Okay, as per tradition, I review the realy big show!
CMJ Opening night at Roseland in NYC, Spet.3 1997
The space/crowd: Huge space. Thousands of people. There was a VIP stage
off to the side. Maralyn Manson was there (left after the sneaker pimps -
are the pimps the only electronic act they know about because of their
"collaboration" on the spawn soundtrack?) and so were Smashing Pumpkins
(spying on the cool kids so they could steal a new style).
There were only 1 or two people with glow in the dark cylume sticks in
the whole crowd. Indeed, the crowd seemed quite old and dull (most of them
were CMJ badgeholders and industry wonks), yet there were also frequent
pockets of raver kids and dancing machines (like me).
Luke Vibert: Missed it. Oh well.
Fluke: Missed it. Oh well
DJs Ken Ishii and Luke Slater: Played in between acts. Didn't notice them
really. Nice backspins and scratches occasionally, but who knows who was
who. Who cares.
Sneaker Pimps: I got in for the last two songs. I saw two guitarists, a
drummer, a keyboardist, and of course the vocalist. Although I respect
their efforts, I was never all that crazy about the Pimps before, and what
little I saw of them didn't change that. I think they made a big tactical
error by deciding to go with a live guitar act. Maybe they thought they
could ape My Bloody Valentine or Lush or something, but none of the
musicians was skilled enough on their instruments to compare to those two
bands (both of whom I've seen live and both of whose live shows are
amazing). The singer seemed flat to the point of monotone - maybe she's
not comfortable singing on stage?
And worse of all the volume was WAY too low.
Daft Punk: Whoa! This was fun. Started me dancin right off the bat. They
played all their favorites to a very receptive crowd (the crowd cheered
when the familiar riffs came on). My friends think otherwise, but it
seemed to me that they were constantly fiddling with some drum machines
and analog effects - their songs changed tempo and the effects were flying
everywhere. It was cool and they did a good job of maintaining a vibe. Can
anyone tell me if they had a DAT at all, or was it all analog equipment
and sequencers?
But again, the volume was WAY too low.
Death in Vegas: Another couple of blokes with guitars, a DJ, and a
keyboard guy. If the sneaker pimps had this kind of lineup (and these
guys' skills) then they would have been set. And these guys could use a
vocalist, but that's just me. Anyway, they were really good.
They basically alternated between guitary wa wa wankery (very much a la
MBV and Lush and quite good) and hip hop beats. They actually didn't
mix/overlap those two elements throughout - they would usually alternate
playing rock guitar, then switching to beats/turntables/keyboards. When
they did mix the two, they did it so carefully (excellent mixing) and
smoothly that they *thankfully* avoided sounding like that whole
hip-hop-rock scene (311 or even the beasties these days). Nice sound, nice
texture, nice beats, not to crazy about the overall song structures -
sounded like they were playing loops live.
On the pet peeve tip: You know, I was crazy about all that Mo'Wax and
Ninja Tune stuff about a year ago, but now I'm not sure anymore. I mean,
most of that music now sounds like it's just loops. They are usually very
nice loops, but the songs lack structure or a sense of beginning and end.
I found them good to listen to while writing, like listening to hip hop
without lyrics. But now that I have spent some time listening to the
records alone, they feel barren. Of course, not all of it. But you all
know the dominant vibe I'm talking about. Anyway, I've decided to not be
satisfied by 3 minute songs of just loops even if they are really really
nice loops.
Death in vegas was louder than the first few bands, but still not nearly
loud enough.
Crystal Method: I guess these guys are kind of the headliners. An emcee
came out and announced that the crystal method had arrived. Smoke machines
flooded the joint (uh-oh, I said) then the light show went crazy.
And, for the first time in the night, the mix people turned up the volume
to a proper dancing/trancing level. I think there was a promoter
conspiracy at the show that stipulated that the headliners get louder
mixes than the opening acts. Anyone agree?
They really got the crowd moving, but I found their music dull and
formulaic. I danced a LOT though, but I attribute that to 1)the volume
2)the lights and 3)crystal method's genuine skill at playing club scenes
and maintaining a lowbrow vibe. #3 is a skill which bands like Daft Punk
and Panasonic lack and which most IDM folks don't appreciate anyway. See
Aphex review below for my (positive) opinion on this.
Aphex Twin: Loudest of all! HE was sitting on a little platform in front
of a couch with headphones on and some equipment around him. I really have
no idea what kind of equipment though, so you tech wankers can look
elsewhere for fetishistic rdj idolatry. It was LOUD and Bleepy and hard as
nails. He emptied the wax out of my ears. It's still dripping today. I
loved it.
Occasionally he would hit a groove and everyone would be dancing to the
beat, but as per rdj style, he would kill it as soon as it started. I
don't think anyone's used to that kind of groove-taunting yet, but I kinda
like it. Obviously it's a VERY different concept than Crystal Methods
traditional house ideology: Keep em dancing or they will leave. It's
refreshing to hear someone drop such beats and yet throw so many dance
traditions to the wind. RDJ says "fuck the groove thing" and I listened. I
fucked the groove thing.
After the second song, the RDJ Gummi Bears came out. Two six foot tall
furry teddy bears came out and danced and fucked and wrestled to his
tunes. One was green, one was orange, but both had RDJ's face. I hope he
split the check 3 ways with those two guys, cuz for the parts where the
groove was being discombobulated there wasn't much to do besides watch the
bears. Must've been hot in those suits. Hardest working bears in show biz.
As a true multimedia hound and as a disciple of the philosophy that
artistic virtuosity is just plain wankerism, I think that go-go bears are
*absolutely* appropriate to a musical concert and it's perfectly okay for
me to include *their* hard work in my overall assessment of rdj's show. As
an artist in the 90's, RDJ should be judged by everything he does, not
just his music. Without the bears, I think the show might have gotten a
B+. With them, a full A++. Bravo Dickie J!
-CF