Monday, April 18, 2011

Coachella 2011 - April 15th to 17th

This was my fifth trip to Coachella, and marked my return after a two year hiatus.

Loved:
  • Arcade Fire - humble and happy to be there. A great headliner performance.

  • Cut Copy - great music and a pretty, energetic crowd.

  • Kraddy - unexpectedly awesome Do Lab tent action.

  • Leftfield - a band I thought I'd never see live. They were my favorite act of the weekend, and their show put other electronic acts to shame. (Looking at you Armand Van Helden/Duck Sauce). The live vocals for "Afro-Left" were welcome too.

  • The Presets - their set started well but fell a little flat in the latter half. That didn't stop the crowd; no one wanted the three day party to end.
Liked:
  • A-Trak

  • Bloody Beetroots - started late and were cut off a few seconds into their finale. One of the band members freaked out and leaped theatrically from the back of the stage; presumably to argue unsuccessfully with organizers.

  • Boys Noize

  • Broken Social Scene - would have preferred to see them after dark, and maybe on a smaller stage...

  • Ellie Goulding - the sound didn't seem to be loud enough...

  • Foster the People - also started late but the few songs we saw were good. Would like to see a full show...

  • Joachim Garraud - keytar, alien masks, cameras, generally fun entertainment and solid tunes. (From a guy who "looks like a chef").

  • Phantogram - heard only a few tracks before we needed to leave for Leftfield.

  • Mumford & Sons - most humble act of the weekend.

  • Sander Kleinenberg - we arrived as his "Tron Legacy (End Titles)" remix began. Did not enjoy white girl rap (twice!?) or obviously-miming-crappy-dancing-white-guy.

  • Sleigh Bells - but they did little other than replay their album with added live screaming (after they figured out some sound issues) and guitar. (They didn't do it nearly as well as The Presets did either).

  • The Chemical Brothers - not much different to their 2010 show at The Fox Theater in Oakland, and I still prefer the older tracks, but the brothers still work it out.

  • The New Pornographers - with Neko Case!

  • The Swell Season - Glenn Hansard broke a string on his battered guitar and fixed it while Markéta Irglová sang solo.
Wasn't feeling:
  • Animal Collective - aside from not caring for their music, they had awful, cheap visuals, and for some reason were on the biggest stage late on Saturday night.

  • Caifanes

  • Cee Lo Green - late, poor sound, (understandably) pissed with his Friday afternoon time slot.

  • Duck Sauce - (young, packed, high) crowd loved the mediocre performance. Duck Sauce seemed more interested in toying with costume accessories and smiling for the cameras than playing good music. (A-Trak's solo set was better so I blame Armand Van Helden).

  • Death From Above 1979 - hipsters. Yelling. Full of themselves e.g. "I didn't wanna say but we had a riot at our SXSW show", like you know, cos we're so hip, and awesome.

  • Jenny and Johnny - boring.

  • Magnetic Man - boring. Weren't good enough to stick around for "I Need Air".

  • Skrillex - Korn made a guest appearance (??).

  • Yacht - weren't good enough to stick around for "Dystopia".
Also heard:
  • !!!

  • Beardyman - was entertaining but the Oasis Dome sound setup (and stink of horse manure) did not make for ideal circumstances.

  • Bright Eyes - I confess, I was writing work emails during this set...

  • Ratatat - I was outside the tent. Some of those who were inside assure me Ratatat were awesome.

  • Robyn - heard her big single live. Don't like her music.


Closing thoughts:
  • Schedule issues - want to see three of your favorite bands? Tough, cos they're all playing at exactly the same time. (PJ Harvey, Leftfield, Bloody Beetroots). How about most of a day where, in spite of seven (or more) music venues, nothing really interests you? (Saturday). Enjoying this performance? Good, but it's a shame you need to leave after two songs to get a spot for the next show.

  • Late starts - given the above hassle, having to deal with schedule adjustments due to consistent 20 to 30 minute late starts was not appreciated.

  • Logistics - fancy waiting an hour to get out of a parking lot at 1am after three days of partying?

  • Spoiled in San Francisco - SF has many great, cheap music venues. My 2010 Fall schedule was at least as much fun (and probably cheaper), than Coachella 2011.

  • Stamina - without artificial stimulants, and with minimal sleep, three days on your feet and/or dancing, is tough...

  • Energy - ...but there's still little comparable to sharing a Coachella live music experience with thousands of happy people, and your friends.

Will I go again? Maybe.
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Monday, December 27, 2010

Favorite Music of 2010

2010 was a great year for new music. The following are some personal favorites. There's a playlist of tracks that are available on Rhapsody - given the mix of genres it seems to work best on random. There are also links to Amazon, Beatport and iTunes where I could find them. Many thanks to all who made recommendations and introductions. Please keep them coming! (And let me know what I missed or got wrong).

Favorite tracks of 2010 (alphabetical order by artist):Also love (alphabetical order by artist):
(Obvious?) omissions include anything from Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs", Broken Social Scene's "Forgiveness Rock Record", OK Go's "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky", and "High Violet" from The National. I didn't get into any of them in time.

Finally, special kudos to Alex Metric; his remixes, BBC Radio 1 DJ sets and Twitter feed, are my source for about half of the songs above.
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Monday, November 29, 2010

SF Bay Area Concerts - Fall 2010

Fall and spring normally provide many opportunities to see live music in the San Francisco Bay Area. Fall 2010 was exceptionally fruitful.
  • The Chemical Brothers @ The Fox Theater, 28th August
    Great sounds. Fantastic visuals. Superb venue.

  • Does It Offend You, Yeah? @ Mezzanine, 18th September
    Lead singer was ill and didn't show so they played a short set of their "bangers". New tracks sounded promising.

  • Kele (Bloc Party) @ Mezzanine, 18th September
    Kele sang and played a little guitar while his group (three more people) did percussion, keyboard and effects. He also took off his Public Enemy t-shirt for the last few songs - the crowd approved. (He kept his basketball shorts on).

  • Local Natives @ The Fillmore, 22nd September
    High energy indie rock with mesmerizing choral harmonies and numerous instrument rotations. More lively than expected, they resisted the urge to rock psychedelic. Methinks they will be awesome at Coachella 2011.

  • School of Seven Bells @ The Independent, 30th September
    Great and also much more energetic than expected, thanks in part to their drummer - he beat the s**t out of his kit and enjoyed doing it.

  • Kaskade @ The Warfield, 1st October
    The show was a bit different - it was 18+, so there were semi-naked teenagers aplenty. Kaskade came on stage soon after midnight and played for nearly three hours. There was a lot from dance.love but he also mixed or sampled The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy, Justice and Swedish House Mafia among others. I was tired from the night before but we danced long enough to hear "Move For Me" close his set as we left.

  • Treasure Island Music Festival, 16th October
    • Holy F**k - I feared the open air, daylight performance would not work for their style. They proved me wrong.
    • Die (fokken) Antwoord - When I grow up I want to be a Ninja...but maybe without the incessant dick slang.
    • Phantogram - sounded good...even from the food and merchandise stalls.
    • !!! aka Chk Chk Chk - Nic Offer's funky dancing took him into the crowd. On returning he proclaimed "...advice for you! Join a band! It's a lot of fun!!".
    • Four Tet - great, livelier than expected.
    • Kruder & Dorfmeister - good tunes, first-rate light show, slightly annoying MC.
    • Deadmau5 - fantastic light show, quirky DJ goofiness, disappointing music. After two opening tracks, Joel Zimmerman played 20 minutes of tuneless beats that did not impress this fan or win new ones. He also didn't play "Hi Friend" at all (which strikes me as perfect festival music).
    • Miike Snow - much harder, better dance music than their recorded material might suggest. So much dry ice!
    • LCD Soundsysyem - excellent, polished, sober (I think!). We were a ways back and left after about four songs to catch the bus home.
    I had tickets for Sunday too but I wasn't as excited about the lineup - cold, wet weather meant I made other plans.

  • Bell X1 @ Swedish American Hall, 21st October
    The venue was cool but the seats were very uncomfortable. Bell X1 were funny and charming.

  • Laura Veirs @ The Independent, 2nd November
    Had tickets but strep throat intervened.

  • Florence and the Machine @ The Fox Theater, 5th November
    Florence was like a supernatural force. She was entertaining to watch and a joy to hear. At times, her show verged on over-indulgent (e.g. the "shawl song") but that was easily forgiven.

  • Thievery Corporation @ Greek Theatre, 6th November
    Thievery Corporation's live performance (by twelve people!) was brilliant but they made the mistake of opening with their best-loved tunes e.g. "Lebanese Blonde" - some fans had not yet arrived or were still searching for seats.

  • Massive Attack @ Greek Theatre, 6th November
    Massive Attack's propaganda machine blew my mind (again). A captivating light show of incredible, infuriating and shocking statistics (that we strained to read from near the back/top of The Greek) was accompanied by a melancholic, Mezzanine-drenched soundtrack e.g. in Britain anyone can be detained without charge for up to 42 days. In USA, imprisonment is (still) indefinite. (Canada is a single day). The concert closed with the words "beyond petroleum"...

    PS A thick blanket to sit on makes all the difference at The Greek!

  • Stars and Geographers @ The Fillmore, 10th November
    I'm a recent Stars fan and until this gig, I'd never seen them in person or paid attention to their publicity shots. They did not look how I imagined. Amy Millan was five months pregnant but still rocking out. Torquil Campbell's melodious voice belied his physical and facial intensity (which quite often, more closely matched his lyrics).
    Opening acts aren't always worth seeing but Geographers were great. Solid vocals, interesting electronic melodies and beats, strings and a drummer that looked like "Vin Diesel in a beard and sunglasses".

  • Junip (Jose Gonzalez) @ The Independent, 13th November
    The focus was off Jose and on his new band. His vocals were good but not quite as enchanting as the recorded material. Jose also refused to play any solo songs insisting "This is Junip".

  • Pretty Lights @ The Fox Theater, 24th November
    Watched and danced from the perfect spot - one section back, behind the barrier, beside the stairs. The "white-boy hip-hop" was fun but eventually the tunes became difficult to distinguish. The amount of weed smoked by crowd was impressive. No need for dry ice!

  • Bonobo @ The Rickshaw Stop, 28th November
    The nine-person band including live drums, lead guitar, trombone, trumpet, flute/saxophone/clarinet, bass guitar, keyboard and live vocals (from Andreya Triana) squeezed into a small venue that was packed in spite of the Sunday night and late start. The set was mostly tracks from Black Sands. This one was very impressed.
PS Gigs I missed included: Ratatat, Dirty Projectors, Gotan Project, Broken Bells, Caribou, Paul Oakenfold, Birds & Batteries, Hot Chip and Sleigh Bells, Clinic, The Frames.

PPS Acts I'd like to see in 2011: Soulwax, Alex Metric, Eric Prydz (aka Pryda), Phoenix, Broken Social Scene, Wolfgang Gartner, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (aka TEED). Joe And Will Ask?, The Souls.
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Saturday, October 9, 2010

Pacific Masters Swimming - 9th Oct 2010

The months preceding the Pacific Masters Short Course Championships included knee surgery, gum surgery, gum infection and strep throat. In spite of all that, I thought I was fit to compete. I ultimately proved myself very wrong.

My expectations were fueled in part by my surprisingly speedy swim in the relay earlier in 2010. My 1:00.09 split in a 50 meter pool translates to between 58.35 and 59:29 for the same distance in a 25 meter. [1][2][3]

My only event on Saturday was the 100 meter freestyle. I guessed it would take place before midday but it didn't get going until after 1pm. As a result, I hadn't eaten since breakfast (around 7am) and hoped (in vain) that Gatorade would be enough to sustain me.

The pool was outdoors but I stuck to the sparse shade. This worked fine until about 20 minutes before my heat began; a senior female competitor decided to hang out in the same area and badmouth my coach (among other things). In hindsight, I should have diplomatically asked her to get f**ked, but I listened politely while my positive energy drained away.

When it came time to race, I felt rushed and under-prepared. My dive was a too deep; my turns were poor, the halfway flip was terrible - I got much too close to the wall; my stroke felt sloppy; I ran out of steam on the last length and my finishing touch wasn't clean. I was bitterly disappointed to look up and see my time at 1:01.48, roughly three seconds slower than the equivalent distance in July. (My splits were 27.97 and 33.51).

Given my performance and since transport logistics (aka Sunday BART service) meant that I might miss the 200 meter freestyle on Sunday morning, I decided to throw in the towel.


PS Walnut Creek Masters' achievement board claims they won the Long Course Championships but USF beat them 2,777 points to 1,019.
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Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Knee arthroscopy - 14th July 2010

Background:

Since November 2009, I've been unable to run or bike without significant right knee swelling, loss of mobility, and discomfort. Less demanding tasks like walking to work, or simply standing for more than fifteen minutes, are also problematic. My knee did not respond well to standard treatments such as physical therapy, rest etc. An inconclusive MRI indicated two possible meniscus issues; discoid and a small tear. A steroid injection in May didn't help so I canceled my 2010 race plans and prepared for something more invasive...

Surgery:

During the arthroscopy, the surgeon trimmed some tissue around my kneecap (below and on right side). However my meniscus looked better than the MRI suggested so it wasn't touched. Unfortunately there was no Eureka moment. I might need more work on my IT-band and I definitely require post-surgery physical therapy.




Recuperation:

The post-surgery pain is not yet enough to warrant medication but I have that option. I can hobble around my apartment but I need crutches for the stairs and San Francisco hills outside my door. :-) Bandages come off on Saturday - I cannot shower until then (so don't visit! :P). I need to elevate and ice as much as possible. The fluid in my knee should disperse in a few days too. Stitches should come out in about two weeks. Then the real recovery starts!


Friends and family have been amazing and supportive as ever. Thank
you all so much!!
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Sunday, July 11, 2010

Pacific Masters Swimming - 11th July 2010

I missed/cancelled most of my 2010 races due to injury, includingFortunately my knee problems (discoid meniscus) (see following posts) didn't prevent swimming, so long as it was freestyle i.e. relatively little leg motion, knee bending or impact.

The 2010 Pacific Masters Long Course Championship was held in UC Santa Cruz from July 9th to 11th. I competed as part of the USF team on Saturday July 10th. Given my injury and lack of training, I was very pleasantly surprised by my performance - it was faster than at my "peak" in my teens when I trained five or six times a week, and often raced twice a month.My lack of recent race-experience and stamina is telling from my 200 meter splits - they are embarrassingly front-loaded. I also had my share of race-drama - my goggles broke as I was about to mount the blocks for my relay swim. Luckily a teammate promptly loaned replacements.


Official results. Official splits.

Here's hoping I can get race-fit in time for the Pacific Masters Swimming Short Course Meters Championships, on October 8th through 11th.

Swim distance converters:
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Friday, July 2, 2010

Batteries for Jesús - part 3

Some friends meet semi-regularly to catch-up over strong booze, good food, and great (new to the someone in the group) music. They recently invited me to join and after requests from other friends, and my own desire to capture this somewhere other than email, here are the (incomplete) "minutes" of the first session I hosted.

Luke's original playlist:
  • "Create Your Fate" Steadman
  • "Blue Hour - (home recording)" Turin Brakes
  • "Perfect Opening Line" The Frames
  • "Hollocaine" The Frames
  • "Water" Feist [i skipped this as it was too down-beat but it's worth a go]
  • "Step Away From The Cliff" Blue-eyed Son
  • "Red Lights" Holy F*ck
  • "For Silence" Paul Hartnoll
  • "Moar Ghosts n Stuff" Deadmau5
  • "Belfast" Orbital
also played:
  • "Two-Headed Boy" Neutral Milk Hotel
  • "You've Got The Love" Florence & The Machine
  • "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" Neutral Milk Hotel
  • "Black Cat" Ladytron
  • "Runaway" Ladytron
  • "Fortress" Pinback
  • "AFK" Pinback
  • "The Fatalist" Robbers On High Street
  • "West Coast" Coconut Records
  • "The Ghost Inside" Broken Bells
  • "Drunk Girls" LCD Soundsystem
  • "Dance Yrself Clean" LCD Soundsystem
  • "Streets Score (Instrumental)" The Streets
  • "Uninvited (Original) (Radio)" Freemasons
  • "Escape Velocity" The Chemical Brothers
  • "My Car Is Haunted" Royal Bangs
  • "Falling Day" Kaki King
  • "Celestica" Crystal Castles
  • "And The World Laughs With You" Flying Lotus
  • "Sun" Caribou
  • "Wide Eyes" Local Natives
We also had a screening of Circus Porcelina - I think now we're all in agreement that clowns are scary. :-) Food was provided by Paxti's on Filmore. This post title was inspired by a doll who joined us for the evening...
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