In search of true rocking, I may have found a little something. Last night on SNL the band Arcade Fire played two numbers and I was impressed with both. From Quebec, they mix their folksy French Canadian influences in with Bowie/Byrne attitude and truly make an homage or influence seem just that and not a rip-off. They "get" their roots. It's a big band and what I like about them is that they are down to earth without having to resort to the American version of that means, i.e. Rusted Root, some hippie jam band, etc. They are prety damn serious about their instruments. Yes, their INSTRUMENTS matter more than their image, their attitude, their brands. Band members even switch instruments from songs to song, something you see in folk/jazz but rarely in rock/pop. Plus, there's very little distorted guitar and they can still rock (see Ani, Modest Mouse, even Tenacious D). When the lead singer smashed his guitar on stage, he did it not to be like The Who, or to express teen angst (Nirvana), but for a very politically specific reason. The words, "sak vide pa kanpe" were written on the guitar, and Wiki tells us this "is a Creole proverb which means 'an empty sack cannot stand up' and refers to the injustice in the lives of the Haitian working poor and the hope that they maintain despite their struggles. At the conclusion of the song, Butler ripped the strings off his guitar and smashed it on the stage floor." Cool. And it didn't seem cheesy or gimmicky at all, which is refreshing.
Good. Finally a bunch of people that stop posturing and play their frickin' instruments as if music matters more than persona. Not that I don't have my idols that I worship--but that's more of an "I identify with you" response to music, which I don't have for Aracade Fire. I'm merely interested in the unique wall of sound all those instruments can make--instruments I can't even name, instruments that have both strings and some sort of wind-up drone thingy. I know the folks at Vice make fun of French Canadians a lot and often for good reason (juggle sticks are boring, dude), but hipsters can rarely identify an instrument outside the keys/bass/drum/guitar arena, and Arcade Fire is for nerds, not hipsters.
8 comments:
Sorry, but I thought he looked like a spoiled brat smashing a guitar. If you're into politics, make a speech.
As I said, oh profile-less commenter, I really don't care for the "spoiled brat" posturing of many rockers who smash instruments. The bulk of my post was not about the political content of the act--and you seem to divorce music from politics in a manner as babyish as the act you describe--it's the INSTRUMENTS that I was most drawn to. You see folks, how there's hardly ever a discussion about actual music. You know: notes, chords, harmonies, orchestration, harmonies, etc? Case in point.
I was tired and cranky and shouldn't have posted. Human life is obviously more important than a guitar and if his little act draws some attention to some humanitarian cause, good for him. And thinking back on this post, even before I saw your reply, I KNOW what I said ("make a speech") was stupid. Art is and should be about politics from time to time. I really don't know what I was thinking.
I will also admit I posted before I saw/heard the second song. That one, I actually dug quite a bit. The first one, though, was just pretty dead and uninspiring to me which is probably why the finale stuck out like a sore thumb. The song/performance was pretty easy to ignore, until that. So it struck me as a childish gimmick. If anything, that is all I should have said in the first place.
BTW, I don't have a Blogger profile because I've filled out enough profiles in my life and I'm a bit lazy. If you want to know where to find me, feel free to e-mail me (oblivion9999 at ye olde gmail dotcom).
Have a good one.
BTW, it doesn't look like you have much of a profile either, B. *shrug*
I meant a profile that links to a blog that say a bit more about who you are, what you think etc.--it seemed like spam for a second. My profile papge itself is blank, but I've got a fair bit of blogs that say I'm "me."
Just to check: you aren't someone I know, but someone random from the vast seas of the internet, right?
Well, I reiterate: your opinion about the smashing of the guitar bit is fine. I'd just rather talk about musical instruments, notes, etc.
No, I'm sure you don't know me. I found your post by googling the text taped on his guitar. Just a random guy. I don't blog regularly anymore, but if you want to see a little more about me, ratula.net links to quite a bit. I hesitated to post that before because I didn't want it to BE spam where I just stirred up shit then dropped a URL.
As for talking about instruments, them whipping out the hurdy-gurdy for the second tune was a nice touch. It was a pretty solid performance, what I remember of it. As for discussing specific notes, I wish a solid foundation in theory and a good ear were things I was blessed with, but they are not. I can read sheet music, but I can't tell you why a diminished chord would be a better choice than a suspended 2nd in any given situation.
Rock on.
I just caught up with your last 2 posts...Christ! It wasn't you that killed the guy at BK, was it? Did he let his dog hump your leg while his children crowded the sidewalk?
Spring is coming, Man. Hang in there.
GC: That would be a great touch! But, no, we curmudgeons SAY we want to kill everyone, when it's really just love perverted into bitterness!
Oblivion: Now we're talking: hurdy-gurdies are rare and it pleased me to see this one in particular. I don't know music theory either and I don't read music--I just wish pople didn't think they had to be experts in those areas in order to talk about music. I mean, rare is it that people say, "I liked the chorus" or "the bridge was weak." Choruses and bridges were taught to me in, like, 3rd grade. So I tend to lament the passing of music-talk, which has been taken over by music scene talk. (WHich I like, too.)
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