”

This is an excerpt from Gainza’s novel Optic Nerve which was translated by Thomas Bunstead.

It’s a little hard to guess what the whole novel is about since the excerpt worked so well by itself.

The narrator notes that one day you develop a fear of flying.

Before you turned twenty-five, flying seemed natural, but now it seems insane.  Nevertheless, you are supposed to fly to an art convention in Geneva. Continue Reading »

Posted in Art, Canadian Music, Excerpt, Franco-Prussian War, Harper's, Herni Rousseau, Hot Air Balloons, Local Rabbits, Louvre Museum, María Gainza, Pink Floyd, Rheostatics, The Tragically Hip, Thomas Bunstead | Tagged | Leave a Comment »

Joe Flood–Science Comics: Sharks: Nature’s Perfect Hunter (2018)

April 6, 2019 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Harbour Station, Saint John, NB (December 08, 1996).

This is the 20th night of the 24 date Canadian Tour opening for The Tragically Hip on their Trouble At The Henhouse Tour.

This show opens with a Stompin’ Tom recording of “Bud the Spud.”  Then there’s some tuning up and some cool noises from Martin as they prepare to soar with “Song of Flight.”

They follow it with “Fat” and after the line, “I drank pop, ate Pez, laid down and played dumb” Dave explains, “I wasn’t really sick.”  They whole song is fun and they tack on a melody of “Artenings Made of Gold” at the end.

“All the Same Eyes” rocks a much faster than usual.  At the end, Tim says, “Get well soon, Willow.”  Wonder who that was.

Dave thanks St. John and describes the show as “a little matinee affair.  It’s like going to see a movie on a Sunday.”  He continues, “We’re from Toronto.  Actually we’re from Etobicoke.  We went to Vancouver, all the way to St John and now we’re crossing back.”

A fun “Motorino” is followed by “Four Little Songs” which Dave promises is “Four songs in One.  Honest.”  Tim: “What a deal.”

After the song Dave asks, “What was that last bit of shouting?  For “Record Body Count?”  We see we have some Green Sprouts in the audience.  They’re standing.  See them over there.  What are your names?  Rob is the leader I can tell because I heard his name.”

Instead of “RBC” they play “Bad Time to Be Poor” which segues into a nice “Self Serve Gas Station” in which Martin asks, “What went wrong with Nimrod?”  The ending has Martin playing a lengthy series of notes that just bumps abruptly into a ripping “RDA.”  Tim says “Bye,” at the end of the song but they jump into “Dope Fiends” instead.  Tim’s backing vocals sound particularly excellent during the end part.

After the roaring ending, the rhythm guitar picks out a lovely melody while Martin soars away.   Its a nifty denouement.

[READ: April 29, 2019 Science Comics: Sharks

Joe Flood has drawn many of the Science Comics books and this time he writes and draws it.  This one is all about sharks.  And what I found fascinating about this book is that there’s a bunch I didn’t know about sharks, but there’s not a lot to know about them overall.

The book opens with an introduction from David Shiffman a marine conservation biologist.  Then Flood gets right into it by talking about how the movie Jaws has unfairly harmed the reputation of sharks.  We must never forget that the sharks were here first (for millions of years–their ancestors go back 420 million years) and we are trespassing on their turf.

Like most of these Science Comics, there’s a narrative.  And the “story” of this book is of a stupid ship’s captain in the hunt for a shark.  He;s an ignorant and rather unpleasant guy but our guide is here to set him and us straight,.

We are also helped by out friend Red Snapper who is justifiably afraid of sharks. Continue Reading »

Posted in Canadian Music, First Second :01, Graphic Novel, Jaws, Joe Flood, Ocean, Rays, Science Comics, Sharks, Skates, Stompin' Tom Connors, Whales | Tagged | Leave a Comment »

And the Kids (Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA, April 5, 2019)

April 5, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 5, 2019] And the Kids

Almost exactly one year ago I saw And the Kids open for Lucy Dacus.  They put on a great show, but I had heard that they would be even more wild if they didn’t have the time constraints of that show (there were two full sets that night, so the earlier one was kind of rushed).  Back in November they opened another show that I wanted to get to but couldn’t.  But here they were headlining, which is what I really wanted to see.

I bought tickets as soon as they went on sale.  But then I found out that Voivod was playing the same night across town.  Voivod is a band I have loved and never saw live.  So I chose Voivod.  During the headliners, YOB, I decided if I left I could get over to Johnny Brenda’s (about 10 minutes away) in time before And the Kids started.  I listened to one heavy YOB song and then took off.  I got on street parking a block away from Johnny Brenda’s and walked in a few minutes before And the Kids were to go on.  All signs indicated that I had made the right choice.

I was surprised at how crowded it was (good for them!)  But I managed to get past the drunken clumps and got right up at the edge of the stage, but to the side–near the steps where the band comes in.  It’s not a great vantage point (and the sound really isn’t as good, but it was better than standing in the middle of tall people.

Then the band came out.  Last time And the Kids were a four-piece.  But for this show they were only a duo.  I gather the core of the group has always been Rebecca Lasaponaro on drums and Hannah Mohan on guitar and vocals.  I have yet to find out why they were touring with just the two of them and not a full band.  I’m also not exactly sure how the bass and other sounds were handled.  I know it had something to do with Lasaponaro, but whether she was triggering them live or just starting them on a laptop, I don’t know.

In some ways this hindered their improvisatory nature.  But not really, because Mohan is a born entertainer and she was a ton of fun throughout the night–and made me glad I was standing where I was.

They played eleven songs in about an hour.   Five were songs from the new album, which I hadn’t heard yet. I hadn’t heard much by them when I saw them last time either, and I feel like hearing them live–even new songs–is absolutely the way to go.  The recorded versions are good, but the don’t quite capture the vitality and energy that their live set has. Continue Reading »

Posted in And the Kids, Johnny Brenda's, Lucy Dacus, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer, Voivod | Leave a Comment »

YOB (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, April 5, 2019)

April 5, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 5, 2019] YOB

I hadn’t heard of YOB before this show.  I was there for Voivod.  But I assumed they must be compatible if they were playing together.

I also had a ticket to see And the Kids (a very different type of band) that night at Johnny Brenda’s.  After jumping in to see Dilly Dally upstairs in the Foundry after the Guster show in The Fillmore, I thought, well, why can’t I go to both shows if one ends early enough.  Johnny Brenda’s is about ten minutes from Union Transfer.  The Johnny Brenda’s show started later than this show, so I considered my options.

After the pummeling from Amenra and the fun but heavy set from Voivod, I was pretty wiped out.  I had read that YOB was “Epic, crushing, and heavy beyond words.”

So I decided to stay for the first song and see if I wanted to hear more. Continue Reading »

Posted in And the Kids, Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer, Voivod, YOB | Leave a Comment »

Voivod (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, April 5, 2019) [YOB]

April 5, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 5, 2019] Voivod

I’ve been a fan of Voivod for decades.  But I never saw them live when I was most into them (late 80’s).  Then after Denis “Piggy” D’Amour’s death in 2005 I assumed I never would.

But amazingly they found a guy who plays guitar very much like Piggy did–a bizarre hybrid of prog, metal, dissonance and eerie harmony.  That man is Daniel “Chewy” Mongrain.  Chewy is able to play Piggy’s parts.  And his new parts are very much in the style of old Voivod, but are certainly his own (his soloing style is definitely different for instance.  And since recording songs with him in 2013, Voivod have been touring fairly regularly.  (They played Philly in 2015 and 2016–to see them at the Black Box in Underground Arts would have been amazing!)

For a band that’s been active (in one form or another) for over 30 years, they still had a lot of fun on stage.  If there’s one thing I love it’s seeing a band enjoying themselves.

Strangely, in the 30 years that they’ve been together, nearly everyone has been replaced (with some returns), and there have been a number of styles. Continue Reading »

Posted in Amenra, Away, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer, Voivod, YOB | Leave a Comment »

Amenra (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, April 5, 2019) [YOB]

April 5, 2019 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: April 5, 2019] Amenra

I had heard of Amenra, but I really didn’t know anything about them.

I had no idea that they were from Belgium, which I find weirdly exciting.  I also didn’t know that they’d been around for twenty years.  In that time they have released six albums: Mass I, Mass II, Mass III, Mass IIII, Mass V, and Mass VI.

They were founded by vocalist Colin H. van Eeckhout and guitarist Mathieu Vandekerckhove, (Belgian names are awesome).  In this incarnation, they are joined by drummer Bjorn Lebon, guitarist Lennart Bossu and bassist Levy Seynaeve.

I was running a few minutes late when I got to Union Transfer.  Amenra had just taken the stage, but I needed to use the restroom.  The good thing about metal is that it is loud, easily heard in the restroom.  The good thing about Amenra is that they started the show with a lengthy section of almost ambient music.  Over strummed guitar, van Eeckhout clacked two rods together.  His back was to the audience as the tension built. Continue Reading »

Posted in Amenra, Belgium, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer, YOB | Leave a Comment »

Mairghread Scott & Jacob Chabot–Science Comics: Robots and Drones: Past, Present and Future (2018)

April 5, 2019 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Scotiabank Centre Halifax NS (December 07, 1996).

This is the 19th night of the 24 date Canadian Tour opening for The Tragically Hip on their Trouble At The Henhouse Tour.

The show starts with Dorothy introducing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and then she begins singing the song.  After a verse, the acoustic guitar comes strumming in and Tim announces that “This one’s for Wilf Carter.”  [Wilf Carter, known as Montana Slim in the United States, was a Canadian Country and Western singer, songwriter, guitarist, and yodeller. Widely acknowledged as the father of Canadian country music.  He died on Dec 5].

It sounds great.  the final strains of guitar lead into a beautiful “California Dreamline.”  It’s followed by a “Fan Letter to Michael Jackson” that features a middle “dance” section, with Dave chanting: “Tuesday night at the discotheque, I can dance, what the heck.  I’m an Uzbek.  Wer’e all freakin’ Uzbeks.

The ending feedback segues into the introductory noises of “Motorino.”  Martin says it comes from their new album.  “It’s called The Blue Hysteria its about not having much money.  Dave: “That’s the green hysteria, martin.”  Tim:  “Blue hysteria as about playing your stereo too loud and blowing it up.”  That’s a sort of introduction to “Bad Time to be Poor.”

Dave says “It’s great to be in hockey rink, The Moosehead Dome.  We played in the Devonshire Arena last night, a private affair.  It was hockey though, not rock.  We’re all a little sore, a little better off, a little stronger in character.

Up next is “Sweet Rich Beautiful Mine,” during which Martin drops out of an entire verse–the music sounds great through.  You hear someone asks “want to do it again?”  but they press on and martin platys the noisy guitars that lead into RICH!

Then comes “two big songs back to back,” a ripping “Feed Yourself”  followed by a full 8 minute “A Mid-Winter Night’s Dream.”  It begins with a pretty, meandering guitar melody that Martin songs along to (in a high falsetto, la la l a)–its  quite lovely.  Then it segues into a roaring version of “Midwinter.”  The band sounds great and the feedbacking noise martin generates before the end is just amazing.

This might be my favorite version of the song.  It’s a show-stopper indeed.

[READ: March 20, 2019] Science Comics: Robots and Drones

I have enjoyed every Science Comic that has come out.  Most of them seem almost too full of information.  But this one was actually one of the less jam-packed books.  And that was kind of nice.

After an introduction from Sabine Hauert, the co-founder of Robohub.org, we are taken to a prototype robot from 350 BCE (!).  In Tarentum Italy, we see a “mechanical” bird created by Archytas.  It flies (perhaps on a string) and crashes instantly.   The bird snaps out of it and introduces himself –call him Pouli.  Pouli was the first machine to ever fly and he will take us through the past and future of robots and drones.

Pouli tries to break our familiarity with what a robot is by showing a simple robot–the coffeemaker.  It has as simple job.  It’s a modern version of the automaton.  Of course we have more sophisticated R/C cars and roombas now.  Some day soon there will be self-driving cars. Continue Reading »

Posted in Canadian Music, Drones, First Second :01, Graphic Novel, Hockey, Isaac Asimov, Jacob Chabot, Mairghread Scott, Outer Space, Rheostatics, Robots, Science Comics, The Tragically Hip, The Wizard of Oz, Uzbekistan, Wilf Carter | Tagged | Leave a Comment »

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