Tag Archives: energy

The King is back

Many people have previously written Michael Jackson off as a creepy, melt-faced loon whose bizarre antics have directly contributed to his very public demise. Last night, those nay-sayers were firmly told where to go, after MJ (that’s what we, his fans call him) shook up London in a storm of glamour, children and warbled lines.

The rumours started a few days ago. Those in the know started saying that MJ would be making an appearance at the World Music Awards (which sounds suitably vague and meaningless as to have been invented by the King of Pop himself!). As fans and other misfits flocked to London in order to prance and moan in the traditional ‘love you / hope you die’ spectacle, Michael Jackson sped through the city in a black limousine, about to make a triumphant comeback which would rock the pop world and briefly rank as the sixth piece in BBC News’s  ‘Other top stories’ section. Still, he was pursued by uncertainty and mystery… would he sing? would he not sing? if he did sing, what song would he sing? if he didn’t sing, then why not? if he did sing, would he attempt another misguided set-piece to prove how much he loves ‘the kids’? Yes, no, We Are The World, N/A, yes.

The man himself arrived at wherever the venue was and showed off his new face. More angular than previously thought possible, Michael’s cheekbones now appear to have been fashioned from china clay and then kilned for several days – a look which Victoria Beckham will agree is very much ‘in’ this autumn. MJ insisted to staff outside the theatre, or whatever, that he had never planned to sing that night and there had been a misunderstanding.

But that was just another clever trick from The Most Important Man In The History Of Music™! Because he was planning to sing and he knew that all along!  With a choir of more than twenty minors, MJ danced to a tape of his classic masterpiece in fatuous sentimentality, We Are The World. At one point, Michael joined in with the recording, moaning the words to the chorus softly as he was clearly out of breath. Despite being nearly 60, the great man still knows how to feed off the energy of the innocent souls around him. And I think that this is what makes him so great. Cheers, Michael!

Review: Silver Jews live in Barcelona

Silver Jews live in BarcelonaLast night, despite being desperately tired from an early (and very hot) summer night, Gemma and I went to see the magnificent Silver Jews play at Apolo.

On arrival at the club, there were about three other non-staff members present. Soon a group of six or or so walked in and sat by our table. Oh, it was David Berman, Cassie Berman and the rest of the Silver Jews. I wanted to go up to them and say something but I felt the blush/sad fan reflex coming on strong, so I stayed seated.

Support band, Extraperlo, named the Joos as one of their major influences. I didn’t feel that this was much in evidence through their set. I liked a couple of their songs but really they lacked any charisma or energy. In a year or two they could be great but they weren’t that night.

After an interminable wait for the main event to come on (it’s a small stage), the band shambled into view. A couple had been onstage for the vague soundcheck they went through but the cheers were reserved for when David stepped up to the mike.

From here, we enter the “oh shit, what was the setlist” stage. I’ll probably be able to piece it together later. I can say that they definitely played ‘Random Rules’, ‘Smith And Jones Forever’, ‘Time Will Break The World’, ‘Pet Politics’, ‘Black And Brown Blues’, ‘Sometimes A Pony Gets Depressed’, ‘Punks In The Beerlight’, ‘Animal Shapes’ and a personal favourite, ‘Wild Kindness’. There were other songs, all of them good… I just can’t be sure about which ones they were.
As opposed to reviews I’d read of the American shows in this, their first tour in 15 years, Silver Jews presented an extremely tight set. That is to say, there was no sign of the nerves, shyness or forgetfulness reported of their frontman. David Berman seemed confident and cheerful, joking with the crowd and dedicating a song to one of Gemma’s old uni pals, Marta (who, it turns out, is some kind of super-fan!). The crowd wasn’t huge, so he promised to shake hands with each of us after the show.

And he did! After an encore call which was louder than I’ve seen at concerts with 10 times the audience, Silver Jews played only one final number (will they ever play ‘Tennessee’??) and then David stepped down off the stage and came to speak to his fans. This act, as much as an amazing show, made sure that everyone present left with a Cheshire Cat grin on their face. I told David that after waiting 15 years for the first tour, they had to do another very soon. He promised that they’d be back, so those of you too fatigued by Football abuse (as to today, I’ve never seen a team foul so much and get away with it) – make sure that you keep a minimum of 4o€ in your account at all times. 20 for the ticket, and 20 for the obscenely priced beer.

Silver Jews live at Pocketclub (Sala Apolo, Barcelona):

1 out of 1

Bloc Party Dull Shocker

As if you couldn’t tell from their boring music, Bloc party reveal in an exclusive interview with the Guardian today just how dull they really are! Moaning about the kids having too much fun sums up the attitude of these ‘technical rockers’ – the bands out to complete the destruction of rock’n’roll music.

Indie music has a lot to answer for – dull meaningless songs about cleaning your shoes, droney wet sods complaining about the rain, nihilistic bank clerks denying themselves – and Bloc Party (along with Franz Ferdinand) represent the lowest ebb of indie music. Pure as the driven snow patrol, a bunch of nice boys with nothing to say and saying it quietly. I will never comprehend how people can get excited about this music. The only polite way to explain it is that other people work much harder than me and therefore cannot afford to invest the same energy as I have. It’s easier reading the NME.

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Edit: I make no apologies for my taste, but I fully respect anyone’s right to enjoy any kind of music they choose. This is my blog after all.