Currently viewing the category:
"Live"
Alice Grant of the quinoa like slow-release super group Moats and Thrones‘ voice is so addictive I will even listen to the audio from a muffled recording in a barn at last years In The Woods Festival on repeat (not sure where the mic was positioned, possibly outside the barn in a small puddle, these things happen).
In The Woods is one of the very few UK music festivals I will be going to this year, partly because I am so excited about putting on a stage and party at Soundwave Croatia everything else pales in comparison, and partly because for some reason everyone seems to think having the same line up as each other is a good idea.
The Laurel Collective who run In The Woods don’t think this is a good idea however, and so far they have announced the likes of Alt J, Kwes, and Peter and Kerry (previous line ups have included The Invisible, Lianne La Havas, Micachu and various other people I heart very much). I’m crossing my fingers a few other PMOI favourites may be in contention for the line up this year, but regardless I will be heading to the secret location in the woods (that’s a real secret location, not all this “secret” east London warehouse business). I’m hoping you need a compass and orienteering skills to find it. You should come too, especially if you have said orienteering skills.
My friend Theo Jemison, whose beautiful work I’ve featured here often, sent over this footage of Gil Scott Heron shortly before he passed away. There’s something so intimate about the way it’s shot, it makes you feel as though you were in the room, like an invented memory, or the memories of other gigs past joining up to take you a short leap in to the El Rey that night.
Whilst obviously Gil was a performer of the very best kind – honest, warm, sincere and musically very gifted – this kind of film makes me so grateful for film makers who are there to capture those moments for posterity. I don’t know how I would describe artists like Gil to my future kids with just their music to rely on; the next generation will be so much more visual than I, and I wonder how it will translate, but to have a little of the essence of the great and important voices of history preserved in cinematic moments like these gives me hope they will continue to live on vividly.
There is precious little decent footage floating around of Taylor McFerrin live. I saw him in Ireland last Autumn and was thoroughly impressed by his set – somewhere between beatboxing, vocal percussion, singing and electronica, which sounds gimmicky but it actually just seems very natural (perhaps not surprising for Bobby McFerrin’s son). Back in the day when Rahzel went through a phase of doing a live gig in Brighton every couple of weeks, after the initial “wow” moments you did find yourself standing there hoping he’d wrap it up. Taylor’s sets are much more like watching a soulful electronic live band you can dance to – only he does it all himself.
You can catch Taylor McFerrin live in London with Daedelus and Kutmah on Friday 13th April at Village Underground. We have two tickets to give away on the PMOI Facebook page later this week.
This is one of those moments – a Lianne LaHavas, Michael Kiwanuka, Tinashe pre-launch moment.
A friend sent me a video of Kwabena performing an unbelievable cover of “Lost Child” for the Royal Family a while back (or Prince Harry nervously sitting next to Goldie, watch it after the jump). If ever there were a moment for this guy, it’s now. There is precious little information about him floating around but I will dig around and get back to you, I promise.
