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Squarepusher/sinfonietta gig review
 

offline zazen on 2004-03-14 05:01 [#01107247]
Points: 184 Status: Regular



Went to see Squarepusher and the Sinfonietta orchestra at
the Royal Festival Hall in London last night. Wow. See
http://www.dotcog.com/cmn/sinfonietta/index.htm for more
background on the gig.

They kicked off with the Sinfonietta playing "Jynweythek"
and "hy a Scullyas lyf adhagrow" (Tracks 1 and 14 from
Drukqs). They had a 'prepared' piano and their version
sounded very close to Aphex's. It was cool, and kindof
amusing to see a very serious pianist wearing tails and
playing Aphex.

Then they played some avant-garde classical stuff (Varese -
Ionisation). OK. Mostly persussion.

Next up, the Sinfonietta performed "Conc 2 Symmetriac" by
Squarepusher (from the Do You Know Squarepusher album). This
track is basically just some strange noises. They
re-produced it very faithfully, but its not exactly one of
his best. I had heard rumours that they were also going to
perform "I Wish You Could Talk" from Go Plastic, which would
have been much more interesting. But they didn't.

Then the man himself appeared, entering stage right, with a
top hat and tails over his own inconspicuous clothing.
Suddenly a spotlight was on a small wooden desk at the front
of the stage, which had a flat screen, keyboard and mouse,
and a nice bedside lamp with a frilly shade on it.

Squarepusher bowed, placed his top hat on the rack of
equipment next to the desk, sat at the desk, and off we
went. I didn't catch the track names that they flashed onto
the screen, but whatever it was he played they were modified
versions anyway. At one point I recognised some of the
chords from Tundra, but the arrangement was very different.

Basically, we had towering synths, rumbling bass, rapid acid
noodling and totally insane breakbeat slicing. This was
Squarepusher in his more Aphex-like mode. Not a bass guitar
in sight. He sat at the desk, taking the odd sip of wine,
and orchestrated the madness. I would have liked to know
which bits he was doing live and which were pre-sequenced.
(Continued....)


 

offline ecnadniarb on 2004-03-14 05:02 [#01107249]
Points: 24805 Status: Lurker | Show recordbag



I am gutted I can't go to the Liverpool one.


 

offline zazen on 2004-03-14 05:02 [#01107250]
Points: 184 Status: Regular



(continued from previous...)
But whatever, it was amazing. He played for about 15mins,
and it was a perfect balance between dramatic chords and
unstoppable beats.

I was kindof disappointed that he didn't show off his bass
playing skills - all we saw him do was sit at a computer -
but it was still brilliant. At the end, he stood, put the
hat back on, bowed, and wandered off the stage again.

Then we had more classical stuff (Georges Antheil, Steve
Reich), and an interval in which they played Flex and other
warp-related films. But I'll stick to talking about the Warp
stuff.

After a Steve Reich violin piece, Jamie Lidell bounded onto
the stage in a sequined jacket. I hadn't heard any of his
stuff before, but he totally blew everyone away.

He had three tables of equipment infront of him, and a
microphone. From the second he walked onto the stage, he was
singing and beat-boxing into the mic, and then recording and
looping it as he went along. Hence he would build up a beat
and backing by looping his own voice, and then sing over the
top and occasionally add a stab of keyboards. He was
frantically moving around the whole time, tweaking settings,
recording, playing, dancing frenetically. I really have
never seen anything like it.

Essentially, we were watching someone play a whole studio as
if it was a musical instrument.

It was very soulful too, the style varied from house to hip
hop to drum and bass, but his vocals always added a soulful
tinge. He ended with a straight-up soul number. This was a
live electonic performance right on the cutting edge.

I don't know what his recorded releases are like, maybe it
would be hard to capture the same vibe on a recording. But
if you get the chance, see him live.

(Continued ...)


 

offline zazen on 2004-03-14 05:03 [#01107251]
Points: 184 Status: Regular



(Contined from above...)
After Jamie, we had some more modern-classical stuff (Steve
Reich, John Cage), then finally, the Sinfonietta performed
"Polygon Window", by the Aphex Twin (of course).

This was interesting to watch. They had several drummers at
the back, four marimbas (xylophone type things) which played
the main melodies, a violinist for the chords, and a
pianist. All being held together by a conductor.

It was faithful to the original, but different sounding
nonetheless, mostly because the marimbas and violin did not
have the same presence that the synths have on the real
track. The drumming was very accurate, but tended to
dominate everything else a bit too much. When you could hear
the marimbas though, it was excellent, it sortof brought
lots of aspects of the original track to your attention that
you hadn't noticed before.

And then that was the end. It was a very eclectic gig, but
everything was very interesting (including all the classical
stuff that I havent described here). The orchestral
performances of Aphex and Squarepusher tracks were worth
experiencing, but weren't outstanding. But Squarepusher,
Lidell, and all the modern-classical stuff was fantastic.

All the performers and technicians were on stage at the end,
getting a standing ovation from the crowd of over 2500
people. Squarepusher shuffled on from one side of the stage,
and looked disarmingly uncomfortable to be the focus of so
much applause. He didn't have the top hat and tails anymore,
at which point one of the friends I was with recognised him.
Turns out he had shared a spliff with him out on the balcony
during the interval, without even realising ...



 

offline deepspace9mm from filth on 2004-03-14 05:58 [#01107272]
Points: 6846 Status: Addict



Schweet. I'm going to the liverpool one on the 27th with
some friends... it's gonna be my girlfriend's first concert
too :D


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-14 06:19 [#01107281]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



I cannot reccomend this gig enough. I went to see the same
show. It is a shame that Zazen missed out the Steve Reich
and John Cage performances because they were absolutely
amazing. All in all it was an amazing gig. Both Squarepusher
and Lidell performed amazingly, and i am starting to love
Lidell more and more each time i see him. Such a mixture of
soul and funk, and excellent visuals. Met Richard and Tom
again and had a nice chat with them.

Deepspace9mm: Watch out for the Violin Phase by Steve Reich,
that is incredible, so beautiful. It is amazing.

Zazen: It was a varation on Tundra called 'Tundra 4'.

ecnadniarb: Shame mate :( because you are really missing out


 

offline pf from Finland on 2004-03-14 06:23 [#01107285]
Points: 3316 Status: Lurker



Is this available in mp3 format somewhere?


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-14 06:28 [#01107287]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



I really hope so


 

offline pantalaimon from Winterfell (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-14 06:58 [#01107299]
Points: 7090 Status: Lurker | Show recordbag



I was at the Warwick one last night, it was amazing, loved
the version of polygon window. I really liked the John Cage
pieces too and Liddel was hilarious! That was the first time
i've seen the Chris Cunningham video Flex, I thought it was
one of the best i've seen from him, I would have loved it to
have gone on for longer especially with SAWII at the end.


 

offline ThisIsntMusic from Long Island, NY (United States) on 2004-03-14 07:11 [#01107313]
Points: 191 Status: Regular



Thanks for the awesome review, I can't wait to see him in
April.


 

offline -crazone from smashing acid over and over on 2004-03-14 07:36 [#01107316]
Points: 11234 Status: Lurker | Show recordbag



Tnx for the review, wish i had been there, but i kindda get
the feeling i've missed out on. Jamie lidell; i've seen him
twice, both different shows, once he had this strange orange
suit and he popped out some big balloons on his shoulders,
one off the greatets shows i've ever seen, his release
"muddlin gear" is great, he also releases under super
collider with an other artist don't know his name right now,
I prefer jamie lidell alone


 

offline Chris Ochre on 2004-03-14 07:44 [#01107323]
Points: 570 Status: Lurker



Wow, that sounds ace! I wish they did a few more dates up
North though.


 

offline deepspace9mm from filth on 2004-03-14 07:48 [#01107324]
Points: 6846 Status: Addict | Followup to -crazone: #01107316



The other bloke from super_collider is christian vogel. He
works solo too, pretty cool but a lot less experimental.


 

offline AMinal from Toronto (Canada) on 2004-03-14 11:38 [#01107519]
Points: 3476 Status: Regular



thanks
sounds cool... i'd love to see squarepusher in a top hat and
tails! and course, hear hte music.....

does anyone know if there are bootlegs of this on soulseek?


 

offline KEYFUMBLER from DUBLIN (Ireland) on 2004-03-15 04:07 [#01108309]
Points: 5696 Status: Lurker



excelent review - SP only played for 15 mins?

Liddels great - i saw his beatbox act twice and he was
totally different each time and absolutely amazing really



 

offline zazen on 2004-03-15 05:01 [#01108366]
Points: 184 Status: Regular





> does anyone know if there are bootlegs of this on
soulseek?

someone called MaoaM over on http://forum.watmm.com has some
recordings but is looking for somewhere to post them ...


 

offline berk on 2004-03-15 06:00 [#01108399]
Points: 213 Status: Lurker



Fuckin brilliant. I'm off to the one in basingstoke the
morn's night... You've given me something to look forward
to//


 

offline bogala from NYC (United States) on 2004-03-15 06:07 [#01108404]
Points: 5125 Status: Regular



the beatbox act sounds like it was a feedback loop
performance,.


 

offline THAXFA from Hähnlein (Germany) on 2004-03-15 06:17 [#01108409]
Points: 1163 Status: Lurker



where can i listen to it ??

THey said it will be on bbc3 radio...anybody knows where to
listen ???


 

offline Atli from Reykjavík (Iceland) on 2004-03-15 14:05 [#01109244]
Points: 1309 Status: Lurker



I remember when, probably the same sinfonietta orchestra,
did Port Rhombus. Has anyone got the mp3?


 

offline elusive from detroit (United States) on 2004-03-15 20:45 [#01109791]
Points: 18368 Status: Lurker | Show recordbag



BUMP!


 

offline maoam from Galway (Ireland) on 2004-03-16 04:20 [#01109944]
Points: 20 Status: Regular



I have this gig (Mar12th) recorded. I remember someone
saying they would host it but i forget who.
So, whoever wants to host it can have it. Can't connect to
soulseek/bittorrent but i'm sure we can work something out.

1. aphex - drukqs piano (4:10) 3.82mb
2. edgard varese - ionisation (6:17) 5.75mb
3. sinfonietta - conc 2 symmetriac (1:55) 1.76mb
4. sinfonietta - spushersolo (12:49) 17.6mb
5. antheil - ballet mechanique (16:17) 14.9mb
6. reich - violin phase - sinfonietta (5:35) 5.11mb
7. jamie lidell (27:23) 25.0mb
8. john cage - first construction in metal (8:36) 7.87mb
9. steve reich - six marimbas (15:40) 14.3mb
10. aphex - polygon window (4:14) 3.88mb
11. sinfonietta - aphex polygon window (8:53) 8.14mb

11 files 108mb total



 

offline KEYFUMBLER from DUBLIN (Ireland) on 2004-03-16 04:30 [#01109947]
Points: 5696 Status: Lurker



ja have the squarepusher live stuff too?



 

offline maoam from Galway (Ireland) on 2004-03-16 04:36 [#01109948]
Points: 20 Status: Regular



4. sinfonietta - spushersolo (12:49) 17.6mb

sorry for the the messy tracknames

thats pretty much the whole gig


 

offline Aphexisatwin from your mom's room (United States) on 2004-03-16 06:33 [#01110019]
Points: 2777 Status: Regular



would love someone to host this


 

offline THAXFA from Hähnlein (Germany) on 2004-03-16 06:48 [#01110046]
Points: 1163 Status: Lurker



@ maoam
could you pop up a record per post ??
Will pay S&H for shure + exchange with other stuff ??


 

offline maoam from Galway (Ireland) on 2004-03-16 07:14 [#01110062]
Points: 20 Status: Regular



what?


 

offline Raz0rBlade_uk on 2004-03-16 07:24 [#01110078]
Points: 12540 Status: Addict | Show recordbag



Hey, I'll be going to the sinfonietta gig at the Brighton
Dome on 26th March. When a read about it on Warp the other
day I got extremely excited. I shall be booking tonight if
it's not too late. Thanks for your review of the show, now I
really wanna go!!!


 

offline pf from Finland on 2004-03-16 07:43 [#01110097]
Points: 3316 Status: Lurker | Followup to maoam: #01109944



So can we get this from you somehow?


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-16 07:51 [#01110108]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



Could someone PLEASE host this, i went to the gig on
Saturday and i am dying to get this. Perhpas Rudster could
host it, puhlease!!??!?!?!?!?!11//!!??1??!!?


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-16 09:54 [#01110168]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



*bump*


 

offline jand from Braintree (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-19 11:23 [#01110497]
Points: 5975 Status: Moderator | Show recordbag



I've got a copy if you've not found one yet, M...

on SS ( jandjandjandjand ) in the \My Music\sinfonietta2004
dir...



 

offline acrid milk hall from United Kingdom on 2004-03-19 11:29 [#01110505]
Points: 2916 Status: Lurker



i went to the coventry show last weekend.
it was truly excellent.
will write more about it some other time when i get a
chance.
been too busy for xlt lately..


 

offline berk on 2004-03-19 11:41 [#01110512]
Points: 213 Status: Lurker



Jamie Lidell was cool. I've never seen anything like that
before. The Steve Reich stuff seemed to go on forever
though...


 

offline Dannn_ from United Kingdom on 2004-03-19 11:49 [#01110520]
Points: 7877 Status: Lurker



I was at the Festival Hall show too. Loved the whole I
thing, especially the Steve Reich pieces, the marimba one
was mental. I saw squarepusher standing in the audience at
the interval but I didn't get over there in time to talk to
him. Liddell was nothing like I expected but it was cool.
Squarepusher's track was Tundra 4, I believe that's what it
said on the screen. The video during Ballet Mechanique was
excellent too. Shame I had to be in a car crash later that
night. Well actually the crash was quite fun, I'd do it
again.


 

offline blrr from the block on 2004-03-22 11:43 [#01113632]
Points: 585 Status: Lurker



so has this appeared for download or on soulseek yet?


 

offline deepspace9mm from filth on 2004-03-27 09:07 [#01121508]
Points: 6846 Status: Addict



I'm setting off in a couple of hours for the liverpool gig.
Hyped is not the word.


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-27 09:24 [#01121519]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



Have fun mate, it is spectacular


 

offline Raz0rBlade_uk on 2004-03-27 09:38 [#01121528]
Points: 12540 Status: Addict | Show recordbag



I went to the Brighton one last night. It was fucking
amazing. At the end of the show I got to shake hands with
the man, squarepusher. He was very shy and I felt humbled in
his presence. Told him it was a great show and told him I
was his biggest fan, to which he smiled at. Tried to not
wash my hand but accidentaly washed it this morning. Bought
his new album at a Warp stall, which is brilliant, I'm
loving it. I also got this little promo 5 track disc, which
is just as good. If anyone is going to the Liverpool one,
it's going to be awsome, Pusher played Tundra 4 at Brighton
and it was best thing I've heard for a long time. He also
turned the volume up so high that my body was vibrating and
people were covering their ears, brilliant. have fun and try
and speak to Tom at the end, he was on his own when I spoke
to him, lucky me!!!!!


 

offline AMinal from Toronto (Canada) on 2004-03-27 10:46 [#01121572]
Points: 3476 Status: Regular



i wish i could go to one of these

what was teh audience like? i mean what was teh mix of
electronic music fans vs/ regular symphony-goers?


 

offline Murray from Southend, Essex (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-27 10:57 [#01121580]
Points: 4891 Status: Lurker



It was a very ecclectic crwod but the majority of people
there were blatant electronic music fans and a few symphony
goers. I was sitting in a row with two girls dressed up in
eccentric outfits and had UV makeup on. They were excellent.


 

offline Jaser from Castle Greyskull (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-27 14:52 [#01121764]
Points: 2101 Status: Regular



http://www.polishedpoverty.com/audio/Squarepusher/sinfoniet
ta%20%202004/

check it


 

offline nobsmuggler from silly mid-off on 2004-03-27 14:59 [#01121767]
Points: 6265 Status: Addict | Followup to Raz0rBlade_uk: #01121528



last night was lush

i never seen anybodys hand move that fast across a bass


 

offline niai on 2004-03-28 04:49 [#01122397]
Points: 5 Status: Lurker



PAN 1

PAN 2



 

offline niai on 2004-03-28 04:52 [#01122399]
Points: 5 Status: Lurker



Damn, hit reply instead of preview. Anyway, Pan 2 didn't
turn out very well. I took them both last night at the
Liverpool gig. A guy in the row in front of me was recording
the entire thing so no doubt it will appear online shortly.

As for the gig itself, very cool. Lowlight was Squarepushers
second half. Highlight was the Bluespoon visuals, the
Polygon Window track and definately Jamie Lidell.


 

offline deepspace9mm from filth on 2004-03-28 05:04 [#01122405]
Points: 6846 Status: Addict



Excellent gig last night... highlight for me was reich's six
marimbas. Full version of flex was sweet, Antheil's thing
with those leger visuals, too. I guess it was slightly
disappointing not to hear any squarepusher apart from his
"breezeblock" material, but still nice. P.S. Jamie Lidell is
entirely bonkers.


 

offline hedphukkerr from mathbotton (United States) on 2004-03-28 09:46 [#01122596]
Points: 8833 Status: Regular



im assuming this isnt the same type of show that sp is gonna
be putting on in 6 days in boston. anybody know for sure?


 

offline AMinal from Toronto (Canada) on 2004-03-28 13:23 [#01122835]
Points: 3476 Status: Regular | Followup to Jaser: #01121764



THANK YOU!

squarepusher's solo is fucking amazing!!!!

and hedphukkerr, no i this isn't what youll see in boston

though squarepusher's solo track sounds like something hed
play live


 

offline THAXFA from Hähnlein (Germany) on 2004-03-28 23:49 [#01123207]
Points: 1163 Status: Lurker



thanks alot man for hosting thiz !!!


 

offline teonanactl from Liverpool (United Kingdom) on 2004-03-29 02:45 [#01123430]
Points: 182 Status: Lurker



email mike@splask.co.uk and i'll host it


 


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