Indie-Classical: The Books Live in Concert

Something, I don't think I have shared with a whole lot of people is my love of a sub-genre slowly picking up steam, "Indie-classical". For a number of years there it was one of my favorite bands of the genre The Dirty Three producing a number of beautiful albums and holding the fort together (including the notoreity of being the the best band to back Cat Power with the wonderful album, "Moon Pix"). "Ocean Songs" from The Dirty Three still ranks up there as one of the most emotive albums I own. The idea that the swelling waves already so proficiently inhabited by Debussy, Mozart, and whatever other classical composer names you can conjure might have the ability to crash, to tip the boat, is a thing of beauty. The modern rock fan only really needs a driving drum beat to really allow any music to explode into their head. Classical, generally, has never really prescribed to that notion.

One of the oddest music comments I made was prior to seeing Christopher O'Riley in concert performing works from his first Radiohead cover album. I laughed as I said it, but he was an indie-classical pianist -- tried and true. However, in terms of his work, one of the most appealing things for me is not the ability to transform modern pop/rock to classical conventions, but to point out the correlation between modern composers and their classical forefathers. With his new album set to focus on the works of Elliott Smith, I think it finally is time to give some credit where credit is due. We are in the times of Rock-maninoff. We don't need no Rachmaninoff.

However, onto the show. Helping to lead the most recent offerings, alongside the wonderful The Arcade Fire related, the Belle Orchestre, The Clogs besides being frequent touring partners also parlay the same mood. To my untrained ears the only element in The Clogs performance lacking from The Belle Orchestre show I previously attended was the absence of drums (and horns) to set it off into much more unruly territory. The Clogs, featuring members of The National, for this show were comprised of an electrical guitarist and a violinist primarily, with the further addition of The Books filling in the stringed orchestra with acoustic guitar and cello. Their melodic natures made me want to swoon, not to mention sit down, or more aptly, lay down.

The Books themselves put on an amazing show. Combined with their aesthetic of found sounds (everything from old interviews, to trees snapping, to whatever you can imagine) they created a multi-media presentation featuring clips of videos they have procured from various thrift stores on tours. These included videos focused on the founding fathers of the Mormon church, animal documentaries, travel exposes, and so forth. The most amazing part of the show is the overall awe not only inspired by the gorgeous music, but the visual accompaniment. I read in an interview that The Books members joked that 90% of the visual corresponds with the audio and I would have to agree with that assessment. From the initial audio/visual presentation coyly alluded to with the statement, 'We tip our hats to the founding fathers of the Mormons', featuring brief clips of at least 20 different Mormon gentlemen from the late 1800s/early 1900s either removing or returning their cap, to the suggestion we reflect on meditation while one member was tuning his guitar which actually led into approximately 50 seperate anagrams culled from the letters in "MEDITATION" (including the hilarious "I TAINTED OM"), the visuals served as a form of Baraka to transport the viewer. The set included "Take Time", "Enjoy your Worries", "If not now, Whenever" and a cover of "The Cello Song" by Nick Drake.

Unfortunately, I would say it is rare to leave a show not only feeling fuller, but more intelligent, more aware, more alive. This show allowed that. I will say actually the show so fully allowed a meditation within the audience that the show aptly ended with the demonstration of a tool featuring a lamp holder, a toilet apparatus and a smoke machine to create smoke rings, while they brought up their merchandise guy Matt who ad-libbed a story for about 5 minutes with members of The Books and The Clogs ad-libbing the music in the background. The audience didn't have a second thought about this otherwise unconventional finale. They didn't have to. They were already creating the next chapter.

( il gato )