I Get A Kick Out Of You ... In the dictionary of rock which I intend to write when I retire to a seaside
villa (built with the profits from my unstoppable blogging), under the definition of the word cool, there will be a photograph of Mark Lanegan. In the raging electrical storm that was the Screaming Trees (there at the end of the '80s - early '90s) he was the calm at the eye of the cyclone breaking out all around him, holding on to his microphone stand at the center of the stage and delivering his lyrics with a powerful voice capable of leveling the audience.
In the years that followed, in his solo career, Lanegan has proved that he can be just as effective with more stripped down, simple orchestrations. And it is this simplicity the element that dominated proceedings on the Gagarin 205 stage this Wednesday evening: three chairs, Lanegan sitting in the center with his hands on his knees, completely focused on the microphone, on his left Dave Rosser with his guitar, and on his right, his Gutter Twins partner in crime, Greg Dulli. The former leader of the legendary Afghan Whigs played the lead guitar and piano (at some point he even added harmonica to the proceedings), shared vocal duties with Lanegan (although his voice is probably best suited to a more electric sound) and handled the minimal verbal communication with the audience that had filled the seats and the corridors of the Gagarin club hours before the performance.
As expected, in this unplugged performance the material presented was very different from the previous, completely plugged in and loud as hell, Gutter Twins gig in May. This time we had the opportunity to hear several songs from the past that they don't get to play very often as well as several covers, such as The Everly Brothers hit "All I have to do is dream" or Cole Porter's "I get a kick out of you". Other highlights of the evening included "The Stations" (from "Saturnalia", Top 10 in my "Albums of the year list"), "The river rise" and "Resurrection song" (from Lanegan's solo albums "Whiskey for the holy ghost" and "Field Songs" respectively).
In conclusion, this was an excellent night out in the company of two of the most important musicians of the American rock sound of the last 20 plus years, and one of the few times that you don't have to listen to me complaining that concert organizers keep calling back the same names for shows.
P.S.1: Given that Dulli has written lyrics such as "Cigarettes are going to kill me" and in previous Twilight Singers shows he even had a special holder for his cigarettes and whiskey glass by the microphone stand, I was impressed by his shift towards a more straight edge lifestyle. Not a single cigarette in the 90 minutes of the show (keep in mind that in Greece it is still allowed to smoke in clubs) and just water for the three guys ... well done!
P.S.2: Thanks to alegra for taking the photos for mix grill and cool music central, risking her physical integrity - the security was very strict with amateur photographers this time.
In the years that followed, in his solo career, Lanegan has proved that he can be just as effective with more stripped down, simple orchestrations. And it is this simplicity the element that dominated proceedings on the Gagarin 205 stage this Wednesday evening: three chairs, Lanegan sitting in the center with his hands on his knees, completely focused on the microphone, on his left Dave Rosser with his guitar, and on his right, his Gutter Twins partner in crime, Greg Dulli. The former leader of the legendary Afghan Whigs played the lead guitar and piano (at some point he even added harmonica to the proceedings), shared vocal duties with Lanegan (although his voice is probably best suited to a more electric sound) and handled the minimal verbal communication with the audience that had filled the seats and the corridors of the Gagarin club hours before the performance.
As expected, in this unplugged performance the material presented was very different from the previous, completely plugged in and loud as hell, Gutter Twins gig in May. This time we had the opportunity to hear several songs from the past that they don't get to play very often as well as several covers, such as The Everly Brothers hit "All I have to do is dream" or Cole Porter's "I get a kick out of you". Other highlights of the evening included "The Stations" (from "Saturnalia", Top 10 in my "Albums of the year list"), "The river rise" and "Resurrection song" (from Lanegan's solo albums "Whiskey for the holy ghost" and "Field Songs" respectively).
In conclusion, this was an excellent night out in the company of two of the most important musicians of the American rock sound of the last 20 plus years, and one of the few times that you don't have to listen to me complaining that concert organizers keep calling back the same names for shows.
P.S.1: Given that Dulli has written lyrics such as "Cigarettes are going to kill me" and in previous Twilight Singers shows he even had a special holder for his cigarettes and whiskey glass by the microphone stand, I was impressed by his shift towards a more straight edge lifestyle. Not a single cigarette in the 90 minutes of the show (keep in mind that in Greece it is still allowed to smoke in clubs) and just water for the three guys ... well done!
P.S.2: Thanks to alegra for taking the photos for mix grill and cool music central, risking her physical integrity - the security was very strict with amateur photographers this time.
Relevant article