Friday, 03 February 2006
East Village Opera Company
While we're in San Francisco we're staying with our good friends Catie and Greg, and somehow Catie managed to score free tickets to see the East Village Opera Company:
The East Village Opera Company was co-founded by lead singer Tyley Ross and arranger/multi-instrumentalist Peter Kiesewalter. They assembled a full-on rock band, adding two guitars, bass, and drums to Peter’s keyboards, then synched it to a string quartet.By embracing what Peter Kiesewalter calls “the pomposity of rock and the pomposity of opera” without demeaning or satirizing either form, the East Village Opera Company flies where countless other “classical-crossover” efforts have failed.
“We have a profound love and respect for the opera,” Peter insists. “But it’s so dramatic, so over the top by today’s standards, that it cannot be delivered with a straight face. You need a little bit of irreverence in it.”
“With modern recording technology and a wide variety of musical styles at our disposal, our goal has been to approach these songs the way we feel the composers would were they alive today,” says Tyley Ross.
I wasn't sure how I'd like it, but they were awesome. Besides, you have to give credit to anyone who can go from The Who to Carmen to Eminem all in the space of one three minute song.
Check out some samples here.
Posted by flow Frazao on February 3, 2006 at 03:17 PM in Music | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday, 12 January 2006
Food for the Ears
Some stuff I've been listening to that's worth mentioning:
- The Beastles - dj BC presents The Beatles vs. The Beastie Boys (follow link for mp3s)
- Live From Iraq - 4th25
It took only a few ambushes, roadside bombs and corpses for Neal Saunders to know what he had to do: turn the streets of Baghdad into rap music. So the First Cavalry sergeant, then newly arrived for a year of duty in Sadr City, began hoarding his monthly paychecks and seeking out a U.S. supplier willing to ship a keyboard, digital mixer, cable, microphones and headphones to an overseas military address. He hammered together a plywood shack, tacked up some cheap mattress pads for soundproofing and invited other Task Force 112 members to join him in his jerry-built studio. They call themselves "4th25"—pronounced fourth quarter, like the final do-or-die minutes of a game—and their album is "Live From Iraq." The sound may be raw, even by rap standards, but it expresses things that soldiers usually keep bottled up. "You can't call home and tell your mom your door got blown off by an IED," says Saunders. "No one talks about what we're going through. Sure, there are generals on the TV, but they're not speaking for us. We're venting for everybody."
Watch their video here, if you can stand it. Not a film clip for the meek, which is why it probably won't get much play on MTV. And that's a shame, because these guys are to Iraq what Jimi Hendrix was to Vietnam.
Posted by flow Frazao on January 12, 2006 at 10:19 PM in Culture, Iraq, Music, War on Terra | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Monday, 02 January 2006
Yet Another Reason Not to Buy A Coldplay CD
Check out the insert from their latest CD:
It's almost as though they don't want you to listen to their album. Fine with me, but my fear is that this type of nonsense may spread to artists that don't suck.
The more I think about it though, the more it seems like the last desperate gasps of a dying music industry. Not a moment too soon, as far as I'm concerned.
Posted by flow Frazao on January 2, 2006 at 04:12 PM in Music, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Saturday, 25 September 2004
Is Your Name Michael Diamond?
The Beastie Boys are back, and they're coming to a town near you:
[...]
"We should make it clear that this is not a concert tour, so much as a traveling pageant," says MCA, a.k.a. Adam Yauch. "We tried to gather feedback about the kinds of things that children are into and what came back to us was a pageant, repeatedly."
For the uninitiated, a pageant is a spectacular, colorful display or celebration.
"It involves certain kinds of dress, certain kinds of festivities, celebrations, feasts or food. I'd like to emphasize the feasts, if I might," Yauch says. "You don't just nosh, you feast, you don't just throw on some clothes, you get dressed, and these are the differentiations."
Posted by flow Frazao on September 25, 2004 at 09:31 PM in Music | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Wednesday, 14 July 2004
Powerlunch
My brother Matt's band just wrapped up an east coast tour. A sample of their music is available online here, but if you really want to get the full flavor of Powerlunch you should buy a CD:
908 S. 6th St.
Philadelphia, PA
19147
For what it's worth, I've been listening to it for the past few days and it's awesome. The mp3's that are linked to above really don't do it justice.
Also, if there's enough interest I'd be more than happy to set up online payment through this site. If you'd like to get a copy and don't want to bother with mailing checks, leave a comment on this thread and I'll see what I can do.
Posted by flow Frazao on July 14, 2004 at 11:43 AM in Music | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Monday, 21 June 2004
Bonnaroo
Finally posted some pictures from Bonnaroo. Check them out if you think you're qualified.
Posted by flow Frazao on June 21, 2004 at 12:57 PM in Music | Permalink | Comments (0)