Canada
Feist, London PalladiumTuesday, 18 October 2011
A good measure of the passion felt for an act is how much of their crowd dresses like them. And though Leslie Feist is hardly Lady Gaga in the image stakes, it's gratifying that even in a rush to get to our seats I'm able to count at least five “... Read more... |
CD: Cowboy Junkies – Sing In My Meadow: The Nomad Sessions Volume 3Sunday, 16 October 2011
After a quarter of a century at the alt-rock coalface Canada's, Cowboy Junkies can hardly be accused of slouching. Sing In My Meadow is part three of a rapid-fire four-album project that began last year with Renmin Park, which was inspired by a trip... Read more... |
La La La Human Steps, New Work, Sadler's WellsThursday, 29 September 2011
The first half-hour of Edouard Lock’s nameless new piece is some of the most thrilling dance imaginable; dynamic, mercurial, as men and women convulsed with frenzy fight each other in stark spotlights in the dark. They’re dressed in black, so that... Read more... |
theartsdesk Debate: The Art of PerformanceSaturday, 10 September 2011
To celebrate theartsdesk's second birthday on Friday, we held a panel discussion on The Art of Performance at Kings Place, London, in the Kings Place Festival. Actor Toby Jones, singer-songwriter Mara Carlyle, harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani and... Read more... |
DVD: IncendiesThursday, 25 August 2011
Watching Incendies leaves you winded. Although it can be read as a thriller, Incendies is a drama that offers no hints of where it’s going. When it gets there, it hits hard. It’s about more than Middle East conflict, more than a search for identity... Read more... |
CD: Moonface - Organ Music not Vibraphone Music Like I’d HopedThursday, 28 July 2011
Spencer Krug must have problems knowing the name he should adopt. Over the past six years, he’s played with his main band, Wolf Parade, recorded as or with Fifths of Seven, Frog Eyes, Moonface, Sunset Rubdown and Swan Lake. Organ Music not... Read more... |
IncendiesWednesday, 22 June 2011
Denis Villeneuve’s impassioned, decorous adaptation of Wajdi Mouawad’s award-winning stage play sees a dead woman bequeath her children a mystery, which in turn unlocks the secrets of her past and ultimately theirs. The Oscar-nominated Incendies is... Read more... |
theartsdesk in Montréal: Les Francofolies de MontréalSunday, 19 June 2011
Montréal natives The Arcade Fire sing in English. Yet 65 percent of the Québec city’s population have French as their first language. Les FrancoFolies de Montréal is Francophone Canada’s annual celebration of non-Anglo Saxon music. This year, big... Read more... |
Q&A Special: Electronic Musicians BonjaySunday, 05 June 2011
A potent combination of growling electronics, sub-bass frequencies and expressive vocals seems to have moved back to the centre of the UK's pop landscape in recent months, whether via the likes of James Blake, Magnetic Man or even the unlikely... Read more... |
Dave St-Pierre Company, Un Peu de Tendresse, Sadler's WellsFriday, 03 June 2011
When asked if I wanted to go and see two dozen naked Canadians doing audience participation, the answer was, self-evidently, nonononononononono. And then, for good measure, NO. Well, I’m here to tell you, I was wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. And I... Read more... |
Rush, O2 ArenaThursday, 26 May 2011
Explosions, 40ft flames, light shows and back projections. It may have been at the Dome but at times it felt more like being in a music video. A mini-film opened the concert. Rush circa 1973 were boys called Rash, and they’d play only when professor... Read more... |
Suuns/ Gyratory System, Corsica Studios, LondonMonday, 16 May 2011
It took until the fourth song of their set for Suuns to take off. Lurching into “PVC”, the Montréal quartet gelled. Monolithic drums, pounding, relentless bass guitar and slabs of sheet-metal guitar rolled off the stage. Harnessing the power of... Read more... |
