Wow, I couldn't imagine Goldfrapp putting on anything but a spectacular performance. Maybe it was due to the fact that you saw them at the beginning of their tour and they hadn't had a chance to gel yet, but yesterday's show in Montreal was exceptional. The one complaint that my buddy had about the show is that he would've liked to see Allison address the crowd a little more, say a few words. Personally, that didn't bother me at all; I actually prefer when artists keep the inane, prefab chatter to a minimum and let the music do the talking. So yeah, I see what you mean when you allude to Allison not addressing the audience verbally, but the bond between her and us was definitely there, and it was strictly expressed thru the music. Hey, Miles used to play with his back turned to the audience for a good while in his career cos' he wanted the music to be his form of expression; not his words in between songs. I guess opinions are gonna be split on this point, but I much prefer no talking in between songs, unless the artist is particularly charming, witty, or engaging. The vast majority of artists I've seen were not, and the shit that came out of their mouth is the same nonsense that they say to every crowd in every city. If what most of them said actually carried some weight, then I'd be forced to believe that the vast majority of artists think that Montreal has the greatest, loudest audience, and that we rock the hardest. Yeah, right. If that's what between song chatter is gonna be, or some other variation of insincere verbal diahrrea, I'll pass.
Stimp
----- Original Message -----
From: Jürgen Albertsen
To: Stimp ; Acid-Jazz List
Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2001 3:55 PM
Subject: AW: Review: Goldfrapp in Montreal
Hm, for me it was the other way round. I love the album and the mood it puts me in. So, I went to their gig in Munich some time ago. Maybe it's because it was at the biginning of their tour, but the show was perfect - but only in terms of sound and in terms of the "vibe". For me they couldn't transport the emotions they managed to express on the album. There was no special bond between Alison and the audience. And there were no surprises: they played the songs exactly the same way as on the album. Only at the end they made a presence in form of a cover verion of Olivia Newton John's "Physical". I think I wasn't alone in my opion. The audience's reaction wasn't overwhelming. But unterestingly enough, a friend of mine who didn't own the album was quite pleased. Perhaps I expected too much?
-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: Stimp [mailto:stimp@sympatico.ca]
Gesendet: Samstag, 5. Mai 2001 21:23
An: Acid-Jazz List
Betreff: Review: Goldfrapp in Montreal
So I went to see Goldfrapp perform last night, not expecting all that much. The album is flawless, but I questioned whether it could be pulled off live. Besides, how could a band with only 40 minutes of music in their repertoire play an entire show? My questions were answered in the grandest form possible, and I witnessed one of the most powerful, intense shows I've ever seen in 16 years of concert-going.
First off, Allison Goldfrapp had the entire crowd eating out of her hand from the first note, and she knew it. If you can imagine this, she was wearing an army fatigue top buttoned in such a way to reveal her bustline, coupled with a classy slit skirt and a beige beret. She looked like Debbie-Harry-meets-Joe-Strummer, singing torch songs!! She commanded such a huge stage presence that I don't think anyone there was prepared for, and the LOUD, boisterous response she received after every song was all the proof she needed that we loved what she was doing.
If you could believe it, "Felt Mountain" sounded better live than it did on cd; I literally had shivers running up and down my spine several times during the performance and left with goosebumps; I was literally left speechless. Seeing what goes into making such a great record being performed live, and watching the flawless interplay between musicians went far beyond my expectations for this show. Having seen 200 plus concerts in my life, I'd have categorize this one as being in the top ten. Yeah, that good. Judging from the crowd response, I wasn't the only person who felt that they were witnessing something special. The crowd of about 700-800 people were as loud as any crowd I've ever heard, and the applause and cheering was continuous; it wasn't the typical "the song's over so we gotta clap" kinda thang. Allison Goldfrapp had each of us hanging onto her every note and movement, and she completely blew us away with her wicked voice, flawless delivery, and picture perfect performance; these were pros who put alot of practice and effort into making sure that the music came out sounding perfect, and it did.
As they got off the stage, I think even they (the bandmembers) were taken aback by the boisterous response that they were receiving; it's as if they'd never seen any crowd react as positively to their performance. Judging from the crowd's (and my) reaction, that might have actually been the case. I have a feeling that yesterday was the start of a long love affair between Goldfrapp and Montreal, and I was glad to be there to witness their first performance.
If Goldfrapp come to play in your city, do yourself a favor and make sure that you go. If the level of performance is consistently as high as it was last night, I could almost guarantee that all of you will find it to be one of the best concerts that you'll ever witness. There's already talk here of having them come back during our Jazz Festival; I know I'll be there when they come back.
Stimp
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat May 05 2001 - 22:31:48 CEST