Nine Inch Nails
The first few dates of the Japanese/European/Latin American/who fucking cares it's not where I can see them Tour have come and gone, the Japanese ones anyway.
The first show featured one live debut, that of "Hand Covers Bruise", which sounded great on some Japanese dude's iPhone and flowed perfectly into "Beside You In Time", a song which hadn't been played live in almost ten years.
Fuck me, The Downward Spiral came out twenty years ago. Excuse me as I age, screaming, in the corner.
Other than that and Mariqueen joining them on stage at the end of night two to perform "Ice Age" and "BBB" by How to destroy angels, nothing new on the setlist that Reznor promised to be spilling over with Year Zero and Fragile material.
Hm.
Speaking of Nine Inch Nails live...their performance at Austin City Limits from last year has been given a broadcast date of April 5th, which will, hopefully, coincide with the full release of the live Blu Ray.
Sadly, only about half of the set will be shown.
The fuckers.
I thought everything was bigger in Texas.
There was also this interview, which, in case you don't have eighteen minutes to listen to it, Senartor Busyasfuck, the last few minutes have Reznor addressing the goddamn motherfucking Fragile deluxe edition, which is, apparently, ready to go. Then, this cockteasing whoremouth mumbled something about have FORTY* unfinished demos, ranging from noises to finished songs just...sitting there until he decides how and what to do with them.
To answer your question, yes, I would rather he cancel his tour and his work on Gone Girl if it meant we'd have this fucking thing before 2015. 2014 marks the fifteenth anniversary of The Fragile, and having it come out around September...oh, I don't know, 21st? would be just the best fucking thing to happen since ice cream.
Will it though?
All signs point to Reznor.
Who softly whispers... "soon".
Beck
Homeboy, you just bought yo' self about eight months of me not bitching about your lack of stuff.
...
Although, in that time, if you want to release some more of those 12" vinyls, I'll buy them.
Just sayin'.
Here's what else happened with Beck this month: after Morning Phase came out and I had listened to nothing but it for two weeks (here's the review), I went back and just flailed around in a huge sea of Beck. I had never listened to those handful of country songs on Mutations, never, so I gave them another chance and, duh, guess what, you fucking idiot**, I liked them. Because they're performed and written by a superfuckingtalent musician. God, sometimes I'm so self destructive. "Bottle of Blues"? Are you kidding me? What a great song that's been out since 1998.
You dolt.***
Anyway, aside from gaining a new appreciation for all of Mutations, I spent some time with Guero and its companion remix album (along with all the other remixes, not just the thirteen on the disc) Geurolito.
I know the album was good, I know all his albums are good, but I always seem to forget how good.
Am I really just talking about how good Beck albums are?
Yes, it appears that I am.
So, moving on.
Eels
2014 tour dates have been announced and, on June 1st, I will be seeing Eels for the seventh time...at the Apollo Theater. Very excited about what this particular venue could mean. The last two Eels shows that were seated were at the Highline, where E and the Chet came out and marched all over the Eels catalogue, and their once-in-a-lifetime performance at Town Hall with a string quartet and a few multi-instrumentalists. Could I see Eels performing with a choir?
Yes I could.
In other news, the cover of the new Tori Amos album, Unrepentant Geraldines, was revealed on Perez Hilton's site on the 18th. A side note: based on his writing, I would have guessed that Perez is a 13-year old girl. Just saying.
It looks like the motif for the artwork will be that of paint.
So.
For all your painters who are also Tori fans, this looks like it's going to be your kind of album.
On the 19th, she posted pre-order stuff and whatnot.
If I don't sound ecstatic about this album, it might be because she's said it's going to be a step away from the dense, bold orchestral nature of her last few releases a return to her songwirting roots.
Bottom line: I'm worried we're going to get more bland, Adult Contempory music from Tori AMos.
Guess we'll find out in a few months.
And then, there's St. Vincent. In February, we got the new album (review coming very soon) and the first night of the North American leg of her Digital Witness tour, at Terminal 5. I've covered the album in the review and will only say that it's fantastic and that you should listen to it now, so I'll focus more on the show here.
I'd only seen Annie Clark perform once before with David Byrne on their Love This Giant tour, and it was an amazing show, their back and forth was just perfect for the what they were trying to achieve, but then, at Terminal 5...
Sometimes, Annie Clark was a robot sex kitten. Sometimes she was a malfunctioning robot sex kitten. Sometimes she was a friend, confiding similarities between you and her. Sometimes a figure in a cuckoo clock (moving in tandem with her spectacularly talented bassist/keyboardist/back up singer, Toko Yasuda). Sometimes a Silent Hill nurse, missing only a rusted scalpel to complete the picture. Sometimes a goddess, sometimes the sacrifice offered unto said goddess.
She also played a guitar that made the most wonderful, horrible, compelling sounds.
After ridiculously punishing hours of rehearsal, some spent with choreographer, Annie-B Parson, we finally get to see it all pay off in just under two hours. Most of the evening was focused on her new, self-titled album (all of which was amazing, specifically when she followed "Huey Newton" with "Bring Me Your Loves", my two favorites tracks on the new album), but she made sure to represent her older material as well, hitting about half of Strange Mercy and a handful from her first two albums.
Highlights included "Digital Witness", "Laughing With A Mouth Of Blood", and "Cheerleader", one of my favorites from her last album.**** There was a brief punk rock/thrash segment which consisted of "Northern Lights" and "Krokodil" and then, there was the encore: a heart-wrenching solo rendition of "Strange Mercy", then "The Bed" and, finally, the violent juxtaposition of "Your Lips Are Red".
Within two hours, we had witnessed Annie Clark go from flirty, quirky and leggy***** to panting, staring and all-consuming, like a sun in supernova.
It was terrifying and invigorating and astonishing.
And, now you may go, preferably to buy Morning Phase and St. Vincent and to pick up tickets to see St. Vincent live on her Digital Witness tour.
* That's twenty two MORE than eighteen, in case you're keeping track.
** Me, not you, You're smart. And pretty.
***Again, me, not you, You also smell great.
**** Mind you, these are picking out brighter patches from the surface of the sun. This show was amazing.
***** Good lord, are her legs something worth discussing.
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