crazed monkey

Last night I headed out to the Toronto launch of the 2003 Varia compilation CD at Kathedral. My number one reason for going was to see acidasia perform in The Scroll and Ögenix. This was something I had been wishing to witness since I first heard of acidasia’s band membership.

The Scroll opened up and started off with numerous sound problems due to the inept and inattentive sound technician with which the event was cursed. Despite this, the band held their own and recovered excellently, successfully remaining in character throughout the set. The Scroll had an excellent stage presence, with the two lead vocalists acting off one another, giving a somewhat tongue-in-cheek performance with a subtle sense of humour. Each was dressed for their roles: Deeh, the male lead, in stilettos, fishnets and a scandalously short miniskirt, and acidasia sporting long black hair in thick curls, a black patent leather skirt slit on either side and thick-soled black boots. On a couple of tunes the duo sang to each other, giving the impression of a storyline. In retrospect, it would have been interesting to see this aspect of the set emphasised into an operetta of sorts. If done properly, this format could escape pretentiousness and enhance the atmosphere of the performance. Then again, perhaps The Scroll were already doing this and I’m just a little slow to figure it out.

Next up was Ögenix, the other band with which acidasia is involved. What a tight outfit this was. The instrumentals were note-for-note dead-on, which was astounding given the speed at which the two guitarists, Deeh and SET, were going. This, combined with Gabriel’s aggressive use of the synth and vocals, made for an energetic performance of well-organised chaos. If that wasn’t enough, Ögenix replayed a track at double-speed to close the set. Acidasia tells me that the band has been together and rehearsing for quite a while, and it truly shows. From what I saw Sunday evening, Ögenix is the one to watch out of Montréal, and they were performing under far from ideal conditions. I could write more, but you really need to see these guys.

Scrape followed in the next act with some dark beat poetry from the Underworld. The band consisted of one member on synths and a second front-and-centre on ghoulishly-vocoded vocals, miraculously filling the stage with his gesturing presence. The vocalist was not that large and yet somehow his arms seemed to encompass the entire stage.

Pulse Plant closed off the Varia portion of the show with a live techno set. I wasn’t paying that much attention and there’s not that much one can say about a lone man tweaking knobs onstage.

After the show some of us, including the members of The Scroll and Ögenix, headed out to a suite at the Marriott for the after-party. Apart from a loud and bawdy but relatively tame version of “truth or dare”, everyone was fairly well-behaved, depending on what your expectations were. Sure, there was the woman clad in latex fetish gear fellating a mid-size brass onyx statue, and an ice bucket emptied on an innocent and unsuspecting friend of mine, but that’s to be expected where there’s absinthe involved.

Ah yes, the absinthe. SET graciously shared his bottle of the stuff (apparently as real as it gets these days, labelled as such on the bottle) with everyone who asked, myself included. To serve, SET poured most of one shot in a glass, and placed a sugar cube dipped in the remainder on top of what I can only describe as a small metal plate punched with a few holes. This plate was then placed over the glass while SET poured a shot of Figi water. The sugar cube was then lit and allowed to burn for a few seconds, causing it to melt, before it was transferred to the glass. The resulting blue flames were put out with the shot of water. I can’t really describe the flavour, which was somewhat sweet from the sugar and cool, not warming like scotch, and with barely an aftertaste. The buzz was clean and smooth, almost imperceptible with more of a mental drunkenness than a physical one. Absinthe is definitely something I would like to try again, although it is quite expensive. Thanks again to SET for sharing.

I finally headed home at around 6am, giving me just enough time to put in a few hours of sleep before heading into work. Remarkably, I felt rested and even now don’t feel incredibly tired. I haven’t been able to stay up that late and with so few ill effects since my university days. I’ll probably pay for it yet, however.

Posted on June 9th, 2003 in culture, music - No Comments »

A good friend of mine from university will be performing as part of the 2003 Varia Compilation CD release tour at the Ögenix and on vocals with The Scroll. Other bands include Pulse Plant, Scrape, and headlining guests Sylvania. Tickets are $10 at the door, which gives you a copy of the Varia compilation CD.

I have to admit that it’s been a while since anything remotely techno-industrial was “my thing”. Hell, it’s been almost ten years since I willfully listened to anything kids today call “dark”. The music will probably be too loud, which means that I’ll have to turn down my hearing aid. Damned kids! Make no mistake that if Olivia is involved then it will be good. Oh, and there’s a good old-fashioned hotel suite after-party after the show. Look for the most straight-laced guy you can find and that will be me.

Update: I wrote a review of the Toronto launch party for the Varia compilation CD.

Posted on June 6th, 2003 in culture, music - No Comments »

After a long haitus, Ed is back with another selection of rare groove tunes:

1. Space Lady - Lonnie Liston Smith
2. The Master Rocker - Bernard Wright
3. Double Dutch Bus - Franke Smith
4. Fat Mama - Herbie Hancock
5. Sing Sing - Gaz
6. The Breakdown - Rufus Thomas
7. Different Strokes - Syl Johnson
8. North, East, South, West - Kool & The Gang
9. Rapture - Blondie
10. Higher Ground - Johnny Hammond

And as an extra treat, here’s his current top five tracks:

1. The Bottle (Groovefinder remix) - (Bootleg)
2. Make a Change (Dub the Tech mix) - Miguel Migs Dub Plate Sessions 2
3. Spirit (in dub) Jay-J remix - Brent Laurence - Black Vinyl
4. DUBRAZIL - “Her Name Was Rio” Cosmic City’s 5am Dub - Jordan Fields
5. Out of Sight - Flash Atkins - Bosh Recordings

Eddie C is a friend of mine from university who now DJs in Banff.

Posted on May 15th, 2003 in culture, music - No Comments »

The Globe And Mail: Nina Simone, 70.

Nina Simone, the jazz great whose raspy, forceful voice helped define the civil rights movement, died Monday at her home in France, according to her U.S. booking agent. She was 70. […]

Simone, born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, N.C., was a classically trained pianist whose songs ranged from blues to spirtuals to classical fare. But she gained fame in 1959 with her recording of I Loves You Porgy, from the musical Porgy & Bess.

It was that recording of I Loves You Porgy which introduced me to Nina Simone. I had previously only heard Ella Fitzgerald’s 1958 recording of that tune, which she made with Louis Armstrong. Quite frankly, Ella’s swinging rendition is almost laughable compared to Nina’s soulful and heartfelt delivery, which still brings tears to my eyes. Nobody could swing like Ella Fitzgerald, but nobody could emote like Nina Simone.

Posted on April 21st, 2003 in culture, music - No Comments »

I just got back. The Mix Master Mike portion of the event could not have been any more hip-hop. If it were, a rift in the fabric of space would have opened up and brought Kool Herc forward in time from the precise moment where he invented that musical genre.

Posted on February 27th, 2003 in culture, music - No Comments »