The wickedness of civilisation, at least in its capitalist extant, is to borrow the profit of today against the misery of tomorrow.
2 CommentsCategory: Music
This bit of guitar porn is a dance video itself. Sex sells. Especially good sex. Thanks Jeppe.
Leave a Comment
Another good concert in the fabulous Melt series from Pazit . The Melt series in the Austellungsraum at 23 Gumpfendorferstrasse is the most vibrant concert series in Vienna now for electronic and experimental music. Pazit focuses usually on strong singer/songwriters and doesn’t really limit the series too much by genre. In the current series of concerts, there’s been real experimental, along with Falco revival Tanz Baby and even almost reggae.
Tanz Baby is a little bit kitsch with David Kleinl going somewhat over the top in his ersatz Falco persona. But like the original Falco, Tanz Baby is playful and fun. Everyone there had a great time.
Here are some photos.
tanz baby david kleinl bubbles
tanz baby david kleinl
1 Comment 
Superb trumpet play, along with quiet mastery on the guitar. Your ears are there for Paolo Fresu but Ralph Towner makes it all possible.
I bought the Chiaroscuro CD while I was there. Surprisingly the CD is just a shadow of how Fresu and Towner play live together. This is one rare occasion where the live performance clearly outranks what the musicians can do in the studio. I guess you had to be there.
Porgy & Bess artistic director Christoph Huber was very animated after the show as well. It was one of the top five concerts I’ve ever attended there in five years.
Paolo Fresu on trumpet
Paolo Fresu on trumpet
Paolo Fresu on trumpet
Leave a Comment 
Managed to catch some Viennale films and a couple of Viennale parties.
The strange thing at the parties is that many of the people there had not been to any films or to just one film. I suppose at the films many of the people had not been to any parties.
If you get the chance, I’d recommend to do both.
While I was at the Soul Powered evening on 31 October I managed to snap some photos both upstairs and downstairs.
Viennale party upstairs Badeschiff
Leave a Comment 
Tomasz Stanko is a legend of Jazz trumpet. He’s won more prizes than you or I could forget. So what has he done with his later years?
Instead of getting toasty around the couch playing old standbys (often what happens to older jazz musicians and even more so with rockers), boring himself and us, Stanko puts together a new collective every two or three years with hand-picked younger recruits.
With fresh blood in his veins (Stanko refers to himself as a vampire), he infects his young with his talent and musical ingenuity. The result tonight is called the Tomasz Stanko Nordic Quintet.
The music was langorous and melodic. An easy to degust, but complex pleasure.
Alexi Tuomarila’s work on the piano was understated but overwhelming. Olavi Louhivuori showed more flash on drums but equal power. While less scintillating themselves, Jakob Bro and Anders Christensen on electric guitar and electric bass solidly held up the foundation under Stanko, Tuomarila and Louhivuori.
Not to be missed if you get the chance.
Here are some pictures of Tomasz Stanko Nordic Quintet in action at Porgy & Bess – I recommend clicking an image for the slideshow as that houndstooth jacket wreaks havoc with the ImageMagick thumbnail algorithms.
Alexi Tuomarila Tomasz Stanko (Leica 90mm 2.8)
Alexi Tuomarila Tomasz Stanko Jakob Bro (Leica 90mm 2.8)
Leave a Comment 
On Monday, I thought I was dropping in on a young composers concert at Porgy and Bess. Something about the Konservatorium Wien. To my surprise, there turned out to be as much dance and performance as music.
MIR geht es gut – Petra Straussová
The best dance piece which I saw was called MIR geht es gut. It’s about two girlfriends who meet repeatedly in the underground or at a joga class or via a quick handy call. If you’ve lived in Vienna any period of time, you are familiar with the persistenty shallow "Mir geht’s gut und dir?" At first you think they really want to know. But not at all. It’s equivalent of the empty North American. "How are you?" for which there is only one acceptable answer. "I’m great and how are you?"
MIR geht es gut – Petra Straussová
It’s an absurd situation. Why do people speak at all if they have nothing to say. Both Petra Staussová and Simone Kühle managed to catch the inflection and frantic feel-good vibe of the modern urban woman perfectly.
Leave a Comment
Rigmor Gustafsson Quartet at Porgy and Bess Vienna February 24 2009.
The club was quite full. The audience really enjoyed Rigmor Gustafsson’s sets. The musicians were very professional. A good chill atmosphere. Nothing electric though. An agreeable evening of pop-jazz.
Something of a time-warp back to the days of James Taylor and Carly Simon. Amusingly enough those two are now bourgeois.
