10-07-2008
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While re-reading recently previous posts (I should stop re-reading and just writing, I know), I saw I had mentioned last year having bought gigs tickets and did not even tell you more about is (that was only in my French blog since I am such a sloth and don't translate everything as you may have noticed...).
And since I love telling you stories about my life, I am even gonna add some more :)
First of all, I saw Sébastien Tellier who had the really good idea to do his warm-ups for his tour on The Island (i.e. the UK for those who are not used to read me), a few days before the launching of his last album (last February). And as a warm-up, it was a bit... experimental I have to confess: the beardy man showed us off his fabulous and rather strange dancing skills, giving us probably the hottest performance I have ever seen on a stage. And high in improvisation as well for both parts since no one had a clue about what his new album was going to sound like. The only piece of info we all had was its rather straight-forward title - "Sexuality". If it indeed transformed us all into Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze for a remake of Dirty Dancing in slow motion, it also gave us really naughty thoughts and if the singer clearly revendicated in interviews the fact he wanted people to paw and smooch each others during his gigs, I think we all thought of it at some point. He made me think of Gainsbourg at the time he did Je t'aime so well done Seb!
Then came, between two April showers, a little Nordic phenomenon called Björk. Little totem jumping up and down, the Icelandic singer delivered from her childish voice (you can't believe she is over 40) a breathtaking and colourful performance in tune with her last album. A harpsichord version of the beautiful song Vokuro from the Medulla
album made me burst into tears so I thought I was going to convert the Hammersmith Apollo into a giant swimming-pool... Lights to die for (I wish I would have been taking pictures) and numerous guests to complete the picture. That was big. That was beautiful. That was... Björk (you now understand when I say I am uncapable to copywrite in English).
More recently, the man of my life (see previous post) came with his nice fellows in the beautiful city of Londinium to a rather ecological venue that was Victoria Park. In spite of the fact that I got a bit disappointed to miss Bat For Lashes because of a delayed plane (that sounds sooooo posh... Sorry!) I have to say I can't remember the last time I got so excited about something (maybe the last time I spent Christmas and still believed Santa-Claus existed... I was 5). Lots of songs from the last album with from time to time a good old one and believe me, hearing 20 000
persons (not too sure about the number but who cares really?) singing Karma Police is something to die for. All I Need
got the little tear it deserved (I am going to stop mentioning this otherwise, everyone is gonna think I spend all my gigs crying...) and the lights getting brighter and brighter along with the night falling was just purely magic... As you may have guessed, I could not take my eyes out of Thom while my best friend Steph discovered how devastatingly attractive was Johnny Greenwood... So we were a rather good team. Anyway, to sum this up: Radiohead was as good as I expected it to be. Amen.
At last, but not least and just to show that I got and see less famous bands, I discovered recently a nice, young and refreshing English band. Dressed with funky T-shirt, on which there were funny light bulbs (can't really explain this, just go and see it) their (too) short set at the Barfly in Camden was just as really good remedy against the never-ending bad weather we experiment this summer (once again). A nice trip between pop and electro, from really epic stories to wordless songs, it was the sort of gig that you would like to never end... They are called Metronomy, TheirSpace is here and I think I am gonna start a career in PR :)
"Music is noise that thinks." - Victor Hugo