An exercise in terror and music

R.E.M.

Reading Matthew’s ‘premature evaluation‘ of R.E.M.’s upcoming album Accelerate, I realised I’d never posted my thoughts on the two shows I saw the band do in Dublin last summer. I did write about it on my Dutch music blog, but even fewer people probably read that than visit over here. So here’s a quick translation.

‘This is not a show,’ says Mike Mills, addressing the crowd through a megaphone. It’s not a gig, it’s an ‘exercise in terror and music’, Stipe explains, ‘We are R.E.M. and this is what we do when you’re not looking.’

But this time we are looking. Stipe may not be wearing make up and he may be cheating with the lyrics, using printed sheets and a MacBook on an upturned flight case, it’s still R.E.M. on stage: the three members of the band, guest guitarist Scott McCaughey and drummer Bill Rieflin.

We are in Dublin’s beautiful Olympia Theatre, a small Victorian venue in the middle of the city. This is the location R.E.M. has picked for five nights, trying out the songs they are recording with producer Jacknife Lee in a studio in county West-Meath.

R.E.M.

It’s not the first time R.E.M. has picked an Irish studio to record in. ‘Uncle’ Stipe has godchildren in this country, he’s part the U2 family in the broadest sense of the word. It’s like the mafia, once you’re in, you’re in for life.

Bono and The Edge are present at the first two shows of the five night run. Stipe thanks them from the stage, for their support and ‘for keeping me grounded’. The band’s real relatives have flown in too. On the fourth night, Stipe is telling the audience a story and when he uses the word ‘blowjob’ he suddenly buries his bright red face in his hands. ‘I forgot we’ve got family members in tonight, young ones too… well, if you didn’t know that word before…’

He’s very talkative in between the songs. They play eleven new tracks every night as well as various oldies from their first couple of albums. They fit in with the new songs the best. For the first time, Stipe explains his obscure lyrics, telling us what the stories are about and shedding light on the art of songwriting. On the third night the old songs are mostly off Fables of the Reconstruction, on the fourth it’s even further back to Chronic Town, Murmur and Reckoning.

The tickets to these shows were exclusively sold via R.E.M.s mailing list, so the people in the audience are mostly big fans, hearts ready to burst. No hits. It’s the dream of every super fan. ‘I hadn’t heard this song in 24 years until this afternoon,’ Stipe says, holding the lyrics in his hands. We savour obscure tracks like West of the Fields, Wolves Lower, Carnival of Sorts, 1000000, Harborcoat, Second Guessing and These days.

Buck and Stipe

The new songs work well in the live setting, sounding like vintage R.E.M. already, with added power courtesy of Bill Rieflin’s power drumming. In ‘Horse to water’ you feel the fire of Gravity’s Pull, and the ballad ‘Until the Day is Done’ is a gorgeous ‘King of Birds’-type ballad. The band was hurt by the slating their last album Around the Sun got in the press and determined to strike back. The songs aren’t finished yet, that much is obvious when Stipe changes lyrics on his MacBook in our presence, or when guitarist Peter Buck stops a song to explain the middle eight to bass player Mike Mills. But they’re getting there.

The band sounds great, a full rich sound, crystal clear even on the upper balcony of the venue. U2’s sound engineer of the last 30 years, Joe O’Herlihy, is manning the soundboard, doing a great job. Whether the band has managed to capture that sound on record, we’ll find out in April.

Live 8

Live8 (14) Still they lead me back
Paul McCartney is kicking just about everybody’s arse with a quick run through some Beatles’ classics. Helter Skelter, The Long and Winding Road… these are the songs I listened to when I was 11, in 1974, on a summer holiday through Denmark and Sweden with my aunt and uncle. These songs were ‘oldies’ even then. All the musicians join McCartney on stage. Midge Ure steals up to a mic, being part of it too. Geldof is very hoarse. Mariah Carey has no idea what song they’re doing. George, show us the work you had done on your face. I want to see more of Velvet Revolver.

Na, na, na, nanana, na, Hey Jude.
03 Jul 2005 00:54

Live8 (13) Who are you
Never did like The Who much, or Pink Floyd. When I was living in dorms, we’d have ‘auditions’ whenever we were looking for new flat mates. Our main criterion was music. If those first year students said ‘Pink Floyd’ and ‘Dire Straits’ they didn’t stand a chance. They were, invariably, maths & science students. We wanted people that took arts and listened to R.E.M. or Joy Division.

That said… they sound solid and even if Roger Waters is bat shit crazy, he looks a fine figure on stage tonight.
00:14

Live8 (12) Let him entertain you
The less said about Sting (another medley man) and Mariah Carey, the better. I don’t care if she’s half Irish and has a choir of cute African orphans on stage with her and that children inspire her.

Robbie. RABBBIIEEEEEE is introduced by David Beckham who looks different, ordinary tonight. Should stick to kicking balls. Robbie hasn’t been on stage in three years, he says. Doesn’t matter. ‘We will rock you’, ‘Let me entertain you’… the crowd goes mental. Finally. ‘Feel’ gives me the chills. ‘Angels’, Robbie pulls a Bono, communing with the crowd, singing straight into the camera. A big banner says ‘Robbie come home’. Methinks he already is.
02 Jul 2005 22:27

Live8 (11) Rock in a hard place
I thought Scott Weiland was dead. But I was mistaking him for Lane Staley. We’re watching Velvet Revolver, who are basically most of Guns & Roses, plus Weiland (ex Stone Temple Pilots) and another bloke. And it’s loud. And it’s rock. It’s HARD rock. Metal. Whatever you want to call it. The truth is, it’s the best fucking thing we’ve seen all day in terms of abandon, danger, theater and possibly truth. So fair play to them.
22:24 | Feedback
Live8 (10) Take your old lady out tonight
Why did The Killers only play one song in their fetching white preacher suits? Mr Flowers, he pretty. Like Snow Patrol’s guitarist. Black dress shirts always look good on a man.

Joss Stone. Next!

Scissor Sisters get everybody shouting ‘Hi mum’. It’s time they brought out a new album. We’ve kind of heard these songs. […] They read my mind and play a new song: “Everybody wants the same thing.”
21:44

Live8 (9) Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow
I’ve seen Snow Patrol a few times, recently, as they are supporting U2 in some cities around Europe. They blew us away. I’d expected to be bored, but something in their sound really got to us. It was quite emotive and brought me close to tears several times. I’m not feeling it today, so maybe it was all due to The Thrills being crap opening before them.

Talking about The Thrills… all their songs are about Santa Cruz and god knows where in America and they so desperately want to be R.E.M. they’ve even got American accents. But, as my friend’s sister in Dublin said so eloquently: “They’re from fucking Blackrock!”
21:01

Live8 (8) Does your pussy do the dog
Snoop, Razorlight, Madonna. I’m trying to solve some problem at work (weekend shift) so I’m distracted. Still, it’s not hard noticing these three acts are professional, solid and very, very entertaining. Snoop is as creepy as ever, but he has the catchy rhythms. Razorlight grab their moment in the spotlight – it’s clever and a little calculating (it worked for U2 20 years ago, they must have thought), but they still make it seem genuine. Madonna and her crew get the whole place clapping. Awesome. Eat that Britney.
20:29

Live8 (7) Oh retire already

UB40 are doing a medley. I have no words. And Davina? Shut it.

I am embarrassed to say that Greenday are growing on me. But all I ever hear them play is American Idiot.
19:17

Live8 (6) Shoot the whole day down, why dontcha
I have great respect for Geldof. And it’s not Live Aid. Or Live8. Or Rat Trap. Or I don’t like Mondays. Or any of his music.

In 1996, I heard him read from poetry he had written when Paula Yates left him for Michael Hutchence. And later, when that sad, sad story ended, he took in Hutchence’s child. That’s when I thought, there’s a great man. Begorrah.
18:29

Live8 (5) Will he or won’t he…
… be a future POTUS?

Will Smith commands a global audience, clicking his finger and speaking slowly and clearly about poverty, for the masses. This is the most impressive performance I’ve seen so far. You can take Dido (She must be tonedeaf), Stereophonics (Monosyllabic), Keane (With a face like that, he COULD be the next Bono), Ms Dynamite (Miss Dissapointeeheee), Travis (Oh god, shoot me NOW) and stuff ’em. Forget Philadelphia. Mr Smith goes to Washington.
18:16

Live8 (4) Do the dance
Ricky Gervais, on the verge of DYING on stage doing his meagre stand up routine, saves himself by doing the dance from The Office. Then the BBC disgrace themselves by showing an interview with some nobodies while R.E.M. are on stage. Gah!

R.E.M. are well rehearsed since they’ve been touring. It shows. Stipe, looking like a twat with his usual stripey make-up, has everything under control. Kew-eeeeel!
17:20

Live8 (3) It was 20 years ago today
McCartney. U2. Underwhelmed. Starts getting better but then I’m too busy blogging it over at U2log.com. Feel like I missed the whole thing. Crowd seemed flacid.
14:48

Live8 (2) It’s Christmas time… oh no it’s not!
Aaand, we’re off. Jonathan Ross in fetching egg-yellow sitting in a pod. Judging from the couches in it, I’m dead fashionable in my new pink and azure shirts.

Meg’s somewhere in that crowd.

Ah, the first innuendo of the day. Ross tells Elton John it’s lovely to have him in his pod. Ooh-er.
Jo Whiley talks to U2. Bono’s feeling sick as usual. Larry mentions going down on Noel Edmunds chopper. There you go now, that’s number 2.

Do I need to add this technorati tag to all the posts I make? (live8)
13:59

Live8 (1) World, are you ready to rock…
… the G8 leaders out of their stupor?

While I’m not overly enamoured with Live8’s line up and am a little cynical in nature, these big events always manage to get to me somewhat. Who will be the first to mention Luther Vandross (R.I.P.)? Where the fuck is Springsteen? Will U2 be donning the original Sgt Pepper outfits? As Frank Sinatra once said ‘they sure don’t spend a dime on clothing’… it’s bound to look better than their usual drab garb.
13:18

Still crazy after all these years

Maria Mckee

Performing in Amsterdam for the first time in ten years, Maria McKee seemed surprised (though you never know with her) so many had come out to see her.

Personally, I had expected a bigger crowd. The Paradiso staff had made their main room more intimate, putting tables and large plants down and moving the soundstage up a good way towards the stage.

She played all my favourites. Even the oldies: Breathe, Dixie Storms, Shelter, Wheels… fabulous to hear them all again, as well as tracks off her new album ‘Peddlin’ Dreams’. Unpredictable and slightly mad (she says) as ever. Another one of those ‘criminally’ underestimated artists I like so much.

Setlist: You Are The Light, I Can’t Make It Alone, Am I The Only One, Peddlin’ Dreams, High Dive, Wheels, The Horse Life, Shelter, Turn Away, Sullen Soul, Worry Birds, If Love Is A Red Dress, Dixie Storms, Barstool Blues, People in the Way, In Your Constellation, Everyone’s Got A Story, Breathe, Life Is Sweet.

Some photos