Showing posts with label australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label australia. Show all posts

April Uprising Review

April Uprising
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April Uprising ReviewAs someone who wasn't happy when John Butler announced he was changing up his band, April Uprising completely blew me away. The album may possibly be one of John Butler's most diverse albums to date.
While there's a lot of criticism floating around that he's "sold out to the man", the album is more an exploration of himself than an attempt at becoming commercial. He hasn't hidden the fact that the last two years or so were a time for upheaval for him and re-discovery (or possibly, just discovery), and this album is a travel log of that journey.
The new line-up is absolutely fantastic and its obvious that all three of them bring different elements to the creative soup. They've allowed John to really experiment with some different sounds - the album ranges from his more traditional sound (Revolution, Gonna Be A Long Time, Ragged Mile), to pop-rock (One Way Road), to dance (Close to You) and even a dabble at punk (C'mon Now). And you can really tell they're having a complete ball playing around with music.
At first listen, yes, the album comes off as a complete 180 from the previous records but I'm not someone who compares or judges new albums to old ones. Part of being an artist is breaking boundaries, dabbling with new sounds and colours, taking the unknown path - and that is exactly what he does here. You also get to hear how John has really grown as an artist: the sound is much tighter, the lyrics are more condensed without losing their meaning. He's still singing out his message of social consciousness but he's no longer wandering through rambling sentences. The inspiration, the originality and the cause are all still there. Even songs like Close to You are an example of this - I don't know why we've never been told/That the life we're living it is made of gold/Spend our whole damn lives trying to make IT; IT's sold/Boy, don't worry, don't worry, don't worry now"
All in all, its a great album. The band is currently touring and having seen JBT concerts with the previous lineup and the current one, their live performances have only gotten better. Nicky Bomba absolutely electrifies the crowd and Byron Luiters enchants them with bass riffs and shy smiles. Byron has also added the sounds of a didgeridoo to Treat Yo Mama and in one word: WOW!
Gold stars all around.April Uprising Overview

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Pink: Funhouse Tour - Live in Australia (2009) Review

Pink: Funhouse Tour - Live in Australia  (2009)
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Pink: Funhouse Tour - Live in Australia (2009) Review
Let me start this off by making it clear that I'm not like most others that would be reviewing a Pink cd or concert video.
I am a middle-aged man in my 50s. I'm not exactly her demographic and I'm not a dirty old man either. I'm a retired musician and still make a buck or two as a writer and I wrote Pink off as another of the cookie cutter pop princesses that have littered the music business ever since Madonna first got watered down by Brittany Spears. Then I heard/saw the video for "Don't Let Me Get Me" and realized that she was anything but cookie-cutter. It was her Declaration of Independence from what the music industry wanted her to be. I bought the cd the next day and heard "Family Portrait." From that point on I was a fan. Good music is hard to find and Pink makes some VERY good music.
Now, on to the Blu-Ray concert. It doesn't look like Pink knows what she wants to be when she grows up. The first handful of songs she performs are in the standard diva mode we've seen from hundreds of others from Cher on down. With a big flashy stage and a heavily choreographed dance troupe she bounces and bops through some pretty generic modern dance music. In the midst of this is "Don't Let Me Get Me" and another of her big hits, "Just Like a Pill." Although the original rock arrangement sneaks in here and there the songs are designed to get her target audience of teenaged girls jumping and happy. There isn't anything wrong with any of this section if you're in the age group that likes that sort of thing. Understand, it's just not the sort of thing I'm into. It's also the sole reason I docked the video the 1/2 point in my subject header.
BUT!
No matter how old you are - even if you're an old coot "enduring" this video with your kids or grandkids, DO NOT LEAVE THE ROOM. There is an absolutely gorgeous extended piano movement that is placed to allow Pink time for a costume change. When she re-emerges the pianist (who is also the musical conductor) and the violinist join Pink for a slightly altered and riveting version of "Family Portrait." From this point forward you are in for a rare feast to the ears and eyes. There is a very personal acoustic mini-set in which Pink plays several songs dealing with the heartache of the failure of her first marriage. They are sprinkled with some lengthy banter with the audience that is just a touch too long in parts, but the songs themselves are nothing short of gorgeous. The fact that her voice isn't pure and perfectly pitched makes the emotional tone of them all the more vital and real. As a performer myself, I wondered how she was going to be able to transition back into giving her audience more of what they came to see. She does it by a lesser-known Led Zeppelin song that interweaves gentle vocals with sudden explosions of the heavy metal that made the Zep legendary. She handles the very difficult transitions in vocals extremely well, doing Robert Plant proud, disappearing during the final extended solo for another costume change. From that point forward she and the band kick into high gear. As others have mentioned, she does indeed perform "Bohemian Rhapsody" in its entirety only unlike Queen, she and the band remain on stage and sing through the very difficult operatic central section. The song is subtly enhanced with some of Queen's original vocal tracks but the live singers MORE than hold their own. Just when you begin to wonder if Pink isn't human at all, her voice breaks for a brief moment toward the end. She smiles over at the drummer with a brief, "what can you do" look and then finishes the song perfectly. Almost any other performer would have been finished at that point, knowing they'd taken it as far as they could. Pink is literally still getting warmed up.
In addition to kicking up the energy even further, you should keep in mind that Pink also (well harnessed because of insurance requirements) executes a fairly intricate single trapeze act some 25 feet above the floor WHILE SINGING. Although lip synching is rampant amongst female vocalists nowadays, Pink does NONE of it. You can hear her gasping for breath as the songs and athletics progress. She even tosses off a joking threat that she's going to start lip synching so she can do 9 shows a week with matinees.
The lady performs for almost 2 solid hours and never once lets up. Her voice only falters once or twice during the entire night and more than once she performs lengthy acrobatics high above the stage and audience. This is a woman at the absolute peak of her performance capacity and she is one of the few people I've ever seen that could pull a show like this off once, let alone for an entire world tour.
The extra features range from being valuable glimpses behind the scenes to a somewhat silly explanation of the history of "shredding the nar." (Pinkspeak for playing face-melting guitar) Make no mistake. This lady is an artist at a time when most of her contemporaries are either complete studio-enhanced frauds or so self-obsessed with their own talents that they become intolerable. Pink is the real deal and (despite some four-letter language in her lyrics that might make you a little careful viewing the show around small children) this concert video is worth three times what you will pay for it. I don't care if you're a young teen lion or one of the tame and toothless tabby-cat baby boomers, this blu ray concert joins Stop Making Sense and The Last Waltz as one of the three absolute best concert videos on the market. It is a MUST see.
So is Pink a teeny-bop pop icon or a hard-edged rock queen that will help bring back the rock sound that has been dead for well over a decade? I don't think she knows. She shows both personalities at various points in the show.
I'm convinced that she doesn't know what she'll be when she grows up.
After watching her talent, athleticism and musical diversity in this concert I deeply hope she never finds out.Pink: Funhouse Tour - Live in Australia (2009) Overview

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Be Here Review

Be Here
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Be Here ReviewKeith Urban really cuts loose on this album, he co-produced to make sure the fans hear it just as he intended and it is SO diverse and shows his mad skills. From the simple pickin' on "Country Comfort" and "God's Been Good to Me" to the upbeat, odes to women "You're My Better Half" and "I Could Fly". The guitar is prominent on "Days Go By" and "Live to Love Another Day", he is definitely a happy guy. He is at his most soulful on "Tonight I Wanna Cry" and the dark "Nobody Drinks Alone", that song gave me chills the first time I heard it, I had to immediately play it again. "Making Memories of Us" is destined to be a big hit, it is from the heart and the lyrics are so sweet. This CD is hot from front to back and sideways, it should make everyone's top ten lists for 2004.Be Here OverviewBE HERE shifts Keith Urban's career into a higher gear! This country music superstar has already had success with a double platinum-selling GOLDEN ROAD & his platinum-selling debut, KEITH URBAN, BE HERE is showing every indication of following the same path.

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Grainger: Works for Chamber Ensemble 2 Review

Grainger: Works for Chamber Ensemble 2
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Grainger: Works for Chamber Ensemble 2 ReviewChandos' Grainger Edition is a significant contribution to modern art.
This particular volume (Vol. 14) features Grainger's settings of various folk and popular songs which he made in the first quarter of the 20th Century. The accompaniments are set for small ensembles, and Grainger utilized the harmonium on many of the song settings on this disc.
Sound is 24-bit.Grainger: Works for Chamber Ensemble 2 Overview

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