Kabile

On Wednesday and Thursday nights I had the pleasure of hearing and dancing to the group Kabile (from the village of Kabile in Thrace, Bulgaria) who are in town as part of Madison's World Music Festival. There is nothing quite like the experience of having musicians of this caliber playing for a large audience of dancers. The fine people who put on the festival do a fantastic job and bring some incredible groups to town every year. I know, we're talking (shudder) both folk music and folk dance, but don't knock it until you've tried it, I say. It was a transcendent experience. Kabile's tour schedule can be found here. I highly recommend going to hear them if they come anywhere near you. Tell them Ed, the lame tambura (pronounced "tom boo RAH", and roll that "R" sort of like you would en español) player in Madison, WI, sent you. If you're lucky, there will be some people knowledgeable in Bulgarian dance to lead you through the basics. Dance if you are able, but don't forget to listen. You will have fun whether you dance or not, I guarantee it. Here's the best thing I was able to find on the YouTubes. No video, just music.

Time for some music

I just discovered Singing Bear's blog, Action-Time-Vision, and all you music lovers out there might want to take a peek. While perusing the aforementioned blog, I was reminded of old Genesis (you know, back when Peter Gabriel was still in the group) for about the third time in the last month (one time at The Pagan Sphinx, once at Action-Time-Vision, and ... I can't remember where else). In my teens and early twenties they were one of my favorites. Here's the first song I ever heard by them, The Musical Box from the album Nursery Cryme. I remember first hearing it and being blown away. Superb musicianship along with a large helping of creativity and sonic coolness, plus bizarre and sometimes disturbing lyrics. Note that guitarist Steve Hackett occasionally uses both hands to fret the notes (actually, he fretted with the pick in his right hand and the fingers of his left hand). This video was made years before Eddie Van Halen allegedly invented the technique. Enjoy.



Pet Peeve Alert!!! One thing I can't stand about most music videos. Let's say the guitar player is playing something cool. So what does the camera do? Zooms in on the singer banging on a tambourine, of course. Or they show the guitarist's right hand when it's the left hand that's doing the interesting bit. Drives me crazy.

Additional thought added on 9/14/08: Many of the "Prog Rock" groups of that era have been criticized for being overly pretentious, among other things. While I think that is true in varying degrees for different bands, I always thought of Gabriel-era Genesis as being sort of Punk/Prog. There is an edge to much of their material that sets them apart from many of the others. Their playing was also very musical, rather than an attempt to show off how complicated and technically skilled they were. As an example, Steve Hackett's guitar solos were usually actual melodies rather than "diddley diddley diddley WHEEE". Hackett, keyboardist/guitarist Tony Banks and bassist/guitarist Michael Rutherford worked very well together in an orchestral sense. It was sometimes difficult to figure out who was doing what; often, some combination of Hackett, Banks and Rutherford would play in unison or harmony creating a massive sound; sometimes a melodic passage would begin with one person and shift to another in the middle. Banks liked to use guitar effects (distortion, phase shifting, delay, etc.) on his keyboards while playing a part that complimented the guitar, while Hackett would use effects on his guitar (volume pedal with distortion, phasing shifting and delay) that made it sound somewhat keyboard-like. A very unusual way of playing together, particularly for the time.

The Motor Primitives: "Beautiful Mind" Live at The High Noon Saloon, 4/15/08

Lookee what I just discovered on YouTube. The end got cut off. Oh, well. Through my tiny computer speakers there appears to be no bass at all, but play it through normal speakers and Voila! Instant viola ... errr, ummm, bass!

The Reptile Palace Orchestra @ Folk Ball 2008

Folk Ball 2008 has come and gone. Here's a video of The Reptile Palace Orchestra's first two numbers. I'm the guy in the hat on the right. First is "The Enchanted Reptile Palace" by RPO cellist and songwriter extraordinaire Seth Blair. Seth sings along with Anna Purnell. Second is a song the name of which, embarrasingly, I don't know, but folkdancers around the country refer to as "The Turkish Hora." The audio quality isn't great, but it captures the atmosphere pretty well. More about the whole event soon.