Back To The Future

I must preface this blog entry by letting you know that this will be an entry primarily about about CDs and the Renaissance Festival. It will be very scattered as the pickings of CDs this past week or so has been very diverse.

First off the Renaissance Festival here in Baltimore never falls short of providing me with entertainment and music issues, whether good or bad. Lets start with the bad. Pyrates Royal, one of the most unprofessional group I've seen perform for money, still didn't fix their problems. Talking to each other out of character during songs, loud enough to be picked up on mic's, inconsistent performance standards, and a flare of arrogance that makes you want to cut the brake lines on their car, continue to stagger me with this group. During a song last year, mid verse in fact, stopped to tell someone to get their kid away from the stage and vamped the one bar over and over until the mother came up to get the child. Thats right, the kid wasn't on the stage with them, just was dancing near it.

So I saw the Pyrates Royale twice on Saturday. The first show they were pretty sober, somewhat tight, but as usual can't hear the singing at all. The sound system on this stage is horrible, but you see, every other act pretty much brings its own body microphones and plugs into the system. They do not. In a way I'm glad they don't. The women have voices that are like cats birthing. Now before you start in with well they're supposed to be pirates. I know that, but see they present themselves as an actual band. They sell CDs while they play. One of the women prides them self as a dulcimer player. Remember this is a Renn Fest, theres dulcimers everywhere. She really should be embarrassed for bringing it with her and taking it out. Her hammering was inconsistent, and it was out of tune. In fact, everyones instruments were out of tune. No joke, they took their guitars out of the cases and just started playing. Never mind the humidity and heat, and the rapid temperature change that took place during the day. This is not how you operate as a musical group. I was embarrassed as usual seeing this group. Next year, I do not plan to attend one of their performances.

Now for a good thing out of the Renn Fest; the duo of Jenny O'Connor and Mark Varelas. They presented a very professional appearance, and highlighted their strengths. Mark was very skilled on various lutes, particularly the Bouzouki. His tremolo strumming was accurate and tastefully done. They did two amazingly well done covers. One was The Victor by Dick Dale, who Mark admits to being an influence in his playing. Rare to hear a folk musician say they were inspired by a rocker. The other, along those lines, was Kashmir by Led Zeppelin. This was also amazingly done. Jenny was very skilled on the violin and her extended techniques and pitch bends were done quite well. This was the first group I had ever seen get a standing ovation at the festival. I had to purchase their CD. I had to have it. We even listened to it in the car on the way home. It helped us all relax after a hard day at the fair(e).

This week I made some interesting selections from the library on CD. The Pixies "Doolittle", the Clash's "London Calling", Ozzy Ozbourne's "Black Rain", and Within Temptation's "The Heart of Everything". Not many people know that punk music holds a special place in my heart, because of its free spirited-ness and its ability to just destroy music's conventions. You don't need to have a good singing voice, virtuoso on guitar, or a great lyricist. You are doing it because it feels good. This past week I spent some intimate time with "London Calling" by The Clash. Its an amazing composition. Its three chords and the same melody over and over again. and the melody doesn't even cause tension with the chords. Its just E minor and A minor back and forth, the bridge is in B, then its right back. The "guitar solo" is nothing but a distorted E. Yet this song is one of the most beloved in the world of rock. On the same level, this is why The Pixies appeal to me. I can't stand their sound, but I can't stop listening at the same time. Its just so different my ear falls in love with it. Ozzy, he just flippin' rocks. On "Black Rain" Ozzy seems to to go back to the raw power and sound of 70's metal. A clean, dry sound on bass, and little guitar distortion, and Ozzy's nasal voice just culminate into an amazing sound that no other band in rock can bring. The tight solos by Mr Zakk Wylde are amazing. This weeks wildcard was the band "Within Temptation". I had only heard them mentioned by the lead vocalist of the band Nightwish, which is another great metal band that of which I am fond. I was not familiar with them, but a symphonic metal band with a female vocalist, just couldn't miss. I did like this band, but I am a big fan of guitar solos and transition sections, of which there weren't many. The band has a good power sound and her voice is clear and ethnic sounding. Of all the prog/symphonic metal bands I've heard, they do the best in solving the problem of getting the vocals to fit the heavy style of the music, but they did that by making the styles so far opposite of each other, it is a refreshing sound. I do love this album, and added to my iPod, like everything I mentioned above, but I will not be purchasing my own copy of the CD. I think they have a lot of room to grow and the next album, if they keep with it, will be the polished gem they need.

I hope this blog finds you having a great musical experience and peace.