Concert Review: Alice Coltrane Tribute At UCLA

Sunday Night at Royce Hall promised to be a brilliant night of improvisational music as a tribute to the late great Alice Coltrane. Pianist, Harpist, and wife of John Coltrane, Alice did much to further Indian spiritual and musical influences in the world of avant-garde jazz. However, Sunday's show was truly a mixed bag, as much of the tribute failed to live up to the high bar of Coltrane's legacy . At best, as during Nels Cline's flowing and masterful set and McCoy Tyner's the freely improvised Jazz explorations were beautiful and inspiring, yet at worst, the indulgent noodling of some of the players seemed amateurish and lacked any sort of focus.
“When it rains, it promises an auspicious event,” announced Rhada Botofasina before launching the concert with a a prayer of the Hare Krishna religion that Coltrane was so devoted to. Performed by Botofasina on harp and vocals, accompanied by a pianist and the great Miguel Atwood-Fegueson on viola, the combination of jazz influences and gospel stylings with Indian sacred music was appealing, yet the pentatonic harp arpeggios and block piano chords lacked the spark that made them unique in the hands of Alice Coltrane. Botofasina was followed by free-jazz violin luminary Michael White, whose fiery improvisation was excellent; his performance, however, was marred by the extraneous presence of Leisei Chen, a vocalist who can best be described as a jazz hybrid of Bjork and Yoko Ono. Free-jazz saxophonist Daniel Carter improvised on a theme for solo saxophone that showed off his excellent, almost Paul Desmond-like, cool and breathy tone.
Carter was followed by Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio and jazz guitarist Nels Cline of Wilco fame, who played a remarkable Jazz rendition of a Hare Krishna prayer, accompanied by a bassist and a drummer. Cline is a remarkable player, taking risks and playing out yet firmly grounded in the jazz tradition of chord melody. Malone, on the other hand, sounded frightfully amateurish, frequently hitting what sounded like wrong notes; it made me wonder if this was indeed the same gentleman who was responsible for TV On the Radio's brilliant 'Dear Science'. After some spacey incidental music, Coltrane's nephew Stephen Ellison- aka Flying Lotus- walked on stage to warm applause. Presenting a monologue of Coltrane's on various religious and spiritual topics accompanied by a video montage taken on a trip to India with his Aunt, Flying Lotus was highly underwhelming; his ambient knob twiddling behind the video was barely noticeable and added no valuable texture, and the electric harpist played the same pentatonic arpeggios that failed to inspire when first played by Rhada Botofasina; Miguel Atwood Fergueson's viola was this piece's only saving grace. 
At this point the Nels Cline group, featuring Alex Cline on drums, harpist Zeena Parkins, bassist Todd Sickafoose, violinist Jeff Gauthier, a tamboura, and a cello in addition to Cline's guitar, provided a magnificent rendition of Charlie Haden's 'For Turiya ' that reached the sublime cosmic sound that Coltrane pursued throughout her career. The swirling blend of strings, percussion and guitar engaged in a group improvisation that eventually coalesced into a swinging groove, anchored around the bass. Great Stuff.
After intermission, Dutch free jazz dummer Hans Bennick provided the comic relief with a slapstick performance that involved a snare drum, his shoe, the stage, his cheek, and a whole bunch of drum sticks. He was followed by Kyp Malone and company, who preformed a god-awful rendition of 'Govinda Je Je' that lacked all sense of structure, time, and musicality and would have been more at home on the Venice Beach boardwalk than at the esteemed Royce Hall. Ouch.
Following that disaster, Jazz deity McCoy Tyner graced us with fifteen minutes of the most sublime music that I have ever heard. Commanding an orchestra of sounds from the Steinway grand, Tyner's coaxed a wash of pure sound in block chords, fast runs, and sensitive and sophisticated chords and melodies. It seemed that Tyner was acknowledging the subpar quality of the performance when he failed to show up on stage when Michelle Coltrane beckoned for the closing rendition of 'A Love Supreme' that featured incredible viola from Miguel Atwood Fergueson, but was utterly ruined by Michelle Coltrane's miserable tambourine playing of. 
Overall, the Alice Coltrane tribute paired the transcendent with the lousy and resulted in the most mixed-bag evening of music I have ever attended.

Concert Review: Roger Water Revives the Wall At Staples Cente

Here is a guest review from my amiga Sophie Pennes, who was fortunate enough to have been at the November 30th show of 'The Wall' at Staples Center:

It was last Spring when I was anxiously sitting in the Milken library, waiting for the clock to turn to exactly 10 AM so I could be the first to purchase presale tickets for Roger Waters next Winter at the Staples Center. The first few years of my high school career were filled with teenage angst and what I thought to be super intelligent philosophical ideologies, but nevertheless, it was also the period of my greatest admiration for Pink Floyd in all of its beauty. So, I had been dreaming of seeing Roger Waters perform for years, and after foolishly passing up the chance to see him at the Hollywood Bowl in 2007, and then being unable to see him at Coachella in 2008, I knew I had to be at this concert. Though this edition of The Wall wouldn’t include former Floyd members, Gilmour, Barrett, Mason or Wright-Waters carried on the show fabulously, accompanied by a live band. As Waters said, it had been exactly, “30 years, 9 months, and 17 days” since he had last preformed The Wall in Los Angeles. Someone from the audience then shouted “Thanks!” to which he graciously replied, “No, thank you.”  

            The Wall, released in 1979, is centered on Waters’ difficult childhood, relationship with his father and the corruption of war and government on humanity. However, although there were a few references to his father in the performance, this touring of The Wall is based on complete anarchy. Through the video projection, Waters referenced historical communist leaders, civilians who were murdered in war, and even George Orwell’s 1984. The performance opened with In the Flesh? and proceeded with The Thin Ice and Another Brick in the Wall, for which he had children come on stage (wearing shirts saying “FEAR BUILDS WALLS”) yelling at a giant figure meant to be a school-teacher. The stage was constructed with a sort of wire cage so that faux bricks could be moved in and out, as the given song required. On the encompassing brick wall, images and movies were constantly being projected, at one point saying, “iBelieve” or “iTrust”- mocking Apple and American consumerism. He continued the show projecting a video of himself singing Mother when he was much younger, to which he now accompanied. When he came to the point in the song that goes, “Mother, should we trust the government?” the words projected onto the brick wall said “No. F*cking. Way.” The audience became ecstatic in noise and applause. Next came Goodbye Blue Sky, and videos of planes dropping bombs were now cast on the wall. However, the bombs were portrayed as symbols such as the cross, the Jewish star, Shell Gasoline, and even Ford or Chevy- yet again another commentary, this time on destructive forces in our society. Following Goodbye Blue Sky, he played Young Lust, as videos of naked women in rather provocative situations were exhibited, becoming a bit too pornographic at one point. The first act ended with Goodbye Cruel World which came to an abrupt and rather cliché but thematic ending.

            Despite Waters overarching theme of the corruption major corporations and the government have on our lives, intermission was full of mass-consumption of overly priced tank tops and commercialized pizza sold at 9 bucks a pop. The irony…

The second act began with Hey You followed by Is There Anybody Out There? Eventually, he got to Bring the Boys Back Home, a song so extremely pertinent to Americans today, concerning our country’s current contention over the issue. While he sang, I, along with most of the audience, was in tears watching the emotional videos of children reuniting with their parents who had finally returned from war overseas. Waters also had his famous giant pig floating around the audience with the slogan “Everything will be okay. Just keep consuming.” He continued in ridiculing consumerism and American naivety as logos were flashed on the screen, as well as videos of Barack Obama and then George Bush, comparing him to infamous world leaders such as Mao and Stalin. After the continuous songs of anarchy and destruction, he played Comfortably Numb- obviously a very nostalgic crowd favorite.

During the time of The Wall’s inception, Waters poked fun at his fans and their dedication to celebrities, himself included. He commented on this at the end of the performance, saying that although he didn’t appreciate his fame and following as a younger man, he does now. Reading another review of the night, I came across a quote saying that, “There’s something about the sheer spectacle of a bloody great brick wall collapsing before your very eyes that immediately justifies whatever bullshit you had to put up with in order to get one of the expensive tickets.” There is no question in my mind that every single person in the audience felt the exact same way. The evening was absolutely spectacular and it was worth every struggle along the way- even tirelessly waiting next to my computer and refreshing the webpage, to purchase these tickets almost half a year ago. Honestly, the performance deserves a 20/10. Absolutely incredible.

Set List

Act 1

1. In The Flesh? 
2. The Thin Ice
3. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1
4. The Happiest Days of Our Lives
5. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2
6. Mother
7. Goodbye Blue Sky 
8. Empty Spaces 
9. What Shall We Do Now?   
10. Young Lust 
11. One Of My Turns   
12. Don't Leave Me Now   
13. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3   
14. The Last Few Bricks   
15. Goodbye Cruel World   

Act 2

16. Hey You   
17. Is There Anybody Out There?   
18. Nobody Home   
19. Vera   
20. Bring the Boys Back Home   
21. Comfortably Numb   
22. The Show Must Go On   
23. In The Flesh   
24. Run Like Hell   
25. Waiting For The Worms   
26. Stop   
27. The Trial 
28. Outside The Wall 

Concert Review: Sufjan Stevens at The Wiltern

Dearest blog readers, be sorry you weren't at this one. If you were, you'll know what I mean when I say that it was a beautiful show of epic proportions, easily one of, if not the best concert I have ever seen. Seamlessly combining his intimate precious folky tendencies with his newfound love for electro-orchestral bombast, Stevens delivered a show that was at once strikingly intimate and epically large-scale. Accompanied by an 11 piece band that included guitars, banjos, synths, trombones, two drummers, pianos, basses, auto-harps, lots of acoustic and electric percussion, and two backup dances wearing space-age silver lamme suits, Stevens began the show simply and quietly with "Seven Swans", a classic from his album of the same name. Initially accompanied only by his banjo, the song grew into a hard-rocking percussion orgasm held down by the two drummers. An incredibly tight unit, the large band rocked, funked, and were sensitive as called for by the individual song. More a piece of performance art than a concert, the band played between two sheer screens that appeared like mosquito netting. This was used to magic effect on the brilliant new song "Vesuvius", during which a volcano was projected onto the back screen and the lava and debris was projected onto the front screen. Pretty far out stuff.

The music was just as brilliantly bombastic as its presentation. Holding up better live than in the studio, Sufjan's main set, with the exception of "Seven Swans" and a phenomenal set closing rendition of his hit "Chicago" was comprised exclusively of new material from his "Age of Adz" album and "All Delighted People" EP. As Sufjan explained awkwardly during a monologue that felt like it went on 20 minutes, the new album explores the life of Royal Robertson, a schizophrenic Louisiana sign painter/folk artist/prophet. That should give some indication that this was not your typical Sufjan show. "Age of Adz" and "Vesuvius" were even more epic than on record; this electro-orchestral music sounded huge, and was especially striking accompanied by the wailing of the backup singers/dancers. On "Impossible Soul", a 25 minute masterpiece of genre melding gold, Sufjan went from folk to funk to auto-tune to '80's aerobics video style herky jerky dancing in neon clothing. Serious stuff.

To alleviate the bombast, Sufjan showed his sensitive folky side between the songs with "palate cleansers" such as the appropriately haunting "Enchanting Ghost" and the beautiful "Heirloom".

The encore, after an INSANE standing ovation, was comprised of acoustic classics from his "Illinoise" and "Seven Swans" records. "Casimir Pulaski Day" stood out as one of the more chilling and emotional moments of live music that I have ever seen, and by the time Sufjan closed the show alone with his acoustic guitar with the creepy yet gorgeous "John Wayne Gacy Jr.", the crowd were swept off their feet. A magical evening with a magical performer.

Setlist is as follows:

1. Seven Swans 


2. Too Much 


3. Age of Adz 


4. Heirloom 


5. I Walked 


6. Futile Devices 


7. Vesuvius 


8. Now That I'm Older 


9. Royal Robertson Monologue

10. Get Real Get Right 


11. Enchanting Ghost 


12. Impossible Soul 


13. Chicago 


Encore:

14. Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois 


15. Casimir Pulaski Day 


16. The Dress Looks Nice on You 


17. John Wayne Gacy, Jr.

Now, here's some video from the show:

Concert Review: Ornette Coleman Quartet with Flea at UCLA

Ornette Coleman is one badass 80 year old trailblazer. Ornette's classic '50's and '60's Atlantic oeuvre (check out the 'Beauty Is A Rare Thing' boxset to have your mind seriously blown) is some of the most seriously hip and boppin' music of all time; from the time of its release until today, the music remains relevant, mindblowing, and revolutionary. The inventor of free jazz was in fine form last week at UCLA. Playing with his son Denardo, who has been his drummer since 10 years of age, acoustic bassist Tony Falanga and electric bassist Al McDowell, Coleman was spellbindingly phenomenal as he and his crack band improvised their way through Coleman tunes both classic and newer. I was initially hesitant about the two bass lineup, but it turned out to be for the best; the acoustic bass played voice like bowed leads and provided a throbbing rhythmic foundation, whereas the electric bass served as a guitar like chordal instrument. Ornette's tone has not diminished with his age, and he still conjures up human-like cries from his alto that echo with the ghosts of bop and the blues. Far out stuff, this was. "9/11", a relatively new song, was one of the scariest things I've ever heard; Denardo's throbbing disco beat combined with Tony Falanga's mournful droning bass and Ornette's piercing alto for one funky, and harrowing tune. Other highlights were classics, among them "Peace", "Blues Connotation" and perhaps Coleman's most famous and enduring tune, the encore "Lonely Woman". One interesting moment came when Coleman soloed over a Bach piece played by Falanga. Tré cool. Less cool was the collaboration with Japanese singer Mari Okubu, who sang like an operatic Yoko Ono.

One of the most special moments of the night came when a third bassist walked on stage, this one playing a Fender jazz model, and wearing a suit, tie, and green hair. Yes, green hair. He almost outdid Ornette's outrageous suit. This monster was none other than Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who prepared to shred through the heads of Ornette Coleman standards with virtuoso skill and funky intensity. Announced the day of the show, the addition of Flea gave the evening a fusion/funk turn that set it apart from a typical Coleman gig.

Overall, a brilliant evening with a master who continues to defy convention, and a rocker who proved his chops in jazz once and for all.

Here is the setlist:

1. Following the Sound
 2. Sleep Talking 
3. Jordan 
4. 9/11
 5. Sphinx
 6. Turnaround
 7. Blues Connotation
 8. Bach 
9. Mari 
10. Out of Order 
11. City Living
 12. Peace
 13. Call to Duty 
14. Dancing in Your Head 
15. Song World
 16. Song X

Encore:
 17. Lonely Woman