BrightestYoungThings: Live DC: Beirut @ Sixth & I

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Live DC: Beirut @ Sixth & I

April 13, 2009 by Peter

words by Peter, photos by Dakota

…

If I were a significant musical recording artist I would have a laser. I would invent a laser of some kind that I would beam into the audience at random intervals. Maybe the drummer would invent it. The laser would detect camera phones, determine whether they were being held over their owner’s head to record or photograph the show, and the laser would either alter the image with some ruinous and blinding burns or it would destroy the phone entirely in a flash with maximum collateral damage. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to work terribly hard for years to write and perform your songs for people, get to a certain level of popularity, and then have your audience suddenly be more concerned with remembering or proving that they witnessed your show than experiencing it as it happens. That said, as a fan, I understand the impulse, not because of the subsequent viewing, posting, and sharing of the grainy pixelated medium shots of a bright blurry figure with a microphone, but because of the romance of holding up that little screen against the frame of the stage, and watching the homunculus inside mimic the artist jerkily in a puppet show of real life happening while everything is happening. So much do I understand this that at one point Saturday night during Beirut’s set at the 6th and I Synagogue I held up my own brand new magical I-phone and set the boy in my phone next to the real boy in my field of vision to see them dance and play together. It was a rare insight into the mechanics of how experience becomes memory, an appropriate metaphor (though a wildly pretentious one I know I know) for Zach Condon’s musical excavation endeavors.

Every now and then the phrase Post-rock reemerges from the asshole of some grad student like a tapeworm smelling food to gross everyone out and confuse small children. Besides jazzy limp noodlerock like Tortoise the term often gets applied to quiet folkies like the opener Sharon Van Etten. There’s nothing “post” about playing softly, even if there’s nothing “rock” about it either. Readers, pretentious metaphors aside, I am simple folk. When a pretty girl with a fluttering voice and a sonorous droning guitar style plays sappy songs to me I am mildly pleased, but when she acts super hushed and shy between tunes and says “ooh I’m so nervous” I want to boo. Boo—man up sister this ain’t group therapy…Boo—I don’t care how cute you look shrugging with sincerity about how little you deserve to be paid attention to, it’s a distraction tactic. Straighten up, play your beautiful lullabies, and while you’re at it maybe muster the courage to try something dangerous and extraordinary in your songwriting, something about which that term “post-rock” can perhaps begin to be used meaningfully—something like the leap Beirut took early in his career from low-fi follower to lieder leader…indie ingénue to chanson champion (sorry).

I was a little worried Zach would be one of those young dick heads who smokes a pipe and wears a tweed jacket at 16 and has a ponytail and talks about Kipling and secretly fears black people. I knew a kid like this in HS (no not me, though yes, I had a ponytail and no, I don’t want to talk about it) who was re-writing Gravity’s Rainbow to be more of an adventure story, and despite being clever and earnest everyone wanted to kick him in the dick for his aggressive and judgmental naivety. All teenagers are stupid, so one that knows everything about, say, pre-war Bavarian composers or the dynasties of Nepal, more than likely misunderstands what he knows—confusing an idealization of the past with a mature interpretation that has meaning in the present. But somehow Condon’s backward-looking music manages to not do any of this wrong.

When he came out of the back he marched cheerfully down the aisles of the synagogue with his band, and set up comfortably under the giant Star of David as if there was no weighty significance to a group/person called Beirut playing songs that borrow from pre-holocaust north-eastern European folk and pop music with names like “Fatherland.” Bass player, accordion, keyboardist/glockenspieler, drummer and extra horn player arranged behind him, he launched right into “Nantes,” which is totally my favorite song. The horns sounded great together on the instrumental chorus, filling the room and overloading our ears like distorted guitars might. The drummer played the waltzes meters very lightly on the symbols and very heavy on the deep toned snare, but without the marching-band rolls that appear on record—a good choice I thought not to overpower us with rattling. After a few songs Zach flipped his perfectly tousled Rupert Brooke hairdo and said “I’m not too comfortable with sit down shows so if anyone wants to stand up please do,” and a bunch of college kids insta-rushed to the front so then everyone had to stand up. In some ways it was annoying—there are old people and the like who probably chose to come to the show because they knew they could see, and also what is the point of standing around during a Beirut concert? What are kind of dancing are we supposed to do–polka, greek circles, Isadora Duncan expressionist? On the other hand, I got to sneak down the aisle from the balcony so I’m not complaining overly.

I was only a few yards from the stage when he started playing “Sunday Smile.” His voice…I’ve heard some internetters complain about his limited range or his stilted accent, but to me it just sounds supremely controlled and subtle. Most musicians work for decades to develop a unique sound; Zach seems like one of the lucky fuckers who was born slurring and swooping like Enrico Caruso high on ditchweed standing on a table at the Cabaret Voltaire interpreting Irving Berlin songs. He may only have three notes, but none can be easily placed in a context of direct influence. There is some Merritt, and some Waits, and some Morrisey, and the pre-rock sources that lie behind them, but Beirut, like the town whose name they appropriated, is centered outside of that tradition by choice and circumstance. OK, so Sunday Smile is a good example. His voice swoops up on the “A” incorrectly, missing the key at times, breaking slightly, but not falsely, before descending: “A cemetery mile…We burnt to the ground, left a grave to admire.” He knows what he’s doing…he knows he can’t borrow bits of a dead culture without being nostalgic. The trick is to use that cultural nostalgia to speak to personal tragedies—whether a love or a village dies both leave a scar in history which can be pulled back by an artist to reveal and clean the wound.

As I watched the people sing along to the chorus, couples old and young began to fold into one-another. This music about collapse—about the inevitability of collapse, of a relationship or a way of life—this was “their” song. They danced back to front, or face to face, holding each other tightly and murmuring the words into shoulders or ears, breath moistening the curls at the base of necks. Maybe this is what Zach wanted us to do and see by standing up and moving forward? The Sunday Smile, an acknowledgment of the approach of the end, is sometimes much sweeter than ignorant innocence, and while perhaps it’s not as strong as foolish bliss, it can be a deeper and richer experience to know how it all ends and to pause and try to sing about it anyway. I pointed my phone at the couples and the swaying musicians and the boy leaning back with his new trumpet slung over his shoulder singing and at the watering blurring star and I watched the little screen as it formed the past, frame by frame, into a memory. Then I took the picture, and it was over.

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Amanda Says:

peter, you captured the evening perfectly.

dakota, you’re pictures are lovely.

April 13, 2009 at 11:25 am

Michael Says:

Peter – break up your paragraphs, they’re impossible to read on the internets like that.

I want to like this band – I like the concept. I like the music.

I fucking hate his voice.

April 13, 2009 at 12:25 pm

Guided by Voices Says:

Yeah, that mezzo soprano kinda puts me off as well. But hey, you can’t have everything.

April 13, 2009 at 12:43 pm

Becca Says:

believe me, Michael, there is information you want/need to know buried in there.

April 13, 2009 at 12:48 pm

sooooooooo Says:

pretentious

April 13, 2009 at 1:09 pm

GBV Says:

Believe me, Michael is not mentally equipped to extract this information.

April 13, 2009 at 1:12 pm

Michael Says:

Actually no one will believe you because everyone knows I’m kind of like a genius.

April 13, 2009 at 1:21 pm

emily Says:

ha ha, someone thinks peter is pretentious!

new band name:
peter’s pretentious ponytail

!!!!!!

April 13, 2009 at 1:43 pm

Michael Says:

Peter thinks I’m “above reproach” hahahahahahahaha.

April 13, 2009 at 1:56 pm

pedro Says:

TELL ME I AM PRETTY
AM I PRETTY Y/N????

April 13, 2009 at 1:57 pm

Dave Says:

Hey there’s a typo in the fourth paragraph. I’m so embarrassed for you, the entire article is thereby rendered utterly worthless!

April 13, 2009 at 2:05 pm

Dakota Says:

well, as long as this thread remains disappointingly off-topic, i would just like to add…

this performance was one of THE most breathtaking musical experiences EVAR. and Peter’s write-up does a fantastic job of transmitting the amazingness that transpired. seriously, when we were leaving, everyone was looking around at each other, as if to question what they had just seen.

simply spectacular.

April 13, 2009 at 2:58 pm

pedro Says:

Thanks Dakota, your photos rock and you were really good in Match Point.

April 13, 2009 at 3:03 pm

Amanda Says:

yeah, that seen in the field. ohmygod!

April 13, 2009 at 3:27 pm

Dave Says:

I like how you wrote a show review about the music.

April 13, 2009 at 3:30 pm

Meryl Says:

I was bummed when I saw that this show was sold out, but I’m glad it did because Cloud Cult killed at the Black Cat – for half the price, I imagine.
I was hoping BYT would do the picture-taking for me, so I neglected to be an ass with a camera phone. Oh well. Just disappointing to see Katy Perry in my reader when such a talented act was left out.

April 13, 2009 at 3:48 pm

BannedPerson Says:

This Beirut strikes me as a cross between a mariachi and an umpa band – and a pointless, uninteresting cross at that. The monotonous vocalizing, if not immediately unpleasant, never improves on you, quite to the contrary. Nor does the accompaniment. In fact, you stop giving aofuck after the second number. Oh alright, the third one then. The key word here is ‘BORING’. That’s pretty much all that ought to be said about this band. Waits, Morrissey, Caruso??.. Don’t be ridiculous, Peter. I could find a dozen bands far superior to this one on the streets of Guadalajara.

April 13, 2009 at 5:15 pm

victoryrose Says:

magical show. brilliant write up (as always, peter). stunning photos (again, as always).

anyone who thinks beirut is boring should check their pulse – and if you happen to have a pulse, and yet you still find them boring, then you clearly have no soul. it’s as simple as that.

i adore zach’s voice. i let him sing me to sleep almost every day.

April 13, 2009 at 6:05 pm

Michael Says:

VR I watched Beirut videos with you last year sometime. Yawnfest. And you know I have a passionate soul.

April 13, 2009 at 6:35 pm

new yorker Says:

you’re a dick that doesn’t listen to music. You wish you could play, you wish you could be a rock star, but decide to talk shit to make yourself feel better about your own shortcomings. This wasn’t a rock show. Why the hell did you expect it to be? Quit writing about things you don’t care about or know anything about, you blogger. Go back to art school.

April 14, 2009 at 3:01 am

victoryrose Says:

michael – i can attest, you have a passionate soul. i mean, you love ballboy. at the same time though, you can recognize what is great about them, if they don’t completely win you over. that at least sets you apart from others on here just talking general trash.

having said all this, i have actually been lucky enough to see beirut several times, all in very unique and special venues. he actually played with 3 fewer musicians this time around and he has changed up his backing band quite a bit. i will admit to really missing the violinist and french horn player.

nevertheless, the show on saturday was fantastic, and i’m so thrilled that the crowd got into it so much. amazing.

April 14, 2009 at 10:35 am

Michael Says:

I really do like the concept and the music. It’s just the voice. It’s like that teen annoying sound (which I can hear by the way). It’s just a frequency that doesn’t resonate.

it wasn’t really a yawnfest. I did like being introduced to them. Though the cab ride conversation was more interesting to say the least.

April 14, 2009 at 11:14 am

Bannned Person Says:

@new yorker: Shut. The Fuck. Up.
You and the rest resemble a herd of gaping open-mouthed philistines who were told to like this act and so they do. Well, to my ears the music is just not interesting enough. It’s a kind of folksy bullshit that tries to pass for something it is not and never will be. Why don’t you try to memorize that previous sentence, new yorker, and fuck off while doing it, cretin. To art school or wherever. I don’t give a damn.

April 14, 2009 at 8:30 pm

new yorker Says:

ok, peter. take offense… you went to a show you didn’t care about, you bought into a hype and didn’t like it, then you were mad at yourself for going, and you bitched about it. there was no criticism. you were mocking the crowd, and you had preconceived notions about a band… that makes you a bad writer and unfair critic. you are too high and mighty and ignorant. use your own name and own up to your own faults.

April 15, 2009 at 2:06 am

over it Says:

Beirut is definitely overrated.
You can seriously walk down the streets of any foreign city and find more soulful music on any corner. Just because an extremely young white boy from the middle of nowhere can mimic sounds from distant places doesn’t mean people like myself (and those who have commented above) are musically ignorant because we disagree with the general consensus.
Beirut is a one trick pony. Get over it.

April 15, 2009 at 4:54 am

no one should use pseudonyms! Says:

PETER USE YOUR REAL NAME GOD. oh, wait, you posted under your real name and commented under the name you always comment under, WHAT?

dear New Yorker, try again!

April 15, 2009 at 7:13 am

pedro Says:

this comments thread is just like waiting for godot except in this version godot shows up and is like “GET A JOB YOU MORANS”

April 15, 2009 at 8:50 am

Svetlana Says:

It also makes me wonder if a single person commenting on this thread ACTUALLY READ WHAT THE REVIEW SAID.

April 15, 2009 at 9:09 am

Michael Says:

Svetlana – a single person other than me of course.

I did read it (finally, though I still say those paragraphs were murder, especially the first one. It could be three at least) and wondered just what in the (chanelling Morgan) HELL NEW YORKER WAS TALKING ABOUT.

I didn’t get (see? new paragraph = easier to read) that Peter didn’t like the show at all. I got that he did like it, which immediately made me want to argue against him because I HATE HIS FUCKING GUTS.

I still am not bowled over by Beirut. I think the gimmick for their video(s) I watched was kind of cool and that’s maybe why I give them more credit than they deserve, and I do like the sound of the music for certain situations.

But (new paragraph = easier to read) I really really dislike that kid’s voice.

new yorker: Do you really have any reading comprehension skills at all? Or did you just kind of skim because the article was too difficult to read because the paragraphs were too long? In that case you get a pass to re-read and comment again. If that’s not the case then you really are pretty fucking RETARDED. (< not defending Peter, just reading comprehension) because I HATE PETER’S FUCKING GUTS.

April 15, 2009 at 10:13 am

Banned Person Says:

I’m not Peter but I did read his, ahem, review. Being Peter sucks.

Pedro? Pedro who? The Lion? What’s your surname, mindfuck?

Say, Michael, you wanna go dancing tonite? We can go some place quiet after. Oh and bring that Victioria Secret friend of yours. Just the three of us, hmmmmmmmm? I’ll show you my Peter.

April 15, 2009 at 11:34 am

victoryrose Says:

wow. all the hate. it is kind of pointless.

i realize the merits of beirut are no longer the point of this rather ridiculous chain. but, i did want to mention a few other things.

yes, zach is from the middle of nowhere (new mexico). he also wrote his first album at the age of 15. he wrote (what i find to be) the brilliant gulag orkestar in his bedroom at the age of 19. he has more talent in his pinky than most people.

yes, his music is derivative. which is absolutely pointless to say because most (if not all) music is. it comes from his experiences and travels – so fucking sue him – but it also means that each recording is completely different than the next.

while living in paris, he was introduced to balkan folk music – hence gulag orkestar. his next record, the flying club cup, clearly derives from french influences.

this last recording is actually 2 eps which is – as i understand it – something he decided to do while working on a real next record due later this year. he wrote it after visiting oaxaca. duh.

as to whether or not it is soulful – i say it is brilliantly soulful. it is so beautiful, and the live shows are so good, i’m often brought to tears. but, yay! music is subjective. to each…

also, i heart peter.

April 15, 2009 at 12:12 pm

Cale Says:

Thanx for the Beirut lesson William! Er, I mean victoryrose!

<3,
cale

April 15, 2009 at 1:20 pm

BP Says:

You’re somewhat of a corporate bj giver, BP. am I mistaken?

Now, seriously, what a banal post, VR. You can have all the influences in the world and still not get it right. Influences… Making eclectic music is not unlike mixing a cocktail. It’s not enough to simply have the ingredients. You must mix them correctly, among great many other things, many of them quite nuanced. Even the Drink-a-Day chic will tell you that. And don’t get me started on the use of the ‘hate’ word. I know, I know: the convenience. But still.

I submit Beirut may have some potential. Maybe there’s a hope for them yet. It’s just at present the act is way below the hype level. Way below.

April 15, 2009 at 1:22 pm

william alberque Says:

wait, if i’ve got this right – and i think i have – peter is newyorker. banned in new york attacked the show and beirut’s fans (well, the crowd, really, he clearly hasn’t heard their albums), and peter/newyorker answered, rather vitriolically, against banned in new york’s comment.

as to whether someone like beirut or not, i can understand where someone who hates them is coming from, but i can’t say it’s a terribly noble or intellectually sound position. typically, it’s someone who’s responding to the tidal wave of hype, listening to one or two songs, never seeing them live, and deciding that they should be piled with all the other over-hyped, under-talented music that gets pushed by blogs these days.

so, the first thing a lot of listeners say is, i can’t get past the voice. fair enough. there are plenty of people who choose the voice as the element that gives them an opt-out on any given band – c.f., tindersticks, vic chestnutt, serge gainsborough, nick cave, tom waits, leonard cohen.

second thing is the same-y thing. right. these people generally don’t realize that about 1/5 of beirut’s tracks use drum machines, 1/3 are in french chanson style, 1/4 in balkan style, 1/5 in mexican funeral style and the rest in an undefinable style all their own. i’m going to go out on a limb and say that that fact alone sort of obviates the “same-y” criticism. again, if you’ve only heard two or three songs from one of their releases, this criticism makes sense. it’s unfair, but makes sense.

third is that they’re pretentious. that’s laugable, and not worthy of critiqueing here. i could argue that the desire to get up in front of people and play any music is in some way presumptuous and assumes a degree of talent or skill, warranted or not, that could be defined as pretentious.

if they don’t thrill you, they don’t. no big deal. but try not to crib the criticisms you read off the internet (ironic, considering you’re lambasting them for being popular on said internets).

the first thing i heard by him (them) was a drum machine piece called “interior of a dutch house”, which i loved. i got the debut album and the lon gisland ep and really loved the drum machine version of “scenic world”, but really it was “postcards from italy” that made me sit up and take notice (literally, on a beach, on a trip, and feel immediately and overwhelmingly homesick in ways i can’t begin to describe).

the most important part of me liking them, though, was seeing them live. once i connected the live performance with the album, the songs suddenly became incredibly more moving, beautiful and important, and his voice, which sort of bugged me at first, became a big part of my life.

not to say that one *should* or *should not* like them. just that using internet hype as an excuse to hate a band, or your perception of how the majority of their fans think, or facile, flaccid arguments borne only by willfull ignorance hardly makes you a worthy critic.

ps if newyorker is indeed peter, then shame on you. use your name, especially if commenting on your own pieces. if not, nevermind.

April 15, 2009 at 1:25 pm

victoryrose Says:

cale – ass.

bp – but, that’s the thing. i think they have gotten it right. period. and for me this isn’t about hype. i couldn’t give a shit less about hype – for any band.

i love beirut. they make me happy. i can listen to them over and over and over and over again.

April 15, 2009 at 1:32 pm

Michael Says:

If music were a penis Wm would have slobber and spit-up down the front of his shirt and a hole rubbed in his esophagus.

April 15, 2009 at 1:43 pm

pedro Says:

lol, uh guys anyone posting in this thread you dont know personally is the same troll with a single IP address, stop arguing with them.

April 15, 2009 at 1:44 pm

Amanda Says:

does anyone know the name of the opener? i’m kind of surprised no one has brought her up. she was great, sad (depressing), but wonderful.

April 15, 2009 at 1:50 pm

pedro Says:

wtf. i give up
youve won this round internet!
*drinks poison*

April 15, 2009 at 2:10 pm

Cale Says:

OMG

seriously, we need to have some sort of terms of agreement button you need to click on that states that you’ve read the post before commenting.

April 15, 2009 at 2:13 pm

Svetlana Says:

“Every now and then the phrase Post-rock reemerges from the asshole of some grad student like a tapeworm smelling food to gross everyone out and confuse small children. Besides jazzy limp noodlerock like Tortoise the term often gets applied to quiet folkies like the opener Sharon Van Etten.“

April 15, 2009 at 2:20 pm

Banned Person Says:

Now let me get this straight – and I think I have – william aka victoryrose aka VictoriaSecret aka Albergue is attempting to climb on the high horse. Goes like this: “blah blah blah, hate, blah blah blah.. haters, blah blah blah, hate, blah blah blah, haters, etc – all in the same style.

“willful ignorance..”? Of what? Look, I don’t need to read anything to form a judgement, you pompous jerk. and I forgot more music than you’ll ever hear during your entire existence, you tedious long-winded fool.

Cale, looking rather fetching today. Is it a new hairstyle?

April 15, 2009 at 2:23 pm

Banned Person Says:

If you ever to meet me in person, Pedro, you’ll poop in your pants. Sure you need this?

VR: There’s nothing wrong with loving Beirut’s music. Nothing right with it either. Personally, I’m indifferent to it.

Pedro, on the other hand, is an ass-eater. This is wrong, very.

April 15, 2009 at 3:15 pm

over it Says:

WA-
Your statement seems to represent a passive-aggressive arrogance. To call someone who disagrees with your opinion on a band intellectually inferior reeks of a totalitarian stance on music- which, I agree with VR, is completely subjective.
Just because one chooses not to put forth an overly verbose diatribe on a band does not make the person foolish, or “willfully ignorant.” Personally, I never really cared for Beirut, and I am sure I am one of the first 50 people to know who the band was years ago in New Mexico, pre-hype. I may have stated my opinion earlier without an explanation, but music, for me, isn’t an intellectual or written exercise (most of the time) – and I don’t believe it should be. Beirut just doesn’t appeal to me- on many levels.

April 15, 2009 at 7:31 pm

Amanda Says:

DOH!

i swear i read it. it must have been the paragraphs…

April 15, 2009 at 7:48 pm

Cale Says:

a guide to understanding these comments:

Guided by Voices/Banned Person = Ernest
pedro = Peter = but it’s ok cause he’s consistent
new yorker = new yorker = actually is a new yorker
victoryrose = victoryrose
william alberque = william alberque
Amanda = Amanda

Ernest = serial killer
pedro = fantastic writer = good at making out
new yorker = not very bright = WTF
victoryrose = means well
william alberque = knows what he’s talking about
Amanda ≠ read good

Beirut = wonderful
Postcards From Italy = one of the best songs of the decade
music ≠ subjective
Standing @ 6th & I = Sux
Planet of the Apes = Earth
Soylent Green = people

April 15, 2009 at 11:57 pm

Aaron Says:

I just spent 10 minutes reading this whole thing and trying to figure out what was going on. And I’m on vacation. In California.

What a loser the internet makes you.

April 16, 2009 at 12:14 am

chad Says:

i hope to one day be part of a long and convoluted comment thread that cale will have to make a legend for.

i cant wait to see what i am equal to (or not equal to)

April 16, 2009 at 4:03 am

Amanda Says:

i can’t read WELL, jesus!

has everyone heard florence and the machine’s cover of postcards from italy? i reallyreallyreally hope she and beirut work together at some point.

April 16, 2009 at 10:40 am

Banned Person/Ernest Says:

an IMPROVED guide to understanding these comments:

Guided by Voices = cool dude = rock band
Banned Person = me, oh me
pedro = minority ass-eater
Peter = stuffy bore
my Peter = colossal, stupendous
new yorker = new jerker
victoryrose = Michael’s friend.
william alberque = conceited windbag
Amanda = DOH!
Ernest = unjustly banned poster
pedro = clique prick = you can do much better, Cale
new yorker = not very bright = WTF
victoryrose = means well
william alberque = verbose moron
Amanda = DOH!
Beirut = wasn’t worth the article
Postcards From Italy = ah, que bueno
music ≠ subjective
Standing @ 6th & I = Sux
Planet of the Apes = crappy French sci-fi novelette
Soylent Green = wtf, Cale
Michael = see: victoryrose, effete, homoerotic, VR, VS, etc.
Over it = smart, very smart
Cale = uber-nerdisimus h-sexualisimus
aaron = someone with aappaarent ties to the Israael lobby
Chad = some dude = landlocked African country in the deser

April 16, 2009 at 11:08 am

Cale Says:

Addendumb:

chad = America = Fuck Yeah!
Amanda ≠ understand jokes

April 16, 2009 at 11:43 am

Michael Says:

Up yours Cale.

April 16, 2009 at 11:45 am

Amanda Says:

no, i was going along with it.

sarcasm does not translate on the interwebs.

anyway really, beirut + florence and the machine = incredible.

April 16, 2009 at 11:50 am

Cale Says:

Appendicks:

Michael = I think is angry cause he feels left out = only likes music from when he was young and happy = is very smart and usually right about stuff but not always = shiny
Amanda = lies about getting jokes

April 16, 2009 at 12:04 pm

Michael Says:

Thanks Cale! Oh, I like some of the Shins now. Not all of them. Still hate Kings of Leon and Jessica Simpson.

April 16, 2009 at 12:14 pm

Amanda Says:

amanda = gives up

cale = too witty for amanda to keep up with

April 16, 2009 at 12:20 pm

Gabriel Fry Says:

That was a really well-written review. Officially. In case anyone was still in doubt. It was nicely constructed and captured not only the mood of the performance, but certain pertinent details, like the quality of the trumpet harmonies in the space and the snare work. It was a pleasure to read, even in in the absence of paragraphs.

April 17, 2009 at 3:01 pm

constructive critic/Ernest Says:

No, no. What’s really pertinent here is that both the band and the review are utter rubbish. The band’s music is pure masturbation while the fittingly masturbatory review is poorly constructed and has no pertinent details whatsoever, with or without the paragraphs. I haven’t derived any pleasure from either. Those who have should grow up. Yes, yes, Mr. Fry.

April 17, 2009 at 6:24 pm