South African hip-hop trio, die Antwoord opened for Deadmau5 last week at the Paramount. Wow their songs are catchy, and great. Enjoy some fine photos photographer Jackie Canchola brought back from their set – thank you Jackie, I can’t get enough of this band:
Die Antwoord
Last week, Joel Thomas Zimmerman, better known as Deadmau5, brought his electronic/progressive house music to Seattle, eliciting a raging dance party within the Paramount. Deadmau5 put on a flashy light show that flowed perfectly with his bumping beats. Truly, a live Deadmau5 show is all about the dancing experience and getting decked out in appropriate garb, including fan-made mouse heads imitating that of Deadmau5. Opening for Deadmau5 was Die Antwoord, a South African hip-hop group that put on a very attitude-driven show that left most of the audience stunned, yet engaged with the group’s spunky “in your face” live routine. Please enjoy photos from the show below! More photos available here.
Deadmau5
Die Antwoord
Rusko is on fire, that’s for sure. I was able to stand a little bit next to this fire at his recent appearance at the Showbox Market. The dubstep star displayed the heavy prowess of his sound – it’s kind of like if some electronic music is sheer pop, then Rusko is like excellent metal. I heard this especially in “”Woo Boost” and “Cockney Thug” – wait actually it’s pretty much in everything. The audience never let up once either, and danced, jumped and screamed through the entire show. I will see him again in a heartbeat, and he mentioned he’d be back here in January (yes!). One of Rusko’s openers was Kid Hops, a Seattle DJ who is both a radio deejay and DJ. The audience happily lapped him up as well.
Rusko
Kid Hops
Atmosphere @ Rusko/Kid Hops – all photos by Dagmar
Gallery of Rusko @ Showbox Market
Gallery of Kid Hops @ Showbox Market
Do you like country music? I don’t really care if you do or not, chances are assuredly high that you will like this country music. If you enjoy well bundled songs you’re going to enjoy Brent Amaker and the Rodeo’s third LP, Please Stand By. Does it essentially differ from the prior Rodeo CDs, Brent Amaker and the Rodeo and Howdy Do? Maybe not a lot. Does it need to? Not at all. The Rodeo has a winning formula here in their dark humor mixed with deep love and respect for the country genre.
I don’t even want to sound like I am dismissing the song’s lyrics in anyway by just calling them darkly humorous. There’s actually a lot of pain and twists in them. Take “Man in Charge” and “Break My Broken Heart”. “Man in Charge,” with its I’m your worst fear/I’m your best friend/I’m a freight train coming/Coming round the bend brings in the mysteriously evil elements of other Rodeo songs, “I Guess You Wanna Die,” “You Ain’t Savin’ Me” and “This is the Gun”. The lyrics in “Break My Broken Heart,” You ain’t gonna break my broken heart/Unless you put it back together first/You’ll have to pick up all the pieces/And some of them might have turned to dust, might sound light along with the fast-paced music, but it’s very touching. I also like when Amaker sings, Break My Heart, Tiny Dancer and then there’s a guitar solo. Other songs that really capture a country western pathos are “Garden of Love,” perhaps the most romantic of all Rodeo songs, (You’re a fine looking woman/I’m a desperate man . . . love is like a flower), and “Doomed” (Love is the only legacy you leave behind/And we’re all doomed) – with yeehaws in the background.
“Talk Talk Talk Talk Talk,” is a song of theirs I have heard a few times live and I am really glad they put it on the CD. It’s funny in a lighthearted, kind of frightening machismo way (You should hold your tongue my dear/ You talk a lot but I can’t hear/anything but lies from you). The outro ends with one of my favorite lines, Thanks for coming folks/Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out. Amaker’s voice, with its low growl, is one of my favorites and the instrumentation on Please Stand By is clear and warm. It’s Brent Amaker and the Rodeo’s best entire CD to date. Take your hat off to the masters.
Brent Amaker and the Rodeo – Please Stand By (Spark and Shine Records)
Please Stand By is out October 19th.
On Sunday night, international sensation M.I.A. brought her highly anticipated live show to the Showbox at the Market, performing an upbeat yet rather short set before a sold out crowd. The show was a visual feast for the eyes, with a large projector and flashing lights on stage, and M.I.A. and her dancing troupe adorned in fashionable costumes. M.I.A. herself was a ball of energy, making full use of the stage by dancing and attempting to crowd surf by leaning out onto the crowd. The set ended with a 4-song encore, concluding with “Paper Planes,” during which M.I.A. pulled audience members up on stage to dance with her. Full set lists for both M.I.A. and opening act Rye Rye are below, in addition to photos from the evening. More photos can be found on Suzi Pratt’s Flickr.
M.I.A. set list: Message // IllyGirl // World Town // Bucky Done Gune // Galang // Boyz // Bamboo Banga // XR2 // Lovalot // Story to Be Told // Born Free // ENCORE: Space // Tequilla // Stepping Up // Paper Planes
Rye Rye set list: Bang This Bitch Out // Get Up // Wassup Wassup // Hardcore Girls // Rock Off Shake Off // Witch Doctor // Sunshine // Bang // Exotic on the Speaker // Shake It to the Ground // Party in the USA
Rye Rye
