Live: The Magnetic Fields, Meymandi Concert Hall with the Lights Off, 10/18/08

19 Oct 2008, Posted by Andrew Hibbard in Concert, Music, Playground, Review, 0 Comments

Claudia Gonson, John Woo, Sam Davol and Stephin Merritt of the Magnetic Fields at Variety Theater. Photo by Clay Walker.

But Merritt’s downer attitude was not enough to dampen the mood for Claudia Gonson (who, along with Sam Davol, added percussion “Sweetness and Light” in Portastatic’s opening set ). Gonson effervescence and melodic voice were the counterpoint to Merritt’s baritone and melancholy. The two bantered throughout the set (while the remaining band mates were silent).

Highlights included Stephin Merritt deriding audience members preparing to write a blog post about the show and his insistence that the band does not improvise, only to keep on playing while the lights and sound spontaneously cut out during “Take Ecstasy With Me.” Merritt, unfazed, kept playing while Gonson seemed a little put off, but the unplugged sound of Gonson on the piano, Merritt’s bazooki, John Woo’s guitar (no, not that John Woo) and especially Davol’s cello made for the concert’s most beautiful moment.

But as a whole, the band played a tight set, missing nary a note and picking the highlights of the Gothic Archies, the Magnetic Fields and the 6ths. With a set that mixed tracks most of the tracks from Distortion (“California Girls,” “Zombie Boy,” “Too Drunk to Dream,” “The Nun’s Litany,” etc.) to Merritt’s odd catalog of showtunes to The Charm of the Highway Strip (“Lonely Highway”), it was a beautiful show, ending promptly at 11 p.m. because of a union curfew.

Even if Merritt hated it, Meymandi Concert Hall’s audience loved it.

Be Bold and Mighty Forces Will Come to Your Aid

18 Oct 2008, Posted by Sam Schlinkert in Film, Playground, 0 Comments

Pictured: Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs. Courtesy imdb.com

There are certain works of art that are so in tune with its fans that, not only does it give them pleasure to behold the art, but it reassures them of their perspective on life. Art like this, especially if it is somewhat popular, is also powerful enough for these devout fans to use it as a litmus test for potential friends.

Case in point, and the first of many extremely bold claims I’ll make in this post, all of my friends like the movie Almost Famous. OK maybe that’s not such a bold statement, seeing as it’s hard to born in the late 80s and not like, if not love Cameron Crowe’s nostalgic tribute to an exciting time of free love and good ole rock ‘n’ roll. Anyway this is my long-winded way of saying that, starting this post with a nod to Almost Famous is significant because of how much it is a part of me, as evidenced by how all of my friends enjoy it.

One of the my favorite characters in the movie is Lester Bangs, played by Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Admittedly I didn’t know Lester Bangs was an actual person until I recently read this Hidden Track post that quoted an interview with him.

The part of the interview that I found most enlightening was this exchange:

RD: What advice would you give to young writers in terms of choosing their content?

LB: You gotta find some band somewhere that’s maybe got two or three albums out and might even be halfway good, but the important thing is the more arcane the better, it’s gotta be something that absolutely nobody but you and maybe two other people (the group’s manager and one member’s mother) knows or cares about, and what you wanna do is TALK ABOUT THIS BUNCH OF OBSCURE NONENTITIES AND THEIR RECORD(S) LIKE THEY ARE THE HOTTEST THING IN THE HISTORY OF MUSIC.

I think Bangs correctly observes that we, as music critics, are both individually and collectively a small part of the music industry and community. Rather than present a snapshot of what is currently popular and dominating the shots (rather than giving our opinions about artists that people may already have opinions about), it is better for us to take leaps and enthusiastically talk up small, unknown bands. No room for face-saving, fence-sitting mediocrity. Writers have a unique opportunity to suggest new art to more than just their friends, and they should obliging take some risks.

We must make strong, sincere arguments for the bands we believe in and then leave it up to our readers whether they like what they hear (and read). We, both critics and adoring fans, should throw our weight behind that struggling band that we love, not the group that just hit the mainstream and everyone’s already raving about.

In taking these extreme positions, we are like gadflies of the music industry, forcing it to challenge the old norms and listen to some new, weird stuff. The theory here is that the more music one gets exposed to, the more one will like what they eventually end up listening to. And that should be the end goal of all this.

The implication of all this is to take some extreme stances. Stances that we critics might have to renig on later. Maybe even a week later. But as the great Henry Thoreau once challenged, “If I should contradict myself, what then?” That’s a luxury that a good rock critic must go without. However there is a silver lining. Free from the duty of continuity, we need only to remember the advice of William’s mother: “Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid. Goethe said that.”

She means well.

Issue 9 – By Any Means Necessary

16 Oct 2008, Posted by Baishi Wu in Playground, This Week in Recess, 0 Comments

Pictured: Jen Fuh, Andrea Marston and Babylonia Aivaz. Photo by Ian Soileau.

Featured:
The Duke Coffeehouse
The campus escape re-opens this Saturday after extensive renovations to the motto of “more hygiene, same spirit.” Expect Zombie Proms and psychedelic dance parties.

Escapism Film Festival at the Carolina Theatre
Duke’s own composer Penka Kouneva wrote the score featured in Midnight Movie, one of 13 films playing as part of the festival’s fifth season.

Sandbox:
Rick Astley and Duke Football
“It remains to be seen how having a theme song sung by an individual who wears 100-percent denim outfits may affect the team’s play.”

Editor’s Note:
The Third Presidential Debate
Obama. McCain. No pants. What?

Films reviewed:
The Secret Lives of Bees
Sex Drive

Albums reviewed:
I’m From Barcelona – Who Killed Harry Houdini
Keane – Perfect Symmetry
Nikka Costa – Pebble to a Pearl