5 posts tagged “glasgow”
GLASGOW, Scotland — Outside the tiny Soviet-inspired Bar Bloc, it was a typical spring night in Glasgow: A humid chill swaddled the city and rain spat on sideways as the sun receded behind the brown tenements and a kaleidoscope of gray filled the sky. Inside, wooden tables outnumbered warm bodies and framed a path to a small stage where the Austin-based instrumental sextet Balmorhea played, silhouetted by red light and evoking a cinematic soundscape that moved the listener from a cold, nearly empty bar in Scotland to the epic pastorals of West Texas.
The narrative symphonic elements of Balmorhea, paired with the experimental and folk music influences of co-founders Michael Muller and Rob Lowe, have garnered comparisons to Glaswegian post-rock icons Mogwai and celebrated cinematic composers Max Richter ('Waltz With Bashir') and Yann Tiersen ('Amelie').
Although the complex sound of a band like Balmorhea typically avoids genre classification by nature, Lowe says, such comparisons aren't off the mark. The 'cinematic' band recently has been hired by French writer-director Kim Chapiron to score the film 'Dog Pound,' which is set to be released in France next spring.
In light of this professional accomplishment, Muller conceded that the band's fan base in Europe is 'way more than America' and even credited a theater performance in the coastal Italian town of Rimini as having been 'the best concert (the band) ever played.' Lowe added that some fans traveled almost the width of Italy to attend their most obscure shows, while in larger cities such as London and Glasgow, most fans simply failed to show up at all.
'It's hard to gauge why people come to your shows,' Lowe said about sparse attendance at U.K. dates. 'I don't know if it's actually a good barometer to tell how many fans you have in a city.'
The May 6 performance at Bar Bloc marked the two-thirds point of a one-month tour in support of Balmorhea's fourth release, 'All Is Wild, All Is Silent.'
The venue, outfitted in an ironic sickle and hammer aesthetic, modern art and wood-slatted walls, was unequipped to handle the size or sound of the band. Low ceilings and a tiny stage forced the classically trained Lowe to forgo the use of his electric piano, which shot holes in their intended set, Muller said.
Some of the piano-driven highlights from 'All Is Wild,' such as the layered and crescendoed 'Harm and Boon,' as well as the somber dialogue of 'Truth,' were replaced with the string-based tracks from the band's repertoire.
The standout was 'Remembrance,' a nostalgic and despairing tune that opened with the sparse rhythm of Muller's acoustic guitar, layered with the respective picking of Lowe on banjo, Aisha Burns on violin and Travis Chapman on double bass. Slowly, as the song inched forward, the whine of Burns' violin led the listener further inside the musical narrator, marrying the deep mournful hum of Nicole Kern's cello to the rattle and eventual release of Bruce Blay's explosive percussion. At the close, the song doubled back with the return of the banjo and a final, haunting exchange between the violin and a lone melodica.
The diversity of the band is showcased not only within the menagerie of instruments or the raw, creative talent of its members, but also in the emotional and narrative variety of their music. At one moment, the band captures the listener in a bittersweet and tortured requiem, such as 'Remembrance,' and in another, the listener is again captive, a witness to the hope and happiness of wide open spaces and impending change, such as within the Texas-inspired 'Coahuila.'
This diversity and artistry is what propels the popularity of
Balmorhea and ensures the longevity of its members' respective careers
— be it in film score, within a groundbreaking neoclassical rock band,
or straddling the fence between both.
— Originally featured in the Austin American-Statesman and on Austin360.com
GLASGOW, Scotland - There's no right way for a woman to climb into the back of a tour van with the lead singer of a band. Especially when the van is parked in a seedy cobblestone alley and the lead singer is the strapping James Petralli - vocalist-guitarist for the spastic Austin buzz band White Denim.
The three-piece, which also includes bassist Steve Terebecki and drummer Josh Block, has been on the road in spurts throughout most of 2008. Monday night's performance at Stereo, the Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed office building turned inner city vegan café and venue, was the last of a two-week string of shows in Western Europe and the U.K. with the London-based Six Nation State. The night before, White Denim played the Ruby Room in Manchester and had a late start heading to Glasgow the following morning, delaying their arrival by a couple of hours.
Petralli, whose long hair peeks from under a blue and red knit cap, now sits on a bench seat in the back of the cluttered van, plucks a cigarette from a bronze-colored pack, asks if he can smoke, and begins to explain the band's tardiness. "We had kind of a late night last night." He taps the cigarette in an ashtray on a side panel. "We played the new record for the record label people, and I drank a little too much whiskey." He's speaking of the re-release of "Workout Holiday," the band's first full-length album on the U.K. label Full Time Hobby. The re-release includes selected songs from White Denim's full-length U.S. debut "Exposion," plus the addition of a bonus EP, which bridges the gap between the two albums.
The vocalist is careful to clarify that such late-night indulgences have been the exception for him on this tour; he damaged his voice early on in Holland. "We visited Amsterdam, and I smoked a lot of filterless cigarettes," he says, pausing for a moment of loaded reflection. "... It's been a long couple of weeks."
Just then, Josh Block appears in the window of the van and pulls at the handle on the sliding door. He pokes his head through the rectangular opening, "You've gotta see this band - they're really good!" He's referring to the Glaswegian four-piece Schnapps, whose sonic reverberations can be felt all the way into the alley. Petralli seems unfazed, nods and continues with his train of thought as Block retreats back inside the club.
Of all the rigors of touring, the most difficult task, Petralli says, is the lack of exercise and food selection. "Diet is one of the biggest things ... because I don't like eating fast food."
Though Scotland and England bear many historical and cultural offerings, it is sad to say that food cannot often be included within its list of global contributions. Truthfully, most Scottish and English cuisine can be narrowed down to two categories: boiled or fried. This culinary conundrum lends itself to the affliction of which White Denim menacingly calls "van belly."
But there's a lot more to the U.K. than food. For starters, as Petralli notes, U.K. audiences are a lot livelier than those stateside. "London's been the best for us ... but we're still doing really humble shows. People actually dance to our songs and know the words and even mosh."
What's most curious to the charmingly modest musician, however, is the age range among European crowds. "It's really interesting. We'll have 14-year-old kids show up to well ... did you see the guy with the cane inside? He's our Glasgow fan."
To the credit of the band, there was more than just a lone elder in the audience. In fact, throughout the entire 45-minute set, the basement of Stereo was awash with jerking bodies and spastic dancing. The boys ended with an encore, which seems to be customary for headliners in these parts, and wasted little time in packing equipment and loading up the van.
Terebecki and Petralli had an early flight to catch the next morning, and the band was eager to embark on its three-month respite from touring. Their next show comes after Petralli's wedding in January and just after Valentine's Day in Guadalajara, Guadalajara.
Shannon McGarvey is a former American-Statesman writer now attending graduate school in Scotland.
— Originally featured in the Austin American-Statesman and on Austin360.com
...please visit my Scotland-related blog at thelookingglasgow.vox.com.
Scotland's latest musical export, the Glaswegian four-piece Frightened Rabbit, descends on the Mohawk with New York City indie rock veterans French Kicks and locals Zykos. Emerging from the same scene that birthed acts such as Belle and Sebastian, Mogwai, Franz Ferdinand and Travis, Frightened Rabbit's most recent release (the group's second release in a year), "The Midnight Organ Fight," breaks away from the well-worn musical traditions of that distinguished scene with soulful ballads and melodies. — Shannon McGarvey (Originally featured in the Austin American-Statesman and on Austin360.com)
.jpg)
Frightened Rabbit at the Kelvingrove Museum in Glasgow, courtesy of David Gourley
Earlier this week, Glasgow's Lord Provost Bob Winter made his case to the cultural wing of the United Nations in Paris for the city's official title as "City of Music."
If successful in its bid to the UN, Glasgow will join an exclusive group of world cities which have been inducted into its Creative Cities network. The title, just as the "City of Literature" epithet granted to neighboring city Edinburgh in 2004, would be a permanent acknowledgement of the city's musical heritage and its role as a leading centre of music-making.
After all, this is the scene that produced acts such Belle and Sebastian, Mogwai, the Jesus and Mary Chain, and, lest we forget, Simple Minds and Sheena Easton.
Read more about the Glasgwegian bid here.
Oone of Glasgow's most famous venues, King Tut's Wa Wa Hut
