posted by Chris on October 23, 2007 10:11 AM in Music
Last night I had the pleasure of checking out Nectar Lounge in Fremont for the first time. I've started going to shows more frequently now that I live in a more central location, but I'd never found a show that caught my eye at Nectar until Final Fantasy came to town. You may remember Final Fantasy (the band, not the video game) as Owen Pallett, who we gush about on The Weekly Geek constantly. He is a brilliantly talented musician with his hands in almost everything these days, from Arcade Fire arrangements to his work on Beirut's newest Flying Cub Cup.
Nectar is a very intimate venue with a capacity of just over a hundred, a balcony bar area and a dance floor that opens up into a covered outdoor seating area. It's well-lit (a rarity for venues these days) allowing you to actually SEE the artist in context. I always get frustrated when I go to shows and they keep the place dark except for a spotlight on whoever is on stage. I get tunnel vision and it feels like I am somehow separated from the event. Not at Nectar.
Owen brought with him two other artists, one being a band called Welcome who sounded a bit like Pavement with a bass player/vocalist who looked like Beth Gibbons from Portishead. And by that I mean she was incredibly hot. The other opening act was Cadence Weapon, a fantastic hip hop artist often mashing 8-bit chiptunes with his "phat rhymes". No really, it was quite great. Owen himself could be seen in the back of the audience, nodding his head. When Owen came on stage the energy of the crowd changed. It went from boisterous dancing and cheering for Cadence to silent reverence and awe. That is the kind of reaction Owen gets when he starts doing his amazing looping violin acrobatics, sampling himself tapping on the strings with the back of his bow, thumping the body with his thumb or even yelling into the f-holes and looping that. All of this is perfectly timed to sound like a building, climaxing orchestral piece and every single arrangement is stunning. Owen brought along an overhead projector artist, who moved paper cut outs around to the music, painting a picture of the imaginary "8 schools of magic" world of Final Fantasy.
A couple new songs were performed from Owen's next LP, Heartland and they sounded fantastic. He brought along an electric piano and used that in his loops as well as his violin in the new songs and they felt richer and fuller than his previous material. A logical evolution. It's hard to imagine Owen not being inspired by the company he keeps, and it's great to see an artist I admire so much growing, not floundering. Owen's performances are touching, brilliant and humble with an adorable honesty shown through his apologies for mistakes mid-song, or the flustered look he gets on his face when one of his loops is even slightly off time. Someone in the crowd, during a moment of silence as Owen was setting up his next song, shouted "More like Final Fantastic!" I couldn't agree more.
It's an experience to see an artist of this caliber on stage doing what they do best, and lucky for you he just started touring the US. Check out Final Fantasy if he comes to your town, or you'll be missing out. Concert dates after the jump.
continue reading "Event Review: Final Fantasy [Nectar Lounge, Seattle WA]"
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posted by Chris on December 1, 2006 9:54 AM in Music
Frodo: This past week, Caspian and I saw the Blue Scholars perform at the Showbox in Seattle. Being nerdy white kids, we entered the hip hop show with slight trepidation, only to be greeted by herds of indie kids, high schoolers and even a couple blindingly ivory-hued under 10s. Lucky for us the Showbox features a nifty bar area, and we were able to tucker in for the long march. I mean that literally, of course, as the doors opened at 8pm, the headliners weren't set to go on stage until 11:30. Not only did we have to sit for a while to see who we really came to see, but we had to suffer through four (four!) opening acts. We had some great luck with the last show we went to (Sufjan Stevens at the Paramount), the opening act was My Brightest Diamond and ended up being a new favorite.
Caspian: With the exception of the final opening act One Self, from Brooklyn, there really wasn't anything worth sitting through either. They were tolerable for a while, but the female rapper's high-pitched rhymes were grating over the course of a whole set. Being that chintzy R&B act Choklat was the only opening act listed on the ticket billing as an opener, we couldn't help but feel duped. But I have to say when Geologic and Sabzi took the stage, the show instantly became worth it.
Frodo: Yeah, when the Blue Scholars finally came out (on time, thank [insert deity here]) it completely washed away the unironic squeakiness of One Self (it was like mc chris but completely lacking the funny). Blue Scholars are an up and coming hip hop act out of Seattle, and tend to have lyrics focused around the Emerald City. They opened for Kanye West at Bumbershoot, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the subdued attitudes and stage setup of the duo. Your inner stereotype-o-meter would probably be set off as well by the fact that Sabzi and Geologic are white and blasian, respectively.
Caspian: Blue Scholars' set was incredibly strong. With favorites from their album like "The Ave" and "Long March," it's easy to see why they're arguably the hottest hip hop group on the Indie scene right now. The pinnacle of the show for me was hearing every white boy in the house (myself included) flip out when they weaved the drum heavy Modest Mouse instrumental from "Float On" into the already amazing song "Inkwell." Honestly, I'd be surprised after this show if Blue Scholars aren't picked up by a major label and being touted by mainstream critics around the nation within the next year. The greatest thing about them though, is they wouldn't want that. Their indie label Mass Line is blowing up with great underground talent by the minute. They have no reason to abandon their homegrown success. Cheers to Geo and Sabz for keeping hope alive for the Rap genre, and proving that talented MCs and DJs can be intelligent.
Frodo: Word, thug. Word. Check out the Blue Scholars' library on iTunes. It's freaking brilliant. 
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posted by Mike on August 28, 2006 7:30 PM in Music
Music Review - Live: The Decemberists “8.23.06”
I’ve got to admit- I was one of them. Depriving myself of The Decemberists for no good reason. Riding the coattails of fellow Northwesterners Death Cab and Modest Mouse, you wonder if their major label signing wasn’t just the product of a current trend. And then of course you come to find out, they’re just five down-to-earth people who craft some of the most interesting ballads out there.
Their live show explained how all the hype was warranted.
Slow, but fitting opener I Was Made for the Stage which bled nicely as a wall of noise into the addictively catchy 16 Military Wives. The entire set felt balanced- easily ebbing from old mainstays to new experiments. The Perfect Crime with its chiming, on-point electric guitar bursts, jubilant encore Mariner’s Revenge Song, and R.E.M influenced “joint suicide” story We Both Go Down Together highlighted a set with amazing variety and flowing continuity.
Admittedly rusty, this was the band’s first show in 2 months, but they approached the layoff with grace. Asking for front row help to remember lyrics. Reading illegible banners in the crowd. Stopping to eat a birthday cookie for the drummer. Cute, very cute.
The new album leak piqued my interest, but the show sold me. Of course, Frodo had to burn me their whole catalogue. *sigh* How the hell am I going to listen to anything else for the next month?
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Last night I had the pleasure of checking out Nectar Lounge in Fremont for the first time. I've started going to shows more frequently now that I live in a more central location, but I'd never found a show that caught my eye at Nectar until Final Fantasy came to town. You may remember Final Fantasy (the band, not the video game) as Owen Pallett, who we gush about on The Weekly Geek constantly. He is a brilliantly talented musician with his hands in almost everything these days, from Arcade Fire arrangements to his work on Beirut's newest Flying Cub Cup. 
