All our gods are on the wall

[sovay]

Mission of Burma, two nights in a row at the Bowery Ballroom: absolutely amazing. I don't say this only because ericmvan got us comp tickets. This was the tour to celebrate the remastered, definitive editions of their three original albums, so they performed the entirety of Signals, Calls & Marches (1981) on the first night and Vs. (1982) on the second, with non-album or previously unreleased songs like "Max Ernst," "Devotion," or "Forget" (to name three I love) wherever most chronologically appropriate. I had heard all but one of the songs before, but easily half of them from studio, demo, or live recordings only. And frankly, I thought their performances this weekend were better than any version on CD. They're spikier in person, noisier in the best of ways; all sorts of things are going on in the music. The same way some people grow into their faces, after twenty-eight years they sound even more like themselves. How awesome is that? Now I want them to record all their new songs.

There may be more description when I have slept slightly more than an average of five hours per night. There will not be photographs, since I forgot to bring my camera and therefore have exactly one picture (of a mural in the American Museum of Natural History) taken on my cellphone, which I did not buy for its photographic qualities. We ate at two terrific restaurants, Café El Portal and 'inoteca. We did not have time for the Strand. Otherwise—

gwynnega does a brief and beautiful job with mad science. They were iridescent blue and orange, and they would have been my flesh and bone.

I do not agree with this reviewer, but as snark goes, he's first-rate.

Apparently I am polysemic.

Anything else will have to wait until I've woken up.

Comments

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

I do not agree with this reviewer, but as snark goes, he's first-rate.

As soon as I saw that was a link to The Guardian, I knew you were talking about Peter Bradshaw. Yup, that's him; he takes a particular pleasure in slaughtering movies he didn't like, which is more entertaining than enlightening. I wish it were possible to sort through their website and pick out his one star reviews (one star being the minimum), but here's a random recent example:

In his initial innocent mode, Callow's don has an odd stammer, and in fact appears to be possessed by the spirit of Derek Jacobi playing Claudius. But then he transforms into Crowley, and winds up sporting an extraordinary purple suit, which all too frequently he removes, revealing a robust physique, and in this mode looks like a cross between Buster Bloodvessel and Clement Freud's dog Henry in the Minced Morsels adverts. Truly, the forces of darkness are upon us.

[sovay]

I wish it were possible to sort through their website and pick out his one star reviews (one star being the minimum), but here's a random recent example

"If you have young children or impressionable maiden aunts in the vicinity, then usher them away from this newspaper right now with your hand cupped protectively over their eyes. For this is a British film about the notorious satanist Aleister Crowley, co-written by Iron Maiden lead singer Bruce Dickinson, in which the lead role is taken by Simon Callow, who overacts and repeatedly gets his moobies out. Oh, great heavens above."

. . . Wow.

[lesser-celery.livejournal.com]

I like the part about getting his moobies out.

[xterminal.livejournal.com]

LUCKY LUCKY LUCKY

I never get Mission of Burma. But then that's 'cause they're not from here. grumble.

[sovay]

I never get Mission of Burma. But then that's 'cause they're not from here.

They're playing in Philadelphia, Chicago, and Detroit in late June and mid-July, if any of that's of use to you . . .

[xterminal.livejournal.com]

Needless to say, the day I'm in Detroit, they're in Chicago. Life is grand!

[sovay]

Needless to say, the day I'm in Detroit, they're in Chicago.

. . . Philadelphia?

[xterminal.livejournal.com]

The most boring eight-hour drive east of the Mississippi is from Cleveland to Philadelphia. And I can't afford the time off work. Bleah. (Because I'm going out there in August!)

[ap-aelfwine.livejournal.com]

Glad you had a good time.

Gladder that the squash monster hasn't yet got you. ;-)

Thanks for the links.

I hope you get some sleep soon.

[sovay]

Gladder that the squash monster hasn't yet got you.

I'm keeping a close eye on it . . .

[ap-aelfwine.livejournal.com]

I'm keeping a close eye on it . . .

I'm very glad to hear that.

[gwynnega]

Those Mission of Burma shows sound great.

Thanks for the rec!

[sovay]

Those Mission of Burma shows sound great.

They are terrific live. I think they'll be on the West Coast in September.

Thanks for the rec!

It's a really good story!