i barely had the energy to go to any shows this last day of the festival. but i did want to see ulpa... and i had to grab something to eat so i went anyway. ulpa, as always, was great. i guess this is the their third airwaves performance that i see and they have consistently been among the highlights. walter meego was next and i was not impressed - i thought the songs i had heard had some promise but they were pretty dull. some of the music was alright but the vocals sounded pretty much if the postal service went horribly, horribly wrong. benny crespo's gang was next and sometime in the future they will probably become quite good. right now, they just make me think of muse - this is not a complete put down b/c secretly i like muse a little bit. the keyboard parts seemed to drawn out and the songs didn't seem very dynamic. watching them i kept waiting for something to happen - when something happened it wasn't bad. or maybe i was just too tired - at least, my friends liked them a lot more than i did. but i have to admit that their female singer has a really great voice, which the band should use more. then i went to get some pizza and contemplated going home to sleep. but since i was curious to see patrick watson i kept going. i was somewhat surprised to see that the line to see the kaiser chiefs was longer than for the brazilian girls, which was enough to resolve my difference. and the brazilian girls turned out to be fun - just pretty solid and pleasant pop (for the most part). patrick watson ended the festival for me and may just have been the festival highlight. the only thing that you can really complain about (which is pretty much all i do) is that his voice sounds a lot like jeff buckley. which isn't really much of a complaint. musically, there isn't much of a similarity - as much as i like jeff buckley, his music was almost generic. not bad but it didn't bring anything new to the table - he just did it better or put his own twist on the formula. in patrick watson's case, you could take away the vocals and it would still be interesting. at any rate, a great end to the festival for me. there were still some bands playing but they couldn't possibly top patrick and i was quite happy to head home with his songs on my mind.
so overall, this year's airwaves was pretty good. obviously, i would have liked to see wolf parade. it is unbelievable that the organizers would make such a bad mistake to put them in one of the smaller venues. but then again, this is not exactly the first time the organizers make such mistakes. another downside (yes, i like to complain) is that people talk too damn much during performances - especially during relatively quiet acts like trost or patrick watson. but then again, icelanders aren't exactly known for being polite.
Patrick Watson - Giver
Patrick Watson - Luscious Life
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Saturday, October 21, 2006
airwaves days 1-3
wednesday - a half hearted attempt at seeing we are scientists. instead i checked out ultra mega teknobandid stefan, which was entertaining but not groundbraking. but hell, i'm sure they'll be a lot better by the time they hit puberty. damn kids these days. then i caught the last four minutes of lokbra. all i can say is that receive a pretty high score using the good music/bad name ratio. in the end though, it is kinda hard to like a band one of whose members sports a korn tattoo. weapons was just boring.
thursday - mates of states turned out to be slightly better than i predicted. but still not the most exciting live band and occasionally they get a little annoying. tilly and the wall were alright as well but perhaps a little too cute - in any case i had had my fill after a couple of songs and headed over to nasa to catch skatar and reykjavik!. i'm not sure what to make of either of them. skatar certainly had moments of polvoesque brilliance but, on the whole, the didn't leave a strong impression. but i would definately check them out again. reykjavik! was a similar story - there is much to like about the band. for example, they are loud and they look funny. but i couldn't figure out what they are aiming for - which may actually be a good thing. metric was up next so i made a run for it and caught a few songs with mugison. there is no question that mugison is talented but the first couple of songs were just a little too slick, which had me worried a bit but thankfully he slipped into his death metal shoes for a song. i returned to nasa before metric finished up but hid away in the back and managed to ignore them almost completely. finally, love is all was quite good actually though their sound is a little limited and kinda wears on you. but i have to give them credit for pulling off, first, a squeaky sounding singer, two, a saxophone, and, three, being swedish. and copying biggie smalls is pretty cool.
friday - i was feeling pretty beat but i made it to the festival after running into bobby fisher at a reception. islands were brilliant, as expected, and the best band of the festival so far. it would have been nice if their set had been longer. next up were apparat organ quartet who, well, try to rock with keyboards. and they kinda succeed. jakobrinarina (or whatever their name is) were up next - i had heard a lot about them but for some reason i had always been a little sceptical. but these kids rock - something tells me they have gotten into their parents' record collection b/c they certainly heard joy division somewhere. though they are a tad more upbeat perhaps. anyhow, a pleasant surprise. then the go!team, which quickly scared a good chunk of the audience away by turning up their guitars and rocking out like i hadn't expected them to. so, another pleasant surprise. the poppier songs were alright but what really won me over was the fact that they like noise. i guess, i'll have to give their album another listen. then, over to grand rokk to see gavin portland. gavin portland sounded massive - in the unsane sort of way. some great heavy riffing but unfortunately the singers yelling in no way matched the band's sound - or at least didn't add anything to it. i think actually would like them a whole lot more if they went all instrumental. and at the end of the night, we went over to the national theater's basement to watch trost. trost was pretty good - a kinda seedy cabaresque music if that means anything at all. but trost was an entertaining performer who liked to climb up on tables and play tug-of-war with the sound guy using the microphone cord.
thursday - mates of states turned out to be slightly better than i predicted. but still not the most exciting live band and occasionally they get a little annoying. tilly and the wall were alright as well but perhaps a little too cute - in any case i had had my fill after a couple of songs and headed over to nasa to catch skatar and reykjavik!. i'm not sure what to make of either of them. skatar certainly had moments of polvoesque brilliance but, on the whole, the didn't leave a strong impression. but i would definately check them out again. reykjavik! was a similar story - there is much to like about the band. for example, they are loud and they look funny. but i couldn't figure out what they are aiming for - which may actually be a good thing. metric was up next so i made a run for it and caught a few songs with mugison. there is no question that mugison is talented but the first couple of songs were just a little too slick, which had me worried a bit but thankfully he slipped into his death metal shoes for a song. i returned to nasa before metric finished up but hid away in the back and managed to ignore them almost completely. finally, love is all was quite good actually though their sound is a little limited and kinda wears on you. but i have to give them credit for pulling off, first, a squeaky sounding singer, two, a saxophone, and, three, being swedish. and copying biggie smalls is pretty cool.
friday - i was feeling pretty beat but i made it to the festival after running into bobby fisher at a reception. islands were brilliant, as expected, and the best band of the festival so far. it would have been nice if their set had been longer. next up were apparat organ quartet who, well, try to rock with keyboards. and they kinda succeed. jakobrinarina (or whatever their name is) were up next - i had heard a lot about them but for some reason i had always been a little sceptical. but these kids rock - something tells me they have gotten into their parents' record collection b/c they certainly heard joy division somewhere. though they are a tad more upbeat perhaps. anyhow, a pleasant surprise. then the go!team, which quickly scared a good chunk of the audience away by turning up their guitars and rocking out like i hadn't expected them to. so, another pleasant surprise. the poppier songs were alright but what really won me over was the fact that they like noise. i guess, i'll have to give their album another listen. then, over to grand rokk to see gavin portland. gavin portland sounded massive - in the unsane sort of way. some great heavy riffing but unfortunately the singers yelling in no way matched the band's sound - or at least didn't add anything to it. i think actually would like them a whole lot more if they went all instrumental. and at the end of the night, we went over to the national theater's basement to watch trost. trost was pretty good - a kinda seedy cabaresque music if that means anything at all. but trost was an entertaining performer who liked to climb up on tables and play tug-of-war with the sound guy using the microphone cord.
Friday, October 13, 2006
my private own airwaves
so another year another airwaves festival. i swore i would never again go to the festival after last year's disaster... but, well, reykjavik is just too boring to let it pass you by. if nothing else i can always catch ulpa again. but it, of course, it won't stop me from complaining. so here is a list of the "international" acts ... and who is playing instead of them at my festival.
120 Days (NO) well, listening to the album certainly feels like 120 days. my guess is that these guys overdosed on the cure and new order and, no, those don't mix very well. i would have preferred 31 knots or 7 year rabbit cycle. or if you are going to stick with norwegian's, how about serena maneesh? i know, i know, i don't really like them either but if you are going with late 80s sound they are a vastly better choice. or actually, mustafa et monique would actually make me happy.
Brazilian Girls (US) strangely enough, i rather enjoy brazilian girls.
Call to Mind (UK) if you are going to bring dull emo-pop, why not go all the way and bring coldplay. wait, no we have the leaves so we don't really have to get an "international" band. but, of course, the leaves don't get to play my festival either
D�lek (US) are just fine and just great once you get used to the rapping.
Fields (UK) "Combining a harmony pop sensibility to rival the Magic Numbers with My Bloody Valentine style soundscapes, Fields are already shaping up to be one of the most talked about bands of 2006." (Airwaves website) man, i'm really out of the loop. Field Music would have been a better choice.
Datarock (NO) not enough data, not enough rock.
Gojira (FRA) not really my cup of tea but at least they are the least scary looking guys on their label's website. if there is going to be screaming i think i'd prefer isis.
Hot Club de Paris (UK) couldn't make it through their album even once. i suggest new young pony club or tokyo police club.
Islands (CAN) excellent choice. the only thing better would have been the unicorns....
Kaiser Chiefs (UK) can't really say that i've heard them but if you are dealing with kaisers franz ferdinand would seem to be the more obvious choice.
Klaxons (UK) might be fun to see
Leave Calmer (US) i think "Leave Calmer shifts from floating, ghostly vocals reminiscent of Buckley to the organic, textural explosions akin to Reznor" (Airwaves website) says all that needs to be said.
Love is All (SE) i have actually be warming up to love is all but i still find them a little annoying and i can't quite figure out who they remind me of.
Mates of State (US) are a decent choice but somehow i suspect they are not going to put on the most exciting show. which the like young most certainly would
Metric (CAN) if getting rid of the metric system would get rid of metric it would be worth dealing with feet and inches. i assume celine dion and barenaked ladies were busy? why? why? not only does the music suck, emily is also the most annoying "performer" out there.
Patrick Watson (CAN) may not be a bad choice. his 2003 album was kinda nice and what i've heard from his new one is promising - though some of it sounds a bit too much like buckley. but i still think it would have more interesting to see patrick wolf or patrick phelan. but it still might be one of the highlights of the festival.
Spektrum (UK) apparently they meant to book spectrum, i can't think of any other reason
The Cribs (UK) might turn ok. a bit like franz a bit like the strokes but they have a couple more cards up their sleeves.
The Go! Team (UK) should be fun. they are also playing on my airwaves festival. except at mine they don't play at the same time as wolf parade!
The Handsome Public (US) what, this sounds like the electric six without guitars. at my festival the electric six would play instead of the handsome public but the only song they would play would be fire at the disco.
The Whitest Boy Alive (NO/DE) is alright but i think they may end up feeling kinda silly with that name since reykjavik only gets about 2 hours of sunlight a year and consequently everyone is pretty damn pale here.
Tilly and the Wall (US) i feel are here because architecture in helsinki was such a success last year. but the problem is that tilly and the wall aren't quite as good. should be good fun though. at my festival the danielson family is playing instead.
Trost (DE) i don't know much about. her band, cobra killer, is kinda cool though. and the couple of songs i've heard sound pretty promising. i'm curious enough to invite her to my festival too.
Walter Meego (US) don't know about that name. they sound ok though when they aren't singing. i would invite trs-80 instead - and not just because they don't sing. who knows, maybe i'll check them out.
We are Scientists (US) kinda missed the train. the aren't really any worse than the killers or hot hot heat or any of those bands. poppy and fun to a certain degree but instead i opted for spoon, which is a far classier act as you can tell by the jaguar ads.
Whomadewho (DK) get to play my festival as well b/c i) sometimes they sound like a mellow version of the queens of the stone ages and ii) they released two versions of their album, one electric and one acoustic without making acoustic one (which came after the electric one) seem like a joke. this might be fun.
Wolf Parade (CAN) is clearly the big name here. that's why they get stuck into crappy little venue that will be extremely unpleasant and most likely you will not be able to see the band. at my festival, not only do they play at a bigger venue, but i get sunset rubdown and swan lake as well because the bands share a member anyway. and then i might as well get frog eyes and new pornographers to play as well.
and on a completely unrelated note, i've kinda been enjoying swissair
120 Days (NO) well, listening to the album certainly feels like 120 days. my guess is that these guys overdosed on the cure and new order and, no, those don't mix very well. i would have preferred 31 knots or 7 year rabbit cycle. or if you are going to stick with norwegian's, how about serena maneesh? i know, i know, i don't really like them either but if you are going with late 80s sound they are a vastly better choice. or actually, mustafa et monique would actually make me happy.
Brazilian Girls (US) strangely enough, i rather enjoy brazilian girls.
Call to Mind (UK) if you are going to bring dull emo-pop, why not go all the way and bring coldplay. wait, no we have the leaves so we don't really have to get an "international" band. but, of course, the leaves don't get to play my festival either
D�lek (US) are just fine and just great once you get used to the rapping.
Fields (UK) "Combining a harmony pop sensibility to rival the Magic Numbers with My Bloody Valentine style soundscapes, Fields are already shaping up to be one of the most talked about bands of 2006." (Airwaves website) man, i'm really out of the loop. Field Music would have been a better choice.
Datarock (NO) not enough data, not enough rock.
Gojira (FRA) not really my cup of tea but at least they are the least scary looking guys on their label's website. if there is going to be screaming i think i'd prefer isis.
Hot Club de Paris (UK) couldn't make it through their album even once. i suggest new young pony club or tokyo police club.
Islands (CAN) excellent choice. the only thing better would have been the unicorns....
Kaiser Chiefs (UK) can't really say that i've heard them but if you are dealing with kaisers franz ferdinand would seem to be the more obvious choice.
Klaxons (UK) might be fun to see
Leave Calmer (US) i think "Leave Calmer shifts from floating, ghostly vocals reminiscent of Buckley to the organic, textural explosions akin to Reznor" (Airwaves website) says all that needs to be said.
Love is All (SE) i have actually be warming up to love is all but i still find them a little annoying and i can't quite figure out who they remind me of.
Mates of State (US) are a decent choice but somehow i suspect they are not going to put on the most exciting show. which the like young most certainly would
Metric (CAN) if getting rid of the metric system would get rid of metric it would be worth dealing with feet and inches. i assume celine dion and barenaked ladies were busy? why? why? not only does the music suck, emily is also the most annoying "performer" out there.
Patrick Watson (CAN) may not be a bad choice. his 2003 album was kinda nice and what i've heard from his new one is promising - though some of it sounds a bit too much like buckley. but i still think it would have more interesting to see patrick wolf or patrick phelan. but it still might be one of the highlights of the festival.
Spektrum (UK) apparently they meant to book spectrum, i can't think of any other reason
The Cribs (UK) might turn ok. a bit like franz a bit like the strokes but they have a couple more cards up their sleeves.
The Go! Team (UK) should be fun. they are also playing on my airwaves festival. except at mine they don't play at the same time as wolf parade!
The Handsome Public (US) what, this sounds like the electric six without guitars. at my festival the electric six would play instead of the handsome public but the only song they would play would be fire at the disco.
The Whitest Boy Alive (NO/DE) is alright but i think they may end up feeling kinda silly with that name since reykjavik only gets about 2 hours of sunlight a year and consequently everyone is pretty damn pale here.
Tilly and the Wall (US) i feel are here because architecture in helsinki was such a success last year. but the problem is that tilly and the wall aren't quite as good. should be good fun though. at my festival the danielson family is playing instead.
Trost (DE) i don't know much about. her band, cobra killer, is kinda cool though. and the couple of songs i've heard sound pretty promising. i'm curious enough to invite her to my festival too.
Walter Meego (US) don't know about that name. they sound ok though when they aren't singing. i would invite trs-80 instead - and not just because they don't sing. who knows, maybe i'll check them out.
We are Scientists (US) kinda missed the train. the aren't really any worse than the killers or hot hot heat or any of those bands. poppy and fun to a certain degree but instead i opted for spoon, which is a far classier act as you can tell by the jaguar ads.
Whomadewho (DK) get to play my festival as well b/c i) sometimes they sound like a mellow version of the queens of the stone ages and ii) they released two versions of their album, one electric and one acoustic without making acoustic one (which came after the electric one) seem like a joke. this might be fun.
Wolf Parade (CAN) is clearly the big name here. that's why they get stuck into crappy little venue that will be extremely unpleasant and most likely you will not be able to see the band. at my festival, not only do they play at a bigger venue, but i get sunset rubdown and swan lake as well because the bands share a member anyway. and then i might as well get frog eyes and new pornographers to play as well.
and on a completely unrelated note, i've kinda been enjoying swissair
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