Dubai SoundCity, if you know the city, makes for a terribly misleading title. I am certain many considered parading the nether regions of the country searching for an abandoned construction site west of an abandoned construction site. That said, the culture nomads and beer-chugging entourage find themselves back in the popular bars and lounges across the city for a promising international indie line-up including the likes of The Doves, Nitin Sawhney, Super Furry Animals, Post War Years and Human League. Old-timer British pop seemed like the calling and since a series of unfortunate events had me elsewhere when The Doves and Nitin Sawhney performed, I chose to skip the rest of the shenanigan.
The last night, though, at Dubai Festival City, I had the fortune of playing another gig with the increasingly intriguing Gayathri Krishnan and the supremely talented Aaron Kim on cello. More on that in a bit.
By default I managed to catch a few artists, some more artistic than others.
First off, Parisian dance/pop/rock (this slightly enigmatic description finds itself on their MySpace page) duo, Slutterhouse donned the unsettling floating stage for an extended show. Polite applause ensued. And then, I sense it was a tad less polite and more, suggestive, most certainly expecting to mark the end of a song, and hopefully the gig. I trust Slutterhouse and their Russell Brand-esque frontman were better suited to a smaller stage facing dark shadows and brighter lights.
The night's find had to be, perhaps, Canada's finest singer-songwriter since the lovely Leslie Feist, Dan Mangan ably accompanied by his trusty guitar and quick wit had the laid back setting to his liking, I suspect. I listen to his older album, Postcards and Daydreaming, as I type this post. While he often stands close to wearing into predictability, he does undoubtedly have strong penmanship. He immediately reminds a listener of Glen Hansard or Damien Rice on their stock tracks. His rendition of Tina's Glorious Comeback from his newest album was quite simply, super. He's got the number on his acoustic guitar. It didn't seem obvious at first but his music leans toward the likes of Joshua Radin. End of the day, he is another indie folk artist, with good writing, acoustic guitar, and guttural voice, and may just wane away unnoticed. Shame.
(Note: Not What You Think It Is on the aforementioned album. Worth a listen. Smooth trumpet accompaniment.)
We got on stage post a shake of the hand and slap on the back for Mr. Mangan. We float on a dinghy toward the spectacle that is the floating stage. More in terms of "Why? Oh, Why?"
So, we are on stage, my first show with a slightly moody electric guitar and the most amateurish patches on a Digitech pedal. I try. 45 minutes, one rough bout of waves that sent our frontwoman into a tizzy and the nagging hum of a poor guitar pickup, and we were back on blessed land.
Feet on harder surface, a tight grip on sentiment.
Four weeks, four major shows, TV and festival included, and Gayathri and The Immigrants (I make this bit up...but it's catchy eh? No?), had made the mark they most certainly didn't foresee. My weak link of a guitar sense was hidden in plain sight by the supreme cellist, Aaron Kim. If time and place are on his side, look out for him. Herbie Hancock, we hear, might just nod his agreement. If not, Howard Shore. As for Gayathri, they isn't much else stopping her anymore. There's talent and there's talent. And there's her. Reminds us amateurs of our place. We'd never ever mind it coming from someone as beautiful as her.
Caught a glimpse of Saudi-based hiphop act, Qusai and the Jeddah Legend. Didn't see enough to reiterate but there was a sense they were more professional than they'd give up. Very good sound.
The night ended with a few Stellas down the hatch at the Belgian Beer Cafe. Excellent place. Drop in when you get the chance.
Over and out.
2 comments:
I loved Slutterhouse's performance, and certainly applauded them in the spirit of thanks and excitement.
I am glad I got to discover their music through their live performance.
It is dangerous to impose and assume one's own state of mind on the rest of us who were there.
It amuses me that just because Slutterhouse's front-man has long hair that he immediately be compared to Russell Brand? In what sense?
or was it simply for you to plug in a few pop culture references here and there?
I wouldn't deny a place in music for a band like Slutterhouse. Was never my intention to even suggest it. In fact I wouldn't take back my suggestion they need a different sort of stage.
As for the Russell Brand comment, was just a dash at apparently ill-fated humour. My apologies if the frontman, Russell Brand or anyone else, took it poorly. Where I come from, Brand isn't even pop culture, just vaguely remembered as the sex addict in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. But in hindsight that makes the comment far worse.
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