Placebo - 02 Arena - 9th December
Placebo are an odd band. Perennially one of those bands who you've heard of but can't hum a tune of theirs and yet one that can sell out a sizable chunk of the 20'000 capacity 02 arena. In many ways a perfect place for a band to be, huge and utterly dedicated fan base, totally critic proof and no unwanted attention from anyone else. And after return-from-the-wilderness album Battle For The Sun, an MTV award for best alternative band and new drummer Steve Forrest, they seem to be, in front man Brian Molko's words, "reinvigorated, refreshed and ready to take on the world". The good news is, he's dead on the money!
Live, Placebo have so many people on stage they make Arcade Fire look like The White Stripes, there's a guitarist/bassist, five piece string section, five piece brass section and two keyboard players to complement the core trio. However, its very rare that they feel extraneous, a feat akin to canoeing the Atlantic using a traffic cone and a toothpick, and as a massive sheet in front of the stage drops to reveal the band pummeling into For What its Worth, the night begins.
The fact the band can get away with so many new songs is encouraging, certainly, some of the new songs provide some of the best moments (the aforementioned For What its Worth, Devil in the Detail, a Never-Ending Why that sends shivers) and for a band so resolutely image based as Placebo, the night belongs to the songs. Some screens and lights provide a backdrop but never take precedence (save for a strange video between main set and the encore featuring a women not wearing very much slowly rotating).
Placebo are a band that fans genuinely love, as I was told by many before the gig, and its definitely reciprocated, how else would they be able to create a set list that is so perfectly placed between old and new that it sends people genuinely apeshit. it's either love or a scarily automated machine that targets emotions, and the look on the entire bands collective face at the feedback soaked wig-out of a climax at the end of Taste in Men makes it undoubtedly love.
Songs of the night: Infa-red - For What its Worth - Taste in Men - The Never Ending Why
Saturday, 26 December 2009
Sunday, 13 December 2009
"Master"-ful?
Speaking in Tounges - Duke of York Theatre - December 11th
So I'll be frank, the reason I was at the Duke of York Theatre was to see John Simm in person. I am a complete fanboy, he was excellent in 24 Hour Party People, Life on Mars and Doctor Who and I'd been meaning to see this for a long time. I'd been expecting a cop drama, as i'd read that Simm plays a detective, but what I got was more personal, stranger and unsettling than I could have ever imagined.
The play seems to cram in as many ideas as possible, and because of that, just barely makes sense. the basic plot is that two married couples, Leon (Simm) and Sonja (Lucy Cohu), and Pete (Ian Hart) and Jane (Kerry Fox), are on the rocks, and an unintentional wife swap occurs. However, only Leon and Jane go all the way, Pete and Sonja get cold feet and part into the night. After confessing, Jane and Leon go on to tell their partners of unsettling events that happened while they were away.
After that is where the play gets confusing, in the second act all four actors take on different roles that are from the stories told in the first, they spiral into other stories from those affected, before coming full circle back to the original characters. The play is technically impressive in many ways, the set design is inspired and the opening scene, a comment on how similar the swapped couples' night is, is a stunning show of the acting talent on display, however the plot just spirals into coincidence and interlinking and there is no satisfying clunk as everything falls into place. Call me a philistine, but I like my plays to make sense after the second half of the second act.
As I said before, the collective talent on display is ridiculous, the actors all make the best of a confusing situation and save it from being the impenetrable mess it could have easily been, but its not quite enough to make it an experience that genuinely draws you in and make you care about the characters introduced in the second half. But in conclusion, I'm glad I saw it. It was at least a solid character study that unfortunately tried to introduce too many ideas for its own good.
So I'll be frank, the reason I was at the Duke of York Theatre was to see John Simm in person. I am a complete fanboy, he was excellent in 24 Hour Party People, Life on Mars and Doctor Who and I'd been meaning to see this for a long time. I'd been expecting a cop drama, as i'd read that Simm plays a detective, but what I got was more personal, stranger and unsettling than I could have ever imagined.
The play seems to cram in as many ideas as possible, and because of that, just barely makes sense. the basic plot is that two married couples, Leon (Simm) and Sonja (Lucy Cohu), and Pete (Ian Hart) and Jane (Kerry Fox), are on the rocks, and an unintentional wife swap occurs. However, only Leon and Jane go all the way, Pete and Sonja get cold feet and part into the night. After confessing, Jane and Leon go on to tell their partners of unsettling events that happened while they were away.
After that is where the play gets confusing, in the second act all four actors take on different roles that are from the stories told in the first, they spiral into other stories from those affected, before coming full circle back to the original characters. The play is technically impressive in many ways, the set design is inspired and the opening scene, a comment on how similar the swapped couples' night is, is a stunning show of the acting talent on display, however the plot just spirals into coincidence and interlinking and there is no satisfying clunk as everything falls into place. Call me a philistine, but I like my plays to make sense after the second half of the second act.
As I said before, the collective talent on display is ridiculous, the actors all make the best of a confusing situation and save it from being the impenetrable mess it could have easily been, but its not quite enough to make it an experience that genuinely draws you in and make you care about the characters introduced in the second half. But in conclusion, I'm glad I saw it. It was at least a solid character study that unfortunately tried to introduce too many ideas for its own good.
hmmm, what do I do with this now...
Hey!
i'm will, and if you're reading this you probably know it... anyway, i'll be probably using this for reviewing Gigs, Music and plays, and basically anything that crosses my mind while i'm up here. if I remember to do it. it's likely that i won't always. anyway, enjoy my musical ramblings!
i'm will, and if you're reading this you probably know it... anyway, i'll be probably using this for reviewing Gigs, Music and plays, and basically anything that crosses my mind while i'm up here. if I remember to do it. it's likely that i won't always. anyway, enjoy my musical ramblings!
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