KDHX photography highlights: May 16-22

Concerts galore and week three of KDHX’s own Harvest Sessions featuring Kevin Buckley and Ian Walsh with Circus Flora at Tower Grove Park, this week’s photo highlights also feature Warren Haynes, Holly Golightly, Joe Purdy and the Milk Carton Kids, Theodore and Roy Book Binder.

Be sure to check back next Monday for this weeks photos! You can also check out the full galleries at KDHX.org

The Blind Nils

Blind Nils at The Firebird. Kate McDaniel

WarrenHaynes

Warren Haynes at The Pageant. Joanna Kleine

Roy Book Binder

Roy Book Binder at Off Broadway. Nate Burrell

Ian Walsh

Ian Walsh at Harvest Sessions. Sara Finke

Theodore

Theodore at Off Broadway. Jarred Gasterich

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Posted by | May 23, 2011 | Concerts, Photos | Comment 

Concert photos, Foals, Freelance Whales and the Naked and Famous at the Firebird, Saturday, April 23

KDHX Photographer Dustin Winter caught the sold out Foals show at the Firebird, Saturday night. Freelance Whales and the Naked and Famous opened the bill.

All photos by Dustin Winter. See more at my Flickr Stream.

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Posted by | April 24, 2011 | Concerts, Photos | Comment 

Concert photos: the Civil Wars and White Dress at the Old Rock House, Saturday, April 23

The Civil Wars played to a sold out crowd at Old Rock House last night. The duo, made up of Joy Williams and John Paul White, proved incredibly playful both in their interactions with each other and their songs. They delighted the crowd both with there original work, and the covers they played. White Dress, the project of Arun Rae, opened for the duo. She certainly set an appropriate tone for the evening, singing songs of love, loss, and other lessons she learned living in rural America.

All photos by Kate McDaniel. See more at my Flickr Stream.

Posted by | April 24, 2011 | Concerts, Photos | Comment 

Concert review: Jónsi (of Sigur Rós) lights up the Pageant, Tuesday, November 2

Jónsi

myspace.com/jonthorbirgisson

It may seem pretentious to use the word rapturous to describe a concert-going experience, but the delight of seeing Jónsi Þór Birgisso is difficult to describe in any other way. Jónsi — singer and guitarist of Sigur Rós — is on tour for his 2010 solo record, Go. Expectations were set high for this tour for those familiar with the renowned live performances of Sigur Rós.

High expectations and all, this show did not disappoint. It was glowing.

Jónsi made a quiet entrance to a darkened stage for an intimate performance of “Stars in Still Water.” He brought the Pageant to nearly complete silence, save for his beautiful and fragile falsetto and an acoustic guitar, the moment felt delicate and sincere — a theme that would resonate throughout the evening.

The backdrop came to life with images of animated trees and animals that looked surreal and playful like something out of Spike Jonze’s reimagining of Where The Wild Things Are. The cinematic elements of the stage show added tremendously to the performance without being a distraction. This was more than just a rock concert; it was an immersive multimedia experience that intimately tied together the visual medium with that of sound.

The array of emotions and images that were displayed over the span of the 90-minute set were at times fragile, whimsical and touching, while other times the mood shifted to something more euphoric yet enchanting. The show was so well orchestrated between the epic and swelling sounds of Jónsi and his backing band and the beautiful visual imagery that it genuinely felt cinematic. It was as if theater, film and music had somehow merged together into a single experience, at once sincere and artistic.

Jónsi has dreamed up a sound that is haunting in its beauty and subtlety tender within the force of the music. The blend of synthesized, electronic elements with live instrumentation is one that many artist attempt to balance, but there is something organic about the music that Jónsi has created. One would think that images of machinery and technology would seem more appropriate to accompany heavily produced music; however, the images of nature — rain, snowfall, animals, flowers, trees — couldn’t have been a better visual representation of how this music sounds.

Nothing could better exemplify this than “Grow Till Tall,” the show closer. The song began with glitchy, electronic samples that created a cloud of frail ambience. As the piece grew more enthralling — the layers of strings thickening and the percussion entering — the images on screen grew more dizzying. What began as a small rainstorm with trees blowing in the wind picked up intensity to a heavy rain and eventually to a monsoon. Strobe lights mimicked lightning and the machine-gun style snare drum the thunder as the entire venue became engulfed in a storm of light, sound and fog. It felt very much like a Nine Inch Nails moment.

This show ran the gamut from light and tender moments to darkened chaos. The execution was wonderful. As the final song ended and the band exited the stage, the house lights went black for the musicians’ departure. The band returned a few moments later for a farewell bow to a standing ovation.

It was an appropriate ending to a theatrical performance and stage show that made for a magical night.

Posted by | November 3, 2010 | Concerts | Comment 

Concert photos: Los Campesinos! at the Firebird, Tuesday, October 26

All photos by Jon Gitchoff. View more at my Flickr.

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Posted by | October 27, 2010 | Concerts, Photos | Comment 

Concert photos: of Montreal and Janelle Monae at the Pageant, Thursday, October 21

All photos by Jon Gitchoff. View more at my Flickr.

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Posted by | October 22, 2010 | Concerts, Photos | Comment 

Concert photos: Los Straitjackets and Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys at Off Broadway, Thursday, October 21

Somehow filling the opening slot of the bill, Los Straitjackets played their style of instrumental surf rock to a room full of swing dancers, greasers, lawyer types, longhairs…and all kinds-a-folks in between. Although often known for their excellent guitar and bass playing, the anchor of the evening was the band’s unbelievably solid drummer. With metronome-like steadiness and the ability to fall right into jaw-dropping fills and solos, Jason Smay laid the foundation for his band to steal the evening’s spotlight.

Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys followed suit and kept the room’s energy at a sweat dripping level. As the dancers shook the shack and the toe-tappers sang along, Big Sandy and the band toasted the tequila drinkers, tossed one back and continued to roll-n-rock.

All photos by Nate Burrell. See more at my Flickr stream.

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Posted by | October 22, 2010 | Concerts, Photos | 1 Comment 

Bob Dylan stuck inside of Winston-Salem with the St. Louis blues again

Courtesy of bobdylan.com

One of my best friends, Michael Friedman, sent me the following as an e-mail review of Bobby’s show in Winston-Salem this past Friday. The Dylan show rolls into the Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis on October 21; I thought Michael’s missive was a nice preview of the coming attraction.

I don’t know if you are planning on seeing Zimmy this time around, but here is my report from Winston-Salem [October 16 show]:

Pacing is problematic. The show began in an almost incendiary fashion, with a truly jail-break take on “Leopard Skin,” with Bobby bopping like Jerry Lee Lewis and hitting every lyric with existential glee, followed by a gorgeous country-waltz “Don’t Think Twice” and a shockingly coherent/joyous “Stuck Inside Mobile,” with Bob doing his swivel-hip Elvis thing with the guitar…by the time he went back to the keys for “Just Like a Woman” the place was going nuts, and he milked it perfectly, letting the crowd sing on beat and then coming in with his own biting phrase a second or two late.

Alas, then he pulled out the flaccid “Rollin & Tumblin,” which zapped the mojo–it’s just not an interesting song. I will say, though, that on it, & throughout, Charlie Sexton is stunt-doubling for “Last Waltz” era Robbie R–he looks aqualine & angelic sans facial hair, and if his licks are not that “thin wild mercury sound” then I don’t know what  is.

After the lull, however, the old campaigner pulled one out of his ass, not only spitting every word of “Hattie Carroll,” but playing an absolutely gorgeous figure on the harp–i read somewhere, sometime, that the infamous manslaughter occurred at a Spinsters Ball, or that was the theme of the high-society charity dinner anyway, and the melody created during the song was definitely high southern-goth romantic, something out of Poe, which made the story even more devastating.

The rest was ok–”Shelter” was just plain weird, almost Vegas-y, and then there is something happening with his memory: the version of “Tangled” is terrific, with Bob standing center and lecturing the words like an Oxford Don, but he sang a total of 4 verses. He nailed them, but alas, only 1, 2, and the last 2 (i.e, he skipped all the way from the north woods to Montague Street, very, very odd).

On the other hand, he not only sang every line of “Thin Man,” but he didn’t miss a syllable….way weird. “Rolling Stone” was a hoot–Charlie sounding like thunderbolts/Bob’s organ doing a waves-crashing during a Hurricane thing throughout.

Strange, but probably worth it. That’s my take. mf

p.s. I forgot to note the hilarious/sublime new stage trick: they project ghost-faced/b&w images of Bob & his cowboy band on the scrim behind the stage, adding to the whole Tiresius/Land of the Dead vibe that gives the show its Tombstone charm.

Posted by | October 19, 2010 | Concerts | 1 Comment 

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